FAREWEL IAN WILLS

Ian Wills 9 June 1954 to 13 June 2009
Around 300 people recently gathered to farewell one of Samford Valley’s well-known identities, Ian Wills, who lived and worked in the district for over thirty years, and who passed away peacefully at home aged 55 years after a long battle with cancer.

Ian James Wills was born in Brisbane on 9th June 1954.  He was the eldest of five sons for his parents Jim and Joyce and the first grandchild for both sets of grandparents.  From an early age his determination and ability to solve problems was evident.  When he pulled his toys apart and tried to work out how to put them back together, his maternal grandmother always remarked that it was his “enquiring mind” and that he “just needed guidance in the right direction”.
Ian’s primary school years were spent at Newmarket State Primary School which was not far from where the family lived in Banks Street.  When he was around eight years of age he holidayed on the sheep property belonging to relations at St George and this was where he realised his love of working on the land and its associated lifestyle.
School work was tough for Ian especially at Brisbane Grammar School where he completed his Junior year.  However he was thrilled when he was chosen at age fifteen to enrol in a Certificate of Animal Husbandry course at Longreach Pastoral College at which he excelled, particularly in practical subjects.  The skills he learnt at Longreach stood him in good stead for the rest of his life.
His first job was as a Jackaroo at Darr River Downs near Longreach. He then worked for the same owners on their properties in New Zealand, all of which he loved.  After his time in New Zealand he became overseer at Baratria near Winton, returning home for a short time before setting off around Australia with his two working dogs.  He stopped in Perth for a while, working as a labourer.  On arriving back home in December 1977, Ian decided to purchase a block of land at Samsonvale with the money he had saved and set about learning how to grow bananas from Geoff Henderson, a local farmer, so that he could establish his own banana patch.
Shortly after buying his land Ian met Narelle Carr at the local dance. They married in 1980 and lived for five years in the shed he built before moving into their house, a year after their first daughter Ingrid was born.  Two more daughters, Zoe and Jana, arrived during the course of the next four years.  In 1988 Ian’s father fell ill and he stopped growing bananas to run the family icing sugar business at Fortitude Valley, working in both managerial and labouring roles whilst making practical improvements to the building.  When the business was sold, he earned his living as a handyman, doing concreting, small building jobs and insect screens.  In 1996 he completed a course in House Building Registration with honours in all subjects.  He constructed an investment home, carrying out the work of most trades himself and acting as labourer for the others. 
In recent times he turned his hand to road construction, operating machinery and managing the projects. 
Not long after he moved into the Samsonvale area aged 23 years, Ian started to serve in local community organisations.  He not only held committee positions but was always a tireless worker when jobs needed to be done, offering his practical expertise and equipment whenever and wherever needed. 
He served as Treasurer of the Samsonvale Hall Committee and Chairman of the Samsonvale Rural Fire Brigade for many years. 
He was a charter member of the Rotary Club of Samford Valley taking on the role of President in 1985/86 as well as several terms as Treasurer.  Together with other Samford Rotarians, Ian made five trips in all to Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea and Nepal, undertaking building projects such as schools, hospitals and water pump installations in very challenging conditions in order to make life more comfortable for people in those remote areas.  He was also District Chairman of the Rotary Youth Leadership Award Committee and, in recognition of his service to Rotary, the club honoured him with a Paul Harris Fellowship.
Ian was also a part of the Samford Show Committee when the facilities at the new showgrounds at Highvale were being constructed.  He donated many hours both there and at the Samford Bowling Club when renovations to their clubhouse were being undertaken.  He served a term as President of the Mt Samson State School P & C Association and, when his children joined the Dayboro Swimming Club, Ian could be found poolside every Friday night in his job as referee as well as taking on the role of President for a year.
Ian could seemingly turn his hand to anything, build anything, and fix practically anything.  He always said “I’m a Jack of All Trades, Master of None”. 
He saw problems as challenges to be overcome and set his mind to working out how the seemingly impossible could be achieved.  Many a resident of the valley would remember calling on Ian to help them do a complicated job that nobody else would do.  Even when battling cancer, he never gave up looking for the answer, researching information, and formulating strategies to try to solve the problem while still offering support to others in the same situation as him.
Forever the optimist, he had a playful sense of humour and always cherished time spent with family and friends.  It gave him great pleasure to see people succeed in whatever they wanted to do and even greater pleasure if he could help them along the way. 
He enjoyed being active in the outdoors, waterskiing, fishing, playing cards, dancing, woodworking and playing lawn bowls.  Always ready to lend a hand, his common sense and practical ability came to the fore in many situations. 
One of life’s true gentlemen he was respectful and considerate towards everyone, whatever their station in life.
He will be sadly missed by many.