Rotarian Stuart Pedersen Passes

Rotary Club of Tauranga Sunrise is mourning the loss of one of its members following the very sad news of the death Stuart Pedersen.

 

Members of the club, many who had become a close friend of Stuart and Pamela’s were shocked to hear the sad news.

 

Stuart died after his 47-foot yacht ‘Essence’ sank off the coast of Northland last Monday. Stuart’s wife Pamela, fellow yacht club member Bruce Goodwin, and Pamela’s brother-in-law Steve were also on board.

 

They survived the sinking, but suffered injuries, with Pamela admitted into an intensive care unit. She is now out of intensive care and may be discharged on Wednesday.

 

Stuart has been a member of Tauranga Sunrise since November 2009. Since joining Rotary he has been an influential member within the club, more recently being on the Community Service committee. This committee is responsible for identifying local projects and ensuring that funds are allocated to these projects.  

 

Stuart was also on the Treasured Art Committee, the clubs premier fundraising project. Stuart showed leadership through this committee, if something needed to be done, Stuart would do it.  

 

As well as the work he did as a Rotary member of Tauranga Sunrise, Stuart also had a very keen interest in politics, running for the ACT Party in the 2014 and 2017 General Elections. However, his first passion was for sailing.  

 

Fellow Rotarians share their thoughts - Andrew Knowles says that Stuart was one of the leading members of the Tauranga Yacht and Power Boat Club and that about three years ago, Stuart put nearly $100,000 into a fund to help support the Bay of Plenty Sailing Academy Trust. 

Andy Cameron has known Stuart since they went to school together and the two have been very close friends ever since. “He and I were the only 12-year-olds that went to St Paul’s boarding school in Hamilton,” says Andy. “He was the youngest and I was the second youngest in the school. “He was my very good friend from those days.

 

I still do some yachting with him but not the Wednesday night events.”

 

They last spoke when Stuart returned to Tauranga during a break partway through the 2019 winter’s trip away in the islands.

 

“It is still very surreal and an enormous shock,” says Lynda Burch. “Stu was an amazing person with impressive intellect. He was the dux of his high school and went on to apply his intellect to a very successful career in finance. He was also a very loving family man and had a very close family. Martin and I consider ourselves fortunate to have been close friends for many years with Stu, Pam, Sven and Theo. He will be missed hugely.”

 

“Stuart was an amazingly caring and giving person, always had time to listen and was a lot of fun. Pam and Stuart went on the Japan trip with us in 2017…a great trip. I can’t imagine the loss Pam must be feeling. I will miss him a great deal,” says Rotary member Ursula Hurn.

 

Simon and Michele Beaton also expressed their condolences and thoughts of Stuart. “My enduring memory of Stuart will be his smile and always positive face,” says Simon. “I still laugh to this day, when as the local Act candidate here in Tauranga, I asked him one morning at Rotary, exactly what was ACT’s policy on the environment? Smiling, he replied that he ‘did not know, but did know they had one!’ I couldn’t stop teasing him about it. Next week at Rotary he got hold of me and proudly told me what the policy was (having done his homework). It is something that still makes me smile to this day.”

 

“My perception of Stuart is that he was positive, energetic, adventurous, clear-thinking, clear on his priorities in life and what he wanted to achieve for the community, the very opposite of ‘stuck in a rut. Actually, all this applies to both Stuart and Pamela,” says Michele.

 

Rotary member Ron Fyfe says Stuart was a very strong Rotarian.

 

“He was happy to volunteer wherever he could. Sociable, helpful, strong-minded and a genuinely nice man. He will be very sadly missed,” says Ron.

 

“He was a man of passions, for the game of bridge, for sailing and for art,” says Pauline Cowens. “Passions all shared by Pam, as she also shared his love of serving the wider community. He was kind, gentle, with a great sense of humour and always a commitment to helping others. He knew how to get the most out of life but should have had so much more time to do that” 
 
As fellow Rotarians, we have Stuarts wife Pamela, and their two children, Sven and Theo foremost in our thoughts at this sad time. 
 
Warren Scobie 
President 
Rotary Club of Tauranga Sunrise.