South Burnett Times, Tuesday, September 16, 2003 Obituary Kumbia has lost another member of a pioneering family of the district with the death of Errol Clifford TRUSS on August 28. He was born at Clydebank Hospital, Kingaroy on December 20, 1922, the third child of Frederick and Emilie TRUSS (nee NOLLER). He grew up on the family farm at Kumbia and attended the Kumbia State School where he was one of the few pupils who passed the State Scholarship examination up to that time. He often rode to school on horseback with his older brother, Leon and sister Claudie - three on one horse. After a short time at Kingaroy State High School, he left school and began farming with his father and Leon. Life on the farm was hard work with everything being done by horses or by hand. Dairying and pigs were the main activity but they also grew crops, particularly corn. Errol was an innovative and progressive farmer, always looking for ways to make farm work easier. He was one of the first in the district to buy a tractor, a Model A McCormick Deering, an 8ft Sunshine Header and later a 2 row mounted corn picker with trailing sheller. He later imported an Oliver auto-header with a whole stick corn front and built one of the first bulk grain handling and drying facilities in the district. He was always ready to talk to anybody who would listen about pulling corn by hand and 'the good old days'. In 1942, he began growing navy beans to supply the American troops in Australia with baked beans, an association with the bean industry he maintained throughout his life. On October 30, 1946, Errol married Irma TEMME at St Paul's Lutheran Church, Kingaroy. They built a new house across the road from the home property that had been purchased by Fred in 1927. Errol and Irma lived in that same house on the same property for almost all of their 57 years of married life. They raised a family of three sons, Warren, now the Federal Minister for Agriculture; Gary, who manages the family farms and Rowan, an associate professor at the University of Queensland. Errol was always deeply involved in his church affairs. He always attended Sunday services and was one of the volunteers who helped build Kumbia's new Lutheran Church in 1959. He was an elder and lay reader for more than 40 years, a Sunday school teacher and chairman of the Kingaroy Lutheran parish for many years. He held a special interest in the Queensland District Home Mission Committee of the Church where he served for 16 years putting a special effort into the building of new Lutheran Churches at Mt Isa, Cairns, in Central Queensland and in the Brisbane suburbs. His love of farming meant he was actively involved in farm organisations. He was chairman of the Kumbia branch and the Burnett District Council of the Queensland Graingrowers' Association for many years and served as a State councillor. He was one of the instigators of the first exports of Queensland maize to Japan. In 1964, as a member of the Navy Bean Marketing Board and Bean Growers Co-operative, he was involved in the transfer of the industry headquarters form Brisbane to Kingaroy. He was chairman of the Queensland Producers Federation and chairman of the Queensland Government Agricultural Working Committee on future agricultural policies. In 1977, Errol was awarded the Queen's Silver Jubilee Medal and in 1986, the Medal of the Order of Australia in her Majesty's Australia Day honours, for his services to Agriculture. He was always involved in his local community, serving on the Kumbia Hall Committee for more than 25 years, the Kingaroy Show Society, a foundation member to the Kumbia Rural Youth Club and as a Kingaroy Shire Councillor for three years. Errol was always known for his cheerful personality, his wise and sound counsel, his generous nature and without a doubt, his hearty laugh which brightened many a moment especially when a tough situation seemed insurmountable. He enjoyed lawn bowls for many years and particularly enjoyed singing in choirs, especially as the bass voice in the male quartet. The family is thankful that Irma was able to care for Errol in the home that he knew, on the farm that he loved, almost to the end. He passed away at the South Burnett Community Hospital at the age of 80 years and eight months. He will be sadly missed by his wife Irma; Warren and Lyn; Gary and Janice and their sons Russell and Stephen; Rowan and Lynda and their children Katie, Peter and David; sister Claudie FREHMANN and Bill; sister Audrey WINTER and their families and by all who knew and loved him. His brother Leon, who passed away two years ago, held a special place in Errol's life because of his handicaps. His youngest sister, Fay, passed away in 1938 aged four. ________________________________________________ Message sent using Dodo Internet Webmail Server