A family man with a big heart
MELVYN (Mel) Rexford Goodwin was born on November 10, 1934 in Inglewood to Rexford and Vivian Goodwin (nee Wrigley).
He was the eldest child and with the birth of his sister Beris, the family unit was complete.
The family lived in many places throughout Queensland, in Moree in New South Wales and Penrith in Sydney and as a result Mel attended many different schools including some in the Rosewood area.
After leaving school, he also took on many different jobs from delivery driving to working as a stockman on a sheep station, while his mum worked in the station house and cooked for the workers.
In 1953, Mel met Margaret and four years later on December 18, 1957 they were married in St Luke’s Church, Rosewood.
The newlyweds made their home in Rosewood, and during the early years of their marriage, Mel worked as a miner at the Normanton Colliery outside town.
Later he worked at United No 8 Colliery in Rosewood.
His next job was at the ill-fated Box Flat underground mine in Ipswich which closed after an explosion claimed 17 lives. His last job as a miner was at the Southern Cross Colliery until 1983 when this mine also closed.
The couple’s marriage was described as blessed with many special memorable occasions, but the most special of all to them was the birth of their two daughters, Donna and Michelle.
Mel was a man who had a lot of pride in his family and outside home he was always at the ready to help anyone. He was especially willing to help with painting, concreting, building or just mowing lawns.
Mel’s other passion was outings with his family, these outings included shopping trips, the Brisbane Exhibition and many other places.
He taught his girls a number of skills and passed his many talents onto his six grandchildren and seven great grandchildren, who all adored him.
Together they would spend many hours under the house fixing cars or working down in his back shed or just talking and listening to “granddad’s fountain of knowledge about life in general”.
Later in life Mel enjoyed a game of golf and played regularly on the Rosewood Golf course. His other sporting interest was darts. He joined the Rosewood Hotel Social Club, which took him on many outings to different pubs to play darts.
A family man with a big heart, Mel’s inspiring presence will be missed by all, though his wisdom will be cherished and passed on throughout the generations.
— Contributed
