Cape Town - Having left an indelible mark on past, present and future, the legacy of former University of the Western Cape (UWC) visionary and hands-on rector and vice-chancellor, Professor Brian O’Connell, will undoubtedly live on.
Professor O’Connell, originally from District Six passed away on Sunday night while at hospital, following a long period of illness.
He was 77. God-daughter and niece, Dr Siona O’Connell, spoke fondly and emotionally of the man whom, those within family and close friends, referred to as “Brympie”.
Her earliest recollection of O’Connell was a man determined to teach others to take up positions and importantly, to read, remembering how he would always read to them as children, introducing them to a world filled with wonder and possibility.
He was a passionate lover of cricket and badminton, sharing that if it was not due to apartheid discriminatory laws, he would probably have gone on to represent the country on an international platform.
“Generous to a fault, wonderful witty sense of humour.
“Not concerned with the trappings of office, utterly forgetful, where to put his keys and his glasses, and the way to Brympie was through chocolate and sweet things, he would skip over the mains and his humility and ability to dream big and do right and to make a mark I think is unsurpassed,” Siona O’Connell said.
“He was brave. He was determined, you take positions, you call things out, you don’t sit on the fence and he would have our backs.”
Professor O’Connell had been diagnosed with neurological disease aphasia, which robbed him of his ability to speak, she said.
“So for somebody who lived by words and lived by ideas, I think it was one of the cruellest diseases but in that lesson, we all had to learn new ways of communication and new ways of being.”
An indication of his scholarly drive was when, while on a Fulbright scholarship at Columbia University, he completed two Master’s degrees simultaneously.
“That was Brympie, he didn’t do half measures.
“He comes in at UWC and as you know, he puts it on the map in ways that I think will live on,” O’Connell said.
A stickler for punctuality on campus, he would often arrive late for family functions, she humorously shared, fondly referring to this as a wonderful paradox.
O’Connell’s funeral service takes place at the Holy Cross Catholic Church, District Six, at 10am on Saturday.
A memorial service will also be held at UWC next month.
In a statement, current vice-chancellor Professor Tyrone Pretorius said Professor O’Connell served as rector from 2001 to 2014, and at one of the most challenging times in the history of the university.
“Professor O’Connell, who was also a student at UWC in the mid1960s, took the helm at a time when the university was facing the aftermath of staff retrenchments, financial vulnerability, the significant loss of academic leadership, evolving enrolment trends, and a despondent campus community.
“Very early in his tenure, he was also confronted with another imminent crisis: an institutional merger and the potential loss of UWC’s identity.
“He made the case that UWC’s ongoing commitment to providing an intellectual home for all – with particular attention to working-class students who showed potential – should not be penalised as a result of decades of underfunding by the state.
“In the end, UWC retained its autonomous identity and status, and O’Connell then led the process for the recapitalisation of UWC,” he said.
“Professor O’Connell’s legacy is one of passionate conviction, intellectual clarity and engaged leadership. As we mourn the loss of a great man, we also celebrate his extraordinary life and the lasting impact he has had on our university and our society.”
Professor O’Connell leaves behind his wife, Judith and children Amanda-Leigh and Bryan.
The UWC flag will be flown at half-mast this week in his honour and remembrance.
shakirah.thebus@inl.co.za