Vale Dr Robert Heady

Robert George Heady

Dr Patrick Henry pays tribute to his friend and colleague, Dr Bob Heady. 26.01.1943 – 21.10.2021

Bob matriculated from Governor Stirling Senior High School and enrolled in Dental Science at UWA in 1961. I first met him when he was a fourth-year dental student, when on the faculty staff in the area of restorative dentistry, with David Cock and Tom Stevenson. Bob was an outstanding student with above-average manual dexterity, and excellent interpersonal skills. He graduated in a group of 12 in 1965. During this time and later he demonstrated exceptional natural athletic and sporting ability. He won the WA State heavyweight judo championship and rowed in the WA King’s Cup crew. He played A-grade squash, enjoyed tennis, although his greatest sporting love was cricket. He was no stranger to physical work and helped finance his way through dental school in a number of pursuits, including share-farming together with Peter van Duren. I recall being in the faculty morning tearoom when one of the senior staff declared that he “did not know what the world was coming to when dental students presented with new model automobiles at the start of the year”. Bob and Peter had enjoyed an excellent wheat harvest. Bob had rocked up in the latest top of the range Ford Zephyr, which outshone the rank-andfile cars of the faculty staff. Bob enjoyed a lifelong close friendship with Peter, who later went on to study medicine and qualified as a general surgeon. His other close lifelong friend in dentistry was Les Waldon. Together they participated in many adventure boating events including many Avon Descents, Blackwood River Classics, as well as ocean sailing. Two years after graduation, Bob approached me, as a friend and mentor, to advise him as to the possibility of undertaking a USA graduate programme. Accordingly, he completed his MSD program in Restorative Dentistry at Indiana University. I subsequently received a letter from the Dean at Indiana, Dr William H Gilmore, stating that Bob had been an exceptional student and if I had any more like him, they would be welcome at Indiana University”. In due course Bob, returned to Perth and registered as a prosthodontist. In 1972/73 I decided to take a 12-month sabbatical at the University of Michigan and appointed Bob as the Locum in my practice. He performed very well, the patients very impressed and the referring dentists full of praise. During my absence Bob also lived in my house with his wife and young family and on return I found practice and home to be in better condition than when I had left. Subsequently, Bob commenced practice in prosthodontics in Richardson Street, West Perth, before moving to Richardson Street, South Perth. He continued to develop his extra-curricular activities with a farm at Gidgegannup. He also established a visiting specialist restorative service with David Hannah’s Riverton practice. Later Bob moved down to Denmark, where he practised general dentistry very successfully and lived on his rural property for the next 30 years. He retired from dentistry in 2006. As he moved out of sporting pursuits, he developed a serious interest in collecting and rehabilitating antique farm tractors. His buying and selling activities included interstate and international procurement and sales, resulting in a widespread reputation in the world of tractors. As always, he was very much “a man’s man”. Unfortunately, Bob developed leukaemia in 2017 and despite the intense treatment and his legendary grit and determination, he succumbed on October 21. At the end, as always, he was supported and surrounded by the two special ladies in his life, his devoted daughter Ruth and his long-term partner Glen.