PIAA’s Bruce Lowery asked ProPrint to publish the following obituary:
As many people from all around Australia converged on the industry exhibition PrintEx in Sydney recently, a large crowd of mourners congregated at the Holy Trinity Anglican Church in the Melbourne suburb of Doncaster to pay a last tribute to industry icon Kel Doolan.
However, obviously due to Kel’s prior insistence, the service was far from being just a mournful affair, with family and close friends retelling stories from his life with great humour and compassion, including time for reflection to the strains of “I Did It My Way” by Elvis Presley. There could be little doubt about the quality of the high esteem and love that was deeply felt for this well-regarded man.
Among Kel Doolan’s many achievements were the following:
– Collie Trust winner
– Life Membership of Jaycees (an organisation focused on the development of young people)
– Senior management positions with numerous Australian packaging companies over many years
– President of former Melbourne College of Printing & Graphic Arts council
– Past Chairman & Hall of Fame inductee with AFTA (Australia New Zealand Flexographic Technical Association
– Recent owner of Worldwide Printing franchises in Mount Waverley and Malvern
– Much-loved family man & friend to many
Kel succumbed finally to cancer but only after a spirited and hard fight. He is survived by his wife of 45 years, Jan, children Christopher and Tristania, daughter in-law Micaelia and adoring grandchildren Charlise and Anthony.
And so as the people of the printing and packaging world went about their business at yet another technological exhibition in far off Sydney, Kel’s cask was jauntily carried from the church in Melbourne to the Irish tune of ‘Lord of the Dance’. He wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.
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