It is with great sadness that we woke today to the news of Dick Menting’s passing overnight. Dick was a reliable member of the Mont Albert cricket club, for as long as I can remember. He was a great advocate for community sport and did a fantastic job of supporting MACC through his work at the Bendigo Bank. He will be truly missed.
Our thoughts are with his Friends and family during this tough time.
See below for some words from our Life Member and current ECA President, Richard Barker, and current MACC President, Peter Knox.
“For me, I have known Dick for well over 20 years from when he first came down to Mont Albert and volunteered to cook the BBQ on a Thursday night after training. His grumpy but humorous manner endeared him to the players. He loved being around the Club and mixed easily with the young players and the old blokes. His time as a councillor for Boroondara was beneficial for our sport and others and achieved many good things in his time there and was a great advocate for Cricket and sporting clubs in general. During the drought in the late 1990s he was instrumental in pushing for water tanks at grounds to ensure we could water turf wickets during water restrictions. As a founder of the Canterbury and Surrey Hills community bank he was instrumental in the creation of one of the most successful community banks in Victoria, and the bank has been a great sponsor and benefactor of many sporting clubs and community organisations. Dick served as Chairman of the Inner East Region Council and was more recently the Chairman of the Eastern Cricket Working Group. His most recent contribution was assisting Clubs in relation to the Mont Albert and Surrey Hills Level Crossing Removal Proposals.
Dick was a great advocate for sport and was always looking for a way to improve something, there is no doubt community sport, the local clubs in the Eastern Suburbs, and the wider community are all the better for Dick’s efforts, energy, humour and most of all, friendship.
Vale Dick Menting, he will be sadly missed.”
Mont Albert President, Peter Knox added his thoughts on Dick;
“Dick was extraordinarily generous with his time and talents; he would quite frequently arrive at the club unbidden and take on a task simply because it needed doing. Often it seemed to revolve around the barbeque. It wasn’t just our club he did the same at many other clubs Summer and Winter.
The Thursday night BBQ was his domain, no interference would be tolerated any unasked for advice on his cooking skills would be met with a scowl, and any attempt to steal an early snag got a rap over the knuckles. He would also frequently help out with the Umpires nights and if he couldn’t make it, I would always get an apologetic message.
I think he particularly liked Friday nights where he would help out with our Blasters group of young kids – again he would gravitate to the BBQ. After the cooking was done we would watch the onfield activities with a glass of red each and he would tell me about his various business and entrepreneurial activities and the Machiavellian goings on at various local Councils.
Dick had a very extensive list of contacts which he expertly used to build coalitions and marshal resources to the great benefit of the many clubs, businesses and community groups he was associated with.
Dick’s passing leaves a big hole at our club and an even bigger one throughout the community, he will be badly missed .”