Russell Bourke once worked in a men’s apparel store – and he lived by the cut of his cloth.

He was a stoically independent man who died as he lived: on his own terms.

Stanwell Park’s elder statesman passed away on August 11 after returning home from a two-week stay in hospital. He was 84.

Russ was part of everything Stanwell Park: the shops, the cafes, art gallery, CWA Hall, SPAT plays (he was the ghost in The Ghost of Christmas Past), surf life saving club, beach kiosk and the sandy stretches which he would regularly clean.

Every day he could be seen on the village streets, walking around or sitting on benches with his loyal dog on a rope lead. He would sit and watch the Tuesday tennis and enjoy a cuppa with the ladies; he would sit at the bus shelter and chat to passers-by; he would be at the school gates as parents collected their children.

He had a smile and a listening ear for everyone.

Well-read and well-informed, Russell was knowledgeable on a wide range of topics and had a particular interest in vintage cars, his collection once parked along the causeway.

Long-time neighbour Jill Ryan recalled the early days when local children would arrive at Russell’s place for a weekend barbecue with a piece of bread on a stick to be toasted on the coals.

“Sometimes they’d get a snag,” Jill laughed. The children would spend the afternoon romping through the garden, climbing trees and pretending to race each other in Russell’s numerous cars.

“He let them crawl over them,” she said. “There’s a lot of young adult men around who would remember when Russell would light the barbecue in the afternoon.”

Childhood friend John Turner, who grew up in the same street at Rodd Point near Five Dock, said Russell’s father, Harvey, was a very successful tie manufacturer. “I wouldn’t be surprised if they find a load of silk ties still in their boxes when they clean out the house,” John said.

Mate Steve Thompson recalled Russell’s joy at being invited to join the school bus to the opening of the Sea Cliff Bridge in December 2005. Only parents were allowed but when Thommo called out: “Hey Dad, hurry up, the bus is leaving!” Russ headed straight to the backseat with the tacit approval of then principal Keith Tomlinson.

“He was so proud to be on that bus en route to the Sea Cliff Bridge opening ceremony where he relished being at the front of the pack among the kids, politicians, TV cameras and a throng of people. It was like he was King of the world.”

Neighbour Cath Hill, who helped organise Russell’s transport to doctor’s visits and shopping, said he loved his jazz, especially Louis Armstrong.

“I will remember his positivity and his deep love for Stanwell Park,” Cath said. “He used to say to me ‘You get to live two lifetimes here – the escarpment lifetime and the beach lifetime’. I will miss his wonderful attitude to life and words of wisdom.”

The Stanwell Park community had been looking after Russ for nearly three years, with a daily meal roster ensuring he was well nourished.

Neighbour Janet Binns, who was the most recent volunteer to coordinate the meal roster, said she would never have met some neighbours if it weren’t for the community commitment.

“Even in his need, he brought the community together,” she said.

He was a regular at Kat Erskine’s Uluwatu Blue café where he would get a coffee and cake everyday.

“I miss Russ so much already,” Kat said of their 23-year friendship. “Uluwatu Blue is not the same without his visits. He was a great encouragement when I first opened my shop six years ago.”

Sandra ‘Baggie’ Tilyard, an aged care worker who looked after Russ as a friend, kicked off the meal deliveries in November 2019 when she realised his diabetes wasn’t being managed and he was getting skinnier.

After that, a meal was left in an esky on Russell’s back step every night, cooked and delivered by so many in the caring community. A gardening effort was also organised. “The community’s input kept him alive for three years,” Baggie said. “Everyone went out of their way to help him.

“Russ had two weeks in a luxury resort and a limo drive home. It’s exactly what he would have wanted.”

The funeral service for Russell Bourke will be held at H.Parsons Bulli on 1 September and a community memorial at the CWA hall on 8 October 2022