Rupert Grove
Born(1906-03-27)27 March 1906
Dulwich Hill, New South Wales
Died8 August 1982(1982-08-08) (aged 76)
Killara, New South Wales
NationalityAustralian
EducationNorth Sydney Boys High School
University of Sydney
OccupationSolicitor
SpouseIna Margaret (née Hulme)
Parent(s)Aphra Marian (née McCoy) and Howard Thomas Grove
Family2 daughters
Simon Hansford
Grandson
Richard McCoy
Maternal uncle

Rupert Howard Grove (27 March 1906 – 8 August 1982) was an Australian solicitor and a prominent Methodist and Uniting Church layman.[1] The Australian Dictionary of Biography states that, "in the progression towards the union of the Congregational, Methodist and Presbyterian churches in Australia, Grove made a decisive impact."[2]

Family and education

Grove was born at Dulwich Hill, New South Wales to Aphra Marian (née McCoy) and Howard Thomas Grove, a Melbourne-born architect. He attended North Sydney Boys High School and graduated from the University of Sydney with a Bachelor of Laws in 1928.[3] The following year he was admitted as a solicitor and was made a partner in the law firm McCoy, Grove & Atkinson.[4] The firm was founded in 1887 by Grove's maternal uncle, state parliamentarian, Richard McCoy, and closed in 2014. Grove married Ina Margaret Hulme at the Methodist Church, Gordon, in 1935.[5]

Church affairs

Active within his local churches for over forty years, Grove served as a local preacher and lay leader. From positions of youth leadership he went on to the New South Wales Conference (1936–77) and the General Conference (1947–77) of the Methodist Church of Australasia. At conferences he became heavily involved in committee work in many and varied ways. As the Australian Dictionary of Biography states he spread himself over a broad range of responsibilities but was unified by his three principal concerns: the "sound governance of the church at all its levels; its mission to evangelise and to strengthen its influence in the community; and church union, which he believed would create a renewed and influential church."

As church union between the Methodist, Congregational, and Presbyterian churches in Australia came to fruition Grove was highly influential. In 1954 as union was in jeopardy he moved an amendment that deferred further activity. His plan of action was successful and he remained pivotal in the movement to founding the Uniting Church in Australia in 1977.

Grove was a member from 1936 of the Department of Home Missions in the Methodist Church and he was chairman of the board of the United Church in North Australia from 1972 until 1977. He was chairman of the Uniting Church’s Commission for National Mission from 1977 until 1982. In Sydney he served as a lay member of the council of the Newington College from 1942 until his death in 1982.[6]

Death and legacy

Survived by his wife and one of their two daughters (Barbara Hansford), he died at his Killara, New South Wales home and was cremated. Grove is commemorated in the naming of The Grove Room[7] in the Newington College Chapel for his many years of service as Honorary Secretary. His son-in-law, Richard Hansford, replaced him on Newington College Council and in 2000–2001 served as its Chairman.[8][9] Grove's grandson, the Rev Simon Hansford, is the moderator of the Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of New South Wales and the ACT.[10]

References

  1. ↑ "SOLICITOR'S EXHORTATION TO CHURCH LAYMEN". The West Australian. Vol. 66, no. 19, 920. Western Australia. 23 May 1950. p. 11. Retrieved 24 January 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  2. ↑ Australian Dictionary of Biography Retrieved 24 January 2017.
  3. ↑ "Alumni Sidneienses". University of Sydney. Retrieved 12 June 2014.
  4. ↑ History of McCoy, Grove and Atkinson 1887—2014 Retrieved 24 January 2017.
  5. ↑ "WEDDING". The Methodist. Vol. 44, no. 46. New South Wales, Australia. 16 November 1935. p. 15. Retrieved 24 January 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  6. ↑ Rupert Howard Grove (1906 – 1982) Retrieved 24 January 2017.
  7. ↑ The Grove Room – Facility Hire Retrieved 24 January 2017.
  8. ↑ Swain, Peter Leonard, 1931-; Newington College (1999), Newington across the years : a history of Newington College, 1863-1998{{citation}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  9. ↑ Gapps, Stephen; Newington College (2012), Newington College : a sesquicentenary history 1863-2013, Stanmore, NSW Newington College, ISBN 978-0-9873016-0-4
  10. ↑ Insights – Rev. Simon Hansford is Moderator Elect Retrieved 24 January 2017.
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