For those of us who were not able to attend Rod Wilson's beautiful requiem mass, the liturgy for which was meticulously planned by Rod himself, here is the moving tribute that was read by his daughter Rosannagh and son Chris............
“Not to exceed two A4 pages double spaced. It should be factual and informative”.
These were the explicit instructions left to us for this part of the service today. Well, this won’t be the first time either of us has disobeyed our Dad but it might be our last opportunity, so please indulge us! For a start, his CV and list of professional accomplishments alone extends over 12 pages – but we will get to that. I suggest you all make yourselves comfortable!
We are all here today to celebrate and give thanks for the life of Rodney Wilson – our Dad – and we would like to start by welcoming you all here today and thanking you all for making the effort to be here, regardless of how far you have travelled (though I know a number of you have gone to great lengths to be here). He would be really chuffed – and honoured – to know you are here for him today. Depending on how – and when – you knew our Dad, you will have seen one of the many sides to his personality. The young man Rodney, Professor Wilson, Rod… or Dad.
Rod's early years
Rod was born in Belfast on the16 May1946 to parents Jim and Edna, and moved around Northern Ireland when growing up because of his father's profession as a Headmaster. For much of his childhood he was raised by his maternal Grandmother Margaret, who shared their family home: he spoke incredibly fondly of Margaret and clearly had many happy memories of those early years. Although he was an only child he was close to his maternal cousins Roger (who is with us today), Heather, Garth, Nigel and Pamela and they remained in contact throughout their lives.
Rod was educated at the Methodist College, Belfast (known as “Methody”) and then went on to complete his undergraduate studies at Queen’s University, where he read Economics. Once he had graduated in 1969 he applied for a graduate role with Guinness in Dublin but his application was fortunately unsuccessful as that led him down the path of higher education whereby, he completed his PhD in Economics at Queen’s University, involving a year spent in Kenya performing his fieldwork in the Kenyan countryside. By this point he had developed a passion for travel, so he cleverly manufactured an excuse to spend some time in Canada to “do some research”, and in exchange for free-board, he would also paint houses. This is the first of a number of revelations to us in preparing this eulogy – as the DIY skills of the Dad we knew extended as far, and only as far, as changing light bulbs (of which he would be sure to keep many spares), and for any other domestic job requiring a paint brush, drill or any other tool he would be sure to “get a man in” ! After obtaining his PhD in 1972 his all-important move to Durham followed, where he took a position as a Research Assistant at the University of Durham and this became a pivotal moment for him in both his personal and professional life.
Rod's Family Life
In 1974 Rod met our mum Barbara, who had recently graduated from Durham University, at a party. This was another revelation to us – as the Dad we knew spent most of his time actively avoiding social engagements! Then just a few weeks later, he proposed to Mum on New Year’s Eve on a visit to a friend’s windmill in Germany and this was yet another revelation as this act of seeming spontaneity is quite a contrast to the man who later in his life would spend at least three months researching options before, for example, buying a new TV !
Mum and Dad married in Warrington, in August 1975 then spent time travelling, including two summers spent in Paris while Mum performed research in the National Library and Dad worked from the hotel, accompanied by the hotel cat, writing his first book; then later spending time in Japan, having identified another research opportunity.Once back in Durham they became more established and bought a house in Shincliffe – which is still the family home today; and then came the two real highlights US (!), starting with Chris in 1984 followed shortly after by Rosannagh in 1987. And, as far as we can tell, from that point onwards Dad's primary focus was clear and simple – to provide for his family.
A good education was very important to Dad, and he worked tirelessly to send us to the best schools. We have never wanted for anything. We have wonderful memories of fantastic family holidays – Cyprus, Istanbul, Dubai, and of course France and are delighted to be able to share in his love for travel. We are a small family, but Dad could not have been prouder or more welcoming when he become father-in-law to Patrick (2016) and Kirsty (2019) and subsequently become grandfather to his 4 grandchildren: Aine, Struan, Oisin and Lewis.
The grandchildren transformed Dad and they brought him a new lease of life. His introduction to grandparenting was an intense one, and involved welcoming Patrick, Rosannagh and 5-month-old baby Aine to share the two-bed apartment for two months during the first summer of Covid. He was not perturbed by this experience; he loved being Grandpa. Despite his mobility issues we would often find him on the floor playing with the kids, laughing away. Family brought him tremendous joy and happiness, and dad treasured every moment with his grandkids. Even in his final days Dad managed to rally a smile whenever one of the grandchildren popped into his room to sing him a song, deliver a picture they had drawn for him, or just to say “I love you, Grandpa”. For the last two summers Dad organised for the entire family to holiday together: in Portrush the first year, and Llandudno the following. This year he had hoped we would all holiday on the Isle of Mann, sadly this wasn’t to be.
Rod's faith was also a constant throughout his life and he participated keenly in the church communities both in Durham and, latterly, in Nice.
Rod's Professional Life
In an attempt to partially follow Dad’s instructions – let me share a factual and informative summary of his work. Don’t worry, this is the ‘abridged’ version ! I am sure that when he moved to Durham in 1972 to take a short-term role as a Research Assistant in the Economics department Dad had no idea that his career would develop in anything like the way it did. He established himself as a core member of the teaching staff, progressing through roles as Lecturer and Senior Lecturer before being appointed as Head of the Economics Department in 1989. He was then inaugurated as a Professor of Economics at Durham University a few years later in 1996 and then went on to establish himself as a leading global authority in the area of Islamic Finance – a specialism which allowed him to bring together two of his passions: Travel and Faith. In the late 1990s he was one of a small group of founding members of the Centre for Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies at Durham University – an institution which continues to thrive today, and a fantastic legacy in Durham.
His work also led him to travel extensively. Throughout his career he held Visiting Professor positions in Nairobi, Cairo, Japan, Kuwait, Paris, Quatar and Kuala Lumpur. He also led a number of important initiatives beyond the academic arena, acting as a consultant and advisor to numerous international trade and finance bodies including : the Ministry of Planning in Riyadh, the Islamic Financial Services Board of Kuala Lumpur, the Central Bank of Qatar, and the African Development Bank.
You might think that the life of a University academic might be dull and uneventful but it had its moments.
The man who would think twice before entering Nice train station for fear of pick-pockets seemingly had a very different appetite for risk if it was in the name of research ! On an early trip to an unstable Egypt, Rod was caught up in the 1977 Cairo bread riots. My mum managed to get out on the last flight to London but his flight to Kuwait was cancelled meaning he ended up locked in the airport. Seemingly undeterred, he returned to an equally volatile Egypt during the Arab Spring in 2011 and ended up being locked up in his hotel under armed guard for his own safety.
Armed protection featured in numerous other trips across the Middle East. Of particular note was a trip to Jordan attending a World Economic Forum conference with very tight security with armed gunmen on the Amman hotel rooftops, whilst later being entertained on the shores of the Dead Sea with entertainment from Shirley Bassey and The Whirling Dervishes!
His publication and research list is extensive, having authored a total of 17 books, a fortnightly column in Islamic Finance News, regular country briefings for Oxford Analytica and a great many more articles and research papers. His work contributed to a tangible and meaningful advancement in Christian-Muslim understanding in the realms of economics and finance - an area of specialism well matched with his own, strong and lifelong, Christian faith. He was recognised with the Islamic Development Bank prize in Islamic Banking and Finance in 2014.
Impressive, remarkable, phenomenal… these are some of the words which come to mind when thinking about the number of people he has taught, tutored, mentored, advised and counselled. Not bad for someone who couldn’t get work in the Guiness factory, eh?!
Rod's Later Years
A committed academic, Rod never really retired and continued travelling to conferences until fairly recently; but as his active role with Durham University began to wind down he was able to act upon his long held ambition to retire to the South of France – a part of the world which he loved. Shortly after a successful family holiday to Nice in 2007, we found our apartment on Boulevard Victor Hugo and over the years Dad spent an increasing amount of time here and became more and more involved in the local community.
He enjoyed the companionship found through the British Association and the church community, was an active member of a local photography group, took part in locally run French classes and also enjoyed Tai Chi in the park opposite the flat (which was a sight to behold from the balcony!)
Dad loved the Cote d’Azur and enjoyed countless walks along the Promenade and further afield to Villefranche and Beaulieu. He loved swimming in the sea, dining at a great many restaurants and, of course, sampling the wonderful pastries, cakes and ice creams!
How We Remember Our Dad
In the sadness of the last few days we have managed to find joy in remembering our dad. Spontaneous, outgoing and adventurous are not words we would have associated with him before now! As well as being hard-working, to us our Dad was orderly, quiet, humble, selfless and generous.
Orderly: the house was always tidied, the car was always full of petrol, papers neatly filed away. We have dad to thank for the beautiful hymns today, having been so organised as to draft the majority of today’s service, understanding it would not be an easy task for the family.
Quiet: he was always calm and softly-spoken – though he was able to raise his voice to deliver a good rollocking when really tested, and he did have a special ‘pitch’ which was reserved only for rollercoasters, encounters with rodents, and the time I took us slightly off-course down some rapids on a canoe trip down the Dordogne. He was always happy in the quiet of his own company, but still loved being surrounded by the bustle of his family.
Humble: despite his long list of professional accolades and achievements – this was not something that he paraded at home! It was only when I sat in on his inaugural lecture as a Professor, in front of a packed-out lecture theatre full of strangers who had gone out of their way to listen to him speak, that I saw there might be more to him than I had appreciated!
Selfless: this extends far beyond working so hard to provide so well for us. As an only child, Dad cared for both of his parents in their later years, requiring repeated last-minute trips from Durham to Portstewart and demonstrating his real sense of loyalty and duty. He also helped care for both of our mum’s parents, Elsie and John, in Cheshire with similar dedication. Dad had a firm belief that children should have their own sense of independence, from an early age, and while of course he held his own strong views and opinions, he was never overbearing and really did encourage us to make our own decisions. Importantly though – he was always there to offer guidance and advice when asked, keenly observing and supporting quietly from the sidelines. And it wasn’t just the ‘big stuff’: if we were travelling somewhere, he would always make a note of our flight details so he could track progress via an app on his phone and we would invariably land to a text message of “Good to see you landed on time”. Or if he knew I was at a rugby match, he would follow the score from home and on the final whistle send a text message “Good game”.
We will miss him being there to ask his advice. We will miss those text messages. We will miss our family photographer. We will miss our “Mr Tidy”. We will simply miss you being here.
Some Concluding Remarks
Whichever version of Rod you knew, all of our lives have been enriched by having known him. He would not want us to be sad at his passing but instead to think about, as we have done – happy memories of time spent together, and to give thanks for his life. Good game, Dad.
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