Mr Wain and colleagues enjoying a well-earned NZ ice-cream at the conclusion of an ACOD workshop.
Bruce Wain, a highly respected optical technician and trainer in Australia and New Zealand, has passed away, aged 73.
Mr Wain worked with OPSM as a Technical Services Manager, setting up lens laboratories in Australia and around the world, from the late 1960s through to the mid-1990s. When he left OPSM, he became a trainer for the Certificate IV course in optical dispensing with the Open Training and Education Network (OTEN) in Australia and New Zealand, and later with the Australasian College of Optical Dispensing.
Regarded as an expert in his field, Mr Wain was a perfectionist who thrived on the technical challenges of dispensing throughout his career. As a trainer, he demanded excellence from every student.
As one former colleague in New Zealand has written, “A pass from Bruce, whether by test, assignment, or exam, was a badge to be worn with pride, as many students in New Zealand, and more recently with the Australasian College of Optical Dispensing (ACOD) can testify.”
James Gibbins, co-director of ACOD, said Mr Wain had been integral to the College’s early success, writing some of the original course texts with meticulous attention to ensure compliance with educational requirements.
“Over the years, Bruce became a valued friend to Chedy (Kalach, co-director of ACOD)and I. Not long before he passed, he sent us both texts, which were, in effect his farewell. Having been ill with cancer for some time, he thanked us for the good times at ACOD and wrote, ‘I’m lining up for my last SAG calculation’, referring to sagittal height or depth calculations manually performed thousands of times in the old labs.
“Those words from Bruce were typically frank, but they demonstrated the passion he felt for the industry and to contributing to future dispensers.”
Mr Wain leaves behind his wife Kerry, children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren.
