The Kangaroo and the Emu were chosen for Australia’s Coat of Arms for a peculiar physiological reason – neither animal can walk backwards.

It’s a fantastic ethos for a young nation like ours, it’s also the driving ethos of the Australian Deer Association’s latest Life Member, Patrick Ross.

On Saturday evening, at the Barn Palais in Mt Gambier, Patrick was inducted as just the thirteenth Life Member in the ADA’s fifty-year history. As the evenings MC, renaissance man Tim Blackwell noted, with ADA, Life Membership really is what it says on the packet – it’s a recognition of a lifetime of extraordinary dedication to the cause.

Amongst those toasting Patrick and his achievements were South East South Australian stalwarts Pip and Jack Rasenburg, fellow Life Member and South East South Australian George MacKenzie and Patrick’s eldest Son Alec.

The key focus was on Patrick’s dedication, his respect for other viewpoints, his effectiveness as a voice for sound deer management and his unflagging commitment to the values of the Australian Deer Association.