Well-known and widely-respected cattleman, Wayne Keith Neilsen, also known as ‘Pooh Bear’ by all of his family and friends, late of Jarwood, Taroom, passed away unexpectedly on January 17, aged 57.
Born in Proserpine on May 1, 1961, Wayne was the first and only son of Keith and Val Neilsen. At the age of 18, Wayne and his family made the move from Anchor Hill, north of Gin Gin, to start their lifelong dream of developing brigalow country at Jarwood, Taroom.
The family’s ambition to develop a profitable cattle grazing operation led to Wayne’s passion to breed quality red Brahman cattle. A regular at Rockhampton Brahman Week and various other sales throughout the state, Wayne became a highly respected cattleman, and his love and natural ability for ‘networking’ saw him develop close, lifelong friendships within the industry.
It wasn’t long after making the move that Wayne met Trish (nee Brodie) and they were married in Taroom, on January 28, 1984. The duo brought three children into the world, Stewart, Toni and Brett; Wayne’s greatest pride and joy.
Wayne’s children will remember a loving, devoted father, who worked tirelessly to provide for the family, as well as cherished football training sessions in the backyard.
Along with being a fabulous father and cattleman, Wayne was a very capable sportsman, excelling in and developing a particular interest in cricket and football.
After joining the Taroom/Wandoan Battlers football team, Wayne quickly became a valued member, and in 1983 took on roll of reserve grade captain coach and went on to be Roma district player of the year.
Wayne is survived by his parents, Keith and Val; his sisters, Deidre, Gayle and Joanne; his wife Trish; his children, Stewart, Toni and Brett, and his cherished grandchildren.
The Neilsen family would like to sincerely thank everyone for the cards, letters, phone calls, flowers and the overwhelming love and support at this difficult time.
The sheer volume of people who came to pay their final respects at Wayne’s funeral speaks volumes about the type of man he was, and how many lives he touched. He will be greatly missed by all.