Kevin William Hinrichsen was born on 7 December 1924, the eldest child of William Henry Hinrichsen, a Church of Christ minister and general practitioner at Thornbury and Florence (nee Hall), a school teacher. His later schooling was at Scotch College where he was an outstanding under age athlete and footballer. His usual method of training was running against the cable trams and, for stamina, trying to race one from Clifton Hill up Ruckers Hill to Thornbury! Having matriculated in year eleven, and as the war was in progress, Kevin commenced his medical course in 1941, the course having been shortened to five years at the expense of holidays. He was to spend the latter part of his course in residence at Ormond College and was the youngest ever to graduate in medicine at the University of Melbourne, aged 21 and 3 months on the day of his graduation. His two brothers Ian and Gordon, and his sister Gladys, were all later graduates of Melbourne. Following his graduation, Kevin became a Resident at the Royal Perth Hospital, a Registrar the following year and in 1949 was Assistant Medical Superintendent. He then decided on a surgical career and travelled to London where he passed the examinations for his FRCS. Following this he held Registrar positions in England, the last with the Surgeon to the Royal Family, gaining much experience; ‘practicing on the Poms’ as it was always called. Kevin returned to Melbourne in 1955 and soon passed examinations for his FRACS. Following this he became an Honorary Assistant Surgeon at the Alfred Hospital working with Alwynne Rowlands and Graeme Grove, with whom he had a long association. He also became an Honorary Surgeon at the Austin Hospital, and later Chairman of the Department of Surgery. As these appointments were strictly honorary (until 1974) and with his expanding private practice, he resigned from the Austin Hospital, maintaining his association with the Alfred, where he was appointed as Honorary Surgeon to Out Patients in 1958, and to In Patients in 1972. Kevin was always punctual and rarely wasted time. He was an excellent technician and was highly regarded by the theatre staff, who were the ultimate judges. It’s probably as a teacher that he is best remembered. He regularly held tutorial sessions with the students and he always enjoyed teaching his residents and registrars the basics of surgery, especially surgical techniques. Kevin married Jill Smith in November 1962, and had a long and successful partnership for almost forty-nine years. As well as a career in medicine, Kevin had interests in farming, yachting, and out-back travel. Jill was of great support in all of these endeavors and family holidays almost always involved time spent on these activities. Over Kevin’s long illness Jill was able to care for him at home. Kevin and Jill had two children, Peter and Lisa, and five grandchildren. In 1975 there were the early signs of Dupuytren’s Contracture in his right hand and Kevin decided to retire from surgery and enter the business world. He went back to basics and attended several courses, but it wasn’t long before some of those in his group were wondering who should be giving the lectures. In addition to other business and also his farming activities at Hallam, he developed a car and medical equipment leasing business, and he used this to help his colleagues who had ‘seen better days’, as well as the Aboriginal community. In his school boy days, Kevin developed a long standing friendship with Doug Nichols (later Sir Douglas Nichols, Governor of South Australia), then a League footballer and grounds man at Fitzroy, having first met at church in Northcote. In later life, Doug became very active in the welfare of his own people, and Kevin made several trips with Doug to the Gipson Desert area, West of Alice Springs. These trips together led to a Senate Sub-committee hearing and the development of some remote medical clinics. Outside his professional pursuits, Kevin had a passion for the Collingwood Football Club and Yacht Racing. Kevin was originally the medical officer and later the consulting surgeon at Collingwood. It is a tragedy that his findings and teaching on head injuries did not carry on after his retirement. He was later elected to the Committee for some ten years and was active on the Finance Committee. He was instrumental in correcting the architect's drawings of the new outer stand, as the stairs did not lead directly to bar! At Collingwood he developed some great friendships and it was here he first learnt the basics of finance. He was elected a Life Member on his retirement from the Committee. Kevin was taken yachting by one of his patients, and soon developed a love for the sea. For some years he crewed, but then bought a thirty foot yacht, Trilby II. He was a member first at the Royal Melbourne Yacht Squadron, and then the Royal Victoria Yacht Club. Kevin and Trilby II were successful in inter-club competitions, Bass Straight racing, and competed in the 1971 Sydney to Hobart, when Trilby II was the smallest ever entrant at the time. In later years, Kevin chaired the Protest Committee for both the RMYS and RYCV, and was also in charge at two world championship regattas. Although capable of making hard decisions, he always felt he had failed if the matter could not be settled with a handshake. Because of Kevin’s love for sailing and happy memories of family holidays at sea, he has asked that his ashes be scattered at sea off the coast at Flinders, where they will be at the mercy of the 'wind and the waves'.