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Dr Alan T Auld

Obituary of Dr Alan T Auld, champion for voluntary social work in Scotland; born 17 October, 1908, in Aberdeen; died 12 May, 2008, in Edinburgh, aged 99.

Dr Alan Auld, OBE, was the organiser and the enthusiastic inspiration of voluntary social work as a comprehensive and effective service in Aberdeen in the post-war era, creating what was to be a model operation of a new approach to voluntary social work in Scotland.

He was supported in all this by his deep, quiet faith and by his close bond with his wife, Alice (née Coull). Next Christmas Eve they would have been married 70 years.

As young folk in Holburn West (then UF) Church, Alice and Alan both taught in the Sunday school and sang in the choir. He was also a scout leader, and became an elder in his early twenties. On return to Aberdeen, he served as an elder within Beechgrove Church and as a freely elected member of the presbytery of Aberdeen – he was the first non-ministerial convener of its union and readjustments committee. The title of one of Stuart McWilliam's eloquent 1950s sermons at Beechgrove resonated deeply with him, and was often quoted by him – "Life's interruptions are life's opportunities."

Full story at The Scotsman.