Con Roux dies age 97

Con Roux, a formidable civil engineer who lived in and loved Benoni from the time he moved here in 1956, died at the age of 97 on July 31.

His death was Covid-19 related.

Roux was born in Stellenbosch on September 12, 1922, and grew up on the farm Libertas, just outside the town. He was the third son of Con and Emily Roux.

ALSO READ: 

Benoni pioneer Joe Civin dies at age 100

According to one of his five sons, Con Roux Jnr, his father’s interest in all things mechanical and engineering developed in his formative years, and he used to spend hours constructing bridges, cranes, excavators and the like.

“He matriculated in 1939 and proceeded to the University of Cape Town to study civil engineering, and graduated in 1943. Thereafter, he joined the South Africa Air Force, training in Tiger Moths and Harvards. My dad received his wings in September 1945.”

He joined the Cape Provincial Roads Department in 1946 as a student engineer, his first posting being Oudtshoorn. A year later, at the tender age of 25, he was appointed as an “absolute whipper-snapper” to act as the district roads engineer for the Transkei, Kokstad, Matatiele and Umzimkulu districts in the Eastern Cape.

Rynfield

Having met Ann van der Horst in 1941 when she was only 12 years old, Roux decided she was the one for him.

“Indecision was not in my dad’s makeup,” Roux Jnr said, adding the couple married in 1948 in Stellenbosch. “After living in Mthatha, they moved to Middelburg, where my dad developed an abiding passion for the Karoo. Following a promotion, they moved to Queenstown in 1954, where their twin sons, myself and John, were born (to be followed in due course by Allen, Paul and Mark).

“In 1956, our parents moved to Benoni, my dad taking charge of all roads outside metropolitan areas on the Witwatersrand.”

After initially staying in the Van Riebeeck Hotel, they moved to Rynfield, where they had their first experience of the wonderful people that live in Benoni.

“Lifelong friendships developed from these early encounters,” Roux Jnr recalled. “From Fairbairn Street, Rynfield, they moved to Lakefield, where my dad still lived up until his death, successfully looking after the large property on his own. He had a tremendous love for his home, vegetable garden, roses and, of course, and his tennis court.”

In 1958, Roux successfully applied for a position in the firm Darling and Hodgson to manage the expansion and re-development of the East London Airport. The family spent two happy years there, before returning to Benoni.

Own business

Being independent by nature and having acquired all the necessary experience, the time came in June 1965 for him to take a giant leap of faith in order to realise his long-held dream of establishing his own company. Roux Jnr said his dad proved big companies can start from very humble beginnings.

“The initial office was his bedroom, the storeroom was his garage, six labourers made up the employee compliment, plant and equipment consisted of a Vauxhall Victor station wagon, a Zeiss theodolite and a 300-gallon water trailer, and start-up capital consisted of his paid-up pension from his previous employer. My mom, who had no administrative background, was the pro-bono secretary, accountant and everything else.

“Bearing in mind that at the time he had five sons of 10 years and younger, one gets a sense of his faith and confidence in his ability to make it work,” Roux Jnr said.

Van Dyk Road

Early contracts were centred in and around Benoni, with the first contract being for General Electric in Van Dyk Road. The contract price was an almost unbelievable R2 500. The second contract was for English Electric for R3 200, a bit further up Van Dyk Road. By 1970, it was evident that the firm had outgrown the Roux home and an opportunity presented itself in the form of a five-acre plot in Atlas Road.

“A new office block, soils laboratory and workshops were added to the old farmhouse shortly thereafter and these premises were to remain the central hub of the company in the years to come,” said Roux Jnr.

After initially doing industrial-type contracts, including most of the parking areas for the Pick n Pay centres on the Reef, by the mid-1970?s larger contracts were being undertaken as sub-contractors to the big construction giants.

Later, the business undertook larger projects, such as the earthworks on the Coega Harbour project, a portion of the N1 freeway near Musina, contracts in neighbouring countries and even an open-cast mining contract in the DRC.

“Many will remember the Con Roux Lego Man stationed at the site of these contracts,” Roux Jnr noted. “Over the years, this growth necessitated the purchase of plant and equipment, as well as the employment of staff. At the peak, the company employed close to 1 000 people. My dad also began to involve himself in the South African Federation of Civil Engineering Contractors, of which he became the chairperson, and the Civil Engineering Industry Training Board.

“His company received several notable awards over the years, including the five-star NOSA safety rating for a number of years and several National Productivity Initiative gold awards.”

Roux Jnr said there was more to the company than just building roads, generating income and creating opportunities.

“My dad was known throughout the industry for integrity, honesty, service delivery, hard work, fairness and reliability.”

Church

When the Rouxs moved to Benoni, they joined St Dunstan’s Anglican Church (now Cathedral). He was confirmed by Reverend Habberton in 1957.

“This set up a life-long wonderful relationship with St Dunstan’s, which was his spiritual home for 63 years. He served on the council for some 27 years and as chief churchwarden for 32 years, alongside Rev John Spyker, Rev Fred Vaughn-Jones and Rev (later bishop) David Bannerman.”

Apart from his leadership roles, Roux had a passion for outreach. He was part of the team that helped St Alban’s Anglican Church, in Daveyton, start a soup kitchen with their Itembu Lethu ladies. A second soup kitchen was started at the Etwatwa Anglican Church premises.

“Until well into his 90’s, my dad was involved in outreach. He was described as an amazing, giving, caring and loving man. All were in awe of his energy and dedication,” Roux Jnr said.

St Dunstan’s

Twins John and Con attended St Dunstan’s Primary School, which was started by Bishop Paget in 1919. Son Allen started attending Benoni Nursery School, in Government Village, when he was three and Roux served as chairperson of the governing body.

In later years, Roux was asked by the St Dunstan’s College Council to project manage the construction of the new junior primary school in Rynfield. This was followed immediately by the senior primary school, which completed the basic infrastructure of the school.

“Both these projects were new and very interesting to my dad, and he considered it a great honour to be involved once again in the affairs of the school. He was acknowledged in the form of an iziKhulu award, the highest recognition given by the school.”

Sporting highlights

• Roux played rugby in the Karoo, organised badminton courts for the Middelburg community and was even drafted to play hockey and cricket.
• His passion, however, was tennis, which he played for 90 years. On his arrival in Benoni in 1956, he immediately joined the Benoni Tennis Club. He won the Boland Open Singles Championship in 1942 and the Transkei Open Doubles Championship in 1948.
• He built his own tennis court in 1970, using his unique road construction technique which involved loading his five sons into a car, driving up and down on the court and compacting the soil until it met his stringent specifications. The court is still very much in use today, 50 years later. Young and old Benonians have enjoyed sociable action on this court almost continuously, every Saturday, for half a century.
• The last tennis match Roux took part in was at the beginning of July.
• He learned to play golf at around the age of 82 and never regretted the decision.
• Personal relationships were always important to him and he was very fond of the folk at Benoni Country Club, who regarded him as something of a legend.

Roux is survived by an extended family of 39, including his five sons, their wives, 10 grandchildren and their spouses, and 14 great-grandchildren.

On April 9, Roux, having very recently completed his memoirs, penned the following introductory words: “As I sit in my study today, overlooking my lovely rose garden, I am filled with gratitude to my Lord for allowing me to live a fulfilled life extending to 97 years. As one grows older, time seems to go faster, so life has to be embraced and the moments become more precious! Long ago, I decided not to worry about those things which I cannot change or do anything about, because they are in the Lord’s hands anyway. This has helped to smooth life’s path and has given me peace of mind, which the world could never have given.”

ALSO READ: 

Geoffrey Ridyard dies at age 79