HARDJONO, Rayner Joseph

Sincere condolences to Susy, Melanie, Jane,Susan and families.
Rayner was a lovely, gentle man! My thoughts are with you all!
Judith Buckley

A fine teacher, a valued colleague and a truly gentle man. Condolences to all who loved him

Our condolences to family and friends. A gentle, intelligent man.

A teacher I will always fondly remember with respect and kindness, a lovely man who never forgot any of our names well in to our adult lives, and a wonderful human who made a difference in the lives of so may.

Rest in Peace.

I’ve written thousands of words, maybe more than ten thousand, the past 3 weeks and nothing really comes close to express how much I love you, how great an influence you have been in my life, and how greatly you will be missed. And while we will be sad for a while, and must get used to the world without you walking in it, you will always be with me, helping me make more peaceful, calmer, gentle decisions as I continue to be lived.

Rest in peace, Dad.

love, your middle daughter, your carbon copy.
Jane

Dear Jane and family, sending much love on your father’s passing. I have warm memories of spending time at your family home during our teenage years. I remember your dad as a kind, gentle, welcoming man. My thoughts are with you, your mum, your sisters and your entire family at this time. Rest in peace, Mr Hardjono. With love, Karen Lindner (nee Wanke)

Rest in Peace oom Rayner Hardjono

Dear Budhe Susy, Mbak Melanie, Mbak Jane and Mbak Susan..

Please accept our deepest condolences. And we are wishing you strength and courage during this difficult time.

To Mrs Hardjono and family l send my
condolences for your loss , he was a truly
lovely man and one of my favourite teachers.
Rest easy Mr Hardjono knowing that you will
always be remembered fondly.
Karen x

Our condolences to mbak Susy, Melanie, Jane and Susan..and also big family of my third brother Rayner J Hardjono…. from Haryanto & family Ambarawa.( youngest brother)

RIP… semoga mbk Susy, Mei, Jane, Susan diberi ketabahan, kekuatan dan kesabaran atas kepergian mas Hardjono

I recently heard the news from Auntie Claudine about the passing of Eyang Harjono, and on behalf of Papa Nicho’s family, I would like to express our deepest condolences. May Eyang Harjono rest in peace.

Please accept our heartfelt sympathy from Mama Dewi, myself, Bernadeth, and especially from Utik and all the relatives here in Indonesia

Sending all prayers and our deepest condolences to tante Susy, cousin Melanie, Jane and Susan

Rest in love om Hardjono

Rest In Peace Pakdhe Djono ,,,
Even though we haven’t met yet, I heard from your story that Pakdhe is an extraordinary figure and loves his family very much, I also express his condolences for Budhe Susy and Mbak Mel, Mbak Jane and Mbak Susan..

Rayner
A light will always shine
In those you love
Your gentle wise and loving heart
Inspires us all to play our part
To be more loving , loyal and kind
Your patience in a difficult time

As a special family friend
Years of sharing, memories
Now will never end
Well done Rayner, your life will never end

Leaving Susy, Melanie, Jane & Susan
And their families to continue on with courage and love.
It is the greatest gift from above
Eternal love.

Our love & blessings
Susy, Melanie, Jane, Susan & families
We will always remember Rayner

Lyn Gunawan & family

Is it so small a thing to have enjoyed the sun, to have lived light in the Spring, to have loved, to have thought, to have done….. by Mathew Arnold. My heart & thoughts are with you all during this time of grieving. Please know you are not alone. R.I.P. dear Rayner. Condolences from Fay Tomholt.

A gentle kind man who knew so much a man who made a difference Love to the family
John and Cheryl Rhimes

Sugeng tindak mas Har.
Mugi Rinengkuh ing Pangeran.

mas har (pakde har) telah bersatu bersama tuhan yesus di surga dan roh mas har akan senatiass mendoakan melindungi membimbing memberkati keluarga dan kami

uncle swas from indonesia
(my daughter elisabeth and my wife esti)

Please accept my deep condolences

from Swastya and Family (younger brother in law)

To dear Susy and family, sending our sincere sympathy on the passing of a true gentleman A real privelage to have known him .

Pakde Rayner Hardjono,
Sugeng kondur ing Ngarso Dalem Gusti, lan mugi pinaringan swargo jati.

Mr Hardjono was one of my teachers in the 1990’s. He was always kind and patient and would occasionally turn a blind eye if we weren’t in the mood for religion studies!
May he rest in peace

Sugeng Tindak sowan Gusti Pakdhe Har,Mugi tansah tentrem ing Swarga Ndalem Gusti….Sedaya keluwarga ,Budhe Susi,Mbak Melanie,Mbak Jeane,jg Mbak Susan tansah pikantuk kekiyatan lan penghiburan…Gusti nresnani Pakdhe ln Sedaya keluarga….
Kamu sekeluarga (Lucia Lucianti,Anto,Feby)🙏🙏

Dear family
Lots of strength in this difficult time
We think back to the beautiful moments we had with us during the visits in the Netherlands
Our thoughts are with you

Dear Susy, Melanie, Jane, Susan and the extended Hardjono family,
We send our deepest condolences to you all on the loss of Rayner, your beloved husband, father and grandfather. We are sorry we cannot make it in person and are grateful for the opportunity to celebrate his life in the live stream.
With love, Peter, Lee, Michael, Jenny and Amy Ng

A kind soul and beautiful educator.
Love to all of your family and in my prayers.

Our deepest condolences for the passing of Om Harjono,
God give strength to the family to get through all this

Rest In Peace my handsome & kind uncle

Dear Susy, Melanie, Jane and Susan, how I wish I could have been with you today to farewell my teacher and my friend. What a privilege it was for me to say goodbye to Rayner in hospital before he left us. He was a gentle, intelligent, kind and independent man and he will be greatly missed. Lots of love, Nicole Dunbar (Darls) xx

Dear Susy and family, sending our condolences on the Raynor’s passing. We have many happy memories of our time together playing table tennis.
Love Roger and Shirley Thorn

My dad was the kind of person who always thought of others. Even when he was sick in hospital, he asked the nurses if they needed more light to see better. They told him, “Don’t worry about us—we’re here to look after you.” But that was Dad—observant, quietly caring, always putting others first.

Dad showed his love every day through his many small, thoughtful acts. When I was a little kid, I made you sleep on the floor next to me at night, and every time you’d try to quietly leave, I’d call you back—and you always came back til I fell asleep.

You happily drove me places, sharpened my dull kitchen knives when you came to visit, offered coffees at the end of meals and always did the washing up. You just always quietly took care of things for us. You and Mum made a great team.

Dad was so smart, and long before Siri and ChatGPT, you were like the human internet to me—you knew everything about anything. I thought all dads knew as much as you, even though sometimes you’d trick us, like the time you said you invented the toothbrush ;)

Dad was always curious, an optimist, believing that things would work out and be ok, and he’s always been right. Because a teacher is always right :)

Thank you for showing me how to live with independence, optimism, how to go with the flow of life, and your deep, quiet love for family. You always accepted me as I am and never wanted to change me. I couldn’t ask for a better dad—and I hope to live my life like yours, with great positivity. Love you Dad.

My dad, Rayner, lived in devoted service to his family in his gentle, kind, quiet way. He looked on the bright side of any situation and complaining was not in his nature. The most common thread in messages and comments about Dad in the last few weeks were that he was lovely, and a gentleman. He was always himself, keeping these qualities to the end.Dad was very important to me and my own family and so deeply loved and respected. He went from being my dad to ‘Pop’, and this was how I and my family referred to him for the last 19 years. His value of education and respect for learning were passed on to me and now our children, who strive to make the best of their school opportunities, and all want to do well in their academic endeavours. He loved and enjoyed the company of his grandchildren as they came along, enjoying the antics of babies, toddlers and their sweet younger years. Dad wasn’t really an animal lover, but I said to him that babies are the ultimate pets, and he laughingly and wholeheartedly agreed. I am so grateful and pleased we could see him enjoy having grandchildren and them enjoying their Pop. He adored Mary Rose, his ‘rst grandchild, and spent hours trying to amuse her. Not much was more delightful than the sound of a baby laughing. Pop took us to the miniature steam trains in Traralgon many times, which was Thomas great passion as a little boy. He gave one of his old mobile phones to Henry when he started high school, which was his ‘rst mobile phone. Dad was so excited to share his own love of technology with such a grateful and enthusiastic recipient. He loved having my little brood come visit when they were 6 years old and under and brought their lively chaos with them. Proudly, he watched them grow and while he loved them all so much, he had a soft spot for my youngest Lily, and I remember his pleasure at listening to her sing and play the ukulele during our last visit in January this year. He was a wonderful role model in all aspects; steadfast, gentle, patient, loving and calm. Grit was one of his many qualities, and the trait I recognise in myself as coming from my dad. Finally, I followed in my dad’s professional footsteps. I appreciate grit as necessary in the teaching vocation, along with compassion, respect and love for young people as fellow human beings. We educate as much if not more, through example as curriculum. Unwavering in the face of life’s inevitable challenges, he was always dependable and our rock. He looked after his wife and 3 daughters to the best of his ability, all our lives.I love my dad, and he loved me. We didn’t require any special qualities, gifts or talents to deserve it. The beauty of family relationships is that we can distil them to love at the end of an earthly life. Love is what remains, while the rest falls away. Rayner, thank you for being my dad and a wonderful grandfather and father-in-law. We love you dad.

Thank you, Dad, for being the ground beneath my feet.

We do the things in life that we like, that we see, and that we want to emulate.
Whether we do this consciously depends from person to person.

When I look at my own life, I would say it’s a combination of admiring my father so immensely that I copied him. Partially with awareness; partially because I am made this way.

You see, when I was born, Dad’s friends and colleagues marvelled: “Why, Jane is the carbon copy of Rayner!”

So why shouldn’t I walk exactly in his footsteps?

As a young child I had a love for words. I grew up with a writer-editor-translator father, who read to us often, and who even trawled through the Encyclopedia Britannica to find errors and write letters to the editors. He compiled dictionaries and published phrase books. As early as 7 years of age I wrote short stories, and later, novels that filled notebooks and floppy disks. Eventually I learnt Dutch, became a writer, editor and translator, and taught English. Last year I published a book on writing craft. Today I work with authors, helping people write and publish their nonfiction books. My love of words is one of my treasured inheritances.

As a young child I had an affinity for making difficult decisions. I knew that even though Dad never liked school as a child, he blossomed academically in his teen years. In my opinion he was a legend because he spent 16 years working hard towards his dream of becoming a Jesuit priest. And not just that. He had the courage to pivot and embrace family life. From the age of 8, I spent 10 years working hard towards my dream of playing piano at Melbourne Conservatorium. After I finally won a place, and after 2 years of study, I decided not to complete my music degree and took a totally different path. Dad ultimately wanted to keep his relationship with God behind closed doors. And I prefer to focus on the process of music-making and the ever-changing interplay between the instrument and myself.

As a young child I came across as reserved. But inside there was a burning sense of adventure. I don’t suppose any of us kids understood the enormity of what our parents had undertaken, coming to a foreign country, with a small child to care for. I assumed it was the natural order of things. Mum told us how she and Dad agreed to work and live in this strange land for a year or two. Did you know that 2025 marks their 51st year in Australia? Many years later I went off to explore the Netherlands, for maybe a year, which turned into 14 years. And now, my Dutch husband and children are coming up to 6 years in New Zealand. Living away from my homeland has taught me how to befriend people, learn new languages and skills, be willing to face the unknown, and to remain loyal to family. I would have done none of that without Dad’s leadership.

I’ve spent almost 2 decades apart from my family of origin. You might think I regret being away this long. But the beauty of my connection with Dad, and the rest of my family of course, is founded in my conviction that there is such a thing as unconditional love.

As well as a book coach, I am a Feldenkrais practitioner. This is where my form differs from the mould. What I do looks like bodywork, but it is really about witnessing people be themselves. I observe what people say, how they hold themselves, and what they sense and believe is possible. We work together to discover the person’s capacity to integrate more of themselves and to move into their potential, through their unique actions and attitudes.

In Dad’s last days I had a great privilege. It was not that I could speak with him, although I did. It was that I was able to touch him. It was a touch not intended to heal him. Not to change or fix. But to be with him, unconditionally, simply as he was, in this new state of being. Together we remembered his ankles and his knees. His fingers and his toes. His ribs, to recall the space available to him for life-giving breath. And I invited him to give me the tension in his legs and shoulders by letting me take over the work of his tired muscles, even for a second or two.

One of the things I was sure to do was put my hands underneath his feet. He’d been bedridden for many days and hadn’t experienced a whole sense of himself from his crown to soles. Grounding. We all need grounding, at every stage in life. And we don’t need words to sense that. We need grounding in order to know the integrity of our self, in the body we have. Even if we are frustrated with what it can no longer do, we can be organised to take the next step, whatever it might be. Wherever it will take us.

I’m saying this because Mum told me only a few days ago, that Dad had said: “Jane’s touch was really great. It felt good.”

We all knew Dad, Rayner Hardjono, to be a man of few words. So these ones he spent on me are priceless.

The man who gave me life allowed me, in his last days of life, to remind him of all the support he gave me, for a few small moments.

Thank you Dad, for giving me the gift to be there, with Mum, right before your great journey.
What a marvellous and sacred thing it was to witness you, my source and my foundation, take off for your next big adventure.

I won’t be following right away, at least that’s the plan. But I will go where you go. And not just because I’m mini-Rayner. But because now I know for certain it is wonderful.
For you’ll be there on the other shore, a hand raised in greeting and a wide soft smile on your face. When I reach you, we will turn our backs to the water. Side by side we will stand, ready to explore. But first you’ll let me drape one arm over your shoulder, and we will wiggle our toes in the ground beneath our feet.

Dear Susy , Deepest sympathy on the passing of Rayner, a kind and gentle workmate. Congratulations on raising such lovely and articulate children. Rest in Peace Rayner.

Apologies for the late condolences.
Mr Hardjono was a wonderful and lovely man.
I will always remember him as my favourite teacher. Even many years after graduating high school we would always stop for a chat when we saw each other.
The world has lost a true gentleman.