The seasoned editor knew only too well the flurry of the newsroom, gathering details whenever a prominent person passed away.

There was no egotism, just a wish to ‘get it right’, as he always demanded, and to save his family the trouble in a time of grief.

Over the years Mr Leeson dropped in various notes to add to the file.

One journalist certainly thought his time had come when, returning from lunch, she found an updated version of his obituary left on her computer.

“You were getting ready to give me the big farewell, were you?” he later joked.

That was more than a year ago now. It was with a heavy heart on Friday that we sought out that file. It sat among the many others the meticulous editor started on prominent figures, subjects and buildings.

The words honest, fair and accurate have been used liberally in the past few days about Ray Leeson. He was an editor like no other, a man of compassion and endless commitment to his community.

His list of public involvement would leave most people breathless. That he managed to do so while heading up a busy daily newspaper is a credit to him and his family.

The love of his life, wife Pat, was very much part of the team – his “best cadet,” as he would say.

“I acknowledge that this work would not have been possible without the strong support of my wife, Pat,” he said in 2008 upon being awarded his Order of Australia medal.

Mr Leeson began as a nuts and bolts reporter, became skilled in shorthand and was often seen riding across town with a typewriter balanced on his pushbike handlebars, according to a 1988 article by Ray Williams.

As an editor he was a staunch advocate, comprehensively covered the issues that mattered, including the very controversial State Aid debate, and won enduring respect.

He was fair to the people in his news pages but also to his staff, which earned supreme loyalty in return. As Leon Oberg says today, despite the stress of a busy newsroom, he rarely lost his temper.

Mr Leeson watched with quiet pride over the years as many of his journalists went on to become newspaper and magazine editors, television news anchors and senior media advisors to government.

In a world of rapidly changing media, the grassroots community based reporting he instilled will ever endure.

Mr Leeson’s contribution to this newspaper and community is immeasurable. We thank him for a fine innings and extend our deep condolences to his family.