My father, Klaus Neuberg, who has died aged 93, was a man of gravitas and erudition. He devoted his time, skills and energy to reconciliation, peace and understanding.
Born in Berlin, he became head boy at his school during the rising tensions of the Nazi era, despite being Jewish. In 1938, on returning from a trip to England, rather than comply with an order to present himself immediately to the police with his passport, he hurriedly retraced his steps to London. Kristallnacht followed. His father, Max, and other family members were taken to Sachsenhausen concentration camp.
In London, Klaus met Herta Häusler and they married in 1940. With ingenuity and vital help from the British embassy in Berlin, his father and other relatives had been released from Sachsenhausen and obtained visas to go to New Zealand. Klaus and Herta joined them. There, Klaus worked during the day and studied at night, achieving his BA and then MA with first-class honours at Victoria University of Wellington. Klaus became a teacher, then a junior lecturer in education at Victoria. In 1952 he won a two-year travelling scholarship to London. He was appointed senior lecturer in the philosophy of education at the University of London and stayed for 13 years.
In 1966 Klaus was invited by Sir Ralph Richardson to become the first principal of the New College of Speech and Drama. In 1976 he became a dean of the embryonic Middlesex University, taking early retirement in 1984 to spend more time with Herta. She died in 1986.
He devoted his life to an astonishing range of causes which included Rotary, the Samaritans, Probus Club, the World Education Fellowship and the English Speaking Board, as well as reading for the blind, prison visiting and learning Spanish (his daughter Robin lived in Spain) and Japanese (he hosted many Japanese Rotary scholars). He received the Paul Harris award, Rotary's highest honour for outstanding service, three times.
Klaus proposed twinning the German Rotary club of Celle-Schloss with his Golders Green club in London, which had many Jewish members. There was initial resistance from Golders Green, but his persistence and plea for reconciliation prevailed.
Revelling in travel to remote corners of the globe, in his mid-80s he was hang-gliding in New Zealand and in his 90s he was in Madagascar, Borneo, Easter Island and Argentina. His family and friends meant everything to him and this love and warmth was returned.
He brought a touch of magic and delight to me and my sister, Robin; his grandsons, Guy, Kim and Tristan; and his great-grandchildren, Jess and Tom. We all survive him, along with Annie Morley-Slinn, his partner since 1990.