Jack, as he was known to most people was born on the December 4, 1930.
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He was the last baby to be born in the old Queen St Hospital in Cobram.
He spent his early childhood in Cobram and Yarrawonga before his family moved to Benalla.
In 1944 during the war, at the age of 13, he was recruited by Manpower and forced to leave school to start his working career in the timber industry.
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He had a passion for timber and became a proficient milling benchman, then diversifying into a highly skilled timber feller and logger.
In the early days he worked with a broad axe and crosscut to fall the trees and then moved onto the first chainsaw in north-east Victoria.
After suffering a bout of shingles in the middle ear, he was forced to give up falling and returned as a benchman in the mill, working for Ryan and McNulty sawmill, for many years.
Together with Edna, his wife of 58 years, they raised five children.
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Jack was a hard worker and his family was his greatest love, his grandchildren and great-grandchildren gave him great pleasure.
Jack was also a lover of music and joined the town band where he played the E-flat tuba and sometimes the saxophone.
Together with his family they would attend many band festivals.
As his family grew, Jack was involved in supporting committees for which they were involved.
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His girls were involved in Girl Guides and he supported them by being their taxi to camps.
When 1st Benalla Scouts had too many boys and could not take in anymore, Jack and a group of parents founded the 2nd Benalla Scout Group and he was a scout committee member for many years.
Jack was also manager of the Swanpool Junior football team, and transported boys out to footy two to three times a week.
After leaving the mill around 1977, Jack worked for the Benalla City Council where he was a by-laws officer, manager of the BARC complex, airport caretaker, proper officer, and the local dog catcher.
One of his first jobs on the council was to assist with the building of the fountain in Lake Benalla.
He retrieved many dogs from wandering and made sure they were returned to their owners.
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In later years he joined the Benalla Bowls Club where he played pennant and social bowls.
Jack also joined the Lions Club and was an active member and a member of the board.
He was in charge of maintenance of the Lions club seats throughout the town and took great pride in making sure they were always in good condition and freshly painted.
In 2015, two years after Edna passed away, Jack moved into Cooinda and joined the Cooinda lifestyle.
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Jack was involved in Cooinda activities and in particular the FCJ Choir and "Let’s Find Your Voice" program, where he followed his love of music and joined the choir singing.
In his first concert at 84 years of age, he sang a solo, Moon River, which filled his family with great pride.
Jack loved his time at Cooinda where he made many friendships, he adored the staff and was always full of praise for the facility.
Jack's family would like to thank Cooinda staff for the care, compassion, and kindness they have given Jack and his family throughout his time there.
As he would say "I’ve had a good life".
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