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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2012-02-15 Daily Xml
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BOLLMEYER, MR BILL

The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA (15:31): I wish to bring to the attention of the council the passing of a Wallaroo stalwart and a Labor Party member, Bill Bollmeyer. Bill had a lifelong interest in the Labor Party, was president of the Goyder sub-branch of the ALP and an engaging public speaker, incisive, thoughtful and witty. A thoughtful, measured individual, Bill Bollmeyer was the epitome of 'old' Wallaroo, yet, at the same time, a guiding light for the 'new' Wallaroo. He savoured the best of the past, yet looked to the future of the town and the district.

Educated at St Mary's Catholic School in Wallaroo and Kadina High School, Bill put himself through matriculation after the age of 40, not because he needed to but because he relished the challenge. When Bill left high school, he joined the Australian barley board in Wallaroo as a regional officer, where he remained until retirement. During this period of 43 years, he saw the replacement of stevedores loading grain in hessian bags by bulk handling via conveyer.

Through Bill's employment the challenges within the community were wide and varied. He was elected to the Corporation of the Town of Wallaroo in 1973, serving a total of 16 years, six as mayor. Bill's other roles included being a delegate to the Local Government Association, a member and life member of the Wallaroo Apex Club, a member of the Wallaroo Hospital Board, including being chairperson from 1989 for five years, as well as being a staunch campaigner for the 'Save the Wallaroo Hospital' campaign.

Bill had many active and exciting interests. Bill's love affair with sailing and the sea saw him become a foundation member and multiple position holder in the Wallaroo Sailing Club, including that of commodore. At the time of his death he was a committee member, starter/timekeeper, publicity officer and author of the sailing club's popular newsletter Scuttlebutt. He built and sailed dinghies and sailed keel boats for many years, and in later life Bill sailed his Pion 30 footer Amazing all over Spencer Gulf, including Port Lincoln and Kangaroo Island. He was a competitive sailor for 40 years—and a damn good sailor, sir. Bill was also a champion local swimmer and a member of the Wallaroo swimming and rowing clubs.

His interest and energies in the area did not stop there. During the first Kernewek Lowender Cornish Festival in 1973, Bill became the publicity officer, helping the first event to a success that has laid the foundation of many memorable festivals ever since. As a member of the Wallaroo Town Development Working Group, Bill offered unstinting guidance and a steely resolve to see Wallaroo reach its full potential as an integral town within the District Council of the Copper Coast. He summed up his interest in the town in concluding that there was no place like Wallaroo, a view which was invariably prompted by the view of the towering grain silos as he came home via land or sea.

There is another picture of Bill Bollmeyer caught in history. In an unusual twist, a young, energetic Bill and his mate were captured in an iconic painting by artist Jeffrey Smart. It shows the two of them carrying Bill's canoe along the local 'slag beach' with the smelter stack in the background. On seeing this painting for the first time, Bill knew it was he and his mate in the painting. They carried the canoe from the Seaman's Mission, where it was stored, to the water's edge. This indelible stamp of the young Bill Bollmeyer against the significant historic backdrop is a unique and fitting tribute to the man who went on to offer so much to his community.

In closing, Bill is survived by his wife of 51 years, Claudia, and three sons, Nicholas, Guy and Matthew, and six grandchildren. I will miss Bill. Vale, Bill Bollmeyer.

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