Reflections from the past

The flow of water gradually receded, dropping much slower than usual.

The flood of 22ft 7in was slightly lower the peak of 1956 flood when the water reached 23ft.

Shops in Mackay St, Rochester, were sand bagged in an effort to keep the water waters out, but were not completely successful.

Trucks travelling backwards and forwards up the flooded street forced waves of water over the sandbags and into a number of shops.

•••

Bruce Lloyd, the sitting Country Party’s Member for Murray, was returned with an increased majority in Saturday’s Federal Election.

He polled 23,017 votes, 52.5 per cent of the vote, a rise of 6.5 per cent on in 1972 figures.

Mr Lloyd was pleased with the outcome of the election in Murray.

He felt that he had obviously had a good percentage of the 18-year-old vote.

•••

Football in the Goulburn Valley League was cancelled on Saturday owing to flood conditions throughout the whole area of the league.

With Rochester and the Shepparton and Mooroopna areas inundated with flood waters, and most other centres within the league saturated after continuous rain, the decision of the Goulburn Valley League to call of the matches was widely appreciated.

Following flooding at Rochester on Thursday moves were made to transfer the Rochester v Kyabram to Kyabram, but this failed owing to the very wet conditions at Kyabram.

Many players throughout the league would have been unable to get to the respective grounds, whilst others especially at Mooroopna and Shepparton were working desperately trying to save properties from the raging Goulburn River.

25 years ago May 1999

The scene outside Rochester Primary School in Edward St between 3.30pm and 3.45 each week night has been described by one parent as ‘’crazy’’.

Cars coming and going, bicycles and children form a confused mix as students come out of the primary and secondary schools and cross the road heading for a parent’s car, home, the shopping centre or sports ground.

Parent Julie Bright has had enough and says it is time for a designated crossing in Edward St to give children a safe place to cross.

‘’Ideally we need a school crossing where cars must stop and give way to pedestrians, but failing that there needs to be a marked crossing where the children can feel a degree of safety as they cross together in numbers and traffic will be aware that this is where children will cross. The current situation is crazy.’’

•••

‘’It’s all been good fun, but there comes a time ... and the time has come,’’ school gardener Cyril Robins told the staff at Lockington Consolidated School during a morning tea in his honor.

In Mr Robin’s own words he has ‘’slung me hook’’, putting away the wheelbarrow and gardening tools that have been part of his life since around 1986 — ‘’with a couple of breaks,’’ he said.

On a doctor’s advice he has reluctantly given up working in the school gardens, but he’s happy to retain his title of ‘’resident grandpa’’ (he’s actually a great grandfather) at the school, a title earned by his visits to the classrooms to play card games with the children (to assist with their maths) or talk to them about times past and to explain the relevance of certain days, such as Anzac Day, to a younger generation.

•••

The tallest silo ever made by Byfords at Strathmerton arrived at Rochester’s Murray Goulburn factory on Thursday, attracting plenty of attention as the convoy of float, advance and rear vehicles and VicRoads officers made their way down the Northern Hwy and into the Mackay St plant.

The 30m000 litre silo, that will store milk to be used for Melbourne milk supplies (city milk) and other outlets, is 25 metres high, though of a smaller diameter than other silos the company usually makes, said Byfords owner Garry Byford.

The diameter meant the float and silo fitted neatly under power lines, however a trip across the Campaspe River bridge at Rochester had been ruled out because of bridge works, so the convoy came down the Murray Valley Hwy via Echuca before turning south to Rochester on the Northern Hwy.

10 years ago May 2014

Jessie Wilson has four grandchildren and two great-grandchildren but has adopted thousands more over her 22 years as a volunteer at Rochester Primary School.

She helps pupils with reading and writing exercises and they often confide in her.

Mrs Wilson remained tight-lipped about the secrets she learned over the years.

‘‘She is the most loved person in our staff,’’ principal Graeme Hodgens said.

Office manager Janis Povey said Mrs Wilson contributed to the school in a valuable and meaningful way.

‘‘If she is outside, the children are around her and happy to see her,’’ she said.

Mrs Wilson began volunteering with preps when her granddaughter began school.

•••

Corop residents have been given the go-ahead to place poppy tiles on veterans’ graves.

Previously, individual requests for any changes to be made to grave sites had to be approved by the Corop Cemetery Trust.

The trust saw the benefits in allowing the tiles to be placed on grave sites without formal permission.

Kaye Speers — whose father, Percival Thomas Speers, is buried in Rochester Cemetery and has a memorial plaque at Corop Cemetery — said the initiative was important in the lead-up to Anzac Day’s centenary.

‘‘It's about remembrance and being thankful for what those people did to make this a great country to live in,’’ she said.

•••

Rochester and district families will pay an additional $7 a day in childcare costs if the Campaspe Shire Budget is passed.

The shire is raising the daily rate at the Rochester and District Childcare Centre from $70 a day to $77.

Rochester’s Khaleda Edib said the price hike was not welcomed.

When she works and her husband Tariq studies, their daughter Fatima (Chuti) uses the facility.

‘‘The government is cutting down the Family Tax Benefit B and the electricity and water charges are going up,’’ she said, ‘‘but my income is not going up.’’

Full-time working mother Rebecca O’ Sullivan sends her son to the facility three days a week.

‘‘It’s making it very expensive,’’ she said. ‘‘It’s an extra $21 per week.’’