Gary Lavelle farewells his illustrious career in local government

Gary Lavelle is about to call time on nearly three decades with the Temora Shire Council as general manager.

Born and raised in Bourke, Gary left home to pursue his tertiary education at the University of New England.

He returned home to start his career in local government and worked in numerous places before finally moving to Temora in 1989. He began working as general manager for the council in 1995.

Even though he was trained to be an accountant, Gary said it was “serendipitous” that he ended up in local government.

“When I went back to Bourke, I had no intention of joining the council, but I was offered a job and fell in love with local government and that I could make a difference,” Gary said. “That was something that attracted me to the job.”

“Ever since then, I travelled around to get the experience before moving to Temora.

“I loved the community, the people and everything about Temora, and it became my home,” he said.

The soon-to-be-retired general manager said his fondest memories of working for the shire council were of the people and the community.

“There are some tremendous people in the Temora community, and working with them, the volunteerism and the sense of ‘can-do’ – the community has always been positive,” Gary said.

“I had wonderful workmates, and I appreciate everyone I worked with through the years.

“I’m also very proud of all the council’s achievements when I’ve been here.”

When asked about his proudest moment with the council, Gary said there were many that he could share, one being that in 2009 Temora won the Bluett Memorial Award for local government excellence.

He said that winning the award truly reflected the hard work put in by all the councillors, the community and the council staff.

“The development of the Temora medical precinct stood the community in good stead for the future,” Gary said.

“We’re in that happy situation where we’ve got good facilities, medical imaging, pathology and some excellent doctors, and a lot of that has come about because of the availability of the [medical] facility.”

Another proud achievement for Gary was the development of the Temora Airpark Estate.

“Many years ago, we saw an opportunity and developed it into a major subdivision out there … it’s still developing and has a nice little niche market for people who are into aviation.”

A personal accomplishment for Gary was winning the Public Service Medal.

“It is something I treasure … it’s not about the award, but it’s still nice (to be recognised),” he said.

Gary said throughout his career as general manager, he was part of some major positive redevelopment throughout the Temora community, including the new pool, Lake Centenary, Town Hall Theatre and the library.

“They are all positive things that have happened, and I’ve been involved with many other people,” he said.

“I’m thankful the councillors have had the foresight to undertake the work and the staff to develop the jobs as they’ve come along.”

The general manager said his family had loved living in Temora.

“It’s a great community that can look after itself and has the local identity and small-town feel,” he said. “It’s a very supportive community.

“We raised our kids here, and it’s a great place to raise them.”

Retirement had been on Gary’s agenda for some time, and the final decision was made a couple of years ago.

“It was the right time, and it’s been something I’ve been considering,” he said.

“It’s the right time for someone to take over and take it to a new level.”

Gary’s retirement plans include travelling and getting involved in the community as a volunteer, and he has no plans of leaving Temora.

“I volunteer on a few committees, and I’d like to ramp that up because a community like Temora runs on volunteers,” he said.

Gary expressed his gratitude for the work of his former mentor and predecessor, the late Ted Leary, and thanked council staff, outdoor staff and councillors.

Gary’s last day of work will be on 30 June.