After 30 years on Moore St and 34 years in business, Graeme Nelson is putting the tools down.
Graeme Nelson Motors was sold on June 27, marking the beginning of Mr Nelson’s retirement.
Before starting Graeme Nelson Motors, Mr Nelson trained as a mechanic and worked as a truck driver, travelling across the country.
“I worked as a motor mechanic, then I went down with my own truck, carting stuff all over Australia,” he said.
“I gave that up and went back to the mechanics.
“I was in the trucks for 16 years I think, travelled to every state and just about every capital city.”
Mr Nelson estimates he has seen about 15 people a week through his business for the past 34 years, totalling more than 26,000 services.
Mr Nelson was involved in the RACV, on call 24/7 to assist with breakdowns in the area for about 44 years.
“I saw some very funny things ... people bogged in the middle of lakes,” he said.
“It’s a part of life, you’ve gotta have a sense of humour.”
During his long career, Mr Nelson has seen many changes in the automotive industry, from car construction to how the RACV is contacted.
“I’ve seen a lot of changes with vehicles from then to now,” he said.
“Mechanics now have got to be pretty computer literate as well, compared to what it used to be like anyway.
“It went from, if someone broke down they had to find a farmhouse to ring up to tell me they broke down.
“(Now) a mobile phone sends you the map of where they are. It makes it a lot easier.
“Back then, if you had a couple in a weekend you’d be busy, now it’s anything from three or four to a dozen or more.”
Mr Nelson’s contributions to the Rochester community earned him a Medal of the Order of Australia in the 2019 Queen’s Birthday Honours.
This work included his roles on the board of Rochester and Elmore District Health Service, chair of the Rochester and Lockington Development Group and member of the Echuca Moama Tourism Board.
His tenures as president of the Rotary Club of Rochester saw the establishment of the Rochester Rotary Driver Education Complex in Elmore.
“I started a driver education complex down at Elmore for kids,” he said.
“It was mainly to stop kids from having an accident after they get their licence.
“The way I put it, anyone can get a licence ... but you have to stay alive once you’ve got a licence.
“We were all about teaching them how to stay alive, what to look for.”
In his 20 years with the Rotary Club, Mr Nelson co-ordinated community initiatives and flood recovery support.
“We got a bus, I think that’s still running today,” he said.
“During the floods, 2011 especially, we had crews of people coming out of Melbourne who were coming out fixing fences and all that sort of stuff. It took at least 12 months.
“It was one of those things you had to co-ordinate all the time.”
His contributions to Rotary saw him awarded a Paul Harris Fellowship in 2009. In 2012, Mr Nelson was also chosen as citizen of the year by Campaspe Shire Council.
After almost 70 years of work in some capacity, Mr Nelson, 84, is sad to be retiring. His body is unable to keep up at the rate he has been going for so many decades.
“It’s disappointing that I’m retiring,” he said.
“You’ve got to call it quits somewhere.
“I’m going blind, my back’s playing up ... otherwise I wouldn’t (retire).
“I probably actually started working when I was 14.”
In his retirement, he looks forward to taking time for himself and making up for lost time.
“I’ll do a lot more fishing,” he said.
“I’ll do a lot of things that I probably could’ve and should’ve done when I was 30.”
The last step for Graeme Nelson Motors will be the clearance auction this Friday, July 19, where a range of collectors’ items will be on sale.
This will include old manuals, car parts, equipment, memorabilia and vehicles collected over many years.
“There’s a lot of parts ... people that have got older cars (they) could be good for,” Mr Nelson said.
The auction will start at 10am. There will be a coffee cart and the Rochester Lions Club will run a barbecue.
“It’s going to be an emotional day for Graeme especially, selling a lot of stuff,” Ray White Rochester real estate agent Stuart Wilson said.
“And he’ll be yelling at us because we’ve sold it too cheap!”
Information about the clearance sale and an overview of the items on offer can be viewed on the auction website.