photo (ron lollback 1): Ron proudly displaying his many bowling trophies.
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RON Lollback of Wingham celebrated his 80th birthday recently at Wingham Bowling Club with more than 50 family, friends, and fellow bowlers in attendance, some coming from as far as Sydney, Grafton and Maclean.
A highlight of the evening was a performance by family friend Len Knight, an award-winning bush poet, with a recitation of two of his own poems, and performing a song he had specially composed for Ron.
A few bottles of Ron’s home-brewed beer were smuggled in, with one exploding and ‘overflowing like champagne’ onto the floor of the bowling club.
Ron was born in Tucabia (near Grafton), the second of 10 children. The family moved to Ulmarra where Ron says there was “no time for anything except work”.
His day started at 3.30am to be up and assisting with the milking, at one stage up to 129 cows. After milking came a quick breakfast, biking to the bus stop and catching the bus to Grafton for school.
With such early starts, “a regular thing was to go to sleep while sitting in class,” Ron says adding it meant copping a caning.
As soon as the school day was over it was back to do more milking, feed the pigs and calves. He often fell asleep trying to do his homework, and then was caned again the next day for not completing his homework.
Ron left school at 14, spent two years on the farm, and then qualified for employment with the railway. His first job was at Gloucester, opening and closing the gates at Ward River crossing.
He travelled the State working for the railway, working his way up to station master. He got married and had two sons, Tony and Mark.
A keen sportsman, Ron took up bowls when he moved to Aberdeen and became hooked.
His last post as station master was at Wingham, where he worked for two years until the station closed down. He has now been here 25 years, 18 of those in a relationship with partner Janet Nash.
Ron describes Wingham as a “good spot with good people who looked and proved to be able to tolerate me.”