Not many people can say they have retired after 37 years in the one job.
For Bob Hollis it was a fulfilling experience to have worked in the public service from school days to retirement.
As a clerk of courts he has been the public face of many court sittings across northern Victoria.
Our newsmaker was born at Merbein in the Sunraysia district where his parents were horticulturalists.
He later attended primary school at Merbein before completing just one year of study at the Mildura High School.
“The clerk of courts at Mildura came along to one of our classes and said to the group that the public service was desperate for additional staff members,” he said.
“If any of the students were interested then they should come to the law courts for an interview.
“I was successful in that interview and the rest is history.
“It all began for me in the law courts in Mildura in 1949.
“All the resources we had in those early days was a telephone, pen and ink.
“There were no calculators and no computers.
“It was very different to what is available to the courts today.’’
Bob took an immediate interest in getting further promotions within the sector and undertook some preliminary examinations which saw him transferred to Kyneton.
Then further postings would see our newsmaker head to Swan Hill and then down to Coburg.
“Next came a posting to the Wimmera where I worked in the law courts in Nhill and then over to Shepparton for seven years.
“Then I was lucky enough to get transferred to Bendigo in 1973.’’
During his 13 years at the Bendigo Law Courts, Bob was the chief clerk in the Supreme, County, Magistrates, Coroners and Children’s Court.
He saw many great characters pass through the court system locally.
“One of the best stories I can tell you is the one that was heard in the magistrates court,” he said.
“A local chappy was charged with car theft.
“He was going through the process of being bailed on the weekend and he asked who was going to be on the bench on the Monday morning court session.
“He was then told it would be Magistrate Mr  Curtain.
“The accused then became happy because the man to preside over the proceedings was well known to other family members that had appeared before him over time and Mr Curtain was affectionately known as their family magistrate.’’
Our newsmaker said the position of clerk of courts was a very interesting career and he encouraged young people to enquire about a position within the court system.
“My philosophy was always that you were a servant of the public,” he said.
“You are dealing with the public on a daily basis.
“You are also communicating with magistrates and also judges in the high jurisdictions.
“I tried to the best of my ability to do that.”
Bob retired from the law courts in 1986 and he said it was a great journey.
 “Back in my early days in the Sunraysia area we saw great numbers of people booked for being drunk and disorderly on weekends during the fruit picking season,” he said.
“Then on Monday morning before the court session was held we would have such a long line that when the first person came in to the court the people were still coming out of the police station.
“That situation changed dramatically when they introduced a self-bail system.
“The fruit block owner could put up five pound bail so that his picker could go back to work immediately and the bail money came off the court fine.’’
Our newsmaker said the young people of today have some wonderful opportunities and he encouraged them to study hard and work hard to end up with a worthwhile profession.
Bob said he was glad he came to Bendigo in 1973 as it was a great place for his family to live with ample education and employment opportunities.
Nowadays, 76-year-old Bob takes a special interest in what is happening within the community.
He would like to see the parking situation improved in the central business district as well as having a ring road around the city to get all the heavy transports out of the centre of the shopping strip.
“This is a beautiful city. We have all the great facilities in health and education to raise a family. It’s such a great place to live.,” he said.