Bermagui turns out to thank and farewell Bob and Judi Hearn

It is difficult to imagine what Bermagui would be like today if not for more than 25 years of generous and inspiring volunteer work by Bob and Judi Hearn.

People came from as far as Canberra and Pambula on Sunday (9 February) to say farewell and thank them for all they had done for the community before the couple started a new chapter in their lives near Echuca.

Among the crowd were business folk, historians, a geologist, filmmaker, museum advisor, multidisciplinary digital artist, and former and current Bega Valley Shire councillors, reflecting the extraordinary range of people who Bob and Judi worked with over the years to complete significant social and economic projects for Bermagui.

After transitioning from their cattle farm in Echuca over a few years, Judi and Bob settled permanently in Bermagui around 1995.

Judi, a historian, author and poet, wasted no time documenting Bermagui’s history.

A history of Bermagui she co-wrote with Ron Gaha was published in 1994, followed by her own work, Bermagui by the Sea, which was published in 1996. She also wrote the history of big game fishing in Bermagui, the history of Montreal Goldfield, and the biography of local racehorse trainer Leone Creamer.

Wendy Douch, former secretary of the Bermagui Historical Society, said the society first met in June 1993 at the Horseshoe Bay Hotel, now the Bermagui Beach Hotel.

“Judi was the founding member and the only one still involved,” Ms Douch said. “She has been coming along for 30-plus years.”

In the mid-1990s Judi was quick to join forces with local businessman John Neilson, and Bermagui Chamber of Commerce members Frank Haynes and Chris Franks, to restore the almost forgotten Montreal Goldfield, north of Bermagui, to its former glory.

The Chamber of Commerce was looking for a new tourist attraction for Bermagui other than big game fishing and beaches.

Judi researched the goldfield’s history and wrote application after application for the grant funding needed to clear the overgrown goldfield and make it safe for public access.

For four years, Bob, a skilled carpenter, along with Bruce Blackburn, Ian Barkland and Mr Neilson, spent most days at the site, clearing it and building pathways, fences, and covers for the deep mine shafts.

“We were keen and stupid,” Bob said. “We tried to unload the covers with a tractor, but it was too dangerous because the wheel would go down a hole and we didn’t know where the holes were.”

Hundreds of shafts were eventually identified in the five-acre section that was fenced off.

For 25 years, Bob oversaw and was involved with work at the goldfield, including building the goldfield’s Heritage Centre, completed in 2014. It houses all the memorabilia that Mr Neilson had accumulated over the years.

They called themselves the Old Codgers Construction Company. Council staff checking their work every day or two could not fault the men’s work.

Bob’s skills extended to making souvenirs for the Heritage Centre and Bermagui Visitor Information Centre. He and Judi were Montreal Goldfield tour guides for years.

Montreal Goldfield was one of three finalists in the NSW Community Achievement Awards in 2009.

The farewell was poignant for Mr Franks, president of the Montreal Goldfield Management Committee.

“Today is to get a clear understanding of what we have gained in Judi and Bob, so we have a clear understanding of what we are losing,” Mr Franks said. “My teacher is about to walk out on me.”

After the formal speeches, several people put their hands up to speak about how much Bob and Judi had done for the community.

Judi and Bob lent their skills, knowledge, and experience to other community projects.

Bermagui Area Chamber of Commerce and Tourism secretary Janette Neilson said that when the chamber started work on an emergency plan for the town, “they were two of the first people involved”.

Bega Valley Shire councillor Helen O’Neil said it was almost hard not to volunteer in Bermagui. “That is because of people like the Hearns who know how to do it really well.”