Jeremy Gaylard: Driven by passion

The former City of Shepparton mayor, businessman and community leader died at Bellarine Lakes aged care home in Geelong on November 5, at the age of 81.

His commanding voice, personal drive and independence may have been honed in his early career as a stock and station agent and wool classer, but it wasn’t obvious in the early days that he would end up spending more time at the board table than a wool classing table.

Jeremy developed his leadership roles across the Goulburn Valley in addressing the threat of salinity which emerged as a major challenge for agriculture in the 1970s and 1980s.

He became chair of the Salinity Program Advisory Council and went on to oversee the development of structures and policy for catchments across Victoria in the 1990s as chair of the Victorian Catchment and Land Protection Council.

The son of Max and Dinah Gaylard, Jeremy Michael James Gaylard was born on July 17, 1941.

His father and his two uncles owned Shepparton’s iconic department store known as Fairleys.

Friend Peter Johnson recalled their first meeting, recognising him as a “confident young lad” in grade five at Shepparton Primary School, but not anticipating the remarkable life that his new friend would lead.

Jeremy attended Melbourne Grammar for his secondary schooling and went on to work in the southern Riverina as a wool classer and then as a stock and station agent.

He enjoyed the stock and station life, working with livestock and the rough and tumble of Newmarket saleyards.

In November 1966, Jeremy and Felicity (Flip) were married and they eventually had two children, Emma and James.

Flip was supportive of all the paths that Jeremy’s life would take him and he never failed to acknowledge that he could not have done the things he did without her.

In the mid 1960s, Jeremy became one of the ‘graduates’ of the Shepparton Apex Club, an organisation which produced a number of community leaders, and here he developed his skills in public speaking.

He developed an impressive network of contacts across rural Goulburn Valley, which were put to good use in an extraordinary number of committee positions he held.

Although he eventually joined the then Shepparton City Council and achieved a public profile through his prominence and sometimes controversial stands, it was his work with the Salinity Program Advisory Council, in concert with other leaders like John Dainton and Bill O’Kane, that produced lasting benefits for the region.

It was something of an odd, but workable, combination of personalities, with Jeremy urging action “now!”, John Dainton pressing home a list of points and Bill O’Kane going to work on the detail.

Jeremy’s personal style sometimes put him at odds with others who didn’t share his opinions, but no-one doubted his commitment to the task.

His work with the Sustainable Regional Development Board paved the way for the GV Community Leadership Program before it became the Fairley Leadership Program.

While Jeremy worked across a number of fields in the region, his talents and networks were eventually recognised across the state, the nation and even overseas.

In November 1998, Jeremy was re-elected president of Australian United Fresh (an industry body for fresh produce) for a record fourth term. He was also a board member of the Premier's Garden State Advisory Council, the Premier’s Food Industry Advisory Council and was appointed to the Federal Minister for Primary Industry's Horticulture 2000 Committee.

During 1998, he was elected as the Australian delegate on the World Union of Wholesale Markets and consequently became vice-president of the World Union of Wholesale Markets during the council meeting in Poland.

In 1999, Jeremy and Flip sold their 600-hectare Cosgrove farm and moved to Jakarta for a couple of years to establish an export business to establish markets for trade in Australian rural produce.

In March 2000, Jeremy was given the honour of Freedom of the City of London.

In 2001, Jeremy and Flip returned to Australia to a house in Orr St in Shepparton, which Flip transformed into a beautiful home

In 2010 retirement beckoned and the couple moved to Barwon Heads.

His funeral service was held at All Saints Anglican Church in Newtown, Geelong, on Tuesday, November 15.