Retired Echuca trucking boss Kelvin Sidebottom has a heart as big and as deep as the Numurkah Lake that he built.
The lake, just north of Shepparton, is known for its canoeing and fishing, and creating the tourist attraction remains the highlight of Kelvin’s colourful working career. He’s written a book about it, One man’s dream to make a difference, which he has self-published.
Every month the 90-year old drives to the lake to check out his handiwork, pop in and see a few friends and visit the gravesite of his beloved late wife, Dorothy.
“Dotty was the love of my life, we were married for nearly 64 years,” he says. “She died four years ago, and I still miss her every day. She raised our three kids and always supported me in every business venture that I did. I remember when we started our 24-hour service station, Dotty ended up cooking steak and eggs round the clock for customers. She was a real champion, always up for an adventure!”
She needed to be in order to keep up with an entrepreneur like Kelvin! He grew up one of ten kids on a farm at Pine Lodge North near Shepparton. He was only a lad when he expanded the business and managed to raise 2000 chickens, selling the eggs to buy a truck for himself. Kelvin was in his late teens when he took over the lease his late brother had on a farm and struck it out alone.
Kelvin is quick to admit that despite a busy career, his children are his real riches. The family is incredibly close. Three years ago, his youngest son, Brett, built a unit at the back of his Echuca home for him, and Kelvin says moving in “added ten years to my life. I’m gunning to be 100 now,” he laughs.
The great-grandfather is delighted to be living independently thanks to a government-funded home care package through Uniting AgeWell. “I’ve always lived my life my way and with a little bit of assistance from these good people who are looking after me, I can carry on doing just that,” he explains.
The cleaning service ensures his unit is as bright and as shiny as a new pin. “They always take down the pictures of my family, dust and clean them and hang them straight again. They know how important the photos are to me, they are one of the things that keep me going!”
Kelvin also worked with his care advisor to use his home care package to fund the ongoing costs of a personal alarm, both for inside the unit and one with a GPS for his car, so he knows help is a touch of a button away. Kelvin uses a walker, and Uniting AgeWell also arranged for rails to be installed in the bathroom and provided equipment such as an electric bed and a chair to make navigating his way around safer and easier.
Kelvin also loves reading and is a member of the library, works out on his exercise bike on the verandah and loves watching telly.
“I feel lucky to know that if my health deteriorates for whatever reason, then I’ll just chat to the lovely people at Uniting AgeWell to see what they come up with to make things work for me,” Kelvin says.
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