Robert ‘Bob’ Knight was many things to a lot of people. He was a leader, a practical joker and someone who made everyone feel they belonged. He carried a warm smile wherever he went and treated his community with the same deep affection he showed his own family.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
Bob passed away peacefully on Thursday, July 16, at Rochester hospital.
Bob was known by everybody in town. Born in Rochester, he spent his entire life in the community. He was widely respected, looked up to by many and people followed his lead with enthusiasm.
His son, David Knight, spoke at Bob’s funeral on Friday, July 24.
“Dad was kind, principled and forgiving. He always arrived early. He had strong views about how things ought to be but respected the opinions of others,” he said.
“He believed people should learn from mistakes, found humour in almost everything and knew how to connect. Although his academic transcript is less than impressive, he possessed very high emotional intelligence.
“Most of all, he loved his family and community deeply and was enormously proud of both.“
Celebrant Tracie Kyne, who conducted Bob’s funeral service, said it was an honour to help celebrate a life that had meant so much to Rochester.
“I remember his wife, Marg, saying to me that she was so happy with the service because we celebrated everything Bob stood for,” she said.
For Tracie, Bob’s life in Rochester was about more than the honours and awards accumulated over a lifetime of community service.
“He saw the good in everyone. He would give someone a second go. I think that's what everyone just loved about him, his inclusiveness and that he always had a go,” she said.
“You don't get a medal of the Order of Australia and seven life memberships from clubs in your community by sitting on the couch doing nothing.
“How fortunate for his family to have him at the centre of their lives, and how fortunate was Rochester to have a man like Bob woven so deeply into the fabric of this community.”
Despite those achievements, Tracie said Bob himself placed something else above them all.
“I think for Bob himself, his life was never really about any achievements or awards. It was always about his family. He loved and adored his family,” she said.
“That's the type of bloke he was. He was funny and he was charismatic. I could not imagine anyone meeting him and not loving him. That's just how he was.”
David presented a beautiful accolade of his father’s life and achievements, a celebration of a man who “flowed playfully through life”.
“The Rochester community and the Campaspe River are inextricably linked. Watching its slow flow after the recent rise, there is a peacefulness that feels appropriate,” he said.
“The old man, Robert John Knight OAM, flowed through life playfully, too, making his mark and becoming inextricably linked to the Rochester community.”
Born on March 15, 1941, at Torrington Hospital in Victoria St, Bob was the second son of Hugh and May Knight.
“He grew up in a fun-loving, hard-working and sporting family of wonderful souls,” David said.
Bob spent more than 38 years with the PMG, Telecom and Telstra, including periods in charge at Rochester.
Bob met Shirley Schier through tennis and, before long, they were married in February 1961 and had four children.
Bob and Shirley built their home at 44 Dudley St and extended it as their family grew.
“If Dad was going to do something, he got stuck in and did it well,” David said.
“Dad loved his brothers and sisters deeply. Their support was especially important after Mum died suddenly in 1990, during one of the most difficult periods of his life.”
Bob’s passion for sport spanned decades and he made his mark on Rochester’s sporting community as a player, administrator, volunteer and mentor.
He began competitive cricket relatively late, aged about 24. He loved the game and it became an important part of family life through the mighty Ramblers Cricket Club. He became a life member and played in three premierships.
Football was another major part of Bob’s sporting life. He played 168 games in the Bendigo Football League and another 32 in the Goulburn Valley League, retiring at exactly 200 games so he could watch his daughters play netball.
He won the Rochester Football Club best-and-fairest in 1965, finished runner-up several times and was runner-up in the Michelson Medal in 1969. He went on to coach the side and later served as a committee member and club president.
After retiring from football, Bob took up golf and remained a member and contributor of Rochester Golf Club for more than 40 years. He was also recognised as a life member.
His contribution extended well beyond sport. In 1990, Bob was recognised by his home town when he was named Rochester Citizen of the Year.
In late 1992, Bob met Marg McEwan. They married on June 20, 1993, and recently celebrated their 33rd wedding anniversary.
“They had a wonderful marriage and I genuinely believe Dad would have left us many years earlier without Marg’s extraordinary love and care,” David said.
Bob and Marg were heavily involved in both golf and bowls. Bob served as board chairman, men’s president, secretary, tournament director, committee member and, as his family fondly described it, “official stirrer” of Rochester Bowls Club.
He became a life member and was a nine-time A-grade premiership player.
In 2000, Bob was nominated to carry the Olympic Torch through Rochester.
Alongside other members of the community, he carried the torch along Mackay St on July 27, an honour that became a particularly proud moment for his family.
The Rochester Lions Club meant the world to Bob. He believed it was one of the best ways he could serve his community and help people in need. During almost 40 years of membership, he served as president, secretary, tail twister and, above all, a worker.
Bob embraced the Lion's Centenary Project to establish the John Forbes Collection and the Rochester Sports Museum.
His contribution to Lions was recognised in 2016 with the Melvin Jones Fellowship, the organisation’s highest honour, followed by the Lions International President’s Award in 2018.
He was especially humbled when Lions announced the Knight family display at the museum and honoured him with life membership.
Bob received many honours for his service to Rochester and the wider community, culminating in the Medal of the Order of Australia, announced on Australia Day in 2019.
For all his achievements and contributions to Rochester, it was with his family that Bob found his greatest joy.
He adored his grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and family birthdays regularly called for his famous no-fail chocolate cake. But Bob would bake not one, but two cakes.
The first was placed in front of the younger members of the family so they could blow out the candles with as much enthusiasm as they liked. That cake became known affectionately as the “spit cake”.
Then came the real cake, known as the “clean cake”.
The one reserved for the adults who preferred their chocolate cake without the added birthday breath.
It was a small and wonderfully Bob thing to do — a simple tradition that said everything about a man who spent his whole life making sure the people around him were happy, cared for and never short of a laugh.