Most people know me by me haircut I think," Jim Townsend said. "I know that’s how it used to be when I travelled around with the Caterpillar people; I used to as I met them in the years since they say, ‘Oh yeah, I remember you-you’re the old fella that had the crew cut’,” Jim grinned.

“Well, it wasn’t a crew cut, it was a flat top. It’s always been a flat top,” he said, running his hand through his thatch of white hair which came about after he was married. 

“We all went for a holiday once over to Sawtell. Me hair was just down in me eyes and I said, ‘This is it’, so I went up to the barber and got a flat top and that’s it.”

Jim has a history of taking time and care with the community he has called home for most of his 77 years.

Current president of the Delungra and District Developmental Council, Jim has worn many hats for his community. Besides their larger town projects, it’s not unusual to find him hard at work planting flowers to brighten the town, his head lost under the bonnet of a ute, or his friendly face at the local tip where he volunteers both opening days. 

His story, like many life-long area residents, tells of life woven tightly into the fabric of the region. His career also reflects change in the towns over the years.

“I was actually born in Warialda, but look, my parents lived on a farm north of town. Dad was just managing it for Lloyds at the time.”

The Townsend family moved from a property north of Warialda to Delungra when Jim was about five years old. He studied at Delungra Public School and Inverell High School. By the time he graduated, he had lost both parents and began looking around for work.

Jim made a choice to become an apprentice to a mechanic, and that laid the groundwork for a life in the industry. He completed his apprenticeship at Delungra Motors, once adjacent to the old theatre. After eight years, he went over the road to Delungra’s second garage to gain more experience. 

“I just wanted to go out and do diesels and other things. Used to do all sorts of work; welding, tractors, dozers; you name it.” 

As his expertise grew, Jim took his growing abilities to Inverell Harvester Company, Ford Tractors and a number of years later, accepted a job with Caterpillar. 

Company changes found Jim’s work responsibilities grow.

“I stayed here as what they call a resident serviceman, and I used to service all the shires, from Tenterfield to Moree and Tamworth.”

Jim left Caterpillar after the company tried to move him to Moree. The company suggested he take a family holiday and think it over, but the concept didn’t sit well with him.

“I just said to Beryl, ‘I’ll just have to sign off. I don’t want to go to Moree’. And she didn’t want to go either. So I signed off from there, and then the realisation hit: ‘What am I going to do with myself?”

It wasn’t long before Jim found an opportunity in his home town.

“The old chap that I’d done me apprenticeship with, he was getting on a little bit and slowing right down and he’d had the shop on the market for quite some time. And I just said to Beryl oh, I’ll go have a yarn to Ted and just see.