Local Legends Admitted to Order Of Australia

IMAGE: Cowra’s Bill Murphy OAM, who received a Queen’s Birthday Honour last Monday.

Cowra local legends Bill Murphy and Neville Pengilly are the latest locals to be admitted to the Order Of Australia, after being named on the Queen’s Birthday Honours List last Monday.

Both were nominated for their services to the Cowra community over many years.

Mr Murphy, Principal of local accounting firm SWM Chartered Accountants, said he was “delighted and honoured” to receive his OAM, adding it was “totally unexpected”.

He has served the Cowra community in various roles for nearly 50 years since opening his accounting firm in its original form on Macquarie Street in 1975.

He would later amalgamate his original firm with that of David Steel to form Steel, Walsh and Murphy Accountants.

Apart from his experience as a business leader, Mr Murphy has served the local community in many other ways since the early 1980s, including being on the founding committee of the Cowra Retirement Village, being on the board of the former Cowra Export Packers, serving as a local Councillor for 12 years, being the President and Secretary and a long-time member of the Rotary Club of Cowra, and also serving on the former APEX committee, a local community service organisation.

He said he felt like his greatest achievement for the Cowra community was helping establish the Cowra Retirement Village in the early 1980s, citing that this helped fill a big void in aged care and living in Cowra at the time.

“It was a significant achievement to build self-care units and dementia care units, which were the first of their kind in Cowra.”

“Bilyara offers independent living as well as cared facilities, and a good progression for the elderly. It is also an employer of around 130 people.”

Mr Murphy thanked his wife, Christine, for supporting him through all of his years of service to Cowra.