The spark that lit the Augusta Boat Harbour

In 2002 the state’s transport minister asked selected shire councils to put forward a major project within the council to be progressed.

Mr Shephard stepped forward with a project for an Augusta marina.

Mr Shephard has spent over 12 years lobbying for the creation of the Augusta Boat Harbour.

Through continual letters from the onset of the project, Mr Shephard has chronicled his persistent pursuit for the Augusta project.

Mr Shephard has seen the project come to life with his involvement in the original Augusta Maritime Project Coordination Committee as a shire representative, to his representation of the Augusta Chamber of Commerce in 2003 until the building stage of the project was reached.

In 1995/96 Mr Shepherd said there were political oppositions to the project, initially due to worries about how the rocks would be sourced to fill the new harbour.

Mr Shephard took it upon himself to locate rock quantities that would not affect the landscape in anyway, individually sourcing supplies from three farms in the region that were eager to help.

After further lobbying from Mr Shephard and his comrades, they were able to send a presentation to the environment minister in 2008.

Planning minister John Day responded with support from himself and the transport minister in 2009.

“Without Simon O’Brien we wouldn’t have gotten the harbour,” Mr Shephard said.

A meeting with Troy Buswell in 2011 furthered Mr Shephard’s campaign by helping to secure funds for the project that according to Mr Shephard, wouldn’t have been made available until 2014/15.

From October 2011, the boat harbour began to steadily come into being.

Mr Shephard and his wife Shirley have always been involved in the Augusta community, with this project not being the first time they have sought to improve their home.

In 1952 Mrs Shephard’s family bought cottages in Turner Street in Augusta where both Mr and Ms Shephard spent most of their childhood visiting.

“My nanny lifting me off the train at Flinders Bay is one of my most vivid memories,” Mrs Shephard said.

 In 1973 the family gave the Turner Street jetty to the shire so the whole community could enjoy it.

“I have more relatives here than I could poke a stick at,” Mr Shephard said.

The couple met through Junior Farmers, where Mrs Shephard said Mr Shephard would wear his service uniform and catch the eye of all the local girls.

The pair made their way around Australia throughout their lives, where they told tales of travelling for eight weeks throughout the country for just 96 pounds, bartering for diesel and choosing whichever road looked the most stable to guide them.

The Shephards took up prospecting in the mid 1970s, purchasing a roadhouse in the Pilbara region and often acted as the areas one way to communicate with the rest of WA through radio telegrams.

The pair proved particularly adept in an emergency, answering calls and communicating on behalf of the town during Cyclone Tracey.

“We were usually first on the scene,” Mrs Shephard said.

“Darwin put out a Mayday on Christmas Day in 1974, Bill responded.”

When they’re not playing golf, travelling the world and contributing to the community, the Shephards can be found helping out their family.

Mr Shephard wakes up at 5am to assist in painting the family petrol station, which he stops at 8am when customers arrive.

“Life is for living and doing things,” Mrs Shephard said.

“Don’t vegetate, don’t wait for others.”

When asked about their plans for future projects, the Shephards responded that they’ll take whatever comes in stride.

“When it comes, we’ll work something out,” Mrs Shephard said.