By MELISSA MEEHAN
SOMETHING had to give.
Mount Evelyn resident Jim Humphrey is a busy man – at one time or another he’s been involved with St John Ambulance, the RSL, the Australian Air League, METIC and the Neighbourhood Watch.
So it’s no surprise that after 43 years of being involved in community groups and events, sooner or later he was going to have to slow down.
This month, Mr Humphrey resigned as chairman of the Mount Evelyn Neighbourhood Watch after five years in that role.
“To be honest, I’m getting to old,” Mr Humphrey said on Friday.
“It was getting difficult to fit everything in so I think it’s time for someone young and enthusiastic to have a go.
“It’s not an easy job – Mount Evelyn doesn’t really have any crime.
“But that’s no reason why people shouldn’t be aware.”
Mr Humphrey said the major concern for the Neighbourhood Watch in Mount Evelyn was getting the community to take a pro-active approach to crime instead of waiting for things like graffiti or vandalism to happen.
Involved in community groups since he was 11, Mr Humphrey said while he was standing down in his position of chairman he would still be involved in the Neighbourhood Watch.
“It’s just hard thinking of how to keep people aware and alert when there doesn’t seem to be much crime,” he said.
“Last year we did the audit of the car park and found that there was a large percentage of people not locking their car doors.
“We’ve only had one murder for as long as I can remember. We get a few robberies and while domestic violence has been an issue in the Yarra Ranges as a whole it’s difficult to target.”
He said he hoped the new chairman would have some interesting ideas and that the residents of Mount Evelyn stayed vigilant.
