Much-loved magistrate Ian von Einem passes away

RESPECTED magistrate and much-loved former member of the Torquay community Ian von Einem passed away on April 6, aged 77.

Mr von Einem was magistrate for Barwon South West for almost three decades, held in high esteem by his colleagues and the communities he served.

But before his days on the bench, he spent many of his formative years in Torquay.

His son, Adam, said his father remembered his time the surfside town fondly.

“Dad always said to me that he loved his days in Torquay.”

Mr von Einem is similarly fondly remembered in the town.

Longtime friend and fellow Belmont High School student Graeme McCartney described Ian as “larger than life itself, a real larrikin.”

Fellow Torquay local Lesley Grebe also remained friends with Mr von Einem over the decades, having first met him in the mid-1960s.

She also remembered Mr von Einem as someone with an infectious passion for life.

“He liked a good time, enjoyed life and enjoyed people. He just liked to laugh and have fun.”

Mr von Einem was captain and coach at Torquay Cricket Club.

Ms Grebe said being in a sports-centered community suited Mr von Einem well.

“He was a really good sportsman.

“He was into all the sporting things around town. They lived very close to the tennis courts, very close to the cricket pitch, very close to the beach, so it was all just about having a good time and a lark, often with a ball of one sort or another.”

Mr von Einem’s cousin Barrie Sutherland still warmly recalls the days he and Ian spent exploring Torquay as children.

He said even at primary school age they would fill their days roaming the beaches and Spring Creek together looking for adventure.

“We had great fun and just got on so well.

There was never any fighting or squabbling or anything.

“He was a very good people person, and I think that showed during his time on the bench.”

Mr McCartney also said that from his early days, Mr von Einem showed some of the qualities that would see him become so well-regarded in his profession.

“One of his acumens was that he never lost touch with the common man. Good/bad, young/old, black/white, he treated them all the same.”

Mr McCartney said his friend was always there to help, even long after he had left Torquay.

“You could always go to him for a bit of assistance or a bit of advice.

“He was a goodie. He was just something different. He achieved a lot, he did a lot. He spent time in the country and did a fair bit for the Aboriginal crew down there too.”

Adam said his father had a great sense of fairness that he demonstrated in his professional and personal lives.

“Dad wasn’t driven by ego but a sense of duty.

“He saw his role as a duty to society and improving the world.

“He made sure everyone was an equal and encouraged us that it doesn’t matter who you are but what you do.”

Adam said despite his father’s commitment to his work, he never let it compromise his commitment to his family.

“Dad never brought his role home.

“He was an incredibly devoted family man and was extremely dedicated to his wife and to me and Ben. For all of us he had unconditional love.”