Stuart Joseph Bowman

1/5/1933 - 15/5/2020

KOONDROOK born and raised Stuart Bowman, known as Bowie, loved family, beer, mates and a laugh.

He devoted lots of time to those passions, living to the age of 87, by which stage he and wife Kath had been married for over 61 years.

Stuart was the son of Koondrook identity Austin (Oz) Bowman and wife May.

Kath, Stuart and their five children left Koondrook in the early 1970s, but didn't stray far, settling in Cohuna.

There, Stuart continued as a milk tanker driver, a role he eventually filled for over 25 years.

He previously held a string of labouring jobs in the Barham-Koondrook area, working as a builder's labourer and as a farmhand.

Son Gary Bowman noted during his eulogy speech that his dad was popular with dairy farmers, receiving generous Christmas gifts, particularly beer.

Over the years Stuart's penchant for a laugh often brought him undone as he attempted to tell a joke, his son recalled.

"The problem was that he would be laughing so much at how funny the joke was, he could never get to the punchline," Gary said.

But that mattered little to his audience, the members of which never failed to enjoy his predicament.

Stuart met Kath at a Melbourne dance, with the Rutherglen girl having moved to the city to study nursing.

After a period of courting, the couple married in Kath's home town in 1958.

When they eventually left Cohuna it was to move to a Moama nursing home, where Kath still resides.

Not academically minded, Stuart was never one for books, but he developed a penchant for reading the Herald Sun, to the horror of some of his family members who were perhaps of a different political persuasion.

As well as taking in the news, Stuart developed a fondness for the race guide.

It's something Gary recalled with amusement, along with a touch of relief that the subsequent wagers didn't lead to ruin for any of the Bowman family.

"During one period he would pore over (the race guide) for hours, copying out great reams of numbers and these pages of numbers became known as 'the system'," Gary said.

"He was convinced he had a winning system that was going to put his family on easy street, (but) fortunately none of the rest of the family fell for it and it eventually petered out."

Despite his lack of formal education, Stuart worked hard to put all his children through university.

Gary joked about the possible sacrifice that entailed.

"He probably could have bought a string of racehorses with all that money," he said.

After retiring Stuart could often be found on a bowling green, later relishing the chance to regale his kids with a blow-by-blow description of proceedings.

His passion for sport extended to Collingwood Football Club.

Stuart is survived by wife Kath and adult children Gary, Sharryn, Anita, Pauline and Glenn.