- Published:
- Tuesday 25 August 2026 at 2:00 pm
| Leading Senior Constable Kym Cassidy with her son, First Constable John Cassidy, in Robinvale. |
Having served the Robinvale community for 25 years, it was only fitting that Leading Senior Constable Cassidy finished her policing career with a patrol around town.
But when she found out that her son, First Constable John Cassidy, was taking a trip back home to join her, she was over the moon.
“It was quite surreal,” Ldg Sen Const Cassidy said.
“Not only being able to work with John, but to realise that after our shift together, I won’t be doing what I’ve been doing all this time – a job that I love.”
When she first stepped foot in the Victoria Police Academy 36 years ago, she knew policing was the job for her.
But what she didn’t realise was that her career with the force would take her from Melbourne all the way up to Robinvale, east of Mildura on the NSW border – a town she has called home since 2001.
“I started off with city traffic, like most did back then, and my first posting was to Moonee Ponds, where I stayed for six years,” Ldg Sen Const Cassidy said.
“I did a bit of work at Brunswick and Flemington while I was posted at Moonee Ponds, too.”
Then she decided on a tree change.
After meeting her husband, retired Sergeant Arthur Cassidy, the pair decided to leave metro Melbourne behind for a life in the country.
A new chapter
“We both wanted to move rural and work at country stations, so we transferred to the Bendigo area, where I was posted to D24 and Arthur was posted to Castlemaine,” Ldg Sen Const Cassidy said.
“We moved to the area with our first daughter, had our second, and then, and after a couple of years there, baby number three – John – arrived, and Arthur was offered a promotion to sergeant at Robinvale.”
Surrounded by the Murray River with access to Swan Hill and Mildura, the location fit the bill when it came to the pair’s goal of ‘heading rural’ for the lifestyle and scenery.
So when Robinvale found out there was an opportunity to gain not one, but two, members, the station was rapt.
“I’d been part-time for a few years since having the kids, and was able to stay part-time when I first started out at Robinvale, which was really great,” Ldg Sen Const Cassidy said.
“When we arrived, we had our fourth child and lived in police housing for 10 years, which was a great start to our time here.
“But eventually, we thought we better get organised and find somewhere permanent.
“So we found our dream home, a nice 17 acres on the Murray, and never looked back.”
Like mother, like son
After several years working part-time, Ldg Sen Const Cassidy worked a further 18 years full-time, amounting to 25 years served at Robinvale alone – a station first.
And as if that wasn’t enough of a milestone, four years ago, the next generation of Cassidy’s joined the force.
Ldg Sen Const Cassidy’s eldest son, First Constable John Cassidy, has followed in his parents’ footsteps, starting in the job with the intention to stay for the long-haul.
“I was 16 when I decided I was set on policing as a career,” First Const Cassidy said, “and I had a good understanding of what it would be like before going into it.”
“I know sometimes people join without an accurate perception of what the job is, and discover it’s a bit different.
“But for me, it’s been everything I anticipated, and I love coming to work - to the point where, as I’ve said to mum, I get bored when I’m away from it.”
Having just made the move from Kew to Broadmeadows, John said starting his career in the city has been a great learning experience.
But like his parents, his roots are in the country.
| First Constable Cassidy, retired Sergeant Arthur Cassidy and Leading Senior Constable Kym Cassidy. |
“There’s a lot of opportunity to learn in the city, but I loved growing up in the country, and I think it’s a great environment to raise a family,” First Const Cassidy said.
“So I definitely see myself coming back one day. Maybe not Robinvale – who knows – but back to a country town, for sure.”
Sharing a shift
First Const Cassidy's shift alongside mum earlier this month marked his first in the country.
A proud moment for Ldg Sen Const Cassidy, who after 36 years, was marking her last.
“I’m used to chatting with him at home, so when we got out on the van and were comparing notes and talking about our style of policing, that was quite surreal,” she said.
Aside from a planned warrant, which turned out to be a bit bigger than anticipated, most of the shift was business as usual – right down to who called shotgun.
“I had to let mum drive, of course,” First Const Cassidy said.
“So she could give me a good tour of the area and show me all the hot spots.”
For Ldg Sen Const Cassidy, it couldn’t have been a better experience.
“Like when getting paired up with someone you haven’t worked with before, I was thinking ‘Will I get worried about how he’s going to do this or that?’, but no, I felt very confident working with and alongside him,” Ldg Sen Const Cassidy said.
“He didn’t have to prove himself, but he did. I’m very proud, and confident he’s going to do very well in the future.”
The end of an era
While she looks forward to her upcoming retirement and spending more time with her horses, she couldn’t be a bigger advocate for policing in the country – particularly Robinvale.
She wouldn’t have broken the station’s record for longest-standing member if she wasn’t.
“Robinvale is such a beautiful part of the world, and one of the state’s best-kept secrets from a work and lifestyle perspective,” she said.
“It’s brilliant, and if it wasn’t, we wouldn’t have stayed so long.
“Working in the country, you can touch everything policing can throw at you.
“You can almost say, ‘have you dealt with ABC?’, and you’ll say, ‘yes, three times over, and EFG as well’.
“I’ve loved every minute of it.”
Editorial Lane Mihaljevic
Photography Senior Sergeant Liam Gardner and supplied
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