A jack-of-all-trades, hard-working and with an inquiring mind, 70-year-old John is - as he put it - 'one of the few people on this planet who actually has shoveled shit for a living'.

John started on September 1, 1997 but before his time at Mudgee High School, he worked for the Commonwealth Government for 24 years - a career he thought would see him through to retirement - when it closed down unexpectedly.

"So here I am in Mudgee. I've got two little children. I had an opportunity to go back to Sydney. But then I would have been in the position where, well, I've got to sell my home, pack myself up, go all the way back to Sydney, and then I would spend an enormous amount of time travelling to and from Mudgee, being a part-time father. And that didn't work," John said.

John was at an impasse. He was someone that had worked hard for years but had no jobs ahead of him. He saw a job ad in the Mudgee Guardian for a 'General Assistant' position at Mudgee High School.

John went to work addressing every single element of the position, something he realised the other applicants had not done. Soon he was hired at the school where he has happily worked ever since doing repairs, building shade structures, landscaping, you name it. If it needed to be done, he did it.

"The only thing I haven't done here is deliver a baby, but I've delivered those elsewhere," he said.

When he started the job he had no tools at his disposal, he acquired everything 'bit by bit', a lesson he applied to his work at the school, constantly making improvements.

Touring the grounds of the school, John was constantly pointing changes that he had made and how he accomplished each. "See that one big gum tree?," he asked. "That was a twig and four leaved when I planted that. When you look around the place, all the big trees and the bushes and the shrubs and the gardens, I put all of those in."

Not chained to a timetable and 'surrounded by people all day', John said he enjoys the freedom of the job and what every new day could bring. John learned a few important lessons along the way too, including that things need to be made to 'elephant proof', as he put it, to survive the rigours of teenage curiosity.

"A regular day looks like arriving at work with a plan, which then goes out the window four minutes after you've arrived," he said.

Mudgee High School Principal, Wayne Eade reflected on John's time at the school and said he will be sorely missed.

"John Howe has been at Mudgee High for many years. In fact, he has been here so long, it will seem odd not to see him about the place with a ladder heading to some repair, or behind a push mower," Mr Eade said.

"Always ready with a, "Good morning, comrade!" and clad in his distinctive khakis and broad-brimmed hat, John has proved a handy handyman about the place in his role as Grounds Assistant. He has also always been up for a good natter, whether about his most recent cruise, his next planned cruise, his latest rural fire service adventure, or, back in the day, his Shahzada 400km endurance horse riding exploits.

"When John runs the flags down for the last time on his last school day, his final job on any school day, it will be the end of what has become a bit of an institution. From all at Mudgee High, we wish him a happy retirement."

Will John miss the job? He isn't so sure.

"Yes and no," he said. "The point of the matter is I'm now of an age where I'm starting to feel a little tired. There are other things to do on this planet.

"There are other places to go and things to do and I intend to go and do and see lots of them," he said. "To a certain extent, I'm a little institutionalised in that I've been here for so long - this is part of my daily routine and I'm a creature of habit."

John has had an immeasurable effect on many at the school, and he knows it, but the best part of his job he said was being able to be there for his children.

"It totally verified to me that I'd made totally the right decision. Regardless of what anyone can say, it is priceless to be able to have your kids popping to see you every day and that's very special," he said.

"So while you're still living in the same town, you're a part-time father, I had a lot more input into my children's growth and development than a lot of other people would have had than if I would have been in Sydney. I would have lost a lot of that day-to-day stuff.

"It was worth any other jobs I could have had back in Sydney, back in the three-piece suit. I've gotten very used to the sweaty khakis," John joked.

Not one to sit still, John mentioned he was about to embark on yet another cruise and soon a complete sailing circumnavigation of Australia.

John said he expects his last day to be like any other, with plenty to do and the satisfaction of a job well done.

"What I'm leaving is - to my way of thinking - much nicer when I arrived.

"I don't care if no one ever remembers my name, but if they sit under a nice tree on a hot summer's day and sit in the shade... then I'm happy."

'A society grows great when old men plant trees in whose shade they shall never sit', so says the Greek proverb. Long after John retires, his efforts will be felt for generations to come.