Dogs love Roslyn Olerhead. And why wouldn’t they? Every morning, they get a pat, a treat and sometimes a cuddle from the soft-spoken lollipop lady of Brunswick South Primary School.
In her 31 years of ensuring kids get safely across busy Brunswick Road, Olerhead has knitted baby clothes and blankets for pregnant teachers, and is a listening ear for parents she’s befriended. Working with Olerhead for almost 31 years has been her good friend Sue Egan. The pair work like a well-oiled machine, Olerhead stepping out from the school side, and Egan from the north side of Brunswick Road, for an hour before school, and an hour after.Egan is the more talkative one who knows all the human and dog names. Olerhead is more reserved, and calls people “love”, “darl” or “buddy”.
But her daughter, Kerry, 42, who attended Brunswick South Primary as a child, and who is currently lollipop lady at Brunswick East Primary, will take her mother’s place at Brunswick South.Roslyn Olerhead with dog Joy, and the back of the photo given to her by the Montan family. Phoebe Whitton, who regularly meets Olerhead for coffee, says her grade one son Beau, 5, and other children ask “where’s Ros?” if she has a day off.“We are so blessed and so lucky. A lot of people are going to miss her. And all the dogs will. Ros is so lovely, so beautiful and caring.”