As of Sunday he is an OAM recipient for service to the community of Warracknabeal. The 73-year-old said he regarded the title with great respect and gratitude.

"When I was first asked if I would accept, I was probably of the inclination not to accept it, because there are many other people in the community that do a lot of work to make community organisations what they are and there are people who are more deserving than what I am,"he said.

"It's a very humbling and proud experience."

Though his award mentions Warracknabeal, residents from across the Wimmera have had their lives influenced by Mr Penny's.

In Sheep Hills, he was a member of the farmers federation, hall committee and primary school council and has been a firefighter since 1963.

In Horsham, he chaired the Sport and Recreation Advisory Committee.

In Warracknabeal he has been on the board of management for disability employment service Woodbine since 2000, a member of the Anzac Park Trustees and has served on the high school council and as president of the Eagles Football Club.

"I'm also very passionate about disability support. My wife Lorraine was working at Woodbine and she loved her job, so that gave me encouragement to get involved. They do disability care better than or as well as anyone in the state, and we pride ourselves on that," he said.

In Nhill, he became one of several commissioners charged with overseeing the first few years of Hindmarsh Shire Council, after it amalgamated 25 years ago this month. He counts this as the most rewarding and difficult part of his life.

"It was a busy time, and one of long-lasting change," he said. "Because you were making decisions that were affecting people's lives, and the consequences of your decisions could be very difficult for some families.

"When the Kennett government brought in compulsory competitive tendering (for council works), we were very conscious we needed local people to win those tenders. So we gave them every opportunity to skill themselves up to put in good tenders.

"I'm pretty passionate about local government, I was a Warracknabeal Shire Councillor for 13 years prior to that. You're so involved in your local community."

Mr Penny said he had seen schools, sports clubs and houses close down and relocate in Sheep Hills in his lifetime. While he said this disappointed him given the amount of time volunteers had put into the area, he said he was glad the town's silo art had brought more money.

As a firefighter, he attended the Northern Grampians Complex fires in 2014 and another serious fire in the area in the 80s. He said going into these areas were the biggest challenges of his volunteering days.

"We're used to flat country with grass and stubble with not much timber, so fighting fires there is a whole different story," he said.

Mr Penny's family has been farming in the Wimmera since the 1880s.

He and wife Lorraine will celebrate their 51^st anniversary on February 1. They have four sons: Phillip, who farms in Corowa New South Wales, and Cameron, Travis and Andrew, who work on the family farm northeast of Sheep Hills.

He said the family he had raised with Lorraine was his greatest achievement.

"I want to acknowledge the support she has given me," he said. "She was on the high school ladies auxiliary when I was on the school council, and she's been in the Country Women's Association."

While you're with us, you can now receive updates straight to your inbox twice weekly from the Wimmera Mail-Times. To make sure you're up-to-date with all the news from across the Wimmera, sign up below.