Labor party life member Elaine McNamara said Whitlam symbolised everything that was good and caring in the Labor Party. 

Ms McNamara joined the party as soon as she could at age 18 and got to meet Gough Whitlam whenever he visited Bendigo. 

"He was a well respected person who came to Bendigo quite a lot in his duty as prime minister and he was very caring," Ms McNamara said.

"He was very quietly spoken but he would sort of always worry about his fellow man. He and Margaret (his wife) were a very gentle couple. Then in his role as prime minister he was dogmatic in what he said, but he still had thoughts for others - he'd fight for his fellow man," she said.

"My grandfather used to take me to political meetings and I used to stand on the back of the truck at Trades Hall and ring bell to call the members to come to order," she said. 

Ms McNamara said Whitlam's visits included speeches at Trades Hall and visits to elderly peoples' homes. 

Her fondest memory of the famous labor leader was that, on his way to Bendigo he would stop to buy some Castlemaine Rock for her young son. 

"When I think of Gough I associate him with a tin of Castlemaine Rock," Ms McNamara said. 

She said this would be the first year in a long time she would not be sending Whitlam a Christmas card. 

Another life Labor member, Elaine Walsh, joined the party in 1962 and said it had been a privilege to work under a leader such as Whitlam. 

"I'm proud to have been there at the time that he was elected," she said.

"Gough did in three years what other governments could not do in ten because he probably knew his time was limited."

Ms Walsh said the party had changed a lot since Whitlam's time in office and it had become more right-wing.

Long time labor member Eric Dearricott was inspired to join the party after Whitlam's dismissal from government in 1975. 

Mr Dearricott, who was born in Bendigo and lives in Kyneton, was influenced by Whitlam's policies and foresight. 

"I think the thing about Whitlam and Labor in the period of the late 1960s and through to the 1970s was the principles they stood for. This influenced me heavily. I was a younger person and was opposed to the Vietnam War at the time. Those principles were acknowledged as correct over time and drew into the party a whole lot of great people," he said. 

Whitlam's vision for free education, recognition of China, work for the rights of women and healthcare reform are some of the policies that Mr Dearricott admired. 

"In my lifetime he was certainly the most inspiring leader," he said.