Clarence Valley Independent

Emma Pritchard. Stunning drawings and paintings by First Nations artists from the Clarence Valley will be projected onto the Sunshine Sugar building in South Grafton each night from October 22 until November 6. Celebrating the life cycle of the endangered coastal emu, glorious creations by proud Yaegl artists Kahlua Charlton, Gareth Charlton and Aneika Kapeen, proud Bundjalung artist Maisie Monaghan, and proud Gumbaynggirr and Bundjalung artist Deborah Taylor have been delighting spectators who have been stopping to admire the impressive visual display.  

Emma Pritchard. As vibrant explosions of mauve and lilac blossoms engulf the streets in a collage of colour each spring, we know the jacaranda season has arrived, and as a community, we come together to celebrate the Grafton Jacaranda Festival.  An esteemed annual event, rich in local history, culture and tradition, the oldest floral festival in Australia draws people from across the country, and the world, to the Clarence Valley each year.

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Emma Pritchard. The phenomenal beauty of the blossoming jacaranda trees in See Park, Grafton, is an extraordinary sight to behold during the day. And their astonishing colours will once again light up the night sky during the 2022 Grafton Jacaranda Festival ... the event encourages locals and tourists to wander through See Park after dark and enjoy a twilight picnic or relaxing visit ...

Emma Pritchard. An enchanting and mesmerising journey which showcases the superb talent, skill and artistry of local musicians and performers, ‘An Afternoon at the Proms’ is one of the Clarence Valley’s most popular and highly anticipated annual events. Proudly presented by the Clarence Valley Orchestra and Chorus, and ... renowned conductor Greg Butcher, An Afternoon at the Proms encompasses a rich variety of classical favourites by Mozart, Stravinsky, Elgar and Strauss.

Rodney Stevens. Maclean athletics legend Tom Hancock is showing no signs of slowing down at age 86, recently breaking four Australian Records and winning male athlete of the Australian Masters Athletics Winter Throws Championship. The Master’s Games stalwart competed in the throwing only event from October 1 to 3, against 60 of the nation’s best, experienced athletes, aged between 30 and 86 - making him the eldest competitor.

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Rodney Stevens. Eight years of frustration by local community group Valley Watch over Clarence Valley Council not releasing important Yamba floor level survey results will now be subjected to a review by the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal. Valley Watch spokes-person Helen Tyas Tunggal said 14 years after Yamba’s existing flooding problem was identified in council’s 2008 flood study, and eight years since professional floor level surveys were done in 2014, affected residents are still unable to access the results.

Rodney Stevens. The determination and persistent toil of the Ashby Hall Reserve Crown Land Management committee and volunteers over more than two years has been recognised ... The announcement follows the opening of the Ashby Nature Discovery Trail ... a project born out of the devastation of the 2019 Myall Creek Road bushfire which burned more than 67,000 hectares around Ashby, Tullymorgan, Mororo and Jacky Bulbin Flat.

For the second time in 10 days, prison officers from the Clarence Correctional Centre (CCC) stopped work amidst ongoing frustrations surrounding multinational Serco’s current refusal to improve what have been described as unsafe working conditions or increase employee pay rates ... The latest event followed a rally at the Truck Drivers Memorial Park in South Grafton on September 30, which was attended by more than 80 CCC prison officers, who loudly voiced their concerns.