Life

Australian Soccer legend, Paul Wade, has been in Koondrook Barham this week delivering a life skills program to kids at the towns’ schools. Paul competed for Australia in the 1988 Olympic Games, captained the Socceroos from 1990-1996, representing the country in 118 international games including two World Cup campaigns and also had great success back home with two National Soccer League Championships and 1988 National Soccer League player of the year. 

Women across Murrumbidgee who require breast cancer surgery are to benefit from the expansion of the Magseed technology to Wagga Wagga Base Hospital. Magseed, a small metal device about the size of a grain of rice, is implanted in a cancerous breast tumour to mark its location for surgery which allows for more flexibility for surgeons when making an incision.

Meet Lionel Marr, a proud Bunuba man, who always felt a calling to return from the city back to his childhood home of Fitzroy Crossing. He wanted to know more about his country, his people and his culture and became a trainee ranger with the Parks and Wildlife Service, earning a coxswain skippers ticket. Lionel’s efforts during the Kimberley floods of January 2023, despite losing his family home, and his commitment to his job, earned him special recognition.

With the 2023 harvest now underway truck drivers are being urged to slow down to 70km/h to help preserve the condition of unsealed rural roads in the Midwest. Corrugations, or washboard effect, caused by acceleration and deceleration pose the greatest risk to drivers and their vehicles.

He’s done it. But for Steve Cansdell, it was never about the personal accolades. On October 14, close to 100 people gathered at Roches Hotel in Grafton to cheer, encourage, and support the former politician and Australian Light Heavyweight Boxing Champion as he set a new world record for the most solid punches landed in one hour on a punching bag by a male over 65 years of age.

An important step to rebuilding essential health services across regional and rural NSW has been taken by the state government with the establishment of a Regional Health Ministerial Advisory Panel, but there are no local representatives advocating for the Northern Rivers region ... panel is to focus on building the regional health workforce, strengthening community engagement, and improving the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Over the past six months I have travelled to every State and Territory conducting a series of Business and Community Leader Consultations. Whilst every region has their own unique issues and challenges to address, what impressed me most was the passion and commitment leaders had for their community, and in particular the next generation coming through. A key recurring message was the importance of being able to lead oneself! ... Having a personal leadership charter is important.

A new bike library will link Orelia Primary School students with unclaimed bikes from WA Police to encourage physical activity. An exciting new bike library concept aims to leave a positive legacy in Kwinana by linking unclaimed or donated bikes with students at Orelia Primary School.

Quill. Who said Friday the 13th is supposed to be unlucky? It certainly wasn’t for Donald’s Annual P & A Show, which opened its gates on Friday for two days of fun for the whole family ... Of particular interest, and new to the Donald Show was Stewart Bryant’s literally cracking performance.

Victoria’s rural and regional community health services are ready to expand to address health inequity across the state. The inaugural Alliance of Rural & Regional Community Health (ARRCH) conference at Creswick on October 5-6 focused on how services are already engaging with communities to deliver innovative health programs and research, and how they could grow to meet demand.

Gina Murray. We are going through a time of change within our church. Our Rector (i.e. the Rector for the whole Parish of Lismore) has relocated to Gosforth and we are currently without a full time incumbent ... We are a very small congregation (usually about 15) and three years ago, the Grafton Diocese gave us notice that we had three years to increase our numbers or face closure.

Who would have thought that buying a ticket in a raffle would turn a woman’s life around? Eight years ago, Kerry Turpin bought that ticket from Kirra Hartland, a volunteer with Evans Head Marine Rescue. Kirra is “very persuasive”, Kerry said. And that’s how Kerry became a volunteer.

The smell of smoke from the Bean Creek fire sat heavy in the morning air at Mallanganee as the local RFS unit mourned the loss of one of its members. The NSW Rural Fire Service said the RFS “suffered a great loss with the tragic passing of senior deputy captain John Holmes”. John was battling the Bean Creek Fire, about 15km north of Bonalbo, when he had a heart attack...

Mandurah, Western Australia’s largest regional city, has been named a finalist in the 9th annual international City Nation Place Awards alongside Fiji, Cape Town, Iceland, London, Switzerland, and others. The only Australian city named in the category for Best Communication Strategy – Tourism, Mandurah is one of eleven finalists in recognition for its outstanding 'BIG reasons to visit Mandurah this summer' campaign in 2022/23.

The exhibition is of Orthodox icons and includes pieces from eleven Australian collections, including six public institutions: Mona, Art Gallery of Ballarat, Art Gallery of South Australia, Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, the University of Sydney, and the Abbey Museum of Art and Archaeology, Caboolture.  Contributions from private collectors come from Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney, and London ... This exhibition is the most significant collection of Orthodox icons presented in Australia that can be recalled ... The overall effect is surely one of surprise for the uninitiated and awe inspiring for the person who understands the genre.

Back in 2021, the Birchip Cemetery Trust received $22,000 from the Department of Health’s Cemetery Sector Governance Support Program to upgrade the original lawn cemetery and a further $18,000 from the “Cargill Cares Cropping for the Birchip Community” program ... concrete plinths could be installed in all six rows of the initial lawn cemetery to rehouse the plaques that used to sit on individual concrete blocks or directly on the lawn.

The planned Gardens of the Downs tour for Greenmount and Vale View has been altered due to the lack of rain. The three gardens at Greenmount will no longer be open for viewing, although the garden of Tonia and Paul Grundy at Vale View will still be open ... Ponder life next to the raked dry garden bed or delight in the small waterfall and stream that flows to a scenic pond with water lilies in bloom.

Talented local singer and songwriter Lee ann Weekes has released her first single and it has already brought her some success. Lee ann lives at West Haldon and her first single, Don’t Talk to Strangers is a song she wrote paying tribute to the beauty of her aunt’s unconditional love for her husband (Lee ann’s uncle), who courageously battled the effects of dementia before his passing in 2022.

Corryong College teacher, Stephen Learmonth ... has undertaken his own project to record the biographies of other servicemen from the region and the Corryong Courier will be printing a selection of these stories in the lead up to Remembrance Day this year on November 11 ... Frank Leslie Butler was born on the 13th of April, 1919 at Tallangatta, Victoria.

The delightful country garden at St Mary’s Vineyard with its hundreds of roses and many dry-stone walls is a fitting location for the annual Limestone Coast Plant and Trade Fair ... Over the years plants and bulbs suitable for the soil and climate have been planted and now hundreds of roses, bulbs, iris, hardy perennials, trees and shrubs surround the classic homestead and outbuildings, adding colour and texture throughout the year.

Kim & Peter Gibson. Nhill Lions Club's annual garden walk is fast approaching, with gardens open in Nhill and District ... Several gardens this year are country gardens as well, but a fantastic add-on offered this year includes a free courtesy bus to visit the country gardens open ... Werona -What was once a paddock became the Muller’s home and garden in 2015.

Situated in the Goomburra Valley The Long Neck Farm has now re-opened. Tanya and Corrie Ross of Long Neck Farm tell us that the renovations are now complete so the welcome mat is out ready for visitors to call in and enjoy the fun attractions and facilities.