Volunteering

How many hours a week do you think our district volunteers would ‘work’ collectively? ... I hold serious concerns for the sustainability of our groups ... Earlier this month, The [Koondrook and Barham] Bridge ran a small round table forum with representatives from local community groups and events.

Gen Barlow. Newstead's major auspicing organisation, Newstead 2021 Inc, has contracted two community development workers for six months. Local residents Joni Fitzgerald and Gen Barlow will work with Newstead groups and people on projects and find and match would-be volunteers with projects and micro-tasks.

Balgowan CFS is putting out a call to the community. The station has just three members and is facing closure due to a lack of volunteers. Balgowan CFS Second Lieutenant  Ian Marschall said the closure of a station like Balgowan would have a huge impact on the community.

Australia Day was a time to reflect, respect and celebrate for around 100 people who gathered at Lucindale last Friday ... Lucindale’s 2024 Citizen of the Year, Erin McWaters, was praised for her outstanding contribution to the community “particularly her volunteer work and fundraising contributions”.

We would have been so much better if we had reconciled our past with the First Nations people of this land. This was the message delivered by James Darling AM, a South Australian conversationalist ... Mr Darling congratulated those in Naracoorte who were granted Australian citizenship and thanked them for their loyalty towards the country.

The Cambooya Australia Day committee landed a bull’s-eye when it selected hard-working Cambooya Rural Fire Brigade volunteer John Archer as the Citizen of the Year. Marking 236 years since the European colonisation of Australia began, last Friday, 26 January, residents of Cambooya and surrounds attended the local Australia Day event.

Monica Revell. Australia Day started early in Hindmarsh Shire on Friday 26 January 2024, commencing with a BBQ breakfast in Rainbow at 7:30am, followed by ceremonies in Jeparit, Dimboola, and finally Nhill. Hindmarsh Shire Council Mayor, Cr Brett Ireland, attended all four events on the day where he addressed the crowd and presented Hindmarsh Shire’s 2024 Australia Day Awards.

More than 60 heavy vehicles transporting 2144 bales of premium hay arrived in Grafton and Ulmarra on January 26 after completing an incredible 98860km journey from regional Victoria to the Clarence Valley. It was the third time the Aussie Hay Runners had returned to the region...

At the Australia Day breakfast in Two Rocks yesterday volunteers served about 700 breakfasts with assembly-line precision to community members and families. Organised and run by the Yanchep Two Rocks Community Recreation Association (YTRCRA) the breakfast has been held since 1991 when it started as a sausage sizzle in the park.

The major renovation of the Corryong & District Memorial Hall and the adjoining RSL Hall has been completed and the Upper Murray community is invited to celebrate the milestone next month. Faced with closure at the end of 2007 due to both lack of interested community volunteers to manage it and in desperate need of a new roof and repair, the financially strapped Memorial Hall has been rejuvenated to become the jewel in the crown of the town.

Volunteer surf lifesavers have worked through one of the busiest days of the summer to date on NSW beaches, where the drowning of a swimmer at an unpatrolled location on Sunday morning, 21 January, brought the drowning toll since 1 December to 12.

Fires and floods–Central Victoria has copped it all in the past couple of weeks. Fire Brigades and the SES have been busy ... a fire in Maldon that involved a 36 volt lithium ion battery that was sitting on its charger, but was not plugged in.

Will Hunter. Local school students continue to be supported in becoming lifelong learners by furry reading companions. Each week during the school term, Story Dog volunteers spend a couple of hours encouraging students to read aloud to their dogs, boosting the students’ confidence and literacy skills.

One simple idea and a whole lot of passion has created a legacy that’s removed more than 250,000 pieces of litter from Sunshine Coast beaches at a critical time during turtle nesting season ... The community is invited to come together to tidy up their local beach as part of the 10th anniversary of the annual Clean Up For The Hatchlings event...

The CFA is calling on Victorians to become ‘citizen scientists’ to help contribute critical information about the state’s fire risk. The 2023-24 fire season is expected to be hotter and drier than recent years and grassland curing observers play a vital role in collecting ground information.

During the Christmas season, everyone loves unwrapping presents, but not everyone enjoys wrapping them. However, if you are one of those people who dislikes wrapping gifts, you’re in luck! The Tennant Creek Girl Guides have a solution for you.

“The Salvos have played an important part in the Kaniva community for a long time, so it is sad to see them leaving. From the fellowship the church offered to the much-loved Op Shop and the many times they provided outreach and help, often completely unheralded, their departure will undoubtedly leave a hole in the community”: Tim Meyer, West Wimmera Mayor.

United by grief, leaders of 26 community groups gathered last Monday at the Lucindale Police Station. Their highly respected police officer Brevet Sgt Jason Doig had gone to a job 120 kms away, and never returned.

Jo Russell. Kim and Joo and their son Ping, travelled to Hualien, Taiwan in July to take part in a Tzu Chi retreat and to be present for Ping’s certification as a Tzu Chi commissioner.  Kim described Taiwan as their spiritual home.

Alison Bennett Taylor. Denmark businesses and residents have helped bolster the community’s bushfire preparedness, funding a new hydrant that will reduce response times for volunteer firefighting brigades ... Emergency Services Minister Stephen Dawson unveiled the Wentworth Road hydrant which allows fire trucks to fill up from the dam at Raintree Estate in less than a minute.