Youth

Not every teenager has something in common with their parent, but young Maldon local Anthony Hanson shares a passion for speedway racing with his dad, Marc. Now, after 23 years of racing himself, Marc is stepping aside to support 17-year-old Anthony pursue his dream to become a professional racer.

With existing measures seemingly having minimal effect on perpetrators of youth crime, a 24/7 youth co-responder team was introduced to Toowoomba last weekend in an effort make a positive difference. In Toowoomba to launch the team last Saturday, new Youth Justice Minister Di Farmer said it was one of five new co-responder teams being established across Queensland, alongside Mount Isa, Hervey Bay, South Brisbane and Ipswich.

Long-time local Damien Ha was in good spirits as he recovered from surgery after a vicious attack by a group of teenagers in the early hours ... "I get the stitches out in two weeks so I should be right to play." Damien has ranked four in the Territory for the Masters, and travels each year to represent Tennant in the Australian Titles. "I told them I know your face, and he told me he had a machete, grabbed it out of the bush and hit me with it."

Continuing her good form, Sarah Jarvis recently wrapped up her metropolitan solo campaign at the 2023 Calisthenics State Championships at The Besen Centre in Burwood. This was her fifth and final competition in the 17 Years Open Reserve Division, against dancers from all around Victoria.

From kindergarten to high school, Sunshine Coast students are turtle-y in love with turtles ... “Hatchlings are the most popular topic with the kids wanting to know if they can breathe under the sand, how they get out of the nest, what happens if they get left behind and if a mother turtle can find the hatchlings if the nest is relocated": Leisa Baldwin.

The Lockyer Valley knows only too well just what the impact of a severe weather event can look like – physically, mentally and emotionally. Following two severe flood events in 2022 alone, after bushfires and years of drought, Lockyer Valley Regional Council has forged important new partnerships to bring tangible benefits to the community.

Friday 12 May is Do It For Dolly Day, a national day dedicated to bringing the community together, spreading kindness and uniting in taking a stand against bullying. One in four Australian school students between years 4 and 9 are being bullied. One in seven of them won’t tell anyone. That’s over 340,000 young people staying silent.

Lockyer Valley Libraries will participate in National Simultaneous Storytime later this month. The event, to be held at the Gatton Library on Wednesday 24 May, is an annual campaign  by the  Australian Library and Information Association  (ALIA) that encourages young children to read and enjoy books.  

Charlotte Harris, formerly of Nhill who now resides in Wodonga recently competed for the title of Miss Teen Galaxy Australia for Australia Galaxy Pageants, and represented Victoria in Sydney on Saturday ... Charlotte was the only one chosen from Victoria.

JUTE Theatre Company’s award-winning First Nations residency program, Dare to Dream, hits the road this month, touring the Far North and Cape with, I Gut this Feeling, an engaging new theatre work aimed at empowering young people with knowledge for building safer communities ... I Gut this Feeling is clever, comical, and entertaining and has been created by Drandic to engage and educate audiences both young and old who rarely have opportunities to access or participate in theatrical arts expression of this kind.

Pony club committees come up with some great ideas and Barwon zone’s showjumping series is literally one of the best. The Barwon Equine Showjumping Tournament (BEST) series was started in 2012 by Portarlington, Drysdale Leopold and Barwon Valley Pony Clubs to encourage pony club riders to improve their show jumping skills.

Coleambally Football Netball Club’s Auskick/NetSetGo started at Coleambally last Friday night with a game on Saturday in the South West Juniors League. Organisers thank all the coaches and coordinators for supporting the emergence of the future of the club, which is its juniors.

Pam Dillon. Students from Canteen Creek ventured onto the waterways of Policeman’s Waterhole this week. The students have been kayaking the waterhole with the Barkly Region Sports Education Coordinator since 2015 and this year, was the furthest they have paddled on it.

Minister for Education Natalie Hutchins has launched the Teach Rural pilot program, which will support up to 200 student teachers - or pre-service teachers (PSTs) - to undertake placements at government schools across rural and regional Victoria in 2023 and 2024 ... Country Education Partnership ... will deliver the Teach Rural pilot program.

Two rural peak bodies in Tasmania are joining forces to identify and help prepare young people for leadership roles in Tasmania's agriculture sector. This initiative is timely, given that Youth Week Tasmania (YWT) is the largest single celebration of young people on the Tasmanian calendar.

For those who don’t know we have a new circus person in town! Ta dah!!! Sister Elizabeth ... Over the holidays there was lots of slack lining going on at the holiday program at Wings.

"I remember getting my first teaching position in the outback and just wanting to connect and learn from others as much as I could about what I was heading into ... We want teacher success because teacher success equals student success": Hakea Hustler. ARR.News found out more from Hakea and fellow remote teachers Carl Merrison and Lynette Gordon.

It’s a long way from the Clarence River in Grafton to the Thames in London, but stroke by stroke, a dedicated young crew of talented rowers from Brisbane Boys College (BBC), are continuing to make waves as they determinedly pursue their dreams of representing Australia on the international stage by competing in the prestigious 2023 Henley Royal Regatta.

The Wattles Under 15 Ladies League Tag team that played Warwick’s Eastern Suburbs at Platz Oval on Saturday.

A driver awareness training program for 16-28 year olds has been etched into Naracoorte’s annual calendar. This follows a successful weekend involving 30 young local drivers, organised by Cr Peter Ireland, the Naracoorte Lions Club and sponsored by a raft of local businesses.