45 gippsland lifestyle summer

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Summer #45 TRAFALGAR A family friendly country town DISC GOLF The next big thing at Tarwin Lower HOLDEN MUSEUM TRAFALGAR Keeping a dream alive FENNING A trusted name in timber

+ Regular Features Horoscope Positive Lifestyle Tips Millie’s Adventures Canine Corner ISSN 1838-8124

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LMCT 1500

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editorial summer #45 Summer in Gippsland Welcome to our Summer Edition 45!

What seems like an eternity, Gippsland and Victoria in general has suffered the full brunt of this devious virus Covid-19 and thankfully the restrictions are now easing. To say that Gippsland has copped more than its fair share of adversity this year is an understatement. From the awful bushfires that devastated a fair chunk of East Gippsland to this virus that we all have had to live with and probably will for longer, Gippslanders have never been tested as much as this.

Many businesses in Gippsland have suffered, and some have closed for good and we must always support local business in your area. We need to care and look out for our neighbours and our businesses, shop local where possible.

Anyway, this edition once again delivers a great mixture of features, that our wonderful journalists and writers have covered for you the reader to indulge in and enjoy.

Evans Petroleum turned 50 this year and we have a wonderful look at a local Gippsland business that continues to grow and build more service stations, Rosedale has now been added to their list.

Our town feature is Trafalgar, this town situated on the Princes Highway is usually regarded as a drive through town. After reading the feature perhaps you should call in and take a look at this town, it has plenty to offer and you must call in to the Holden Museum, with a huge collection of Holden Cars, yes the Kingswood is there and you might be surprised to find out that Holden even built trams.

A new craze has hit Gippsland, the sport of Disk Golf is taking off in Tarwin Lower, the disks are similar to the frisbees we all played with as kids, these disks are a bit more specialised but none the less the sport is good fun and anyone can partake in this sport.

As I mentioned earlier in my editorial it has been a tough year but there is light and there is Christmas and the New Year coming up in 2021. I would like to take the opportunity to wish all our readers and Gippsland people, our visitors to our region a very merry Christmas, a Happy New Year and stay safe and see you all in 2021!

James Pell | Editor

our summer front cover 'Penguins on Parade' kindly supplied by Phillip Island Nature Parks

our summer back cover

Virtue Homes Display Homes www.virtuehomes.com.au

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our content 6 7 8-9 10-11 12 16-17 24-51 52-53 54-55 58-59 64-65 66-67 68-71 74-75 76-92 94-96 97 98-99 100-104 106-109 110-111 112-113 118-119 120-122 124-127 128 130-133 134-135 136-137 138-139 140-141 142-143 144

GIPPSLAND LIFESTYLE - Publishing Details WHERE DO I BUY THE SUMMER GIPPSLAND LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE? CURTIS AUSTRALIA - Discover one of Gippsland’s best kept secrets WGCMA-Heyfield Wetlands - A haven for community and wildlife TAITS INTERIORS IDEAS & INSPIRATIONS - Decorating with cushions & throws BOAT HARBOUR JETTY B&B - Rest and relax in luxury TRAFALGAR TOWN FEATURE WONTHAGGI PLAZA SHOPPING CENTRE - Welcomes K Mart!

SCULPTURE CULTURE - Comes to Yinnar in 2021 CRAWFORD MARINE - Cruising Gippsland Lakes and Westernport Bay VAN STEENSIL TIMBERS - A hidden gem with plenty to offer WEST GIPPSLAND LIBRARIES - We’re all going on a summer holiday!

EVANS PETROLEUM - 50 years of keeping Gippsland moving VIRTUE HOMES - ‘Building excellence’ New state-of-the-art-homes PHILLIP ISLAND ADVERTISERS AND FEATURES MILLIE’S ADVENTURES - “Rust” and Relaxation MOUTH OF THE POWLETT RIVER - Beauty to behold CANINE CORNER - Our best friends THE NEXT BIG THING - DISC GOLF| And advertisers SOLE FORCE IAN NAUGHTON MOE HITS THE JACKPOT WITH nextra - Award winning newsagency LOCAL HEROES - Norm Elliott MELALEUCA NURSERY - Know your natives FOSTER PROM COUNTRY FARMERS MARKET - Local stories THE STORY OF PATROBUS - Gippsland’s winning 1915 Melbourne Cup horse KILCUNDA’S FAMOUS HISTORIC RAILWAY BRIDGE FENNING - A trusted name in Timber CHRISTINE BOUCHER - 5 Powerful reasons to wrap up 2020 with reflection CHRISTIE NELSON - What it means to be part of a community ERIN MILLER - If you desire different, you need to be different CLARE GRAHAM - Supporting regional women in tough times FRANK BUTERA - Rose-Rose!

CGS FITNESS - Motivation-Getting it, Finding it, Keeping it

our advertisers 103 56 103 104 57 14 19 59 115 60 60 21 3 73 63 2 60 61 116-117 72 114 104 92 105 114 63 145 5 123 103 62 13 104 22-23 93 18 63 148 20 67 129 7 15

ALEX SCOTT AND STAFF VENUS BAY - No one knows our area better BACKYARD WORLD - Cubbies, Sheds and Carports BLACK BEAR FABRICATIONS - Custom fabrications and welding BLUE SALT JEWELLERS - Exclusive custom handmade jewellery BRENT SINCLAIR CATERING - Mobile Catering CARPET COURT - Dream It. Style It. Live It. CPK MCLAREN MOTORBODY - Motor Body Vehicle Repairer CRAWFORD MARINE - Live the dream-Campion boats and more CURTIS AUSTRALIA - Be bold. Be different.

DARREN CHESTER - Federal Member for Gippsland DR GARY WILKIE DENTIST - The Korumburra Dentist EDGEWATER TERRACE METUNG - Relax and Rejuvinate EDNEYS LEONGATHA - Nissan and Hyundai Car Dealer|the all new I30 Sedan EVANS PETROLEUM - Rosedale Service station now open for business GARY BLACKWOOD MP - Member for Narracan GETAWAY PM - Property Management and Holiday Rental GIPPSLAND ART GALLERY - Art for everybody GROW MASTER TRARALGON - Garden; Fashion; giftware solutions HANDLEY AND ANDERSON - Funeral Directors servicing South Gippsland plus LEONGATHA RSL - Family friendly venue LIME AND CO - Mexican Street Food Cantina in Inverloch M & CO LAWYERS AND CONVEYANCERS - All your legal requirements MELALEUCA NURSERY - Indigenous and native plant farm MOOS AT MEENIYAN - Moos takes on a whole new look RIGBY HOMEMAKERS - Furniture and Bedding ROSEDALE BUTCHERS - Family owned country butcher-Meat and Seafood RUSSELL BROADBENT MP - Federal Member for Monash RUSSELL NORTHE MP - State Member for Morwell; Latrobe Valley SALE MUSIC FESTIVAL - 9th Annual Sale Music Festival in March 2021 SOUTH GIPPY SIGNS - Signage and merchandise, your one stop shop STONEY CREEK GO KARTS - Fun for all the family- Go Kart hire TAITS INTERIORS - Textile Design/soft furnishings for your home THE CAVITY - Great food, drinks, functions at Venus Bay THE GROVE - Restaurant in Krowera THE MELBOURNE FURNISHING CO - Quality furniture for our community TOWNSEND’S NURSERY WONTHAGGI - A large variety of outdoor natives VAN STEENSIL TIMBERS - Our gardening section is expanding!

VIRTUE HOMES - Building Excellence WEST GIPPSLAND CATCHMENT MANAGEMENT AUTHORITY - Gippslandscapes WEST GIPPSLAND LIBRARIES - Discover your Library on demand WONTHAGGI MEDICAL GROUP - Medical Services in Bass Coast WONTHAGGI NEWSAGENCY & LOTTO - Retailer for lottery, gifts, and papers WONTHAGGI PLAZA - K Mart has arrived!

Russell Northe is your local MP for the Morwell Electorate in the Victorian Parliament’s Legislative Assembly

”Gippsland, such a great place to live, work and visit.Through natural disasters and even pandemics the generosity and goodwill of Gippsland people always shines through”

RUSSELL NORTHE MP M E M BE R FO R M O R W E LL

Proud Parliamentary representative of the following local towns and communities including:

RUSSELL NORTHE MP M E M B E R FO R M O RW EL L

12 – 14 George Street Morwell, VIC 3840 (03) 5133 9088 Russell.Northe@parliament.vic.gov.au russellnorthe.com.au

Boolarra, Callignee, Churchill, Cowwarr, Glengarry, Hazelwood, Jeeralang, Koornalla, Morwell, Newborough, Toongabbie, Traralgon, Traralgon South, Tyers, Yallourn North & Yinnar

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Authorised by Russell Northe, 12-14 George Street Morwell, Funded by Parliamentary Budget

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GIPPSLAND LIFESTYLE DEATILS

CONTENT COVERAGE AREA

SOUTH GIPPSLAND PUBLISHING PTY LTD. Trading as Gippsland Lifestyle magazine ABN 81 144 063 089 ADDRESS PO BOX 862 WONTHAGGI VIC 3995 PHONE 0404 301 333 EMAIL gippslandlifestyle@bigpond.com ONLINE DIGITAL issuu.com/james448 WEB www.gippslandlifestyle.com FACEBBOOK facebook.com/lifestylegippsland INSTAGRAM gippslandlifestyle WRITERS Chris West, Anita Butterworth, Lia Spencer, Helen Taylor, Ken Roberts and Trevor Stow CONTRIBUTORS Erin Miller, Kerry Galea, Frank Butera, Christie Nelson, Christine Boucher, Natalie Guest, Clare Graham, Millie Roberts & Cristi George Smirnakos SPECIAL CONTRIBUTORS Kelvin Lau (Visual Farm) and Roland Pick (Phillip Island Nature Parks) PHOTOGRAPHERS Ken Roberts, Trevor Stow, Phil Cerbu, Kelvin Lau (Visual Farm) and Doug Pell ADVERTISING Maxine Sando – Sales Manager and Doug Pell-Manager

Through continual research, we seek and find new products and innovative manufacturing processes; implementing energy saving efficiencies, removing potential waste and harmful processes affecting the environment.

Southern Impact adheres to all current governing laws and regulations set down by the State and Federal Governments in relation to Environmental and Conservation Acts.

Southern Impact is active in ensuring all their disposable waste materials are disposed of in accordance to those laws. Regular audits are carried out on the companies they use to ensure they follow the strict guidelines set out by these laws.

Vegetable based low Volatile Organic Compounds and VOC free inks are used and all of their paper waste material is recycled. As a result, their factory and current printing processes are some of the most environmentally friendly on the market today.

EDITOR James Pell CREATIVE media101 DISTRIBUTION Gippsland the Lifestyle Magazine is published quarterly, usually available at the beginning of each season and distributed to selected newsagents and retail outlets within the Gippsland region and surrounding Melbourne regions and parts of Victoria.

Issues are also available to read online, on desktop and mobile devices. Unsold magazines are distributed to cafes, health waiting rooms, hotels/motels, bed and breakfast establishments, galleries, hair and beauty salons and Council information centres.

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PRINTERS

Southern Impact (VIC) Pty Ltd www.southerncolour.com.au

Southern Impact (VIC) Pty Ltd is environmentally conscious.

They take action to minimise their waste and recycle their waste products; ethically and responsibly.

WHERE YOU CAN GET YOUR COPY GIPPSLAND LIFESTYLE OUTLETS Bairnsdale newsXpress 21 Bailey St Bairnsdale Dahlsens Mitre 10 19 Dalmahoy Street Bairnsdale Main Street Newsagency 212 Main Street Berwick Newsagency 29-31 High Street Briagolong Post Office & Newsagency 4 Avon Street Boolarra Store & Newsagency 9 Tarwin Street Bunyip IGA 2-6 Main Street Churchill Newsagency Hazelwood Village Shopping Centre Cowes Newsagency 44-46 Thompson Avenue Dalyston General Store 4213 Bass Highway Drouin Newsagency 93 Princes Way Erica General Store 1 Henty Street Fish Creek Alison Lester 1 Falls Road Fish Creek Discount Pharmacy Plus 25 Falls Road Foster FoodWorks 37 Main Street Garfield Licensed Post Office 77 Main Street Glengarry General Store Main Street Grantville Newsagency & Post Office Shop 2, 1503 Bass Hwy Heyfield IGA 18-22 George Street Inverloch FoodWorks 10-12 Reilly Street Inverloch Newsagency 10 A'Beckett Street The Jindi Caf 1055 Jacksons Track Korumburra Michael's Supa IGA 1 South Railway Cres Lakes Entrance Newspower 297 The Esplanade Lang Lang IGA 32 Main Street Leongatha Authorised Newsagency 30 Bair Street Leongatha Michael's Supa IGA Cnr Church & Bruce Sts Loch Village Food Store 35 Victoria Road Maffra newsXpress 144 Johnson Street Metung Village Store 62 Metung Road Moe Nextra Lotto Shop 2, 1-3 Moore Street Morwell Newsagency 174-176 Commercial Road Nar Nar Goon, Clough Fuel 1975 Princes Hwy Neerim South IGA 147 Main Road Newry General Store 44 Main Street Omeo Post Office 155 Day Avenue Poowong IGA 17-19 Main Street Rawson Mini Mart 2 Murie Street Rhyll General Store 41 Lock Road Rosedale Butchers 32 Prince Street Sale Newsagency 308-310 Raymond Street San Remo IGA 135 Main Parade Stratford IGA 67 Tyers Street Swifts Creek General Store Great Alpine Road Tarwin Lower IGA 45 River Drive Tinamba General Store Maffra-Rosedale Road Toora Fancy Goods & Relics 26 Stanley Street Toora FoodWorks 66 Stanley Street Trafalgar IGA 5 McCrorey Street Traralgon News & Lotto 51-53 Franklin Street Trafalgar Newsagency 97 Princes Hwy Traralgon Seymour Street News 83 Seymour Street Ventnor The Anchorage Caravan Park Ventnor Road Venus Bay General Store 139 Jupiter Blvd Warragul Newsagency & Officesmart 43 Victoria Street Welshpool Supermarket 18 Main Street Wonthaggi Newsagency 31 Murray Street Wonthaggi Townsend’s Nursery 315 West Area Road Yanakie General Store 3640 Meeniyan-Promontory Road Yarragon Fozigobble Café 79 Princes Highway Yarram newsXpress 195-197 Commercial Road Yinnar General Store 44 Main Street

EVANS PETROLEUM OUTLETS Fish Creek 2 Falls Road Foster 94 Main Street Inverloch 25 Williams Street Johnsonville 1760 Princes Highway Korumburra South 2-8 Commercial Street Leongatha 7 Anderson Street Leongatha 95 Bair Street Mirboo North 106 Ridgway Newmerella 5327 Princes Highway Rosedale Prince Street Sale 344-350 Raglan Street Toora 26 Foster Road Wonthaggi 103-105 McKenzie Street Yarram 325 Commercial Street

RITCHIES SUPA IGA Stores Bairnsdale 30 Howitt Avenue Churchill 5-8 Georgina Way Maffra 102 Johnson Street Paynesville 3-5 Wellington Street Sale 177 York Street Wonthaggi 160 Graham Street

WONTHAGGI NEWSAGENCY & LOTTO OPEN SIX DAYS A WEEK | CLOSED SUNDAY 31 Murray Street, Wonthaggi Vic 3995 Tel: 5672 1256

Gippsland the Lifestyle Magazine is published quarterly.

This magazine is distributed throughout Victoria. All photographs in this publication are copyright to Gippsland the Lifestyle, and if any are used in other publications or used in a commercial sense, you are liable to prosecution. Permission to use any photos in the publication must be obtained by contacting South Gippsland Publishing Pty Ltd via email to: thelifestyle@dcsi.net.au Disclaimer: © South Gippsland Publishing Pty Ltd 2020, All Rights Reserved, has the discretion to add or remove words or photos that are deemed unsuitable for the magazine. South Gippsland Publishing Pty Ltd is not responsible or liable for any inaccuracies, omissions, or use of information contained within these pages, offering no warranties, either expressed or implied with respect to any material contained within the pages. Material in this magazine cannot be published or reproduced without South Gippsland Publishing Pty Ltd's written consent. Failure to heed to this could result in prosecution.

The opinions and views expressed within this publication are not necessarily those of the publishers.

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DISCOVER ONE OF GIPPSLAND'S BEST KEPT SECRETS

BY PAUL HENDERSON

NOW YOU ARE NOT COOPED UP, ABLE TO TRAVEL AND ENJOY PERSONAL SHOPPING AGAIN, YOU NEED TO DISCOVER A SECRET GEM A LOT OF GIPPSLANDERS ALREADY KNOW ABOUT. Tucked away in a very unassuming building in Macleod Street Bairnsdale, is a captivating boutique, showcasing beautiful bespoke fine jewellery, handcrafted gold watches and luxury pens all made by the team of craftsmen at Curtis Australia.

Curtis Australia is a team of skilled artisans led by Master Jeweller, Glenn Curtis and his wife Heather, who share not only a love for beautiful jewellery but decades of experience too.

They have travelled around the world to look after clients in different countries, and along that journey Glenn has won several international awards for craftsmanship and design - something you can immediately appreciate in the quality of the workmanship on display.

When you ask Glenn and Heather why they are tucked away in Bairnsdale you might also wonder if they should be where more people can see and visit - Glenn is characteristically modest with his reply.

East Gippsland is home, it's where they both feel grounded, the beauty of the natural world around them is a constant source of inspiration and Glenn does not feel the need for other surroundings to 'get his creative juices flowing'. Beautiful natural beaches, native animals and memorable experiences inspire many of Curtis Australia creations – look at the beautifully detailed possum earrings, or be transported to happy sunny days with their freeform 'Beach' hinged bangle, with its hidden sea creatures and clever magnetic clasp.

This year of all years, Glenn has been extremely fortunate in being able to continue designing and creating even more distinctive and exclusive jewellery. He often says he comes to work to play as it's not really work in his mind – it's simply fun. The hand crafted results of his 'playing' are clear to see in hand crafted collections and individual pieces you'll enjoy trying on in their stylish, private and recently improved showroom.

HANDCRAFTED MEN'S 'MOTIMA PERPETUAL' AUTOMATIC WATCH IN SOLID GOLD

Visit their recently refreshed showroom and see hand crafted, Australian made watches 8

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A STUNNING 'HALO' RING WITH A BLUE ZIRCON SURROUNDED BY DIAMONDS

'GRACE' LADIES WATCH HAND CRAFTED IN YELLOW GOLD AND DIAMONDS

While you're browsing and chatting you'll enjoy seeing fresh, inspirational bespoke jewellery - pretty pendants, elegant earrings, and beautiful rings ready to wear on any occasion.

The designers, jewellers and watchmakers at Curtis Australia would also love to show you their latest hand crafted and exclusive watches. In solid gold, these remarkable ladies and men's watches are made individually with patience and care. Many hours are poured into each one, from initial forging to final polishing, and this before the precise Swiss movements are fitted.

There's a variety of ladies and men's models to choose from - each one will reward you with something quite different. Curtis Australia watches are ready to wear now.

EXCLUSIVE PEARL & DIAMOND PENDANT HANDCRAFTED IN THE CURTIS STUDIO

If you're wishing to commission Glenn to design and make something just for you, he'll take the time to sit down, listen and work closely with you for your own 'something special'.

If you're really fortunate, Glenn will take you on a tour of their studio. You'll leave with a sense of wonder and amazement, at the skill, creativity and ingenuity on display and learn something of the rich stories behind the many beautiful pieces made on the premises.

Give yourself a treat, take the time and visit Curtis Australia in Macleod Street Bairnsdale.

MEET GLENN AND HEATHER AND THEIR VERY SKILLED TEAM, AND LEAVE WITH YOUR VERY OWN PIECE OF BESPOKE HAND CRAFTED JEWELLERY – MADE WITH CARE AND LOVE. CURTIS AUSTRALIA | curtisaustralia.com | 03 5152 1089 A RETRO STYLED BARK FINISH RING SET WITH A BEAUTIFUL GREEN TOURMALINE

'KNOT' EARRINGS IN YELLOW GOLD

You can see more at Curtis Australia’s stunning work at www.curtisaustralia.com or, next time you are in Bairnsdale, why not pop into their studio at 129 Macleod Street. Ph | 03 5152 1089

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HEYFIELD WETLANDS The town of Heyfield is known for its history with the timber industry, it’s footy and netball teams and for being the old stomping ground of comedian and TV host Will Anderson.

However, over the last 20 years, the community has been working to build an environmental attraction that has become a haven for wildlife and a drawcard for tourists.

The Heyfield Wetlands works predominantly as a filter for stormwater following rain events, but in recent years has also been receiving water additional inflows through the water for the environment initiative.

The program is overseen by the Victorian Environmental Water Holder and managed locally by the West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority (WGCMA).

In late 2019 and early 2020, two inflows totalling 25 megalitres of water from the Thomson River were diverted to bolster existing flows and provide an environmental benefit for birdlife and other native animals.

Dr Stephanie Suter from the West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority says wetlands across Australia provide vital habitat for a range of creatures and these environments need to be both assisted to function and protected wherever they can be.

The Heyfield wetlands

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A HAVEN FOR COMMUNITY & WILDLIFE

“We’ve lost so many of our freshwater wetlands, and with the changing nature of the wetlands around the Gippsland Lakes (which are becoming saltier), wetlands like Heyfield are increasingly important for the birds to have somewhere to go,” said Stephanie.

The WGCMA has been working with the Heyfield Wetlands Committee of Management over several years, providing advice, funding for on-ground works as well as more recently facilitating the water for the environment flows.

Over recent years the Heyfield Wetlands Committee has constructed two significant ponds and built waterways with the idea of expanding the aquatic habitat for birds and animals. Through support from the Gippsland Lakes Coordinating Committee (GLCC), the Heyfield Wetlands Committee has been extra busy, planting thousands of trees, shrubs and aquatic plants.

The Heyfield Wetlands Committee has received funding from the Victorian State Government through the GLCC community grants and been able to leverage this funding with much volunteer involvement and community support.

West Gippsland Management Authority CEO, Martin Fuller, said it’s been a great experience to work with the Heyfield community as well as partner organisations to bring about such a positive outcome.

Members of the Heyfield wetlands committee

“The Heyfield Wetlands Committee has been such a passionate advocate for their town and the role the wetlands play, really from our side of things, it’s been a delight to work with them.

“When we work with any community, whether it be a committee like in Heyfield or a group of farmers wanting to revegetate a river bank, we are aiming for outcomes that not only bring positive environmental results but also the stuff that’s a bit less measurable, like participation in community events such as tree plantings, supporting local committees; all the things that give a community strength,” added Martin.

Heyfield Wetlands Committee member Barry Donahoe is similarly thrilled that the rather parched wetlands got a much needed ‘drink’ when it was most needed.

“We’ve done a lot of work with the idea of expanding the aquatic habitat for birds and animals. We’ve planted thousands and thousands of trees and shrubs to achieve this and the water coming in was just putting the icing on the cake for us.”

Fellow committee member Terry Stephenson is equally passionate about the impact the release of water for the environment has had on the wetland and the broader community.

“It made it a wetland once again instead of a dryland. This place does attract visitors from out of town. They come here, go for a walk. Go for a walk-in town, visit the shops. It all adds up in terms of visitors and them spending money in town while they are here.”

“This was so important for us. Wetlands need to be dry for periods, but for them to act as a filter for stormwater and provide an environment for plants to flourish and the environment to breathe, they need water to support that goal. This has been such a big deal for us.”

Looking to the future, there are plans for more watering’s to take place in 2021 as well as an evaluation of the impact of the watering that occurred in 2019 and 2020.

For more information about WGCMA and its work visit wgcma.vic.gov.au

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TAITS INTERIORS

DECORATING

with Cushions & Throws There are many ways to decorate with Scatter Cushions & Throws, but my favourite way is the use of different textures. Using the same fabrics for all of the Cushions in your collection can be boring and lacks interest or creativity.

By selecting different fabrics, you can create a highlight on your Bed or Sofas without using too many all at once. This can be a simple and safe combination in the same colours or tones or a mix of lots of different textures such as warm knits, natural linens, fluffy faux furs and beautiful velvets.

THERE IS A DECORATORS’ RULE WHEN IT COMES TO THE NUMBER OF CUSHIONS ON ANY PIECE OF FURNITURE– ‘ODD IS GOOD’! SO, DON’T BUY 4, BUY 5!

Heading for a traditional look – stay with formal fabrics like Velvet or beautiful rich jacquards & damasks with cord piping or tassel fringing.

For a casual beachy look, I would lean towards stripes like a classic ticking mixed with maybe a gingham check and a neutral coloured Throw made of natural fibres.

In a more modern space, bold prints might be the calling to really dominate and add more colour & brightness. In a bright area, perhaps dark colours to make the space cosier. Try not to add TOO many patterns together in an already colourful room as that may easily be too overwhelming unless the eclectic look is more your style. I usually have at least one Throw on each Sofa and then a couple of others nearby in the chilly months.

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Many clients of mine will change their Cushions with the seasons which really freshens up the space. Selecting a mix of florals or botanicals in greens & yellows is a lovely feel for some Spring brightness while rich, darker Velvets & knitted textures are appealing for the Winter months, teamed with a chunky warm Throw. It is a very cost-effective way of really transforming your room throughout the year.

Something else to consider is both the size & shape of your new Scatter Cushions. If you are putting them on high back Sofa, go a little bigger than the ‘average’ 40x40cm. I would go for a mixture of sizes and include some 55x55cm and maybe even some rectangular ones 30x50cm.

I will always make the inserts a couple of centimetres larger than the covers too, this ensures that all the corners are filled – this is a pet hate of mine with cushions! With Floor cushions I would highly recommend Feather/ Foam as they can really handle a beating and will look full and plump for many years of use.

Visit www.taitsinteriors.com.au to view our full range of fabrics available or phone Natalie to discuss options and order fabric sample cuttings for your next Window furnishings project.

These rectangular shaped Cushions look great on sofas with a lower back and they are also fantastic for comfort as they fit perfectly in the crook of your back which is lovely when the seats are quite deep. Don’t forget about Floor cushions too. They can make lazing about on a Sunday or playing Lego with the kids a lot more comfortable! Make sure you select sturdy fabrics for these that can be easily washed and aren’t too fragile.

Another important factor with Scatter cushions is the inserts. Quite often ready- made covers will come with light Dacron fillings. You may wish to consider having inserts made as they will last years longer and not go flat & lifeless so quickly. Something I recommend to clients is Feather/Foam or Feather/Fibre insert which have that lovely softness and keep their shape.

Natalie Guest INTERIOR SPECIALIST

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Rest & Relaxation in Luxury

A BEAUTIFUL BED & BREAKFAST IN PORT ALBERT IS WOWING VISITORS

BY LIA SPENCER

Overlooking the serene harbour at Gippsland’s Port Albert sits a beautiful bed and breakfast perfect for a luxury escape.

Sharon said she was proud to give tourists a beautiful spot to sleep and eat while visiting their area.

Boat Harbour Jetty Bed and Breakfast is a studio style accommodation that combines full privacy and stunning views with the comforts and inclusions that one expects from a traditional bed and breakfast.

“I’m proud of the great feedback and reviews that Boat Harbour Jetty B and B has received from guests,” she said. “It validates for me that we have created a wonderful experience for guests in term of accommodation, but also that people love and appreciate Port Albert too.”

Owner Sharon Radon said creating the accommodation in the quaint Gippsland town was a perfect pairing.

“Having spent a large part of my life visiting Port Albert and later living in Port Albert, partnering in a family run café and restaurant, I have always been entranced by the towns natural beauty and historical importance,” Sharon said. “My background in is hospitality, having worked in all areas from customer service and kitchen-hand up to management and ownership. I also ran a successful house cleaning business in Berwick during my time in Melbourne. Creating a modern bed and breakfast style accommodation was a natural succession for me, building upon the skills and knowledge that I have developed over the years as well as taking advantage of our unique waterfront property with its spectacular view.”

Port Albert is the home of Gippsland’s oldest Port, (Est 1841). Nearly 200 years later, it is still a popular destination for fishermen and boating enthusiasts; but it is also a great tourist stop for anyone and everyone including nature-lovers, athletes, foodies and more. There is plenty to see and do in the area.

Hikers, bikers, and walkers can enjoy one of the many tracks in the area, whilst history buffs can check out The Port Albert Maritime Museum, which features an extensive collection of historic artefacts, photos, and documents. Creatives will enjoy the Port Albert Art Gallery owned by local artist Warren Curry, whilst those wanting to explore the waterways can hire a boat from Castim by the Jetty. Food lovers wanting to tantalise the tastebuds can grab a table at Wildfish Restaurant or they can check out on of the other amazing local cafes in Yarram. Keen shoppers can also browse for giftware, preloved or repurposed goods, maritime antiques and artwork.

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The Bed and Breakfast offers three deluxe king studios, all with harbour views. Each studio is fully private with its own outdoor decking area, a well-equipped kitchenette, a 58inch smart TV, free Wi-Fi, a king-sized bed and large ensuite featuring an oversized walk-in shower. All the windows are double glazed for quietness and comfort and each room has its own air-conditioning and heating.

Studio One has the most panoramic view featuring over four metres of window looking directly out to the harbour and jetty. Studio Two has the benefit of accessible features and is accessed by a private ramp. Studio Three is the balcony room which features beautiful, elevated views and has its own private external staircase.

The daily rate includes gourmet continental breakfast along with complimentary beverages and other treats. Gourmet continental breakfast provisions include fresh fruit, premium muesli, pastries and muffins, bread and a variety of toppings, juices, tea and coffee and hot chocolate. Biscuits, chocolate, soft drinks, bottled water, and other snacks are also included in the rate. Each room has a Nespresso Pod machine and complimentary pods are also provided. Parking is available on-site.

Anyone wanting to book can do so through their website on portalbertboatharbourjettybnb.mydirectstay.com For enquiries phone Sharon on 0429 832 535 or email: BoatHarbourJettyBnB@bigpond.com

PORT ALBERT BOAT HARBOUR JETTY BNB gippsland lifestyle summer ����/��

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TOWNSEND'S NURSERY WONTHAGGI

Townsend's Nursery have a large variety of Australian natives, Exotic plant ,indoor plants, Tube stock, fruit trees, advanced stock & gift ware. Lois and the girls have over 50 years of plant knowledge.

TOWNSEND'S NURSERY WONTHAGGI

OPEN 6 DAYS A WEEK

CLOSED TUESDAYS & PUBLIC HOLIDAYS

Address: 315 West Area Road Wonthaggi VIC 3995 (03) 5672 1982 0488 322 777 www.facebook.com/townsendnursery

GIPPSLAND’S PREMIER PRESTIGE MOTOR BODY REPAIR FACILITY

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Italian staples with a native twist

With South Gippsland growing into one of Victoria’s finest regional food destinations, it’s no surprise that Glenn Minchinton, the new head chef at The Grove Gippsland, used coronavirus downtime to reinvent the restaurant’s menu, focusing on local, seasonal and native foods.

The classic Italian tiramisu features Glenn’s favourite native ingredient – wattle seed. His roasted pumpkin croquettes and house made quark are flavoured with lemon myrtle. And the Gippsland rabbit is served with warrigal greens.

Since arriving in South Gippsland four months ago, Glenn has dived into his work connecting the restaurant, which is set amid the spectacular Krowera Hills, with nearby farmers and producers, especially those who offer something different or unusual.

My favourite dish, the King George whiting – which looks and tastes like nothing I’ve eaten in a restaurant before – is wrapped and baked in paperbark and opened for service.

“Glenn only wants the really unique ingredients,” event manager Stacey Kirkby tells me enthusiastically, and he’s certainly worked hard to source them.

As I scour the new summer menu – which was only released to diners a week before I taste it – I’m drawn to its innovation and creativity, blending traditional italian dishes with native Australian ingredients, and highlighting local producers.

“THE WAY I SEE IT THE MENU IS ITALIAN-ISH,” GLENN TELLS ME, WHICH LINKS BACK TO THE PROPERTY’S EARLY BEGINNINGS AS AN OLIVE GROVE. “I come from Italian roots,” he continues. “I see Italian cooking as something that's born out of staples, we just decided to bring some native Australian ingredients in, especially in this region where there's not much of that happening.”

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Determined to use small, local producers, and to forge strong connections with the people who grow, farm and catch the food he serves, Glenn collects the whiting in person, straight off the boat at Corner Inlet. It’s a similar story for the rest of the menu, too.

Glenn’s rabbit is sourced from a nearby farm in Korumburra, where if he orders the meat on a Saturday, it is processed and delivered to the restaurant on Tuesday. His venison comes from Terramirra Park Deer Farm in Koonwarra, his pork from Flock, Stock and Basil in Tarwin Lower, and his lamb from Cherry Tree Organics.

The only meat he isn’t able to source in South Gippsland is the duck, which comes from a farm on the Great Ocean Road, but it’s worth the extra miles, Glenn assures me.

As well as sourcing ingredients that are already grown in the area, Glenn has partnered with farms like Into the Roots in Bena, to grow ingredients specifically for the restaurant.

THE GROVE RESTAURANT IN KROWERA LAUNCHES ITS BRAND-NEW MENU, FEATURING NATIVE INGREDIENTS, LOCAL PRODUCE AND ITALIAN CLASSICS WORDS: HELEN TAYLOR | PHOTOGRAPHY: PHIL CERBU

“Jay and Kim, who run Into the Roots, will pick food fresh in the morning and deliver it to us,” Glenn tells me. “Jay dropped in the other day with some beautiful Mizuna leaves and some radishes that he'd picked that morning, and they went straight on the menu for that lunch.”

Most of the native ingredients, Glenn tells me, come from the Wild Food Farm at Rhyll, on Phillip Island, and he orders fruit and vegetables from Grow Lightly in Korumburra, through the Prom Coast Food Collective.

“Sourcing local produce is a bit of a juggle,” Stacey admits. “This week we’re getting mulberries from Grow Lightly in Korumburra, but next week they might not be available.

But some ingredients, especially herbs and flowers for garnishes, as well eggs, are conveniently supplied by the restaurant’s own garden – which diners can visit – tended to and cared for by a dedicated maintenance team.

On top of the entire menu being consciously sourced, I’m impressed by how much of the food is prepared from scratch, using time-honoured techniques like fermenting, pickling, drying and preserving.

“About 90 per cent of the menu is made inhouse from raw ingredients,” Glenn tells me.

The quark is made using Gippsland Jersey milk. The potato focaccia is made from scratch using Oak and Swan organic flour, with Hilltop Hives honey butter.

Seasonal vegetables like radishes and sweet peas are preserved for garnishes, and even the kiwi salad dressing is fermented in the kitchen.

It’s refreshing to see a South Gippsland restaurant committed to the challenge of showcasing South Gippsland produce, while experimenting with innovative takes on traditional foods and increasing the prominence of native foods.

And The Grove isn’t done there. Next year, the team plans to build a glamping village complete with a dining experience; transform the olive pressing room into a wedding venue; host Italian themed dining events exploring cuisines from different regions of Italy; and continue to grow their truffle trees and vegetable gardens.

Starting from the first week of December, dinner is served at The Grove Thursday to Saturday, lunch is served Wednesday to Sunday, and breakfast is served Saturday and Sunday. Booking is essential.

For restaurant enquiries contact 27 Uren Rd, Krowera, 3945 ph 0457 111 026 em info@thegrovegippsland.com wb www.thegrovegippsland.com

Glenn Minchinton

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TRAFALGAR

A FAMILY FRIENDLY COUNTRY TOWN Graham and Elwyn

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index Page 24-27 Page 28-29 Page 30 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32-35 Page 36-38 Page 39 Page 40

Trafalgar, A Family Friendly Country Town Community Bank Trafalgar & District Branch The Criterion Hotel the Trafalgar Pub Café Thyme Out BK’s Takeaway AHistory of Trafalgar Connecting to Trafalgar’s Past TTMI partners in machinery Traf Trailers

Rockhole by Don Barratt

Smokey’s Snack Shack

Page 40 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44-47 Page 48-49 Page 50-51

True Value Hardware Trafalgar Laundrette Eat Live Fresh Kerry Galea Summer Stars John Kerr Real Estate A history of Trafalgar Kerry Galea ~ Look to the Stars Uralla Nature Reserve

Trafalgar Football Club Pavillion

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TRAFALGAR TOWN FEATURE TRAFALGAR IS IN THE WEST GIPPSLAND REGION OF VICTORIA The town lies on the Princes Highway and main Gippsland railway line about 10km west of Moe. The town backs onto the foothills of the Strzelecki Ranges to the south. The township sits at approximately 70 metres above sea level, the population is close to and around 4,000 people.

Trafalgar commemorates a great British military victory, and several of the streets in the town are also named from British military history, along with the park HMS Victory alongside the railway line.

Trafalgar Post Office opened on June 2, 1879.

Trafalgar was noted for having a cheese factory producing award-winning cheeses. The factory was owned by Petersville from 1960 until its closure in 1990.

The town has a railway station on the Bairnsdale railway line.

It also has a swimming pool, tennis courts, Scouts Hall, RSL Club, lawn bowls, football, netball, and cricket facilities.

After many years of competing in the Mid Gippsland Football League, the Trafalgar Football and Netball Club has joined the Ellinbank Football and Netball League for season commencing in 2021.

The Bloods in their distinctive red and white stripes have had major success in the previous Mid Gippsland Football League and they are looking forward to further success in the new league next year. Famous people that came from Trafalgar are Tim Forsyth, Olympic High Jumper, who attended Trafalgar High School, Harold Mitchell, Melbourne based media tycoon and philanthropist and Bill Collins one of the most famous race callers in history and had a long association with Channel 7 through racing, World of Sport and the Penthouse Club with Mary Hardy who was the co-host.

Mobile Library Trafalgar

I have met and come across many people in the town over the past few weeks and I have always been greeted with a friendly smile and people wishing to assist in this special feature on this warm and friendly town. The town is unique, it has a strong pulse, one chap that I ran into is Brendan Kingwill the owner of BK’s Franchising Australia Pty Ltd. Brendan has had a long involvement with the town through his BK’s Takeaway shops and his specialty is burgers. I remember talking to Brendan when he ran his television campaign about his burgers a few years ago and I was impressed that he is wanting to promote Trafalgar.

The same could be said about the owner of the Criterion Hotel, The Trafalgar Pub in Michael Patterson, he has run the Hotel for over ten years, and is another person that loves Trafalgar.

The Summit Adventure Park

There is a sense when you get to talk to people here in Trafalgar that the town is solid, but it is welcoming, the Bendigo Community Bank was incredibly supportive of promoting the town and their assistance in subsidising advertising for the businesses showed again this community support for the town. Yes, they are a bank, but they are a bank that gives back to the community that they represent.

From the cafes, through to the businesses that are in Trafalgar, there is an open door, not once did I get the feeling that this town doesn’t care, it does, it has a sense of pride. It certainly is not your ordinary drive through town on the highway, it has fabric and as good as shopping strip of shops and industrial park I have seen on many of my travels through Gippsland.

I strongly recommend that when you are making the trip from either end of the Princes Highway, stop in Trafalgar, grab a bite to eat, take a look around the area as I did and marvel at some of the beautifully presented old buildings, delve into the history, walk through the parks, because this is one town that is alive and well.

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IN HONOUR OF MOLLY RYAN On Sunday 23 October 2016, the Trafalgar Tennis Club unveiled the new sign representing the opening of the clubhouse as the Molly Ryan Pavilion. The event was very well attended with over 100 past players and Molly’s family sharing past stories during the fabulous afternoon tea catered by tennis club members.

The club also has a wall honour board representing the Molly Ryan Encouragement Award. The award started in 2014-15 and is awarded to one of the juniors who shows great enthusiasm, good sporting attitude and enjoyment of the game.

Molly was a long-term member, player and volunteer coach of the club.

The naming of the club house is a fitting memorial to Molly's commitment to the Trafalgar Tennis Club as a player, a committee member at the club and association and a volunteer coach for over 50 years.

Nelson’s Column

Molly played tennis at the club from 1962 to 2013 and remarkably was still playing Section 1 tennis at over 80 years of age. Molly was a life member of the club; she also won the ladies club championship three times and served as President in 96-97 and Secretary in 88-89.

Molly spent infinite hours, and had infinite patience, coaching junior players over more than one generation.

Her Friday afternoon sessions were the first contact many youngsters had with tennis and Trafalgar Tennis Club and from those Friday sessions, many players have gone on to junior competition and then to the senior ranks.

Molly also contributed to the wellbeing of the Trafalgar community by being a Meals on Wheels volunteer, St Mary’s Anglican Church and Opportunity Shop volunteer, catering meals at the Trafalgar Golf Club and was once awarded the Trafalgar Citizen of the Year award.

Parks Bowling Club

To ensure Molly is well remembered at the club we have two tributes to Molly, firstly naming of the tennis clubhouse as the ‘Molly Ryan Pavilion’ Words provided by Luke Bryant

Trafalgar Bowls Club

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Community Bank Trafalgar & District Investment

TRAFALGAR POLOCROSSE CLUB WOMEN’S COMPETITION Our Community Bank has actively advocated for the rise of women in sport by sponsoring a Women’s Polocrosse Competition in Trafalgar. This event is extremely popular across Victoria and interstate and is now an annual sporting event in the polocrosse calendar.

TRAFALGAR MEN’S SHED SUPPORT The Trafalgar Men’s Shed were able to install a new dust extraction system and solar panels with the support of the Community Bank with men’s health; wellbeing and inclusiveness forming part of our key focus areas.

DEFIBRILLATORS ACCESSIBLE IN LOCAL COMMUNITY Our Community Bank has partnered with multiple community groups in our catchment increasing access to a defibrillator in the case of an emergency.

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COMMUNITY BANK SCHOLARSHIPS Each year Trafalgar & District Community Bank branch offers students the opportunity to apply to our scholarship program to help ease the financial burden of further study.

SPORTING GROUPS Supporting our local sporting groups, ensures our community can be actively engaged in various sporting and recreational activities within our catchment. We have a strong focus on youth, mental health and community development and our sporting clubs play a major part in all of these areas.

TRAFALGAR PROBUS CLUB It was extremely important our Community Bank could support the wellbeing of local residents during the COVID-19 pandemic through sponsoring the Trafalgar and District Probus Club Newsletter. The newsletter ensured our most vulnerable residents remained connected and up to date with local news and felt less isolated.

BAW BAW ARTS ALLIANCE The Trafalgar Railway Station has been converted to an Arts Gallery operated by Baw Baw Arts Alliance. Our support has strengthened the arts community with Baw Baw Arts Alliance holding regular workshops and opening to the public displaying works from local artists

TELEHEALTH Access Telehealth continues to provide our local community with access to affordable and innovative healthcare options whilst still providing high quality healthcare.

STORY DOGS One of our projects in 2019, we were proud to support was Story Dogs at the local primary school. Each week Rick and his friendly fur baby, Prada, volunteer their time to make reading fun for children, so they become confident lifelong readers.

Community Bank Trafalgar and District branch is a locally owned and operated company with a franchise agreement in place with the Bendigo Adelaide Bank. The Community Bank branch in Trafalgar opened in November 2003 and supports local community investment.

The Community Bank story began in 1998. Unlike other banks, Bendigo Bank’s Community Bank model is based on a ‘profit-with-purpose’ philosophy, which means profits are returned directly to the local community which would not have been possible without our customers.

Community Bank Trafalgar and District branch have invested close to $1.6 million back into our local community which would not have been possible without our customers.

We are proud to be Australia’s bank of choice to our customers and support our local community whilst still providing our customers with a high level of service. If you are not already a Community Bank Trafalgar & District customer, please think about calling into the branch located conveniently on the Princes Highway and speaking to one of our friendly staff about your banking needs.

PHIL DRUMMOND – BRANCH MANAGER, CHRISTIE ASHE, KALANI PAKOTI, GAVIN DUFFY AND TIFFANY KOKSHOORN

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The Criterion Hotel Trafalgar

Keep up to date with all that is happening at Trafalgar's favourite meeting place The Criterion Hotel. :: Bottle Shop open 7 days a week ::

85 Princes Highway Trafalgar VIC 3824 Tel: 5633 1055 Like us on facebook + instagram www.trafpub.com.au

Café Thyme Out ‘Coffee with a smile’ All homemade food & striving for Coffee and Tea excellence

81-83 PRINCES HIGHWAY, TRAFALGAR VIC 3824 TEL: 5633 2281 30

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HOLDEN MUSEUM TRAFALGAR KEEPING A DREAM ALIVE

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Self-confessed ‘bloody mad Holden freak’ Neil Joiner has created a haven for everything Holden in Trafalgar – and it’s become an international draw card.

When it comes to just how West Gippsland became home to one of the nation’s most impressive Holden collections, the story has a healthy dose of country town charm, and a whole lot of tongue-in-cheek.

“A group of lunatics got together one day and we probably had too much to drink and we sort of said, ‘Why don’t we turn this into a museum. That’s pretty much how it started,’” explains Neil.

Neil’s passion for Holden is pretty much lifelong, and resulted in a enviable private collection of cars.

“I started collecting them way back 25 years ago. I’ve been a Holden man nearly all my life. My father was mad Holden and it was just sort of part of the scene.

I’ve had so many Holdens and had such fantastic fun in them all. I just love them.”

And when the collection started to overwhelm his own property, Neil decided the town’s empty former milk factory would be the perfect home.

“This building used to be Traf Tractors . But it was also the original Trafalgar milk factory, way back. It used to make cheese and milk products. It started in about 1924 was when it first opened up.

“It’s been through a variety of hands, but I can remember when I first moved to Traf you could buy the best cheese in the state from this factory here. And then like they all do, they either had to get big or get out and they closed down.

“Trafalgar Tractors took its place for quite some time and when they moved out it was vacant. I had a few too many cars so we were able to get our hands on the building and away we went from there.”

Neil managed to gently cajole his wife into purchasing the property (he admits there was some more alcohol involved), and gathered a group of fellow Holden-lovers to help bring his dream to life.

“In the early days there were probably six or eight of us who did all the work. It all just sort of came together. We set ourselves a target back in 2013 to open in October 2014, and we did it.”

The Trafalgar Holden Museum now boasts around 60 vehicles, including every model Holden from the very 1948 model to a HZ, which came out in the early 80s. Pride of place from Neil’s personal collection are a 1965 Holden HD Premier with 21,000km on the clock, a 1967 Holden HK and an 1963 EJ Holden that’s driven just 12,000km.

The museum also houses the majority of released Commodores, and ‘a whole lot of other stuff’. gippsland lifestyle summer ����/��

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“We like to have something that tells a bit of a story, our real thing is to show what Holden was about since the 1850s. So we’ve got leatherwork and saddles on display, we’ve got an early 1920s tram that was built by Holden. A 40 foot army workboat that was built by Holden during the second World War. We’ve got a cannon built by Holden during the war.”

A group of volunteers is working on restoring a W-Class Tram, built in the 1920s. “We’re restoring it to a degree. It’s been knocked about a bit, so we’re making it a bit more presentable,” said Peter Tuck. “People will be able to go in it and sit on the seats and relive the experience.

“I think it will be a real feature because so many people don’t realise that Holden were involved in building so many different things – trams being one of them.”

The museum is also regularly loaned pieces for display, but has also attracted donations. “There was a bloke who came here as part of the Holden SS Club from Melbourne. And we sponsored the Ute of the Day for that particular event and he won it. About 12 months later I got a call from a solicitor down at Colac and he said, ‘Do you remember so and so? He’s passed away and he’s bequeathed his ute to your museum.’ It was the ute that he’d won the trophy with and he left it to us. It was a rather nice little touch.”

The museum is now a jewel in the crown of Trafalgar, becoming a destination for car and history buffs.

“We’ve never had a bad comment, and most people are flabbergasted by the breadth of the displays that we’ve got here,” said Neil. “We’ve had people from all over the world actually. One bloke was from Monaco.

I’m claiming he only came here to look at our museum.”

Now more than even, Neil is keen to protect the history of Holden, after it ceased production in 2017. “The saddest part about it is I don’t think anybody realises what we’ve lost. When people see what Holden did during the second World War the capabilities just aren’t there now.

If we were being invaded now, we couldn’t even manufacture anything to defend ourselves with. It’s pretty sad all round.

“We’re going to be more important for generations to come to see what we had and what people were able to do. There were so many things that were developed by Holden, only by necessity mind you.

They developed all of these things during the war, it was just brilliant.

A real ‘we can do it’ attitude. Whenever there were problems put in their way, they moved them.”

TRAFALGAR

HOLDEN MUSEUM Inc.

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Trafalgar Holden Museum Open 7 days, 10am - 5pm and Public Holidays Adults - $10 Family - $25 (2 Adults + 3 Children U15) Child - $2.50 (Aged 8-15) Seniors / Concession - $7.50

HOLDEN MUSEUM TRAFALGAR

Celebrating Australia's HOLDEN Heritage TOUR GROUPS AND SPECIAL EVENTS WELCOMED BY APPOINTMENT THE HISTORY OF HOLDEN IS VERY MUCH THE HISTORY OF AUSTRALIAN MANUFACTURING AND THE AUSTRALIAN PEOPLE! ORIGINAL HOLDEN MADE ITEMS ON DISPLAY INCLUDE:

TRAFALGAR

HOLDEN MUSEUM Inc.

FINE RANGE OF ORIGINAL HOLDEN MADE & BODIED CARS GYPSY MAJOR AERO ENGINE HOLDEN MADE MELBOURNE TRAM MILITARY EQUIPMENT PEDAL CAR SADDLES GOLF CLUBS BADGES HOLDEN BUILT PATROL BOAT GMH HOUSEHOLD DISPLAY UTES ENGINES MEMORABILIA SPECIAL DISPLAYS MOTORSPORT TRIBUTE TRAFALGAR HOLDEN MUSEUM INC. 74 Waterloo Road, Trafalgar Vic Australia Tel: (03) 5633 2462 Open: 10.00am to 5.00pm www.trafalgarholdenmuseum.com.au Find us on Facebook Follow updates on the Trafalgar Holden Museum facebook site and join us every October for the Route 69 Cruise, celebrating 69 years of HOLDEN automotive manufacturing in Australia. gippsland lifestyle summer ����/��

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John Hanley | Test Desk 1961

Trafalgar’s John Hanley is stepping back to a time before modern trappings, to revive a vital part of West Gippsland’s history, before it’s gone forever.

Connecting to Trafalgar's past

by Anita Butterworth

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John Hanley

Whooping Co ugh Telegram 1910

It’s hard to imagine a time when the world wasn’t so connected - when waiting on news from family or friends took weeks, sometimes months, instead of seconds. For Gippsland’s early settlers, the advent of a postal service saw the dawn of a new era. An era that’s being retold in a book penned by John Hanley.

“Recent generations have known only the computer and offshoots including mobile phones and internet and everything at their finger tips in terms of communicating with others,” explained John.

“Imagine the early settler/explorer seeking a plot on the swamp or in the ruggedness of the Strezleckis whose only form of communications was trudging through mud and forests for many miles in some cases to deliver and collect letters in person, no such thing as a post office. An open bag service, which was invariably the first service to any new area would have been welcomed with open arms and much joy.

“Imagine having to wait weeks for mail between overseas and home. Then the telephone with its almost immediacy in talking to those elsewhere.

These were the days where the resilience of families settled into small communities that became self-reliant driven by their needs. This era deserves telling of and in some small way I feel through my writing I can shed some light on this aspect building the Australia we have today.”

Having lived in West Gippsland his whole life, John has always had a strong affinity with its history and sense of community. His 20 years working with the Postmaster General’s Department as a telecommunication technician in Warragul and Trafalgar from the late 1950s sparked his passion for the history of the region’s postal and telecommunications services.

John was heavily involved in the community through scouts and playing tennis, football and golf. His two decades of service with PMG led to a rich career, which included a large period of time forging educational foundations.

“After spending about a year helping install the new automatic exchange in Trafalgar in 1975 and maintaining its working for two years I left the PMG and was appointed to Yallourn Technical College, later Gippsland Institute of TAFE as an electronics teacher to the Electrical department.

I was appointed to the position of Staff Development Officer after about 7 years in the classroom and later managed the ‘Certificate in Mining Project’ which over three years developed three Certificates in Mining on behalf of the three mines in the Latrobe Valley.

“This project led to undertaking work with the Ministry of Coal Industry of China in conjunction with Monash University for a short period. I later worked as a curRiculum consultant to industry for the National Mining Training Centre and retired in 2003. After retiring I volunteEred as a compositor for the TrafNews our local comMunity newspaper founded by Mick Bourke.”

John’s retirement gave him the time to be able to begin dusting off the pages of history to painstakingly piece together a critical portion of Gippsland’s history. “My interest developed over the twenty years at Trafalgar exchange starting with my appointment in 1959 when joined Noel Albury the supervising technician and Akos Bekker a technician’s assistant on the permanent staff serving the subscribers and maintaining the telephone exchanges in our area.

“When asked several years ago by a member of our local historical society to write about my time as a technician and the Trafalgar exchange, my passion for writing about the people who kept the communication channels open was found. I could not write only of Trafalgar, which I have not commenced yet, as our district encompassed 14 post offices and 13 telephone services.

“Trafalgar East and Trafalgar West exchanges had been joined with the Trafalgar exchange in the late 1930’s. Of course, I could not write of the exchanges without writing the postal history as the PMG at that time operated both the postal and telephone exchange services, with post offices employing the telephonists and overseeing the operational aspects of the exchanges such as billing etc.”

It prompted John to start putting together his first book, ‘The Moe Swamp, Yulungah & Trafalgar East: A Story of the People, Postal and Telephone Services’.

“The book covers the postal and telephone services of the Moe Swamp area north of Trafalgar from their initial establishment in the ‘open bag’ service in the schools to their growth in becoming post office, and in the case of Trafalgar East, also an exchange. It spends many pages bringing aspects of the families lives into focus as well as some of the statistics that I was able to find.

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Trafalgar East 1934 Floods

Connecting to Trafalgar's past “I commenced serious research on these histories some four years ago and decided very early on that I would commence writing of a smaller area where I knew there were family still in the district. I commenced compiling this book two years ago and decided to self-publish and with help from our historical society printing is planned for early new year. Presently I am slowly examining 50 years of hard copies of local our newspapers from 1920, not digitised, finding names and matters nowhere else to be found.

“I am thankful that someone decided they were worth saving and despite their fragile condition I now have acCesS with the supPort of our historical society.”

Due for release next year, John admits self-publishing his first literary work has been an education in itself. “Researching in the early days was a fast learning curve as I had not researched a topic before and had no real understanding of the historical recording system of the PMG or governments. I have experienced some highs with great finds and some really frustrating aspects with no substantial records available.

“The engineering side of the PMG unlike the postal side, including the lines and technicians exchange side of the operation have virtually no historical records available today. The single most useful resource is my knowledge of the inner workings of the exchanges and post offices, which help me ask the right questions of myself and others.”

The people at the Telstra Museum I know will be interested as they lack any real history of the early manual telephone exchanges. Libraries and historical societies will likely have a small piece of history probably not on their shelves covering their own area. This may engender some interest locally for others to take to their own similar history.”

Now that he’s been well and truly bitten by the writing bug, John is now busily penning more books, which aim to open up the history of people, postal and telephone services in other parts of Gippsland.

“Four other books are at different stages of writing, Trafalgar West and South, Yarragon South Telephone Office, which was never a post office, also, Childers and Allambee. I have been seriously trying to complete the research for Narracan and Hill End however the Covid lockdown has prevented access to the national archives and state library which hold considerable information. Other areas in our district in 1959 that are still being researched are Trafalgar, Yarragon, Willow Grove, Thorpdale and Thorpdale South.”

‘The Moe Swamp, Yulungah & Trafalgar East: A Story of the People, Postal and Telephone Services’ by John Hanley is due for release in early 2021.

John’s hope is that his book will document and otherwise slowly fading portion of the region’s history. “Descendants of the families in question may find aspects of their forebears lives they previously had not known.

They may be able to contribute to aspects I had not found.

Trafalgar East Stamps

Early Magneto Telephone

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We have been building custom made trailers since 2008 we pride ourselves on our excellence and high quality workmanship, each trailer is hand crafted for each individual customer, we take the time to build a product to last years to come.

TRAF TRAILERS 126 WATERLOO RD, TRAFALGAR VIC 3824 Ph (03) 5633 3328 | Em Traftrailers@gmail.com | Wb www.traftrailers.com.au

TRUE VALUE HARDWARE TRAFALGAR Trafalgar True Value Hardware is a Timber & Hardware business, focusing on supplying the local community.

22 Contingent Street Trafalgar VIC 3824 Tel: 03 5633 1444

Hours: Monday to Friday 8.00am to 5.00pm Saturday 8.30am to 12.00pm | Sunday Closed

TRAFALGAR LAUNDRETTE 10 CONTINGENT ST TRAFALGAR VIC 3824 OPEN 7 DAYS 6.00AM – 9.00PM OPPOSITE THE HOTEL

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GREAT PLACE FOR ALL DAY BREAKFAST, SUPERB COFFEE, FRESH JUICES, SMOOTHIES, FRAPPAS, SMILES AND LAUGHTER FOR A RELAXING TIME AT EAT LIVE FRESH...

PLEASE COME IN AND SAY HI! WE USE LOCAL AND ORGANIC PRODUCTS AND ARE ALWAYS LOOKING TO USE LOCAL SUPPLIERS AND PRODUCTS.

NICOLE GREY – OWNER AND JEMMA VINEY – ASSISTANT

20 CONTINGENT STREET TRAFALGAR VIC 3824 TEL: 5633 3015

WE ARE OPEN FROM MONDAY THROUGH TO SATURDAY

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SUMMER DECEMBER | JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2020/21 SUN SIGN ASTROLOGY forecast with KERRY GALEA ARIES !

LIBRA '

21 March – 19 April

23 Sep – 22 Oct

You are searching for meaning and truth. To find this, break routines and think about the future. Take time out, take a holiday. Do whatever you can to have an experience that is not part of your daily routine. Pay attention to any legal matters.

Later in the season, challengers with authorities could go either way and lead to a new beginning, or it could lead to biting off more than you can chew. Worry over the cost of your plans creates fear. Luckily you will have help to fix any issues, so why worry? Recklessness will lead to loss, probably financial. So be careful.

You are finding out information and some is valuable, while some is mere gossip.

Communication is heightened and you can connect, talk, and be heard clearly.

This also begins a time of serious disciplined action rather than taking risks. Make lists of the pros and cons of any big decisions. By mid-season, start to build your foundations and create security. Perhaps reconnect with family members and build deeper relationships. The way ahead is to be creative and play freely. This will eventually lead to a new lease on life, but you need to cease self-judgement.

TAURUS "

SCORPIO (

Finances, what you owe, what you are owed, and what you share with others will be on your mind. Ask lots of questions before you leap to conclusions.

Your job, or the role you are most known for, is now in the spotlight and will be for a long time. Do you like what you do, or the face you put on in public?

Later in the season ask for advice instead of procrastinating, but you cannot let yourself overreact to what you have been told as you soon receive more reliable information. Later in the season, decisiveness, confusion, and challenges will prevail in your working life.

What you consider worthy, your valuables and money are in the spotlight. It is time to do something different. Revise spending habits or start a new investment.

But do you feel worthy in yourself? There is a need to develop strong personal foundations. Maybe even literal ones if you decide to buy, build, or improve your home. Later in the season, forgive yourself for not knowing what you think you should, but conversation and communication will soon flow well. Tensions can be resolved if you know the difference between making a stand, compromise, and surrender. But you may not get the help you expecct.

GEMINI #

SAGITTARIUS )

Emotions and feelings are higher than normal. This may lead you to over-react to what others are doing, or with what decisions that they are making, but this is their time, so let go. You will gain when you support, encourage, and highlight the endeavors of others. Mid-season, start to focus on yourself, as you have begun a new phase of learning, exploring the world, and passing on what you know. You could learn through books, by travelling, by understanding ethics and laws, by associating with people from other cultures, or by teaching. Don’t have expectations… just let it come to you.

Shine and you will be seen. Communicate and you will be heard. In fact, the universe is starting a big new cycle which highlights your mind, all that you learn, all facets of communication, and your inner truths. Spend time thinking about what your truths are. Mid-season, you will waste resources and spend too much money. But you soon will have information and the help that you need. Think slowly and carefully, weight everything up, and don’t let yourself rush to make decisions. Later in the season, expect your mind to be racing and your head to be busy with a thousand thoughts.

CANCER $

CAPRICORN *

Work routines, duty, and the importance of your health take center stage this season. Start a new healthy life habit or investigate a different treatment regime.

You find that you cannot depend on other people, but you can learn from them.

And how you unite and share resources with other people will herald a time of deep inner transformation. From mid-season, friction at work, or with any role in the public, will affect your relationships and emotions can run high. Later in the season, it is a good time to look beneath the surface and find out what you have been ignoring or what has been hidden from you.

This month starts with the need for outward quietness and retreat as well as inner self-refection. Be like a duck gliding calmly on the water but working steadily underneath. This whole season is learning about what is important, and what you value. You may feel like you have less than you want. But spending money will only lead to trouble. Have a picture of your dreams in your mind’s eye. While money feels important, life values are more important. Values create behaviors, and that creates habits, and that in turn creates the life that you prefer living.

20 April – 20 May

21 May – 20 June

21 June – 22 July

22 Nov – 21 Dec

22 Dec – 19 Jan

AQUARIUS +

LEO %

20 Jan – 18 Feb

23 July – 22 Aug

Express yourself as this is the month to become creative, and to find alternative solutions to problems. Also re-invent your style of relationships with others. You are beginning a year-long time where other people may demand more attention, and that includes loved ones. Start to pay close attention to their expectations, as well as your own, and discuss these. Mid-season, you are keen to escape, but duty calls you back to the humdrum of life. People are more than happy to give you the information that you seek, and even some that you don’t seek! There is a huge potential for closer connections and greater mutual understanding.

Two big planets are about to enter your sign and begin a whole new style of Aquarian living. This is happening globally, but you are the at the forefront and can help lead others into the future. So, think long-term but still pay attention to what is percolating up from the past. Re-stump your metaphorical foundations and this includes looking to the relationships with parents and extended family.

Or it may mean that your literal home needs renovations. Later in the season, you feel that you have lost inner direction and it is not a good time to make decisions or to enact plans.

PISCES ,

VIRGO &

23 Aug – 22 Sep

23 Oct – 21 Nov

19 Feb – 20 March

Home and family become important and it’s time to start a new style of connection with older family members. Why do the same thing as every other December and this may include Christmas festivities? You may feel that it’s time to redecorate the house or make home feel more comfortable. Mid-season, feelings arise from below the surface and blocks your inspiration. But not for long! Very soon the gates are open, and you feel creative ideas surge. But you are more than likely to overdo it and take on too much. Later in the season, its yet more work and a focus on details.

You could find out information about your job or your role which has the potential to improve your life. Learning a new skill will prove beneficial. It’s also time to focus on completing all that you have started. Even if you started it months or even years ago... spend the next few months getting started on getting finished!

Mid-season, you will be in such a rush to speak your mind and express yourself that could say more than you intended or try and push your ideas onto others.

Later in the season, the need for peace and quiet is very strong.

KERRY GALEA ASTROLOGY, PALMISTRY AND ANCIENT MOON GARDENING Email: kerry@kerrygalea.com.au | Web: www.kerrygalea.com.au

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CELEBRATING

10

years in trafalgar

JOHN KERR REAL ESTATE TRAFALGAR 2/87 PRINCES HIGHWAY TRAFALGAR, 3824 PH [03] 5633 1666

REAL ESTATE SALES AND PROPERTY MANAGEMENT COMMERCIAL & RESIDENTIAL

JOHN KERR REAL ESTATE MOE CORNER OF GEORGE & Â MOORE STREETS MOE, 3825 PH [03] 5127 7133

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www.johnkerr.com.au

ST. MARY'S ANGLICAN CHURCH 1906

MAIN ST LOOKING WEST 1923-4

NICHOLAS' CHEMIST MAIN ST TRAFALGAR 1904 - 1918

TRAF. FOOTBALL PREMIERS 1923

A History of

EARLIEST CRITERION HOTEL 1878

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EARLY TRAFALGAR LOOKING WEST FROM NANCI

JOSEPH HENRY GILES BUTCHER SHOP ON NORTH SIDE OF MAIN ST.

TRAFALGAR FIRST BUTTER FACTORY

Trafalgar...

SOME NOTES ON TRAFALGAR'S HISTORY

ORIGINAL PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH NOW THE CHURCH HALL ERECTED 1908 IN SEVEN MILE RD.

FORMER STATE SAVINGS BANK Built on the site of the early Post Office. Opened in 1924. Became the Commonwealth Bank in 1990. Closed in 2004 when branch business was relocated to Moe, and the property was sold. It became a Bakery.

COLONIAL BANK This business was originally operated from premises in Contingent St. It relocated to Main st., beside the present site of the Criterion Hotel, to the site formerly occupied by the Nelson Hotel and a Coffee Palace which burned down in 1908.

It later became the National Bank which closed in 1941, due to rationalisation of bank branches during the War. It then was taken over by the S.E.C. as offices until it was sold into private ownership. It is presently a café.

POST OFFICE Early postal services began in Trafalgar in June 1879, and operated from the Railway station, from Brown’s buildings on McCrory St. in 1903 and at one stage it was suggested that the post office should operate from the hotel. – which led to much opposition. It was housed in a timber building on the cnr. of McCrory St. and Highway. A telphone Exchange opened in the timber P.O. in 1917. New 2 storey brick building folllowed on earlier site of the first Methodist Church, in 1924. Cost 6,000 pounds. Housed the Post Office and telephone exchange with the Post Master’s residence above. It became a licensed Post Office in 1994, and passed into private hands when a new building was erected behind the Bendigo Bank.

TRAFALGAR RSL HALL, OPENED 1922

TRAFALGAR 1934

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Trafalgar's History

ON MAIN STREET OPPOSITE MCCROREY STREET

TRAFALGAR RAILWAY STATION 1989

LOOKING WEST 1950'S MAIN ST TRAFALGAR

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SOME NOTES ON TRAFALGAR'S HISTORY PUBLIC HALL ,CONTINGENT ST. The original Narracan Shire Office was in Moe and was relocated to a timber building in Contingent St. Trafalgar in 1908. The new builldings housed the Shire offices the library (Mechanics’Institute) and the public hall. It was burned down in a fire in April 1934. A new red brick building for the Public Hall was built on the site, and opened with a grand ball on Jan 17th, 1935. It cost 2,691 pounds. The Shire Offices were built on Shire land on the Highway immediately behind the War Memorial. They cost 1400 pounds raised by a loan at 3.5 % (this in the middle of the Depression). They opened on Feb. 13th,. 1935. NB On the original town plan, Wellington St. went through to the highway; but the new bulding blocked off the northern end of it, so it then ended at Kitchener St. WAR MEMORIAL The granite war memorial was erected on the cnr. of Main St. ( the highway) and Wellington St. It was unveiled by the State Governor, the Earl of Stradbroke, on Dec. 7th. 1921. It was relocated to Kitchener St. outside the R.S.L. building in 2012. It is topped by the statue of a soldier, standing at reverse arms and now lists the names of the district war dead from WW1,2 and Vietnam.

R.S.L. HALL, KITCHENER ST. This building was opened with great fanfare in Oct. 1922. Money for its cost was raised locally. The Trafalagr branch of the R.S.L. went into recess in 1990 due to the decline in membership, and the building was leased to the West Gippsland Healthcare Group. It returned to R.S.L use after 2007 when the Trafalgar and Thorpdale branches of the R.S.L. united. Due to the driving force of the membership under Mr. Ray James, the building has undergone extension and restoration and is a centre of activity for social and memorial occasions.

TATE'S GARAGE ON THE INFAMOUS S BEND SHIRE OFFICE AND MECHANICS'INSTITUTE BEFORE 1934 FIRE

CRITERION HOTEL This is the last of three hotels in the town. Built in 1878 as a single storey timber building, it was rebuilt in brick after a fire, and again burned down in 1903. The nucleus of the present two storey building was erected with Geoorge Hough as licencee, in 1908. There have been extensive additions to the building over the years with a verandah, a residential wing and a new bottle shop being built. It remains a very important centre for social gathering on the corner of Contingent street and the Highway.

THE METHODIST CHURCH The church began as a timber building on Main street where the former brick post office stands today.

A Parsonage was built on the corner of Anzac Rd. and the highway in 1903. In 1921, the church was moved to the site of the Parsonage which stood behind it. It opened on its new site in March 1922. A new red brick building replaced the timber structure in June 1933, and the older building was moved to the back of the site in Anzac Rd. to become the Church hall. It was sold to the Narracan Shire for 1500 pounds to be used for community purposes after the Uniting Church was formed in June , 1977. It was later sold on by the Narracan Shire, and housed two restaurants whose businesses failed, and eventually was converted internally as a private house. It remains empty and in private ownership today.

PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH The original timber building was erected on Seven Mile Rd., on the site of the present Bowling Club. In 1926, the church purchased James Shanahan’s house next to the then Shire Offices, in Contingent St. for a Manse. In 1930 the timber church was moved from Seven Mile Rd. to land beside the Manse. This was replaced by the A-frame building in 1959, and the timber building became the Church hall. It was decided to use this building for combined worship when the Uniting Church was formed from the Presbyterian, Methodist and Congregational churches in 1977.

MAIN STREET 1970S. BEFORE THE NEW HIGHWAY

TRAF. PUB 1920'S

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LOOK TO THE STARS

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BRINGING HARMONY THROUGH ANCIENT SCIENCE W O R D S LI A S P E N CE R

The writing is in the stars. And if you can’t read it yourself, you can trust that Kerry Galea can.

Kerry is an Astrologer and Palmist and provides Gippsland Lifestyle with the popular Sun Sign Astrology forecast every edition. According to Kerry, how the planets and stars aligned the day we were born very much determines our personality traits, but it is up to us how we use them.

The Trafalgar resident uses her expertise to help guide and counsel others who want clarity, reassurance or may have questions about their lives. But Kerry makes it quite clear that she is not a psychic or medium and does not read tarot cards. In fact, astrology is very much based on science, and having worked as a medical scientist for more than 40 years, the transition into becoming an astrologer was a smooth, yet unexpected one.

“I was quite content working at the hospital laboratory and raising my two children, but I started yoga and met a lot of people who opened my eyes to a different world. My yoga teacher was an astrologer and I asked her a lot of questions. One day she told me, ‘that’s it, I am going to teach you!’”

Kerry said. “The psychological profile of astrology made a lot of sense to me from an analytical background. I liked the system of it. Astrology has been around for a couple of thousand years. It is straight Ancient science. Looking at the stars, we can see something within ourselves; our strengths and our weaknesses.”

In Astrology, the twelve sun signs -or Zodiac signs as most people know them- are divided into four elements: Fire, Earth, Water and Air. Each element possesses different characteristics. Some characteristics of Fire include assertiveness, energetic, impulsiveness. Some characteristics of Earth include being dependable, practical and responsible. Air people tend to be more curious, enjoy thinking, and are communicative, while Water people are very tuned into people’s emotions; the things that are not said. They are understanding. Where the sun, moon and planets are when a person is born determines what element they are and what qualities they possess.

Besides Astrology and Palmistry, Kerry also practices Ancient Moon Gardening, or Lunar Gardening, which is a way of aligning ourselves with Mother Nature for harmony with the earth.

Kerry provides a calendar which follows the moon to show what days to plant, prune for growth and to prune to limit growth, harvest, treat pests, feed and weed and more.

“Ancient Moon Gardening is another technique that has been used for thousands of years. I tried and tested it all,” she said. “It runs roughly on a 28-day cycle. We’ve all evolved with the phases of the moon and the effect is quite amazing.”

Kerry said that there was a strong connection between Ancient Moon Gardening and Astrology, as we all derived from the same place and we are part of something larger than ourselves.

“We are all made of the stuff of stars, so the rhythm of stars is in us.

Looking at the stars, we can explain ourselves. It gives us a connection with this Earth,” Kerry said. “It really is amazing that we are all part of nature, and yet, we are still so unique.

“There is a deeper meaning to life and it’s quite magical, and we are part of something greater than ourselves.

“Yesterday’s magic is today’s science,” Kerry said. “Today’s magic is tomorrow’s science.”

For more information about Kerry and for information on how to book an appointment, visit kerrygalea.com.au

KERRY GALEA

For example, Kerry said, if the Sun were next to Mars when someone was born, they would possess strong Mars principles, or the Fire energy.

However, how these qualities are manifested is up to each individual.

“There is fate, and a person’s astrology is their personality fate,” Kerry said. “But then there is destiny, and how someone uses (their given personality traits) is destiny. We all have a choice.”

Kerry said her job was to remind people of the qualities they possess so they could take charge of their lives and overcome challenges. She uses both Astrology and Palmistry- the lines and shape of the hand to see someone’s natural potential, as tools to help people understand their personality and character, and the developments in their life.

“Sometimes in life we forget what we are good at, and I like reminding people of that so they can solve their problems,” Kerry said. “I don’t tell people what they should do or what is going to happen. We all have choices and decisions to make. My aim is to make people feel confident.”

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Uralla Nature Reserve - The Uralla Nature Reserve is an area of bushland on the northern slopes of the Strzelecki Ranges. There is 3.5km of walking track which winds its way through the unique bushland.

A small carpark is available at the entrance to Uralla Nature Reserve, off Giles Road. Modes of Transport: Walking Difficulty: Easy Distance: Short – 3km return Toilets: No toilets are available at the reserve but can be found in nearby Trafalgar – 2.5km away. Toilets are available in McGregor Park, off Contingent Street, and at the intersection of Contingent Street and Depot Lane in the Town Centre.

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Uralla Nature Reserve T R A FA L AGA R

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comes to Wonthaggi A QUICK-FIRE CONVERSION HAS REPLACED ONE ICONIC DEPARTMENT STORE WITH ANOTHER AS THE NEW MAJOR RETAIL DRAWCARD AT WONTHAGGI PLAZA. WORDS: CHRIS WEST

Families in South Gippsland with a keen sense of value for money have welcomed the arrival of Kmart at Wonthaggi Plaza Shopping Centre in October.

The full-line Kmart store has replaced the former Target as part of a major strategic restructure presently being undertaken by Wesfarmers, the parent company of both retail icons. The decision to rebadge the Wonthaggi store has sought to capitalise on the greater current strength of the Kmart brand amongst consumers in this country.

Importantly for the local economy, Kmart ensured the future job security of the former Target employees would be protected by offering all of them positions prior to the commencement of the conversion.

Target closed its doors at Wonthaggi Plaza on 26th September and less than three weeks later reopened as Kmart on 15th October following an extensive internal refurbishment. No structural changes or extensions were made to the 3000sqm premises.

Whilst the Target in Wonthaggi would have had many loyal customers who would regard its closure as the end of an era, it is often said that when one door closes another one opens, and in this case having Kmart within easier reach is a real winner for the South Gippsland community.

Shoppers are travelling from all parts of the region in search of Kmart’s extensive product range and renowned affordability. Kmart has become one of the one of the established giants of the Australian retail industry since opening its first store in this country at Burwood East in 1969.

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Prior to the new store’s arrival, the nearest Kmart to Wonthaggi was 85 kilometres away in Cranbourne, followed next in proximity by Frankston and Hastings. The nearest Gippsland stores are located in the Latrobe Valley at Moe and Traralgon.

Kmart has been delighted with the initial sales performance of the new Wonthaggi store since its opening, despite the lingering effects of COVID-19 restrictions which limited the number of people allowed inside at any one time to a maximum of 210 in its first weeks of trading.

The COVID situation also dictated that the store was given a low key opening, with little celebration or fanfare to help kick start early sales momentum. Given those hindrances, Kmart has every reason to feel satisfied that the new store has performed as well as it has.

The new Kmart at Wonthaggi Plaza is open from 8.00am to 8.00pm on weekdays and 8.00am to 6.00pm on weekends. It includes all the products and features associated with Kmart’s metropolitan stores, from clothing to homewares, manchester, toys and much more. The store has been designed with central check outs, wider aisles and wheelchairfriendly access.

Kmart’s arrival has provided an exciting new drawcard for Wonthaggi Plaza Shopping Centre, which has been the town’s major retail hub since opening in December 2012.

Anchored by the new Kmart and a Coles supermarket, Wonthaggi Plaza is also home to more than 40 specialty stores, amongst which are several national brands including The Reject Shop, Best & Less, Jeanswest, Priceline, Prouds the Jewellers, Bakers Delight and Kaisercraft. It remains the only fully enclosed air-conditioned shopping centre in South Gippsland, with a great mix of stores and ample, convenient parking.

In conjunction with the conversion of Target to Kmart, the opportunity was utilised to upgrade other amenities in and around the centre with a quick cosmetic facelift during the same period.

“We are absolutely thrilled to have added Kmart to our retail mix,” Wonthaggi Plaza Centre Manager, Marc Walton says.

“Kmart is an outstanding retailer that customers are absolutely loving having convenient, local access to, especially in the lead up to Christmas,” he adds.

Wonthaggi Plaza is managed by Comac Retail Property Group, a boutique independent retail specialist with offices in Melbourne and Brisbane overseeing a current portfolio of 18 projects across Victoria, Queensland and New Zealand.

Comac Retail Property Group possesses an extremely experienced team and has received very positive feedback from its landlords regarding the management and coordination of its COVID response.

In what has been a challenging year for the retail sector in general, the agency has worked cooperatively with tenants at its centres to assist them where possible in navigating their way through the crisis. At Wonthaggi Plaza, some stores were temporarily closed due to restrictions in the earlier stages of the pandemic, whilst others adjusted their mode of operation to click and collect or open on a takeaway only basis.

Comac Retail Property Group is proud of its involvement with Wonthaggi Plaza and its continued contribution to the centre’s success. The arrival of Kmart has ensured that 2020 is finishing on a bright note and just in time for the all-important Christmas shopping rush.

Kmart’s newly established presence in South Gippsland is not going to begin and end in Wonthaggi. A smaller outlet, branded as a K hub, is set to follow in Leongatha in the coming months, replacing the existing Target Country store in McCartin Street.

What shoppers are saying about the new Kmart at Wonthaggi Plaza … Feedback provided by consumers on social media prior to and post opening has included:

"I’ll be camping out from 2am."

"OMG, this changes my life."

"Kmart rocks."

"Shoosh. Don’t tell everyone. It’s a secret."

News of that planned conversion marks another exciting development for shoppers in the local region.

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SCULPTURE C U LT U R E

COMES TO YINNAR IN 2021

WORDS BY NICOLE STEWART So there’s the Venice Biennale, the Sydney Biennale, the Berlin Biennale and then there’s Yinnar’s Gippsland Sculpture Exhibition held every two years since 2017, so it’s a biennale just like the others but better. But then maybe I’m biased. However, taking into account the demographics of each, on a per capita basis the Yinnar show is streets ahead.

The tiny hamlet of Yinnar with a population of 900 will once again host the Gippsland Sculpture Exhibition from March 21st to May 9th 2021.

There will be free sculpture workshops every weekend including sculpture carving in stone, a mosaic workshop, chainsaw carving, wood burning (poker work) weaving and much more.

Artists from across Australia will travel to the town in the weeks before the show to set up their work throughout the picturesque streets of the village which in itself is quite a spectacle. Everyone in the town gets involved. The local produce storekeeper rocks up with his forklift, strong men from the street are summoned to assist, the shopkeepers chip in and any locals who’ve wandered down the street to take a look are quickly dragged into the fray.

The opening day, which next year will be on March 28th is a big event with live music in the park and a big outdoor celebration. But what sets this event aside from all the others is the breadth of exhibits in both size and sophistication.

From the everyday rural objects by Tammy Pettigrew in this case silage bales, to the sophisticated techniques of bronze castings by Emmy Madroidis and the delicate and finely executed lacework style buildings by Amardeep Shergill, the Gippsland Sculpture Exhibition is an eclectic mix that caters for all tastes.

But the thing that sets it apart from all the big International Biennales are the art critics. In Yinnar you are unlikely to find an international critic or curator, (although one of the 2019 entrants was once winner of an American Krasner Pollock grant) however you are sure to meet hundreds of genuine critics of the everyday kind. That is the real beauty of shows such as the Gippsland Sculpture Exhibition, you don’t have to go to a gallery to see good art; it comes to you. Visitors to the exhibition which in 2019 numbered thousands, wander the streets of Yinnar unable to avoid the art. There is no need to become self conscious about entering an art gallery and there is always something that appeals to every taste.

Take for instance the sculptures of Laurie Collins who utilizes everyday found objects. The average time spent viewing a single work of art in a gallery is four seconds whereas people stare at a Laurie Collins sculpture for a long time, fascinated by the way he has welded together what appear to be random pieces of iron until you realize that there are bits of old pliers, door knobs, gate hinges, cogs and wheels and a host of paraphernalia from the past.

Variety is an important component to this exhibition. It’s not just an exhibition, but more like a six-week festival. Every weekend there are demonstrations of some kind taking place in either the park or in the nearby gallery at ARC; the Arts Resource Collective. In 2019 there was a chainsaw carving demonstration by Rob Bast.

From a single block of wood, Rob sculpted a drover on horseback with his dog over the period of a day. He donated the work to the Yinnar community where it is on permanent display in the main street.

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EMMY MAVR OIDIS 'RUN LIKE THIS'

People find it difficult to believe that it is actually a single piece of wood carved with a chainsaw. In 2021, Rob will be invited back to give another demonstration of chainsaw carving. This time, sponsored by the Bendigo Bank, Rob will once again skillfully carve another sculpture for permanent exhibition in the township; an event which is likely to be watched by hundreds of spectators.

So Yinnar lacks gondola filled canals and great architecture , but when it comes to community spirit and sculpture biennales it gives Venice a run for its money!

Dr. Tony Hanning is an independent artist and author living in Yinnar South.

His work is represented in all major galleries in Australia and he is the author of “Nick Mount:The Fabric of Work” (Wakefield Press)

www.gippslandsculptureexhibition.com

SCULPTURE C U LT U R E | Y I N N A R

AMARDEEP SHER GILL 'KALAMANDIR BLUE'

TAMMY PETTIGREW 'SHEEP'

ANDREW KASPER 'MOJO'

JIMMY RIX'I'VE GOT THIS CHICKEN LEGS' WINNER OF THE 2019 GIPPSLAND SCULPTURE EXHIBITION

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TRUCKING AROUND GIPPSLAND TO ALL YOUR EVENTS, WE CAN CATER ANY LOCATION. We are fully self-contained and can take care of everything including attendants.

BOOK US FOR SPECIAL OCCASIONS - EVENTS & CORPORATE FUNCTIONS

We also offer catering for many other occasions including birthdays, weddings and engagements.

You can find us at Markets around Gippsland and we can prepare our menu to suit your event.

Contact us today on 0447 728 547 or brent@brentsinclaircatering.com.au

During the COVID restriction period we are offering TAKE AWAY MENUS. Please visit our Facebook @BrentSinclairCatering for weekly changing menus and specials.

When looking for a superior culinary experience from an intimate gathering to a lavish banquet choose Brent Sinclair Catering.

Relax and have the Brent Sinclair Catering team handle all the details and tailor any menu to perfectly suit your event.

Call Brent Sinclair on 0447 728 547 146 McCartin Street, Leongatha, Vic 3953 E: brent@brentsinclaircatering.com.au www.brentsinclaircatering.com.au

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Crawford Marine STACER SEA MASTER 519

with Terry Raymond

IN THIS EDITION WE TAKE A BOATING VOYAGE DOWN SOME OF THE MEMORABLE PLACES WE HAVE JOURNEYED WITH THE SKIPPER, TERRY RAYMOND THE OWNER OF CRAWFORD MARINE IN MORWELL Back in 2018, we had a day out on the Gippsland Lakes with the Stacer 519, which is one of a large range of Sea Master models available, from 429 to 589 and this one had the optional transom door that provides great boarding access, either from the trailer and on the water for swimmers and water skiers.

The hull combines a concave bottom sheet design and STACER New Revolution Hull which features a raised chine which results in a high-performance hull that glides over the water, delivering a softer ride in rough conditions. The stability at rest and underway is balanced and leads to enjoyable boating.

The Gippsland Lakes is a vast area and many great places to visit and with a boat from Crawford Marine in Morwell, you will have the opportunity that the land lovers miss out, why wait? Contact Terry from Crawford Marine Morwell and join in the fun of cruising the magnificent Gippsland Lakes.

Then we moved forward to the Summer of 2019/20 not knowing what was in store for all of us that would change all of our lives forever, but lets just reflect on taking a trip out on Terry’s latest Campion boats that he has in his showroom back in Morwell and on this day I had the pleasure of METUNG HOTEL

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visiting fabulous Westernport Bay and with the Campion EX 21 Explorer.

With a 6.55 metre walk around the boat gives you tons of room on board with a full walk around deck and self-draining non -skid floor. It means you can move around the craft with complete ease and peace of mind.

The sliding hard top windows, three in floor catch tanks, twin battery system, deck wash, two live tanks baits for fishermen, side clears with rear drop curtain and the hardtop is fully lined with LED overhead lighting.

The EX21 moves the waves with little effort and the pickup speed is quite noticeable. This is probably down to the solidly built hull which is constructed with 3D woven fibreglass and has a Kevlar reinforced heel.

AND MOST OF ALL DO NOT FORGET THAT IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR RELIABILITY AND POWER IN YOUR OUTBOARDS THERE IS ONLY ONE BRAND TO GO FOR AND THAT IS MERCURY. Ok Skipper, this was our look back on a couple of boating trips and I look forward to 2021 and resuming our boating trips through magnificent Gippsland!

CAMPION 655HT

CRAWFORD MARINE CORINELLA JETTY

CAMPION EX 21 EXPLORER

METUNG

ALAN MORRIS WITH TERRY RAYMOND

CAMPION BOATS ARE BACK IN AUSTRALIA

BOATING SINCE 1964

71-77 Chickerell Street, Morwell 3840 P: 5134 6522 E: info@crawfordmarine.com.au www.crawfordmarine.com.au

MEMBER

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THE KORUMBURRA DENTIST FAMILY DENTAL SURGERY The Korumburra Family Dental Surgery is located upstairs in a historical building in Korumburra and blends today’s dentistry with a cost effective professional environment.

Dr Gary Wilkie BDSc (Melb) has been servicing the Bass Coast and South Gippsland communities for over 30 years, as a local family owned and operated dental practice which was established in 1945.

We bulk bill eligible child dental scheme and Veteran Affairs patients.

DR GARY WILKIE

B.D.Sc. (Melb) L.D.S. F.R.A.C.D.S. F.A.I.C.D. Member of Australian Dental Association

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Call now 5655 1026 1 Radovick Street, Korumburra VIC 3950

AT G R O W M A S T E R T R A R A L G O N I N S P I R AT I O N A W A I T S Y O U

GROW MASTER TRARALGON

COME TO GROW MASTER FOR ALL SHOPPING, GIFTWARE, HOME WARES, LADIES FASHION AND GARDEN SUPPLIES OR CHOOSE A GIFT CARDÂ

W E A R E Y O U R D E S T I N AT I O N

For advice, range and quality.

For an experience and a garden encounter that will enchant you.

For solutions, inspiration and motivation.

WANDER THROUGH THE LAYERS OF OUR BEAUTIFUL GARDEN CENTRE, EACH STEP LEADING YOU INTO ANOTHER CHAPTER OF IDEAS FOR YOUR HOME, GARDEN AND LIFESTYLE.

Hours | Monday to Sunday 9.00am - 5.00pm 62 Argyle St, Traralgon Vic 3844 Ph: (03) 5174 2861 Em: growmastertraralgon@yahoo.com.au www.growmastertraralgon.com.au

Stony Creek Go-Karts is now well and truly one of the highlights of South Gippsland.

EVENT DAY – RETRO KARTING AUSTRALIA F100

■ Hire Karts ■ BYO Kart Membership (Day/Yearly Rate) ■ Corporate Days ■ Group Bookings ■ Birthday Parties & Functions ■ Driver Education ■ Phoenix Kart Agents ■ Kart Sales & Spares ■ Café Please check

website for dates and times.

PH : 5664 7272

EM: info@stonycreekgokarts.com.au For more information visit stonycreekgokarts.com.au Please Note: When Stony Creek Racing Club is holding a race meeting the venue will be closed. During the winter period the venue is closed mid week unless prior booking is made.

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Please check our facebook for updates Some changes are in place to keep you healthy and safe.

1. Bookings are essential. Please call to book your time.

2. There is a maximum of 12 karts only.

3. A 50% deposit is needed to secure your booking.

4. If you are sick, please stay at home.

5. Karts and Helmets will be disinfected between groups.

ROSEDALE BUTCHERS Local Family Owned Country Butcher

Three generations of Vaux Family owned and operated business since 1977.

In 1986 their first smokehouse was purchased and then later in 1992 a second larger smokehouse was obtained and are still used today, which allows them to produce the quality products that Rosedale Butchers have become known for.

Ray and Janet Vaux took over the business in May 1977 with their son Neville starting his apprenticeship with them and eventually he and his wife Debbie took over the business in July 1995. In turn, in 2012 their son Matthew after completing his apprenticeship in took on the job of smallgoods making.

Call now for your Meat & Smallgoods needs or call us to conveniently place your order

32 Prince Street, Rosedale 3847 Ph 5199 2210 Follow us www.rosedalebutchers.com.au

Just in time for Spring - Our Gardening Section is Expanding!

Plants, Seeds, Soil, Fertilizers, & Garden Tools Full Range of Water Tanks, Building Materials, Timber & Hardware Available for Pickup or Delivery To Order Phone 5678 8552 Cnr Bass Highway & Dalyston-Glen Forbes Road, Grantville E: grantville@vansteenseltimbers.com.au | www.vansteenseltimbers.com.au gippsland lifestyle summer ����/��

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BRUCE VAN STEENSEL

A HIDDEN GEM WITH PLENTY TO OFFER A one-stop-shop for tradies, craftsmen and green-thumbs alike has been going strong for over five decades.

Now collectively owned by Jan’s four sons, Peter and David manage the Officer yard, and Bruce and Stephen manage the Grantville store.

Tucked along the highways in the growing towns of Grantville and Officer, Van Steensel Timbers has everything someone would need for their home build and garden projects.

The family believe their ‘old-fashion’ service and range of products were the reason for the companies continued success.

Loyal customers keep returning to the hidden gem, and new ones keep coming, thanks to the impressive array of products and as well as the impeccable service from the friendly, knowledgeable staff.

The popular business began in Officer in 1965 by Jan Van Steensel, a second-hand timber and building materials merchant. Jan would often trawl auctions and source used supplies, then would recruit his wife Freda, along with others, to help de-nail and prepare the materials for resale. The business grew to supply new timber, hardware and building materials and to also offer wood machining and joinery.

After the growth and success of the Officer business, Jan purchased land at Grantville and in 1990, expanded the businesses into the Bass Coast area.

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“It may seem cliched, but all of our staff love having a friendly chat and genuine connection with people,” said Joanne Van Steensel, Grantville Office and Nursery Manager.

“Our staff go out of their way to support our family business and the least we can do is try to be as helpful and friendly as possible. We are also proud of our flexibility with product ranges and our relationship with suppliers.”

The huge product range includes structural and non-structural softwoods, hardwoods, board products and fencing timber to water tanks, roofing materials, builders hardware, hand tools, power tools paint, doors, bagged cement products, rural and gardening supplies, and more. Services also include sharpening, power tool repairs and hire, key cutting, paint and render mixing and wood machining with a very quick turnaround.

JO VAN STEENSEL

Van Steensel Timbers has been going from strength to strength for over fifty years

BY LIA SPENCER

“What makes us unique is that we can custom order products such as roofing iron into store within a couple of days. We have a wood machinist who can match timber profiles and dress timber based at our Officer yard,” Joanne said. “Being able to find a stick of timber and get it cut or machined to specific requirements with a quick turnaround it also hard to find in retail.”

With a recent addition of plants and garden gear at the Grantville yard, Joanne said they now are catering to more people in the area after recognising a gap in the local market.

“While we have always offered some gardening and agricultural products, there was a need within the community to provide a local outlet for plants and trees.”

Joanne said meeting the community needs has always been important to the Van Steensel’s and being a family-owned and operated business allows them to meet requests faster than most large home-hardware department stores.

“Our genuine personable service is paramount,” she said. “We can take feedback and directly make changes without having to jump through hoops that corporate businesses often have to do.”

Despite recent Covid-19 restrictions in Victoria, Van Steensel Timbers have been able to continue to operate their business with little disruption.

“Fortunately, delivery is a service we have always offered so in that respect, not much has changed,” she said.

“The pandemic mostly affects our metropolitan Officer store for the general public, as they haven’t been able to enter it in person, but we arrange orders via phone and collect which seems to work.”

For more information visit www.vansteenseltimbers.com.au or call 5943 2371 (Officer) or 5678 8552 (Grantville).

Trading Hours are Monday to Friday, 7am- 5pm.

Saturday from 7am- 12pm and on Sunday (Grantville only) from 9am-2pm.

TIM EVERETT, STEVE VAN STEENSEL & DARREL PETRIE

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WE'RE ALL GOING ON As the warmer weather approaches and summer is on our doorstep, so too is a renewed sense of optimism for the coming months ahead.With the easing of the COVID-19 social restrictions in Victoria, planning is now in full swing for both festive celebrations and the summer holidays with family and friends.

Whether you’re considering a trip or prefer to stay local, there is no doubt that many Victorians will be planning to hit the road after more that 100 days of lockdown. But let’s face it, if you’re planning to spend a few hours in the car, even the most enthusiastic of us are bound to get a little bored after the first hour of ‘I spy’.

One place you might not have considered to find some boredom busters is your local library. Best of all, you don’t have to spend a cent with loads of free resources available to you with your membership.

If you’re planning a long car trip, e-audiobooks are a great way to entertain children and adults alike. Download to your digital device before you leave, and you won’t need to worry if mobile reception gets patchy on those country roads. Pack your ear buds and everyone can listen to their own selection. West Gippsland Libraries have hundreds of titles on offer - there’s stories to entertain, teach and keep our minds engaged.

It’s a sure bet to stave off those repeated ‘are we there yet?’ questions coming from the backseat.

After a fun-filled day of adventure, a great way to unwind is with a good book. If you prefer to travel light, e-books are a great alternative. Your local libraries have thousands of e-books at your fingertips. The great part is they don’t take up any extra room in your luggage. If you prefer a good paperback or a hardcover, search the catalogue online or drop into your local library branch and check out a few books to take with you.

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If the silver screen is more your kind of entertainment, there’s free access to a video streaming service that provides quality, thoughtful entertainment included with your library membership. With a unique collection of over 30,000 films including movies, documentaries, films for children, foreign and indie films. You’re sure to find something different to watch.

For those who will be spending time at home, there are a few more resources to inspire activities. West Gippsland Libraries have thousands of e-magazine titles available through the RB Digital app that could be a springboard to your next hobby or spark a new special interest. With topics ranging from baking, cooking, gardening, arts & crafts, sports, science and music there really is something to inspire everyone.

With some social gathering restrictions still in place, holiday activities are still limited. But that doesn’t mean there’s a limit on the fun to be had.

West Gippsland Libraries have a wide range of free programs and events available online. There’s edutainment, family trivia, craft, gardening tips, book chats, interviews with authors and more.

Looking for guilt-free screen time activities available for kids? Your library also has a range of apps designed by professionals for 3-17-year-old children to boost learning and development that are disguised as fun.

Did we mention these are all free resources available to you with your library membership?

Before you head out on your holiday adventure or get stuck for entertainment ideas this summer, discover all that’s on offer at West Gippsland Libraries: wgrlc.vic.gov.au

A SUMMER HOLIDAY!

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50 YEARS OF KEEPING GIPPSLAND MOVING

FOR HALF A CENTURY EVANS PETROLEUM HAS NAVIGATED THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD OF BUSINESS IN REGIONAL VICTORIA, AND IT HASN’T JUST SURVIVED, IT’S THRIVED. WORDS BY ANITA BUTTERWORTH

The South Gippsland institution is celebrating 50 years of providing fuel and lubricants to the Gippsland region and beyond, but in typical country fashion, isn’t making a huge fuss of the impressive achievement.

“It’s certainly a fair old milestone, there were many times that we didn’t think we’d get there,” explained Managing Director Stuart Evans.

“I remember when I took over the business from my father, they’d been going for 20 years and I thought that was an eternity so to make 50, it’s a great achievement.”

Stuart’s father, Gippsland Esso representative Reg Evans, purchased the Esso distributor business in Leongatha in 1970, founding Evans Petroleum. “We had one truck and driver, my father and myself – there were three of us,” said Stuart.

The business spent its first 15 years growing and expanding, purchasing two other South Gippsland distributors in Korumburra and Wonthaggi.

Then, in 1989, Reg and Mary Evans retired, with Stuart and his wife Jenene taking over. And it wasn’t long before Stuart had his resolve tested.

“There have been times when we’ve thought, ‘This is about it’. I remember when my wife Jenene and I bought mum and dad out, I think it was only about three or four months later it was announced that Mobil bought out Esso and I thought, that’s the end of me. But we rallied. “ Evans Petroleum seized the opportunity becoming an Equity Distributor with Mobil in South Gippsland, and increasing its involvement in retail convenience stores. Less than a decade later, Evans bought Yarram Petroleum, taking out a lease on the Yarram site.

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But another shakeup was on the horizon. In 2009, Mobil pulled the plug on the retail convenience market. Evans then forged a partnership with BP, helping secure its 10 retail convenience sites.

In 2012, Evans began its expansion into East Gippsland, purchasing the fuel depot and service centre Carmody’s of Sale, beginning its longstanding relationship with commercial operators and farmers in the region.

As the rubber hit the road in the fuel industry, Evans Petroleum continued expanding and forging new partnerships to continue strengthening the business.

“A little but of rationalisation in the oil industry. When we first started there were six or seven distributors in Leongatha. Now there’s been oil company mergers – BP bought out Amoco, Caltex bought out Golden Fleece, Mobil bought out Esso.”

In 2013, Evans Petroleum became the BP/Castrol distributor for Gippsland, which included the Traralgon Depot. Two years later, Evans diversified its business further, buying the Johnsonville Garage to begin a foray into automotive workshops. It marked Evan’s 12th retail site in Gippsland.

“Initially we were in Leongatha and South Gippsland, but in the last 10 to 12 years we’ve expanded up into East Gippsland. In 2013 BP appointed us as the distributor for Gippsland. So we basically run Pakenham to the border and up in the mountains.”

With the purchase of the Newmeralla Shell self-serve and rebrand to BP, Evans acquired its 13th retail site, and its first 24-hour self serve terminal.

In 2018, Evans opened its state-of-the-art BP West Side service station in Leongatha, the crowning glory in its vast retail group.

Warren Evans - General Manager, David Creed - Chief Financial Officer, Stuart Evans - Managing Director and John Schelling - Sales Manager

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Now in 2020 the latest retail site has opened in Rosedale trading under ‘Reggie’s Fill Up and Fuel Up’, which recognises Stuart’s father’s early initiative in creating Evans Petroleum.

Not only does 2020 mark Evans Petroleum’s 50th year, but it cements its position as a leader in the local petroleum market. Servicing retail, commercial and farming customers across Gippsland and beyond, it’s gone from a humble family business to a major employer, with 150 staff and more than 20 tankers.

Evans Petroleum has also managed to continue a strong family connection – with Staurt’s son Warren Evans involved in the business for 22 years, and his son-in-law Dave Creed for 10 years.

“We wouldn’t be where we are if it wasn’t for the staff.

We’ve got a fantastic group of staff with some that have been with us for 30 years. Our longest-serving driver retired about five years ago, he was with us for 35 years. They play a really important part in the scheme of things.”

Evans Petroleum also prides itself on a strong community ethic, making regular charity contributions. And above all, Stuart Evans says it’s the loyalty of its customers that has seen Evans Petroleum become a Gippsland success story.

“We have some very loyal customers, some have been with us for the 50 years.”

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LEONGATHA

RSL BISTRO

New Members Welcome. Reciprocal rights with RSL'S in Victoria, South Australia & Tasmania

LEONGATHA RSL CONTACTS OFFICE: RECEPTION: BISTRO:

5662 2012 5662 2747 5662 4487

www.leongatha-rsl.com.au Find us on Facebook

TAKE-AWAY MEALS SEE LUNCH & DINNER MENUS ON FACEBOOK CHECK FACEBOOK FOR ANY ONGOING UPDATES

Corner of Smith Street & Michael Place, Leongatha

CORNER OF SMITH STREET & MICHAEL PLACE, LEONGATHA

EVANS BP ROSEDALE

BP Service Stations FISH CREEK 2 Falls Road, Fish Creek, Vic 3959 Tel/Fax: 5683 2521 Email: fishcreek@evanspetroleum.com.au

FOSTER 94 Main Street, Foster, Vic 3960 Tel/Fax: 5682 2008 Email: foster@evanspetroleum.com.au

INVERLOCH 25 Williams Street, Inverloch, Vic 3996 Tel/Fax: 5674 1442 Email: inverloch@evanspetroleum.com.au

JOHNSONVILLE 1760 Princes Highway, Johnsonville, Vic 3902 Office/Fax: 5156 4102 Workshop: 5156 4233 Email: johnsonville@evanspetroleum.com.au

KORUMBURRA SOUTH South Gippsland Highway, Korumburra, Vic 3950 Tel/Fax: 5655 1668 Email: korumburra@evanspetroleum.com.au

LEONGATHA 95 Bair Street, Leongatha, Vic 3953 Tel/Fax: 5662 2440 Email: leongatha@evanspetroleum.com.au

LEONGATHA - WESTSIDE 7 Anderson Street, Leongatha, Vic 3953 Tel/Fax: 5662 2834 Email: westside@evanspetroleum.com.au

MIRBOO NORTH 106 Ridgway, Mirboo North, Vic 3871 Tel/Fax: 5668 2377 Email: mirboo@evanspetroleum.com.au

NEWMERELLA 5327 Princes Highway, Newmerella, Vic 3886 Tel/Fax: 5154 1601 Email: newmerella@evanspetroleum.com.au

ROSEDALE 65-79 Prince Street, Rosedale Vic 3847 Tel: 5667 2951 Email: Rosedale@evanspetroleum.com.au

SALE

Evans Petroleum is a locally-owned authorised Distributor of BP and Castrol fuel and lubricants, with BP service stations conveniently placed throughout Gippsland, providing you with a wide range of fuels, oils, convenience goods and other services to keep you moving.

344 Raglan Street, Sale, Vic 3850 Tel: 5143 1030 Fax: 5143 2686 Email: sale@evanspetroleum.com.au

TOORA 26 Foster Road, Toora, Vic 3962 Tel/Fax: 5686 2324 Email: toora@evanspetroleum.com.au

TRARALGON 23-29 Shakespeare Street, Traralgon, Vic 3844 Tel: 5174 1138 Email: Tim@evanspetroleum.com.au

WONTHAGGI 103-105 McKenzie Street, Wonthaggi, Vic 3995 Tel: 5672 3988 Fax: 5672 5229 Email: wonthaggi@evanspetroleum.com.au

YARRAM 325 Commercial Street, Yarram, Vic 3971 Tel: 5182 6019 Fax: 5182 6458 Email: yarram@evanspetroleum.com.au

BP ROSEDALE 65-79 Prince Street, Rosedale Vic 3847 Tel: 5667 2951 | Email: rosedale@evanspetroleum.com.au

EVANS PETROLEUM HEAD OFFICE 22 Hughes Street, Leongatha Vic 3953 Tel: 5662 2217 Web: www.evanspetroleum.com.au

VIRTUE HOMES 'BUILDING EXCELLENCE'

NEW STATE OF THE ART DISPLAY HOME WARRAGUL OPENING IN EARLY 74 gippsland lifestyle summer ����/�� OCTOBER, 2020

GIPPSLAND’S MOST AWARDED CUSTOM HOME BUILDER

2018

2019

AWARD WINNING BUILDERS WINNER 2019

WINNER 2019

Visit our showroom at 41-45 Standing Drive Traralgon

Phone: 03 5176 5997 Email: info@virtuehomes.com.au

www.virtuehomes.com.au

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Photography by Open2ViewGippsland

Phillip Island Index 77

FLOWERS OF PHILLIP ISLAND - Creating wedding flowers plus more

78

PHILLIP ISLAND GALLERY - Original art and craft works

78

PHILLIP ISLAND VISITOR INFORMATION CENTRE - Welcomes back visitors

78

COTTON ONTO CRAFT - All your craft, fabrics, and materials

79

FINDING THE GRAIN - Handcrafter reclaimed timber furniture

80-81

DESTINATION PHILLIP ISLAND - Naturally playful-visitphillipisland.com

82

BLUE GUM GARDEN CENTRE - Everything you need for the garden

82

GENESTA HOUSE - Boutique B&B Accommodation in the heart of Cowes

82

PHILLIP ISLAND HELICOPTERS - Great views of Phillip Island and Bass Coast

83

WILDLIFE COAST CRUISES - Discover Phillip Island and Wilsons Prom via the water

83

HEATHER FAHNLE - Mosaic Artist - Mosaics by the bay classes

84-85

PHILLIP ISLAND NATURE PARKS - Farewell to a lady of the canine kind

86-87

DESTINATION PHILLIP ISLAND - Things to do while visiting Phillip Island

88

ISLAND SHOES COWES PHILLP ISLAND - Cabello Comfort

88

NATIONAL VIETNAM VETERANS MUSEUM - Learn about our history in Vietnam

89

DAIKIN AIR CONDITIONING - The best air everywhere

90

PHILLIP ISLAND RSL - A family friendly modern venue

91

HAYMES PAINT SHOP - For all your work and home paint requirements

92

SOUTH COAST FLOORING XTRA|SOUTH COAST FURNISHINGS - Interior needs

92

PHILLIP ISLAND GRAND PRIX CIRCUIT - Go Karts and Racing fun

146

G J GARDNER HOMES - Building the dream beach house

147

ALEX SCOTT AND STAFF - Real Estate from the mountains to the sea

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Flowers of Phillip Island (formerly Tropical Zone) has a history of creating wedding flowers for the most discerning couples for over 30 years With so many designs to choose from, it may initially appear daunting but be assured, our qualified and experienced wedding florists will guide you from button holes to bouquets giving you the confidence that your flowers will be a lasting memory of your wedding day.

To cope with the never ending changes within the wedding industry, we have created a superstore – four times larger than the original that has a "wow" factor inside and out for you to feel excited when we meet you.

It’s packed with a stunning array of body products, plants, flowers and gifts –so much to see and experience.

In addition to assisting with your floral needs,we can help with venue set up and styling we pride ourselves on our local venue knowledge.

Please contact us to make a personal no obligation consultation on (03) 5952 2235

Servicing Phillip Island, San Remo, Bass and welcome Gippsland bridal enquiries.

Weddings, Events & for all your Special Occasions

Shop 1/96 Thompson Avenue, Cowes Phone: 03 5952 2235 | Email: info@flowersofphillipisland.com.au Instagram: flowersofphillipisland

Facebook: flowersofphillipisland

Web: www.flowersofphillipisland.com.au Photography by Nick Skinner Weddings

PHILLIP ISLAND GALLERY IS BACK! and in a new Location 56-58 CHURCH STREET, COWES located at PICAL Phillip Island Community & learning Centre OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK 11.00am - 3.00pm | Ph: 0466 361 086 ORIGINAL ART & CRAFT WORKS BY LOCAL PEOPLE

COTTON ONTO CRAFT Kidscraft / Wool / Australiana Fabrics / Quilting Fabrics & Materials Haberdashery / DMC Threads / Stitchery

Mon - Fri 9:30am-4:30pm | SAT 9:30am-4:00pm 8/133 Thompson Avenue, Cowes 3922 Ph : 5952 5202

www.cottonontocraft.com.au 78

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FINDING THE GRAIN HANDCRAFTED TIMBER FURNTIURE

Finding The Grain is able to produce life lasting, hand crafted furniture created from reclaimed timber.

COMMISSION AND CUSTOM DESIGNS A SPECIALTY WITH ATTENTION TO CUSTOMERS’ NEEDS. Salvaged from local demolition sites around Phillip Island, this timber has historically been sent to landfill.

Finding The Grain is dedicated to reclaiming that timber, and not only reducing our carbon footprint, and allowing the timber to live on preserving nature’s history.

Beautiful furniture and home dressings are created on site from all types of magnificent timber Red Gum, Native hardwoods, Huon Pine, Jarrah - the list is endless.

Mark Davis 0418 355 148 | 40 Phillip Island Road, Newhaven VIC 3925 www.findingthegrain.com.au

Summer of Memories Naturally Playful Phillip Island

WE ALL HAVE OUR FAVOURITE PLACES WE LOVE VISITING, BUT THIS SUMMER, DISCOVER SOMETHING NEW ON PHILLIP ISLAND! Phillip Island is compact and easily accessible to get around, making the Island an ideal place to experience a diversity of attractions and experiences. Foster quality time together and make memories that will last a lifetime. Get lost in a maze at A Maze’N Things, see chocolate get made at the Phillip Island Chocolate Factory, take a boat cruise with Wildlife Coast Cruises and watch the little penguins waddle home on sunset.

For outdoor family activities, go on a jet boat ride with Ocean Adventures, take a kayak tour with Pioneer Kayaking, wander the treetop boardwalks at the Koala Conservation Reserve, or discover the beautiful gardens and shaggy highland cattle at Churchill Island. For an interactive wildlife experience, feed kangaroos and see Maru's newest Koala Joey at Maru Koala and Animal Park.

For family challenges race for the best go-kart time at the Phillip Island Go-Karts, test your strike rate at Phillip Island Tenpin Bowling, or count your hole in ones at Grumpy's Crazy Golf and A Maze’N Things Mini Golf!

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Phillip Island is home to a range of awe-inspiring

coastal walks + scenic bushwalks WORLD-RENOWNED WETLANDS Rhyll Inlet & Conservation Walk is ideal for enthusiastic nature lovers. The world-renowned wetlands are an area of international significance and are protected under the Ramsar Convention.

The mangroves and mudflats of Rhyll Inlet are a significant site for the wading birds that fly thousands of kilometres to feed here during the summer months.

'Walk on water' with the elevated boardwalks through the saltmarsh, mangroves and tidal flats, and enjoy the fantastic bird observing opportunities.

SWEEPING COASTAL VIEWS Walk from Pyramid Rock car park to Berrys Beach along a gently undulating clifftop track and marvel at spectacular coastal views of Phillip Island's southern coastline including Point Grant and The Nobbies. Don't forget to admire the fantastic views at the Pyramid Rock Lookout, before embarking on the 5km return walk!

For more information on Phillip Island See and Do walks, visit visitphillipisland.com.au

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EVERYTHING AND ANYTHING YOU NEED TO CREATE A GARDEN. WE HAVE A RANGE OF THE MOST POPULAR PRODUCTS NEEDED TO CREATE, MAINTAIN OR REJUVENATE ANY GARDEN.

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Would you like to have your very own mosaic design in your house?

Heather specialises in creating unique mosaic commissions for indoor or outdoor enjoyment.

commissioned by Island Design & Build - 0417 503 003

Mosaic classes with Heather Fahnle are also available.

Therapeutic, fun and creative PHONE OR EMAIL HEATHER FOR BOOKINGS

e: heather@fahnle.com.au p: 0417 562 625 Mosaics By The Bay

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Farewell to a Lady of the Canine Kind ROLAND PICK HEAD OF INTERNATIONAL SALES AND COMMUNICATIONS | PHILLP ISLAND NATURE PARKS

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Phillip Island Nature Parks is proud to acknowledge the well deserved retirement of one of their beloved Conservation Detection Dogs, Lady, after 10 years of service of fox detection.

“Lady has worked as a valuable member of two successful fox eradication programs in - Tasmania and on Phillip Island,” said handler Craig Bester, Senior Vertebrate Pest Officer/Dog Trainer & Handler for Phillip Island Nature Parks.

“She has travelled just over 18,000 km whilst searching for foxes in these programs and contributed a lot to the teams in saving time with her incredible detection skills.”

Craig collected Lady from her birthplace in Rockhampton and originally took her back to Tasmania to commence her training. She started work at nine weeks old and undertook all aspects of tracking work in her training to be a detection dog. When the Tasmania program discontinued, Craig happily brought her into the team of Conservation Dogs at Phillip Island Nature Parks where he was then working.

Lady is a German Wire-haired Pointer with a quiet temperament and steady determination which led to her thorough approach to her work of detecting foxes in natural environments to assist in conservation outcomes.

“She ‘tells’ everything by ground or air scenting target odour and then tracking it to the source and then goes on point to indicate to me where there is an animal or sign of one. She really concentrated on her work and was easy to control.”

The pair have been together nearly every day of her working life. Lady even saved Craig from potentially being bitten by a Tiger Snake by pointing it out to him. Snake aversion is an important part of a Conservation Dogs’ training – ensuring safety of both the dog and handler when working.

Nine years is about the average time for a working dog and with Lady amost 11, Craig made the difficult decision to retire her to a loving home on Phillip Island where she will spend her twilight years.

“Lady will be greatly missed, but deserves a well-earned rest from her work duties.”

The Nature Parks’ Conservation Dog Team will continue to achieve conservation outcomes for Phillip Island and Victoria with fox detection team Sam and Jazz along with Marbee and Milly finalising their training to becme feral cat detection dogs.

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IT'S EVEN BETTER IN REAL LIFE – NATURALLY PLAYFUL PHILLIP ISLAND Long trips, short getaways and weekends away; re-introduce yourself to Phillip Island and be inspired this Summer! Reconnect with family, laugh with friends, and take a break. Discover Phillip Island's local flavours, natural spaces, and scenic places!

There's nothing like an island for getting away from it all; for escaping the predictable beat and confines of city life. Just two hours from Melbourne, Phillip Island is a world unto itself, where things feel different in the best of ways and life moves at a slower pace.

'Island time is real, governed not by the clock or by schedules or deadlines, but rather by the soothing rhythm of the waves as they lap reassuringly against the shores.'

An island, Phillip Island offers a chance to escape the everyday, to be playful, to explore and make new discoveries. It offers the freedom to have fun and be curious, to plan an adventure then be steered off course, to be swept up in the unknown and by the beauty of nature. It's a place of welcoming locals, exciting attractions, captivating wildlife encounters, great food to enjoy, award-winning wine and locally brewed beer, idyllic beaches, breathtaking scenery and refreshing nature walks.

With so much on offer, you can do it all or do nothing at all. To take it all in, it's best to stay a few days in one of the Island's many boutique accommodation options. With B&Bs, self-contained apartments, waterfront cabins and camping sites, farm stays, holiday homes and cosy motels, all accommodations are set in stunning surrounds and allow travellers the time and freedom to make the most of their Island adventure.

Plan your own adventure at visitphillipisland.com

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It's even better in real life – Naturally Playful Phillip Island gippsland lifestyle summer ����/��

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COWES | PH: 5952 2522 | MANAGER: DAVID FUSINATO | 215 SETTLEMENT ROAD, COWES VIC 3922 Tel: 5952 2522 | Email: cowes@paintplace.com.au Hours: Monday to Friday 7.30am to 5.00pm | Saturday 8.00am to 1.00pm | Sunday 9.00am to 1.00pm

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Millie... "Rust"

With respect to the situation we have been in this year, Millie and I decided to roam closer to home. The bonus for us was that there is a place that I have driven past hundreds of times and always thought, “One day I will go and investigate where that road leads to….”

So, the time came and only being a couple of minutes from my front door we arrived there in a moment. We turned off the main road and drove down a dirt track beside a local bridge. The track was overgrown but passable and it was drivable but a little rough with twists and turns and ups and downs and came to a point where I thought it wiser to park the car in the only space I could and walk on. It wasn’t far and we soon came to the wide open stony river bed of the Avon River. To say it looks like a moonscape is an understatement but when the rains from up in the mountains surge down the river this wide empty stretch becomes a fast flowing torrent.

We walked along the riverbank and the still almost invisible flow of the river was so alluring and peaceful that I just had to pause and sit for a while. Sitting there with the sound of birds overhead and frogs melodically croaking in the distance it was utter tranquillity. We were the only ones there and it felt like we could have been a thousand miles from anywhere instead of just minutes from home. Lesson learnt, sometimes it’s a good thing to take the humble road less travelled in your own backyard to find peace and calm.

There was evidence across the moonscape of a 4wheel drive track which we followed to a crossing. The view down the river was absolutely delightful with a wide stretch of water bordered by bush and the soft blue of hills in the distance. Millie, of course, loved it and was sniffing and investigating and paddling in the water. One part of the river had a larger gathering of stones which caused the water to “talk”, gurgling and muttering softly. It was such a simple, natural and reassuring sound. After wandering around investigating we returned to the car. It’s always surprising that the return trip seems far quicker than coming. We enjoyed our visit so much that we have returned several times since. It has become our new favourite secret getaway!

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Our trip there reminded me of a friend Nadine Pleydell who posts lovely photos and poetic descriptions on social media of her own hidden world that she explores. I had been tempted to ask her for a while if I could ride shotgun with her and so I finally did.

Millie and I accompanied her early one morning, with her own Millie and new pup Fergus into the secretive world of the forest. Not far away but seemingly a world away, Nadine explores the pine forests and bushland.

It is a surprising choice but these places have an almost mystical and magic allure. The images she captures are brilliant and her descriptions are dreamy, captivating and inspiring! “ The everchanging faces of the forest, each season slipping seamlessly into the next. The brilliant russet fungi of autumn have faded and are slowly returning to the soil from when they came. The ferns are responding to all the rain and sending out lush tendrils. The pine trees are throwing their golden pollen to the four winds, like excited wedding guests with handfuls of confetti, celebrating the slowly lengthening days that herald Spring. We pick posies of fresh gum tips, put forth by the children of the bush who mingle on the borders where the two ecosystems meet. The lure of the forests enchanting beauty is strong, making each visit more cherished and appreciated.”

No wonder I hitched a ride with Nadine and crew!

She showed us hidden places and as we walked the whispering wind followed us. The two Millies romped and played and nosed and scratched while young Fergus’ puppy legs soon tired and he had to be carried for a while.

& Relaxation Photos & Words by Ken Roberts

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Millie... "Rust" & Relaxation This manmade forest will someday be logged but for now it held a strange and mysterious beauty that I think is mostly overlooked. It can be very special and alluring, especially through the captivating eye and mystical prose of Nadine Pleydell.

We returned to Nadine’s place and shared a cuppa in her shed shop “Rust Emporium”. I have been an avid client of Nadine for several years when she ran her store from a shopfront in the middle of town at Briagolong. When I look around my house I see so many beautiful pieces that she has found or upcycled and honestly I would be lost without them. With changing times Nadine moved her business to a converted shed on her property a couple of streets away but still close to the centre of town. As is typical with her design style and fantastic eye the set up is absolutely gorgeous. The “Rust” sign out front made from found objects is a precursor of what is to come.

She has taste that is both rustic and modern and most of the pieces she collects and puts together look equally at home in a vintage or contemporary setting. It’s very difficult for me to visit the shop as I am sorely tempted to snap up one gem or another. I have shopped in hundreds of vintage, antique and Op shops but I have never come across a collection like hers that speaks to me on so many different levels. I am constantly amazed that her prices are so reasonable, part of the reason I must have bought at least five tables from her and she is about to put me on a table intervention, for my own good! It is a big but easy call to say that “Rust Emporium” is my favourite shop! It’s great that she is online as well and more than once I have eagerly snapped up a table, gulp, or cupboard when it has popped up on my media feed!

So, Millie and I have been more than satisfied with our “home roam” and will look further for similar gems as well as our adventures further afield.

Rust emporium is found easily on facebook and Instagram, its worth the visit!

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NADINE PLEYDELL | RUST

THE MOUTH OF THE POWLETT RIVER

The Powlett River Mouth is listed as a wetland of national significance and covers 580km². It is a beautiful spot popular with families and for recreational fishing. Many rare and endangered plant and animal species call this estuary home including: saltmarsh and coastal woodland vegetation fish including estuary perch and silver trevally birds including hooded plover, eastern great egret and orange-bellied parrot.

Like many estuaries the Powlett naturally closes its connection to the ocean during low river flows.

The conditions that lead to estuary closures are difficult to predict and occur intermittently.

Estuary closures are a natural process, one that has helped to shape the unique wetland system at the mouth of the Powlett River.

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Angel Buddy - watching over you all

George - waiting for playtime

Nola - throw the stick Marina!

r e n r o c Angel Buster - loved by all

Blu - Sun's out...

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er m m u S

Lucy - never enuff pampering

Chief - you throwing that or not?

Polly - Summer's here

Tilka - did you say walk...

Denzel - whatya mean hair appointment?

Millie - you read my feature yet?

Miss Poppy - fav' spot on the couch

Scout - gotta stay alert!

our best friends Do you want to place a photo of your dog in Canine Corner ?

It's easy, just email us your pic and their name at thelifestyle@dcsi.net.au

...just pawfect

Crunchy - anyone got a ball?

Tallua - tough job but someones gotta look pretty

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the next

BIG THING DISC GOLF TAKES TARWIN LOWER BY STORM THANKS TO A HANDFUL OF DEDICATED LOCALS WORDS BY HELEN TAYLOR

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Leroy Sharrock first heard about the little-known sport of disc golf in Cambodia, some four years ago, when he was volunteering with children in need. A former professional golf player himself, Leroy was intrigued. “I go to Cambodia every year to help children that are hungry,” Leroy tells me. “I’ve been doing that for 11 years.”

Leroy set the wheels in motion for the course to be built at the Tarwin Lower Recreation Reserve in January 2019, with the help of Tarwin Lower local, Macka. Though not yet complete, the course has been open to members of the public for five months now, free of charge, seven days a week.

It wasn’t long after Leroy heard about the sport that he had his first encounter with it, when an American man from Michigan, Jacob Neff, decided to build the first ever disc golf course in Cambodia, in the capital city of Siem Reap. “We all went out and played it and we were instantly addicted. The cambodian kids loved it,” Leroy exclaims.

As well as creating the course, Leroy and Macka set their sights on creating Tarwin Lower’s first ever disc golf club, which they coined the Shark Disc Park Club.

The club is open to all, and since its humble beginnings now has over 200 members.

Leroy was hooked, so brought his fond memories of disc golf home to Venus Bay, where he’s been a resident for more than 30 years.

“I was practicing in the oval wondering where I could put a course in. It took me a couple of months to realise that I could put a course in where I was practicing. One thing led to the next, and before you know it we had decided to put a course in there.”

The sport itself dates back to 1926, when golf was first played with flying discs in Saskatchewan, Canada. In 1976 Californian toy maker “Steady” Ed Headrick invented the Disc Golf Association and modern day disc golf as we know it today.

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Now, the game is played in 40 countries, and there are 50,000 active international members of the Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA), with more than 70-disc golf courses registered in Australia.

The game is simple, and much like traditional golf, but with flying discs.

Each course has nine to 18 holes, and the aim is to complete the course with the least throws possible, starting each hole from a fixed point.

“For a social game there's no real requirement for rules. You just throw the disc and aim at the target and away you go,” says Leroy.

He plans for the course at Tarwin Lower to have 18 holes, and so far, 12 have been installed, with temporary orange tonal poles being used instead of the standard disc golf baskets.

“We’ve had the full support of the Tarwin Recreation Reserve Committee,” says Leroy, who knows members of the committee well after playing football and coaching cricket at the reserve.

The baskets, which cost $1,000 each, have been sponsored by supportive local businesses in the area, including Wonthaggi Toyota, Schreurs Farm, Blue Salt Jewellery, Murphy’s Trees, Tarwin Lower IGA and Leroy’s mum. DCD Concreting, Z&B Plastering and Blackbear Fab have sponsored a basket between them.

Leroy is still looking for more sponsors to fund the remaining baskets.

So far, the community has generously donated $13,000 towards the initiative.

“We’ve had 100 per cent positive feedback from local residents, it's been quite remarkable,” Leroy exclaims. “When they find out what we're doing, even if they're not interested in the frisbee, they've still been positive that we're doing something for the community.”

“The most interesting thing for me,” Leroy continues, “is when we built the course after the first COVID-19 lockdown, the people that came out to play were non-sports people, and they all loved it. It gives people something to do, and not just the locals, the tourists too.”

This summer, Leroy plans to run competitions and clinics to help familiarise new players with the game. “All you need is one disc to start with!”

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Discs are available to buy from the Tarwin Lower IGA, where a single disc costs just $20. Or players can borrow discs from the Venus Bay Community Centre. Leroy and Macka are keen to make sure that the course remains free and available to all.

Leroy also assures me that discs will be given to players as prizes in this summer’s upcoming tournaments. YouTube, he adds, is a great place to brush up on technique and search for expert tips and advice.

To get the course to where it is today, Leroy has received plenty of help from willing volunteers. “I can't thank the community enough,” he says.

As well as mowing and landscaping, the community has spent 300 hours clearing the reserve of invasive blackberries.

In future, Leroy hopes that more land will be donated to the course to expand it from beginner-level to advanced-level. “Very quickly if players improve, they're going to want to play a better-quality course,” Leroy tells me. “Hopefully, if it goes to plan, we'll have one, two, three or four courses in the area in the next five or ten years.”

When COVID-19 restrictions ease there will be an official opening of the course, which will be announced locally on notice boards, at the Venus Bay Community Centre, and on the Shark Disc Park Club Facebook page by searching ‘Shark Disc Park Club’.

ALEX SCOTT AND STAFF VENUS BAY SPECIALISTS IN PROPERTY SALES INCLUDING PREMIUM PROPERTY SALES Specialists for permanent rental properties Experts in Holiday rental properties via www.venusbayshortstays.com.au We have been a family owned office for almost two decades and pride ourselves on our level of expertise and customer service.

NO-ONE KNOWS OUR AREA BETTER! If you would like to sell, buy, or rent, call us today on (03) 5663 7111 or email us at venusbaysales@alexscott.com.au Remember to also check us out on the socials!

Daniel Lawrie | CEA REIV Director & Officer in Effective Control Licensed Estate Agent & Auctioneer ALEX SCOTT & STAFF REAL ESTATE 133 Jupiter Boulevard, Venus Bay, VIC 3956 T (03) 5663 7111 | F (03) 5663 7137 E venusbaysales@alexscott.com.au W www.alexscott.com.au Follow us on Facebook

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FROM BREKKY TO BOOZE, YOUR LOCAL IS MOO'S

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COFFEE & CAKE

SOLE FORCE

IAN IN ACTION AT THE RAWSON POLICE STATION

FOR MORE THAN TWO DECADES, LEADING SENIOR CONSTABLE IAN NAUGHTON HAS BEEN THE FACE OF POLICING IN THE TOWN OF RAWSON AND ITS SURROUNDING AREA WITHIN THE SHIRE OF BAW BAW. WORDS: CHRIS WEST

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In January 1999 Ian Naughton was coming up for 10 years of service at Moe Police Station when he made a career decision that would change the course of his life forever.

“I applied successfully to be posted to the one-officer station at Rawson,” he states.

Ian had previously worked relief shifts at Rawson at various times from about 1993 onwards and those brief tastes had been enough to prompt him to seek a permanent posting.

“I knew what I was coming to and knew in my own mind that’s what I wanted to do,” he says.

Rawson is one of just over 100 one-officer stations in Victoria. The station is located within the Baw Baw Police Service Area and Ian is supervised in his role by the sergeant at Trafalgar Police Station.

“Working in a one officer police station is not for everyone,” he observes.

“I’ve seen that over the years with relief staff when I’m on leave saying that’s the longest three weeks of their life and they don’t know how I do it. I think I’d kind of acclimatised myself to it coming up for relief work for five or six years beforehand.

“I enjoy my own company and love working by myself. Not everybody is like that. I don’t have any issues making decisions without consultation.

It’s nice to discuss things sometimes and I get that opportunity in this job, but I like the fact that I get to make decisions for myself.”

Ian works a flexible roster covering nine shifts per fortnight.

“In reality I have to be available twenty four hours a day, three hundred and sixty five days a year and can potentially be called out any time,” he explains.

One of the main aims of Ian’s role is to provide a visible police presence in the very sizeable region he is responsible for, which is no mean feat in the absence of any other colleagues at Rawson.

“The area encompasses 1900 square kilometres,” he notes.

“It starts at Hunters Road, five kilometres out of Moe and goes all the way to the Matlock township. I cover across to Mt. Baw Baw and across to Springs Road which is east of Walhalla. It’s what you’d call a pretty big patch. We have a lot of visitors coming into the area for recreational activities like four wheel driving, motor bike riding, hiking and deer shooting. It’s important that the public are aware that police are present.”

Ian has to be a jack of all trades in his job, balancing the importance of providing a visible presence out on the roads and in the townships with the need to be available to the public at the station. Many people seek him out at the station to have documentation signed for them, whilst some just want to come in to talk which requires him to adopt the role of amateur psychologist or just lend a sympathetic ear to their troubles.

“I think the hardest thing is keeping up with the administrative side of running the station,” he suggests.

“I came from a busy twenty four-hour station at Moe with staff of about fifty police members to a place where it’s just me. All of a sudden you are running everything from both an operational and administrative viewpoint.

The challenge is figuring out how to balance it all.”

When Ian accepted the job at Rawson almost 22 years ago, he was accompanied in the move by his wife Alison and daughters Shelley and Danielle. It was a requirement for him and his family to occupy the former police house at nearby Erica as their home.

“Erica and Rawson are about four kilometres apart and originally there was just a one-officer police station at Erica from the 1930s,” Ian explains.

“Then in the 1970s the township of Rawson was built to house all the workers from the Thompson Dam. As a part of that they built a police station in Rawson, so you had the anomaly of having an Erica police officer and a Rawson police officer operating only a few kilometres apart.

When the member at Erica, Tom Milne, retired in 1986 the decision was made to close the station and keep only the station at Rawson operating.

The police house we have been living in since coming here was attached to the old station at Erica.”

Ian Naughton’s police journey began on 14th November 1988 when he started at the Police Academy in Melbourne. It was not his initial career choice and his pathway took a few early turns before reaching its ultimate destination. Growing up in Bruthen in East Gippsland, he commenced an apprenticeship as a radio tradesman with the Forestry Commission as a sixteen-year-old in 1979.

“At the end of it the four years there was no guarantee of ongoing employment,” he recalls.

“I had qualified but didn’t want to go on with it. I was twenty years old and still trying to figure out what I wanted to do.”

Ian’s next career step involved driving fuel trucks doing local deliveries.

He worked for periods with both BP and Mobil in East Gippsland, and along the way managed a fuel depot at Swifts Creek.

“I later moved to Drouin and got a job driving trucks for the Drouin Butter Factory. At the end of the first week I was offered a driving job with Mobil in Warragul, which I did for a couple of years,” he says.

Around that time Victoria Police was promoting heavily for recruits.

“I thought that doesn’t sound like a bad job,” Ian recalls.

“My trade qualification provided my ticket into the force. At that time you either needed tertiary education, the equivalent of VCE, or a trade. I got into the academy, graduated in March 1989, and then spent a brief period assigned to city traffic duties before being posted to Moe. The rest, as they say, is history.”

Since making the move to Rawson, Ian has developed a strong rapport with the local community.

“There are only about 700 people in the whole area but we have a great community,” he states.

“They are a lovely group of people. We have many retirees and a lot of people who work in the power industry or local government.

“Being the only police officer in the town, you’re known by everyone pretty much. I have also come to know a lot of the repeat visitors to the area as well over the years.

“My family became part of the community here. Our kids went to the local kinder and school, and one of my daughters Shelley still lives in the area.”

Ian is very encouraging of tourists coming to visit the area.

“I want visiting people to enjoy themselves but to remember to respect the area and the laws while they’re here,” he says.

“I love to meet the tourists and talk to them, but am always prepared to write tickets out to those who deserve them by doing the wrong thing.”

Ian says whilst the crime rate in the area is fairly low, people tend to get themselves into the strangest predicaments. With ambulance assistance at least half an hour away, he has been required to assist several people suffering heart attacks over the years and helped save their lives.

Not surprisingly, due to the rugged local terrain, some of the most common jobs he gets called to of a serious nature involve search and rescue. These incidents stay in Ian’s memory but two spring most readily to his mind.

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SOLE FORCE IAN OUTSIDE THE FRONT ENTRANCE OF THE RAWSON POLICE STATION “One involved a thirteen-year-old girl who was with a group of scouts several years ago and they were at the rover’s hut near Mushroom Rock when she wandered off in the snow,” he remembers.

“We were searching around the area of the hut when a group of hikers who were leaving after being up on Mt Erica reported seeing footprints in the snow about three kilometres up the track. It was a different spot from where we were looking and we didn’t think she could have travelled so far in the conditions. We searched in that area but approaching the end of the day still hadn’t found her.

“But there was a feeling that we were getting close so it was decided to do one more sweep with the line search. It was incredibly fortunate that we did, as they actually ended up stepping on her. She had fallen through the snow and got her foot stuck in a bush. Without that one final sweep she wouldn’t have survived until the next day. Whether you call it luck or good management, it was certainly an excellent outcome.”

IAN NAUGHTON

“We were unable to get a helicopter into the valley to get them, so the husband who was to meet them at Mt Erica accompanied me to reach them on foot. We made our way down something akin to a cliff face to the river and the rest of the journey involved a bit of swimming around rocky outcrops. By the time we reached them it wasn’t far off getting dark, and as both women had only minor injuries we elected to stay together until the next morning. Some of our search and rescue team joined us for the night to assist us in walking out on foot the next morning. It was an uncomfortable night spent on the riverbank but worth the end result.”

Fortunately not all days are as adrenaline charged or incident packed as those for Ian, and he enjoys getting the chance to relax in his spare time away from the job.

“Alison and I have nine horses and we like to go trail riding in my downtime,” he says.

Ian also had another positive ending to a serious situation just a couple of months ago.

“We take the horses with us on camping trips. We travel all over Victoria, but are yet to find anywhere as good for riding as around here. The scenery is spectacular and there are some fantastic places for accommodation for visitors.”

“Two female hikers left Walhalla to go on the Great Alpine Walking Trail.

They set off at 9.30 in the morning and were intending to meet up with one of the women’s husbands who would be waiting at Mt Erica car park,” he recalls.

After more than two decades at Rawson, Ian says he could not contemplate a return to a regular police station.

“No, I’m too set in my ways and I enjoy my work here,” he insists.

“However, something clearly had gone wrong because they set off an emergency locating beacon. It showed they hadn’t gone far but placed them well off the track that they should have been. It put them on the Thomson River near the intersection of the Aberfeldy River. We couldn’t understand why they were there.

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“I couldn’t give any higher a recommendation for living and working in an area like this. The lifestyle is fantastic. It’s the best decision ever made for me and my family.”

IAN WITH HIS BELOVED HORSE ELVIS

IAN IN FRONT OF PART OF HIS AVIARY

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MOE

hits the jackpot with

BY ANITA BUTTERWORTH

Peri and Evvy Hortis - Owners

A Moe family’s humble dream to carve out a successful Gippsland business has culminated in Australia’s largest newsagency being created in the Latrobe Valley.

“They are also renowned for their quality store fit outs, providing a clean efficient look, something you can notice in all of their stores around Australia.”

Having lived his whole life in Moe, Peri Hortis and his wife Evvy knew it was where they wanted to set down roots, raise their family and become part of the community. So, in October 2013 they purchased a small Tattslotto outlet in Purvis Plaza.

The combination of the nextra banner and the Hortis’ hard work was a winner – so much so that they outgrew the Albert Street store. “We felt the need to give our customers a wider range of products and a one stop shop destination. So we with this grand vision in mind we relocated to Moore Street Moe, a huge retail space of 650m2, the largest newsagency in Australia.”

Only a couple of months later, Moe’s newsagency shut its doors, and for Peri, it planted the seed of an idea. But it wasn’t until two years later that the couple decided to open a combined Tattslotto outlet and newsagency in Albert Street.

“We chose the nextra franchise to represent our newsagency channel, as we believe that they are a professional and reputable retail group and best in the business,” Peri explains. “The nextra group encourage us to promote and market our business to succeed and be the best in the market. They work tirelessly in finding exceptional suppliers to obtain the best value in pricing for our customers so we can pass on that offer.

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With nextra’s help the new store opened in March 2019, with a huge range of products, including four franchises under the one roof: The Lott (Tattslotto), nextra, TSG (tobacco/smokes) and Office National (stationery/ office supplies). The store is now a hub for the Moe community, to find gifts, tick off errands and stock up on stationary supplies.

“We created a destination that is welcoming and friendly to Moe for a magnificent shopping experience.

From newspapers, magazines, greeting cards, gifts, books, toys, clothing and office supplies there is really nothing you can’t find in our store.

We offer free gift-wrapping and free delivery throughout Gippsland for business that need office supplies.

“This expansion of being an Office National Member, has not only giving our customers a huge range of day to day items to choose from, it has enabled us to source and supply a wide range of office furniture, printing and laminating to our customers, something that Moe was missing and needed.”

Repeat custom is a huge part of nextra Moe’s success, with the store offering an exclusive loyalty card rewards program.

“When you make any purchase in store and scan your rewards card, your automatically enter into the weekly Scan & Win competition to win a $50 gift voucher. There are five vouchers to be won every week that can be redeemed in store for purchases.”

The store also sources unique stock to give locals the opportunity to find gifts and clothing not readily available in Gippsland.

“We also offer a boutique style kids and baby giftware range. Supplying good quality toys and gifts that are unique and exclusive.

“Some special Australian brands that we stock are Jac + Mooki, clothing for women and kids, Huxbaby organic (GOTS) clothing for babies and kids and Make Me Iconic, toys and gift souvenirs. Another lovely brand is Wavertree and London specialising in natural Australian made products including soaps, candles and diffusers.”

The success of the store hasn’t gone unnoticed, with nextra Moe snaring a coveted award at nextra’s Group Annual Conference.

“Our newsagency has maintained a high standard in customer service as it continues to offer a wide range products and services and showed major growth from year to year. Something that our customers and we are proud of.

“In June 2019 we won the Rod Smith nextra award for Store of the Year! After only being with the nextra group for four years, it was a surprise to hear that our store had won. It was a huge achievement by all involved.

“We are very grateful and appreciative to our loyal customers that support our local business on a weekly/daily basis. We have a wonderful support from head office, Jane Crawford who has helped us and supported us over the years in growing our brand, she has taught us so much in this industry and grateful to have her in the nextra family.

“Also our amazing team members who help run the business and provide efficient and friendly customer service, our staff are our biggest asset and our appreciation for them is next to none.”

Peri and Evvy, who are raising three young children, also make it their mission to give back to the community that has supported their businesses over many years.

“We support and donate to the local schools and sporting groups that include, schools fates, seasonal raffles and donations for events that they take part in. We have been a major sponsor of the Moe Racing Club for the annual Moe Cup, a huge event for the town that brings thousands of race goers and shoppers for our 3-hour sale for the day.

“I have lived in Moe all my life and with other business interest that I’m involved with the community has responded with open arms to the new store, it has been truly overwhelming.”

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Local Heroes

Norm

Elliott

BY TREVOR STOW

Norm Elliott has let a remarkable life that extends over 84 years and includes working in surveying, catering, motor vehicle spare parts and many other pursuits. It also involves the great outdoors where Norm is a keen hunter, fisherman and bushman. At 84 years he is still as active as he was when he was a teenager.

Norm was born in 1935 at Wangaratta and he can vividly remember the start of the Second World War. There were 6 children in the family and 3 boys served in the war with Norm’s elder brother Colin killed in Tobruk in 1942 whilst trying to defend the town against the might of The Third Reich let by the famous Nazi general Erwin Rommel.

Unlike many families, the Elliott family were comparatively well fed during the war years. The family were hunter-gatherers and rabbits were their “currency”. The boys caught and sold rabbits locally, taking orders from the surrounding families. Norm remembers one neighbour ordering her rabbits to be ¾ grown as they tasted tenderer. Rabbit skins supplemented their income and they would get 1 shilling and tuppence each (2 cents in today’s currency). This was very handy income during the war years when money was scarce.

The local tip provided extra income for the boys who would walk 3 kms to the tip, dragging their billy cart behind them, where they would collect any glass that they could find. They would then sell the glass to a glass merchant, “Bottolo Thompson” who would re-cycle it for the war effort. Norm’s dad drove an Oakland’s Ute during the war but petrol was rationed at this time so the Ute was only used for important trips such as work or for an emergency. Mum would walk 1 km to the shops to do her shopping and the family would walk the same distance to school.

Norm was in the 6th grade of primary school when the war ended. He can remember the headmaster entering his classroom at 11am and informing

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the students that “The war is over and you can have the rest of the day off”. . Norm was pleased that the air raid shelter that his father had dug behind the house was never used. There was great celebration all over Australia that day and for weeks to come. Everyone was looking forward to the end of restrictions and the freeing up of supplies and consumables.

Immediately after the war, consumables were very expensive and often of a poor quality.

Norm’s father died when he was only 14 years old. At that time Norm and his brother Jack moved to Bairnsdale to get work. Norm attended school in Bairnsdale for 12 months before leaving school at 15 years old and getting a job with GP Motors who were the GMH Holden dealers in Bairnsdale. Holden motor vehicles were new to Australia and it was exciting times working for a Holder dealer in the 1950’s. He was with GP Motors for about 12 years before doing a short time in National Service.

Norm met his future wife Marylin after he left National Service in 1955 and they were married in 1959.

Soon after that Norm commenced work with the Department of Crown Lands and Survey as a survey assistant. The survey team of 5 people travelled over Gippsland and also the Heytesbury Settlement in Western Victoria, surveying crown land. They also often surveyed farm land that had been selected by a farmer. This land was mostly bush blocks.

The farmer would be required to clear, fence and stock the land. The surveyors would then come in and survey the block before the farmer was granted freehold title to the property. The team also surveyed “roads” that were in place but had not been officially surveyed. This included the Bonang Highway.

The team would be away from home Monday to Friday for 40 weeks per year. They surveyed places in some of the most remote spots in Victoria.

The boss would send them off in a government supplied Land Rover but the workers were required to supply their own tent, camping gear and food. They would often kill a fish or a rabbit to supplement their diet.

After work they often took the opportunity to go hunting or fishing in the nearby bush.

Norm and Marilyn were unable to have children so they decided to adopt a child. Their first child, Brian, was adopted in 1962. Subsequently they adopted Lisa. Brian and Lisa were both Australian born children. It became increasing difficult to adopt Australian children at that time and Norm and Marylin were keen to expand their family, so they looked overseas for a child and were pleased to be offered David and Mali, brother and sister, both from Vietman. Not much later a social worker approached them about adopting a special needs baby. Soon after they were delighted to receive Peter who was 5½ years old. Peter is now 47 years old, working at Patties and living at home with Norm and Marylin.

Norm has always been an outdoors person. He loves his hunting, fishing and other outdoor pursuits. In 1961 Norm joined the Bairnsdale Field Sportsman’s Association before if affiliated with Field & Game Australia.

Norm has been a member ever since. He is a life member of the Bairnsdale branch of Field & Game and in recent years won the inaugural Dr Hugh Martin Conservation Award for work done in conservation over a long period of time.

Norm and his helpers have been responsible for erecting duck nesting boxes in the swamps and water ways of East Gippsland. These boxes provide a habitat for the various species of ducks to nest. Up until that time duck numbers, particularly teal, were declining due to the loss of habitat and nesting places. These boxes have been very successful in attracting birds to breed. It is a lot of work for Norm and his team to annually service 300 boxes that have to be cleaned and lined with saw dust. The boxes have an occupancy rate of 80% which has resulted in a big increase in duck numbers over the years.

During his working life, Norm has owned a school bus run and ran a hospitality business at Maralinga in Bairnsdale. He also spent 11 years at Bairnsdale Hospital working as an orderly and taking every opportunity that presented itself to enter the surgical ward and watch the operations.

He also assisted HW Baggs, Undertakers, for a short time to assist with the funerals.

These days, in his mid 80’s, Norm still keeps busy donating a day a week working for St Mary’s Op Shop. He has an extensive vegetable garden and tends his chooks. He is actively involved with conservation projects with the nesting boxes and he is also a member of the Iron Circle. This group of elderly Field & Game members hunt foxes in our area. Each year they are responsible for the eradication of about 200 foxes which has a positive effect on the wildlife of the area.

Norm continues to live in Bairnsdale with his wife Marylin and son Peter.

He continues to be a valued member of the Roman Catholic Church and a great citizen of Gippsland.

Norm

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Mexican street food cantina – takeaway – order in store OPEN 7 DAYS FOR LUNCH & DINNER KEEP UP TO DATE ON INSTA @_LIME_AND_CO 10B A’Beckett Street Inverloch 3996 VIC

Check our facebook or Instagram for menu and opening hour updates

furniture & bedding

"South Gippsland's only IMG Norway Stockist"

Rigby

furniture & bedding 24 INVERLOCH ROAD, WONTHAGGI Ph 5672 5906 114

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The company Handley & Anderson Funeral Directors have been affiliated with the funeral industry since 1984 servicing their communities of Wonthaggi, Inverloch, Phillip Island and districts. The Handley name has been synonymous with the funeral industry since the 1960’s.

The business is locally owned and operated by Scott and Sharon Anderson.

Chapel with seating 150+ and standing room Off street parking Arrangement room

24/7 contact

Administration

Services can be recorded and filmed

Full AV facilities for power point presentations

Memorial Events

Water feature

Celebrate Life

Extra Ordinary Services For All Needs

Planning Ahead

The business originally traded as Handley Funeral Services but since the 1st October 2011 it was decided that Ray and Maree would take over the business and trade on their own as Handley & Anderson Funeral Directors continuing with the same professional service that had always been provided.

Then in 2013 Ray and Maree retired and Scott and Sharon bought the business from them and had big ideas to build a Chapel.

With the purchase of 17 acres just out of town they then went through the long process of getting council approval to build a Funeral Chapel with everything under the one roof. It has been a 5 year process and is finally completed.

The business location has changed but the caring, compassionate, and professional standards established over those years will continue in the same tradition.

Wonthaggi Branch office 3085 Loch-Wonthaggi Road, Wonthaggi, Victoria 3995 Phone: 03 5672 1074

Cowes Office (By appointment only) 15 Warley Avenue Cowes, Victoria 3922 Phone: 03 5952 5171

Servicing South Gipplsand & Phillip Island em

info@handafunerals.com.au

|

ph 03 5672 1074

|

www.handleyandandersonfunerals.com.au

Know your natives WHETHER YOU ARE STARTING A NATIVE GARDEN FROM SCRATCH, OR PLANTING TO ATTRACT BIRDS AND BEES, MELALEUCA NURSERY OWNER MEGAN HEWETT GIVES HER TOP TIPS FOR GARDENING WITH NATIVE PLANTS. WRITTEN BY HELEN TAYLOR + PHOTOGRAPHY BY PHIL CERBU

Timmy the tiny black dog keeps a keen eye on business at Melaleuca Nursery. He’s especially mindful of customer satisfaction, which he ensures by giving cuddles to visitors as they arrive at the nursery gate.

He takes after his humans, husband and wife team Megan Hewett and Brendon Eishold, who own the 36-year-old nursery and have considerable horticultural experience between them.

Together, Megan and Brendon are happy to share their knowledge of native Australian plants. They are also experts in growing plants indigenous to the South Gippsland and Bass Coast Shires.

The nursery itself is set just beyond Inverloch, towards Wonthaggi, amongst 40-acres of native bushland. At the nursery’s entrance is an original brick wall complete with Melaleuca signage, made with recycled bricks from the historic Dumbalk Butter Factory.

Megan and Brendon bought the business in 2011 from its previous owner Barry Teesdale. Since then, they have been improving the nursery’s retail space, as well as continuing Barry’s hard work supplying plants to revegetation projects and landcare groups and propagating indigenous species from nearby coastal and wetland areas.

Most recently, they’ve been involved in planting at the Inverloch Primary School, street planting in nearby towns, and supplying plants to the Melbourne healthy rivers initiative, Liveable Communities, Liveable Waterways. And, during Coronavirus times, Megan tells me the retail side of the business has boomed.

“We specialise in plants that grow on the coast in South Gippsland, which is a massively wide range of things,” Megan explains.

“Certainly, in the more coastal areas you've either got coastal vegetation or swamp scrub, and there's not much in between. There’s also huge variation between plants that grow on the coastal strip and the hills above Korumburra or Dalyston.”

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The soil in South Gippsland and Bass Coast is incredibly variable, Megan tells me. At some points 200m inland from the coast, where before white settlement there used to be swamp, the soil goes from sand dune to clay pan at the drop of the hat.

All this local knowledge, which Megan has gleaned from her degree in ecology, her training in horticulture, and her previous work in landscaping, is invaluable to the casual gardener who before planting anything in their garden needs to know what soil they’re working with.

Megan tells me, the soil in Tarwin Lower is sandy, whereas Wonthaggi and Inverloch are a mixture of sand and clay soils. In Inverloch, Megan can even identify which streets have sandy soil, and which have clay.

In most parts of Venus Bay, where estates are brand new and the soil is pretty much just sand dune, Megan recommends sticking to indigenous (local plants), which would have grown naturally in the area before white settlement. For farmland that was settled early on, it is harder to define exactly which plants are indigenous, as they often weren't recorded.

“When people come to buy plants, first we ask them where they live, and try to work out what soil they have and how wet it is. We have plants that are suitable for all the variable local conditions. They may be indigenous, or they may not.”

STARTING A GARDEN FROM SCRATCH

Especially in holiday towns like Venus Bay and Inverloch, where new blocks are constantly being developed, Megan is often asked how to start a garden from scratch. Her first tip is always to identify what soil you’re working with, and, if your block is a holiday home, to choose bulletproof plants that don’t need a lot of tending to or watering.

For bulletproof plants that grow well locally, Megan recommends most the Lomandra ‘Mat Rushes’ and Grevillea rosmarinifolia ‘Rosemary Grevillea’ varieties. “The Grevillea rosmarinifolia is prickly, so good for the birds to hide in from cats, and good for the honeyeaters too.”

“Most of the local daisies will grow anywhere,” she continues. “They’re good filler plants, but they do need some pruning to be nice.”

Megan’s top bulletproof daisy varieties include: Olearia lirata ‘Snowy Daisy Bush’; Cassinia aculeata ‘Dogwood’, which is one of the local daisies that will grow in sand dunes and swampy areas; and Gahnia sieberiana ‘Red Fruit Saw Sedge’, which attracts the rare sword sedge butterfly.

Coastal banksia is also a reliable choice, and the local coastal banksia here is known as the Banksia integrifolia. And though it is not local, Megan suggests most of the callistemon bottlebrush varieties, which are available in a wide variety of colours and sizes.

SUMMER FLOWERING NATIVES

As this is the Summer Edition of Gippsland Lifestyle magazine, I asked Megan which plants she would choose to create a flowering summer native garden. A lot of the plants she mentioned flower from spring through to summer.

Megan’s first pick is the Melaleuca armillaris ‘Bracelet Honey Myrtle’, a small tree with white flowers and a beautiful honey scent. Native to Wilsons Promontory, Kunzea ambigua ‘White Kunzea’ is also one of Megan’s top choices, with a honey scent and white flowers, growing in either an upright or ground cover form.

Megan tells me that paper daisies, like the Rhodanthe chlorocephala ‘Pink and White Everlasting’ and Xerochrysum bracteatum ‘Golden Everlasting Daisy’, flower most the year and make good ground cover, too.

For its gorgeous crown of blue flowers that bloom for nine months of the year, the Dampiera diversifolia ‘Kangaroo Lobelia’ is a colourful choice.

And lastly, many of the grevillea species will flower throughout summer.

Megan’s top recommendations are the ‘Superb’, ‘Robin gordon’, and ‘Moonlight’ varieties.

NATIVES FOR BIRDS, BEES AND BUTTERFLIES

Planting natives is a great way to attract birds and bees to your garden, but as Megan says, birds need more than just nectar, so choosing plants that provide insects and seeds is important, too.

Plants like callistemons and grevilles, or any with more showy flowers, tend to be nectar producers for larger birds like honeyeaters.

“Smaller birds will often eat seeds or insects,” Megan continues. “The insects will come into things like coastal rosemary, mint bushes or the westringias. They’ll also come into the teatree.” Megan adds that having a really good mulch layer will attract insects and birds.

Seed eating birds like finches, Megan tells me, will like plants such as the Poa labillardieri ‘Common Tussock-Grass’, some of the Ficinia nodosa, ‘Knotted Club-Rush’, as well as the lomandras.

“Butterflies tend to come into daisies and will often go for things like Pimelea ‘Rice Flower’ too,” continues Megan. “Bees will come into the daisies and the tea trees, but it’s important to have something flowering in winter for the bees too.”

Subject to availability, all the plants mentioned in this piece are available to buy at Melaleuca Nursery. Melaleuca also accepts plastic plant pots for recycling.

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FOSTER

PROM COUNTRY FARMERS MARKET On Saturday 19 September, for the first time since the arrival of COVID-19’s shadow, the community farmers market returned to the township of Foster in the Victorian South Gippsland region. Here was a community that had received an indirect blow to its economy during the summertime bushfires, even before the entire nation had fallen under an extended social lockdown. Regional Victoria was finally given a reprieve in the week preceding the market’s reopening, with Victoria’s infection case numbers finally turning a corner. From here a glimmer of hope emerged for a return to the routine of an almost unfamiliar recent past.

As I watched vendors set up their stalls with care and deliberation, inside a space that had laid silent for many months, I sensed an atmosphere of hope.

Excited greetings and the occasional gentle laugh broke through the morning calm. Covered faces and sanitized hands flowed between traffic cones, gently streaming towards the smell of coffee beans and the colour of spring blooms.

WAYNE CRIPPS PORT FRANKLIN FRESH FISH “I am a fourth-generation fisherman in Port Franklin; my family arrived in 1874 when the township was known as Bowen. I have held a licence for Corner Inlet for over 40 years. I began selling to the public 18 years ago, and through the farmers markets for the last 12 years. The industry has been good to me and my wife Linda, but it is not easy work.

“Our business has done quite well throughout the pandemic as we provide a regular supply of food, and people have been driving from miles away to get fresh fish.

In the past five months we had to employ more people to operate our boats and the fish shop to just keep up with demand. " "At the end of the day, people still must eat – so my wife and I stepped it up to supply more fresh fish on a regular basis. Sometimes we cannot make it to the markets due to Mother Nature and bad weather, but that is how it works - and we do what we can. The government however just recently introduced a new regulation that will reduce our daily supply of fresh fish, which means that less fresh fish will be available to the public for purchase. This is bad for our business and for the public. It is not just affecting us, but many other fresh fish outlets as well. After April 2022, Corner Inlet will be the only fishing operation in the state of Victoria, out of a total of nine bays and inlets currently supplying fresh fish daily to the entire state.

“I enjoy attending the markets as I get to meet the public face-to-face and explain the weekly events of being a commercial fisher – as well as the politics, when asked. Some of the public are very appreciative of just getting good quality local fresh fish, and some are curious of what the future holds.”

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WAYNE CRIPPS | PORT FRANKLIN FRESH FISH

LOCAL STORIES OF RESILIENCE, RECOVERY & RETURN. AUTHOR/EDITOR: KELVIN LAU, VISUAL FARM (KELVIN@VISUALFARM.COM.AU)

I was witnessing a community in recovery, a community wilfully navigating a path between old and new normals with optimism and determination.

The following stories are accounts of resilience and recovery in the face of an unwelcome pandemic, as warmly shared by several of the vendors at this market. They reveal the importance of identifying and cultivating existing strengths; of rediscovering, building, and reinforcing local social connections; of cherishing close friends and family; of nurturing positive staff relationships within a business; of engaging face-to-face with customers; of seeking opportunity amongst adversity; and of valuing moments and experiences as they happen.

These individuals reflect upon the benefits from being present within the physical social space of a community market - an experience that cannot be entirely replicated within the virtual spaces of the internet.

ADRIENNE NEILSON | RED DOOR ESTATE

ADRIENNE & JOHN NEILSON RED DOOR ESTATE “Red Door Estate is a boutique winery and vineyard nestled in the Mardan Hill of the Strzelecki Ranges. We are the second owners of this 20-year old vineyard. It was difficult when the pandemic closed a lot of the avenues for selling our wines. It gave us time to do all the jobs that we had been putting off. We decided to develop our digital platform to allow for online sales, and we built a pizza oven near our cellar door so that we can offer pizza with our wines during the warmer months.

“We felt that our own health and wellbeing was more important, and that we stayed positive.

We remained confident that our business would continue to prosper. We are now seeing a resurgence now that the lockdown in regional Victoria has eased, and we can now open our cellar door and welcome people in! " "The community farmers markets are extremely important to local communities as they offer the opportunity to trade in the wonderful fresh local produce. Our vineyard has obtained quite a following through these markets. We can connect with individuals and hopefully impart some knowledge of what it takes to produce our goods.”

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GABE & ASHLEY VINCZE | HIAWATHA FARM

IREN VINCZE HIAWATHA FARM “Our farm in Hiawatha has highlander cattle, goats, sheep, chickens, ducks, geese, guinea fowl, and pigs as well as a huge vegetable garden and hazelnut orchard. The farm is our life; we tend the soil, and it produces our food, as well as the food we lovingly bake for local markets. Gabe and Ashley help with the farm, the markets, and food preparation. Preparing the hazelnuts has become a family affair.

“The pandemic has been hard for everyone.

We are so lucky that we have everything we need right at our fingertips, and it has been easy to isolate on our beautiful farm. We have missed our family dearly and when the markets were closed it was extremely hard to make ends meet."

"We started delivering our products to local customers; it was not the same as attending the markets, but it got us through. We worked in the hope that we could once again go back to the market life and could start seeing our family and friends again.

“The markets are now getting busy, with everyone slowly venturing out.

I think some people avoid the bustle of the big shops and choose the outdoor markets to buy their goods instead. Markets are our whole business. Without them it just would not be possible to live the way that we do. We love the community spirit of the small country markets and seeing so many people enjoying the food that we make. People are so kind and happy and joyful to eat our food.”

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FOSTER

PROM COUNTRY FARMERS MARKET FRESH, LOCAL AUTHENTIC

SUNDAY MARCH 7TH 2021 - 11.00AM - 7.00PM

9TH ANNUAL SALE MUSIC FESTIVAL FREE FAMILY EVENT 'Welcome to BYO food, drinks, blankets & chairs.'

Light refreshments available from local service clubs Children's creative and educational activities WHERE SALE BOTANIC GARDENS OVERLOOKING LAKE GUTHRIDGE Find us on Facebook!

WHEN SUNDAY MARCH 7TH 2021, 11.00AM – 7:00PM

Sale’s Ninth Annual Sale Music Festival!

CONTACT DETAILS 0407 965 313 salemusicfestival@gmail.com

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From left: Dawn O’Connell and Heather Shaw

The story of

Patrobas A new book has documented the fascinating tale surrounding Gippsland’s only Melbourne Cup winner from more than a century ago.

Words: Chris West

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Dawn O’Connell remembers being intrigued the first time hearing about 1915 Melbourne Cup winner Patrobas in the course of a conversation with former Rosedale Councillor, the late Rex Jeffries back in 1991.

“I’d been part of a local horse racing family for most of my life and I couldn’t believe that I knew nothing about it,” Dawn recalls.

“With my interest peaked, I really wanted to learn more about the story. It was the start of something that became an obsession for me.”

After a modest beginning to his racing career as a two-year-old, including a defeat at the now defunct Rosedale Racecourse, Patrobas really hit his straps in his Spring campaign as a three-year-old which culminated in his historic win in the 1915 Melbourne Cup. Patrobas was raced by Mrs. Edith Widdis, who with that victory became the first woman to own a Melbourne Cup winner. Edith and her husband John owned Nambrok House near Rosedale, one of the showpiece properties in the district which was later purchased by the McGauran family in 1986.

Amongst the livestock that John and Edith Widdis kept on the property was a small band of thoroughbred racehorses. After studying the pedigrees in the catalogue for the 1914 Sydney yearling sales, the couple commissioned Caulfield trainer Charles Wheeler to purchase two colts on their behalf. Wheeler managed to secure the pair at a cost 300 guineas each.

The intention was that one would be owned by Edith and John would race the other. Mrs. Widdis was known to be an astute judge of horseflesh and did not hesitate to choose the brown colt sired by Victoria Derby winner Wallace when the two yearlings arrived from Sydney.

She could also vividly remember the deeds of Wallace’s own sire Carbine, the iconic 1890 Melbourne Cup winner who remains one of the all-time legends of the Australian turf. Although the newly acquired yearling

by Wallace was undersized, Mrs. Widdis was captivated by the colt.

The inspiration for his name was found within her daily bible readings.

She called him Patrobas, meaning “patriarch” or “following in father’s footsteps”, which she hoped her colt might succeed in doing.

Patrobas fully repaid his owner’s faith. The colt found winning form early in his Spring campaign in 1915. He then stepped up in class and began to contest the major events in Melbourne. His first notable victory was in the Caulfield Guineas, long established as one of Australia’s classic mile races for three-year-olds.

Edith Widdis then persuaded trainer Charles Wheeler to run Patrobas in the Caulfield Cup against his wishes. He ran well in finishing sixth behind Lavendo and was then aimed towards both the Victoria Derby and Melbourne Cup at Flemington.

Just as Mrs. Widdis had hoped, Patrobas matched the feat of his father by winning the Victoria Derby in impressive style, with Billy Smart in the saddle.

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The story of

Patrobas

Following his Derby triumph, Patrobas firmed in the betting to 10/1 for the Melbourne Cup, where he would drop in weight to 7 stone 6 pounds in the handicap event over two miles.

Smart was unable to retain the mount for the Melbourne Cup due to his inability to make the light weight. The ride on Patrobas was offered to and accepted by Bobby Lewis, who had previously won the great race in 1902 on The Victory.

Carrying saddlecloth number 19 in the Cup and with Lewis wearing a rose pink jacket and cap hand-made by Edith Widdis, Patrobas began well and avoided the interference caused to some of the field by three horses falling in the early stages. Lewis stayed on the rails just behind the leaders for much of the journey until reaching the home straight. He then produced Patrobas for a final effort, where he defeated long-shot Westcourt and Carlita in a thrilling finish.

In 1915, women were not afforded the same privileges as men on Melbourne’s racetracks and Mrs. Widdis was relegated to watching the race from the ladies’ grandstand a considerable distance from the winning post. Attempting to follow Patrobas in the charge to the finish, she sat down after the horses passed the post thinking her colt had run a gallant second.

Upon hearing that number 19 had indeed won, the delighted owner told onlookers that she had to excuse herself and make her way to collect the Cup trophy. As no woman had ever before won the great race, it was no surprise that the nearby patrons in the stand were disbelieving of her claim.

She also encountered great difficulty in gaining permission to access to the areas necessary to reach mounting yard and as a result missed the presentation. By the time she arrived, the Governor had already presented the Cup trophy to her husband John in her absence. Sportingly, the Governor reassembled the presentation party and handed the Cup to Mrs. Widdis, who proudly brought the trophy home to Gippsland. It is presently kept on display at the Wellington Shire Council offices in Sale.

There is so much more to the story surrounding Patrobas and, thanks to the tireless efforts of a small group of Gippsland women, the memory lives on through both the statue of the horse in Princes Reserve in Rosedale and the recent release of a new book titled Rosedale’s Patrobas: The remarkable story of the 1915 Melbourne Cup. Dawn’s principal co-pilot in pursuing these projects from the outset was her friend Margaret Lobley.

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“It all began with the idea for the statue,” Dawn O’Connell recalls. “Back then in 1991 my husband and I were running the Post Office in Rosedale and Margaret was working in the real estate agency next door. She was equally fascinated by the Patrobas story. We thought a statue of the horse in Rosedale would be a fitting way to commemorate such a historic event.

“Edith Widdis’s grandson, John Leslie and the family were hugely encouraging of the concept. I took the proposal to the Chamber of Commerce in Rosedale, They thought it was a good idea at first but their interest waned.”

Soon after it was calculated that a sum of $35,000 would be needed to bring the statue project to fruition but Dawn was determined to find a way to make it possible. In an effort to kick-start the fundraising campaign she donated a painting and held a raffle, well aware that much more assistance would be needed.

“I’ve never been frightened to have a crack at something,” she says.

“I have the gift of the gab and am not afraid to talk to anyone. The worst people can say to you is no, and if that’s their answer you move on and try somewhere else.”

Fortunately, Dawn began to find others who were supportive of the project.

National Party State Member at the time, Peter Hall, introduced her to a corporate donor who provided $5,000 to really get the fundraising effort moving. Another contact at Barcon Steel donated steel for the statue.

Numerous other local people also helped with fundraising along the way.

It took 12 years to get sufficient money together but thankfully Dawn’s patience and perseverance was eventually rewarded. The end result was an impressive statue of Patrobas crafted by Jim Lawrence from flat steel, which was unveiled in Princes Reserve in Rosedale on 4th November 2007.

This undoubtedly would not have been possible without Dawn’s tireless pursuit of the funding.

“Peter McGauran joked at the dedication ceremony for the statue that every time he heard my voice in his office he went out the back door because he knew that I would be looking for money,” she laughs.

“In hindsight, I would go about everything in a very different way if it were today. Now I’m a full-time fundraiser for the Leukaemia Foundation, but back then I was a bit naïve about fundraising and wasn’t aware about things like grants in those days.”

Dawn is not one to give up on something. She is a cancer survivor, having once been told by doctors that she had just twelve months to live.

“That was nine years ago and I’m still going strong,” she says.

Rosedale’s Patrobas: The Remarkable Story of the 1915 Melbourne Cup was published in September. The book is 115 pages in length and features a pink cover design, in keeping with the rose pink silks carried

by Patrobas.

During the planning stages of the Patrobas statue project, Dawn and Margaret had separately visited many other statues, primarily of champion horses, to study the detail of their designs. These trips included Margaret viewing the statue of pacer Popular Alm in Kilmore and Dawn even travelling as far as Goondiwindi in Queensland to see the statue of Gunsynd.

Dawn says she is absolutely chuffed with the result.

“For our Patrobas statue, Jim Lawrence came up with the idea to not have the horse in a standing position but instead to have it in racing mode,” Dawn notes.

There was, however, a sad footnote to the book’s release, with Margaret Lobley passing away just days later on 11th September following a long illness.

“The more recent statues of Black Caviar and Winx are also both in galloping motion, but Patrobas was the first one in that style and we’re very proud of that,” she adds.

“We always believed Margaret would stay alive long enough to see the book published and that’s exactly what she did. Margaret was absolutely delighted with the book. Being a great historian herself, it was so important for things to be remembered in the right way. The sadness of her passing has added another side narrative to the whole Patrobas story,” Dawn reflects.

For Dawn and Margaret, the story did not end with the statue.

“Over the ensuing years I received calls from many people who had been put on to me wanting to know more about the Patrobas story after seeing the statue in Rosedale,” Dawn explains.

“One day Margaret and I were having a cup of tea and we started pondering the question as to what would happen when there’s no one left with the same passion for the story as us. This was a couple of years after Michelle Payne had won the 2015 Melbourne Cup on Prince of Penzance and become the first female jockey to win the race. Margaret and I found that victory very inspiring. It came exactly a century after Patrobas had won and both horses carried the same saddlecloth number – nineteen – in their Cup wins.”

Dawn and Margaret particularly lamented the fact that there was nowhere in the town of Rosedale to read about the story despite having the statue there. The logical progression was to compile a book and that’s exactly what the pair set out to do.

By then, Edith Widdis’s grandson John Leslie had unfortunately passed away at 97 years of age in 2016. However, they became close friends with her great grandson Andrew Widdis.

“I’m really proud of it. The book is beautiful and also factually correct. It’s now there as a historical record and will go on long after me. Jo has done an excellent job collating all the information. It’s a wonderful story with so many layers to it.”

The book was released without great fanfare due to the COVID restrictions.

“We’re endeavouring to plan a gathering with the Widdis family and book signing event next year for more than a hundred people,” Dawn explains.

“After all, the story of Patrobas belongs to the Widdis family. It is their story.”

Dawn compares the book project to planning a wedding.

“Now that it’s here and done, thoughts turn to wondering what the next project will be,” she remarks.

It didn’t take Dawn long to find out.

“I’ve actually been approached by a publisher to write own life story,” she reveals.

“So far I’m finding it quite cathartic. It makes you remember all the good things.”

“I attended a Widdis family lunch at the Rosedale Mechanics Hall a few years ago and got to meet a lot more of the family. They were pleased that someone was interested in their family story,” Dawn explains.

Dawn and Margaret started a working group for the book. They already had a lot of information gathered through researching for the statue. Their challenge, however, was how best to bring all the content together with the necessary flow and format for a book, as neither woman had the necessary writing experience to take on the task.

“A local bookstore in Traralgon put us onto a group – A Story to Tell – which is basically a coterie of writers help provide the resources to get books published,” Dawn explains.

That introduction led to the commissioning of Jo Scanlon as the book’s author. Dawn and Margaret successfully approached the John Leslie Trust for funding which covered the writing and publishing costs.

“They were so receptive towards the idea, absolutely brilliant,” Dawn enthuses.

An approach was also made to Rosedale Neighbourhood House manager, Heather Shaw to administer and oversee funds pertaining to the book.

“Rosedale Neighbourhood House has been a big part of the book and will continue to be so,” Dawn comments.

“Having the opportunity to work with Heather through the Neighbourhood House demonstrated to us that places like these are truly community oriented. The book project was a wonderful example of a way of pulling the community together in pursuit of an idea.”

Rosedale’s Patrobas: The Remarkable Story of the 1915 Melbourne Cup ($39.95) is available from Rosedale Neighbourhood House or Dawn O’Connell (0412 161 419) or at Collins Bookstore in Sale.

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K I LC U N DA R A I L T R E S T L E B R I D G E Constructed in 1911, the iconic, heritage-listed Kilcunda Bridge stretches 91 metres across Bourne Creek at Kilcunda.

The 12-metre high wooden trestle bridge formed part of the Woolamai-Wonthaggi railway until 1978 and is now a feature of the Bass Coast Rail Trail. Pedal or stroll the iconic bridge, stopping to take in the views of the creek, the sandy Kilcunda Beach and the crashing waves from Bass Strait.

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FENNING

A TRUSTED NAME IN TIMBER

A commitment to his strong personal values and the pursuit of technical efficiencies has formed Leonard Fenning’s blueprint for sustained business success.

Words: Chris West

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Retirement and Leonard Fenning were never really meant for each other.

At 74 years of age, the Bairnsdale-based stalwart of the timber conversion industry still has no plans to put his feet up.

“I don’t think you can stop,” he states.

Leonard has owned and operated Fenning Timbers out of its premises in Collins Street in Bairnsdale for the past 25 years, but his family’s involvement in saw milling in New South Wales dates back more than 70 years across four generations.

“It’s been a huge part of our life on both sides of my family,” he says.

“Our previous involvement extended through the New England region in northern New South Wales and some of the Fennings were also based on the South Coast of the state,” he adds.

In 1994, Leonard sold his saw milling business that was concentrated around Walcha, Gloucester and Alstonville, and even had offshore operations in Fiji. Rather than contemplate settling into an early retirement, he instead took heed of a tip while visiting Melbourne for the Melbourne Cup. “A bloke suggested to me that I buy the business in Bairnsdale and that’s exactly what I ended up doing,” Leonard recalls.

“The whole set up here was quite run down and in need of considerable repair when I took it over. I continued to live in New South Wales at first, but with the amount of work required in getting the business up to scratch it became apparent we would have to move to Bairnsdale and base ourselves here, although I do still have a house in Armidale and other property interests in New South Wales.”

When Fenning Timbers commenced operations in Bairnsdale, Leonard was extremely considerate towards the staff who had been employed by the previous owners of the saw milling business and retained their jobs.

“A small number of those original employees are still here,” he reveals proudly.

Leonard also brought with him a trusted ally in Rodney Natty.

“Rodney started with me in the Walcha days as a sixteen-year-old.

He’s fifty-eight now and has been with me all that time,” Leonard says.

“He virtually runs the business here now.”

Amongst the long-term local staff members recruited to the company since the Bairnsdale business was established is Mark Hack.

“We employed Mark straight out of school, and he now runs the financial part of the business,” Leonard notes.

Today, Fenning Timbers has a workforce of approximately 40 staff, including a small number of Leonard’s own family members.

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“My daughter Elizabeth works in the office and her husband Ian Chester looks after our kiln drying and dispatch,” he reveals.

“One of my grandsons also does some work here, but he is presently studying at Swinburne in Melbourne. He’s only nineteen but has already shown some interest in the business, so hopefully the family involvement might continue on for some time yet.”

Leonard’s wife Dorothy has never really had an active role at Fenning Timbers, but has been kept busy over the years raising their family.

Reflecting on the past quarter of a century in Bairnsdale, Leonard says that the highly quality, professionally run timber conversion centre that he operates today is completely unrecognisable from the ailing business he took over.

“There is virtually nothing remaining from that time in terms of hardware, buildings and machinery,” he observes.

“Most of the buildings have been constructed using our own timber, as has the house I live in. We also salvaged a couple of doors from my former Fiji operation for the business premises, which adds a bit of a nostalgic touch.”

Fenning Timbers sources hardwood from East Gippsland for its products, predominantly Vic Ash and Mountain Ash. “We are currently sourcing a lot of our timber from the fire-ravaged areas,” Leonard says.

“These are trees which would otherwise just fall down.”

After logs are delivered to Fenning Timbers, they are sawn up in the green saw mill into sections that are then stripped and air dried. The drying process can take up to a year.

“We have at least twelve months of timber drying at any one time. It’s a bit similar to a winery where the wine has to mature,” Leonard explains.

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“When the moisture content has reduced to a suitable level, the timber then goes into a kiln for about two weeks. It is then machined into lengths before being finger-jointed and laminated into engineered products. Our timber is sold mainly through our Melbourne warehouse in Clayton or to other wholesale customers,” he adds.

One of the keys to the success of Fenning Timbers has been Leonard’s commitment to making the business technologically smart. The operation is now largely “hands off” when once it was “hands on” and heavy work.

“Technology has made it a lot more interesting,” Leonard says.

“The equipment does the work. Our way of thinking is that if the staff are doing anything hands on then something must be wrong. In our green saw mill we use an automated scanning system which is controlled by an operator. It’s the same on the dry mill before our products go to market.

We have scanning equipment detecting and correcting any faults or imperfections out of the timber.”

Leonard’s business success has also been built on staying true to his strong values and putting people, safety and the environment at the forefront of his priorities.

“We continually get compliments about the way we operate here and how clean and tidy the place is kept,” he states.

“We’ve got a wonderful industry that we support and know that it can go on into perpetuity. Environmental responsibility is a critical part of that. We look after the forest like it’s our water to drink. We love it.”

Leonard reveals that he was involved in an energy company a few years ago and recognised the need for renewables.

“We successfully planned wind farms, including one in The Philippines,” he says.

“Our business here in Bairnsdale uses solar panels and my mind is very much on efficiencies at all times. It all comes back to what we use.”

Fenning Timbers is certified with the Responsible Wood Scheme, which encompasses two Australian Standards: Sustainable Forest Management (AS4708) and Chain of Custody Certification (AS4707).

“It’s like a security system over the use of wood,” Leonard comments.

With his focus on efficiency and sustainability, Leonard ensures that little goes to waste at Fenning Timbers.

“A local company Gibsons collects our sawdust and shavings, while our wood chips go to Australian Paper at Maryvale,” he notes.

“Those plans are really on the move now, particularly with the Stratford rail bridge just about complete. It will help our business but it will be exceptional for the city of Bairnsdale and the area around here in reducing road traffic. We recently had a check done on the number of trucks coming into Bairnsdale and there was one every eighty seconds.”

Leonard himself is often on the move.

“I like to get out and about. I enjoy meeting and talking to the people who support the business,” he says.

“This week I must have done at least a thousand kilometres.”

Leonard is continually looking for ways to improve the business.

“We plan for the long term and those plans are always changing,” he says.

“Up until this COVID year, we had consistently sent either myself or other people within the business overseas to look at what’s happening in other parts of the world. We are part of the way through a business plan at the moment which will throw up other new ideas. We’re looking at products like cross-laminated timber which has been coming very strongly into the market.”

Upcoming plans for Fenning Timbers in the near term include a $500,000 upgrade to the scanning equipment in the green saw mill which is scheduled to occur by Christmas, and an exciting new development surrounding the freight yard located adjacent to the premises alongside the rail line.

Leonard says that whenever he does take a break from work, he and Dorothy love to travel, but also appreciate what they have close to home.

“We enjoy living here. This is a beautiful area here in Bairnsdale and all around East Gippsland,” he comments.

“We have three children and five grandchildren in our family spread across here, New South Wales and Canberra who we always love to see. Our second youngest granddaughter in Armidale gets to ride her horse at school which is a bit different.”

But in his business life, nothing gives Leonard any more satisfaction than sharing in the success of Fenning Timbers with his team.

“I mix with the staff a lot. They are a very personable and friendly group of people,” he observes.

“Being with them each day provides a constant reminder that we’ve been successful in putting together something that everyone enjoys.”

“We’re embarking on the opportunity to put in a freight centre. It will be an intermodal system, transporting freight in containers on trains,” Leonard explains.

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5

Powerful Reasons to Wrap-Up 2020 with Reflection

“The more reflective you are, the more effective you are.”

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2020

with reflection Reflection is simply the process of looking back. We reflect on everyday problems and situations all the time: What went well? What didn’t? Why? How do I feel about it? Reflection is a means of processing thoughts and feelings about an incident, or a day or a year. Ohh and what a year it has been!

I recall heading into 2020; a magical number enchanted with hope and excitement. The year that was going to fulfil dreams, ambitions and targets. My strategic plan in business was set, my goals were determined and I was ready to roll. Then well, what do I say. Nothing went according to plan. Not for me, not for my children not for anyone. I don’t think anyone could have planned for the year that was.

Wrapping up 2020, it is important to take a moment to reflect upon the year. Stop and step off the treadmill of life to assess, appreciate and negotiate what to keep and what to let go. Take a deep breath whilst you contemplate the year and the events that occurred. Observing without judgement yourself, your actions, behaviours and beliefs.

WHY IS REFLECTION IMPORTANT FOR YOU? Here I will reveal 5 powerful reasons to wrap-up 2020 with reflection:

ENHANCE YOUR PERSONAL SELF-AWARENESS Self-awareness is having a clear picture of your personality, your strengths, thoughts, beliefs, motivations and emotions. Take this opportunity to assess your attitudes and actions when confronted with adversity. Did you sink or swim?

Our awareness is the first step in understanding our own gaps in order to enhance personal development so that we can build and imbed strength, resilience and calm as our natural course of action and persona.

With kindness, love and compassion evaluate yourself with the purposeful intent of learning more about you. What worked for you, what didn’t work for you, what you would like to build on and what do you need to let go?

PROVIDES US WITH PROPER PERSPECTIVE When we are in the midst and amongst the storm, it’s difficult to gain a clear perspective. Too often, it’s hazy and overwhelming as we shield our eyes for protection. As the dust settles it can be easier to see what has transpired, what we have endured and what we could have done differently in that moment.

Providing our conscious mind with a constructive feedback loop to develop our knowledge base, implement further resources of support and reinforce our fortitude. A fresh coat of paint and strengthened foundations to weather the storms ahead and set ourselves up for success moving forward.

GIVES US THE ABILITY TO BE PROACTIVE INSTEAD OF REACTIVE On reflection, did you do or say something to someone that you regret?

Was there ever a moment that you lost your cool and reacted without thinking through the potential consequences? Its ok we are human and negative reactions under fear or duress is our brains way of surviving and dealing with the confrontation or challenge unconsciously in the moment.

When we spend some time to reflect on that situation we can have the luxury of time to develop a healthier response. We can educate our unconscious brain to learn and implement a healthier more purposeful response to harness in the future.

Maybe it’s as simple as when confronted by that person or that situation to take a deep breath and respond calmly with considered resolve. Managing emotions and mitigating fear, stress or anxiety can be challenging in a situation that is new and uncertain. The more tools you have access to such as; resilience, emotional intelligence, stress management and positive mindset will help armour you to deal with life’s uncertainty, unpredictability and ever-evolving paradigm.

"As I look back on the year that was and reflect upon myself I walk away with a deeper understanding of what I am capable of, who I am and what I have learnt.

Grateful for the extra time spent with my children, the opportunity and growth with online platforms in business and a new appreciation of friends and family that I have missed seeing. I look forward with a sense of relief and hope for a new year that brings health, happiness and peace to all."

IMPROVES CERTAINTY AND CONFIDENCE When we know how we deal with adversity, how we adapt to change, how we pivot in business or go with the flow when it comes to home schooling this helps to build certainty and confidence in self.

Confronted with unprecedented challenges and uncertainty this year, stop for a moment and reflect on everything that you have managed to achieve. This will give you the insight on your level of resilience, adaptation and ability to roll with the punches. Look at what you have accomplished through a proudly positive lens and give yourself a pat on the back. You have lived and endured to share the lessons of this moment in time with new generations.

DEVELOPS A DEEP LEVEL OF LEARNING When we take the time to reflect it helps us to absorb the information, comprehend and develop a sense of understanding of the events that unfolded. We can see what has been under our influence and realise the things that have been out of our control. We can look back on how we have harnessed our strength to deal with situations and how we have reacted with fear or emotions in an unproductive manner.

It’s an opportunity to truly and deeply learn from ourselves and learn from others. Enabling us to enhance the strategies that are purposeful and supportive and let go of the behaviours that only serve to drain energy and time with no useful outcome.

CHRISTINE BOUCHER of Natural Health Balance is a corporate Health and Performance Coach transforming organisations to work productively and cohesively as a team. Improving the health of staff and the well-being of business through performance management, health coaching and team building to improve productivity, performance and profitability.

Christine is dedicated and passionate about Health & Wellness. Holding a Bachelor of Nursing Degree, MBA and specialising in Intensive Care Nursing. With over 20 years’, experience working in the healthcare industry.

www.naturalhealthbalance.com.au

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What it means to be part of a community WORDS: CHRISTIE NELSON

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HAVE YOU EVER HEARD THE SAYING THAT YOUR VIBE ATTRACTS YOUR TRIBE? THIS WOULD HAVE TO BE ONE OF MY ALL-TIME FAVOURITE QUOTES AS IT REALLY HELPS TO STOP AND THINK ABOUT WHO YOU ARE ATTRACTING INTO YOUR WORLD, BE THEY A POSITIVE OR NEGATIVE INFLUENCE. As we slowly emerge from our period of forced isolation, it is even more evident that humans crave and need social interactions and to be around their family or extended ‘tribe’ for their greater health and wellbeing. In many ways, it has also been a time of reflection and allowing space to be able to decipher the things that we don’t miss or that don’t actually serve us once they’ve been removed.

I have personally been reflecting on my own sense of community and observing the reaction of others who are desperately missing those who help make them whole and happy. I’ll be the first one to put my hand up and say that I have been a touch judgemental and closed off to the idea of being part of some community groups or hobbies that I don’t personally have an interest in such as Pokemon chasing, religion, or yarn-bombing for instance and will admit that there are just some activities that don’t give me the dopamine high that I crave from the things that I know light me up.

Whether it be a church group, car club, men’s shed, horse club, disability support group, sports or mother’s group, to name a few; each are unique to individual interests, a sense of belonging and like-mindedness. I was recently welcomed into a new community group experience and went there with an open mind and met some amazing people with incredible skill sets. I was showered with hospitality and got to be part of something I may not have had the chance to do otherwise.

I HAVE LEARNT TO PARK MY JUDGMENT AND BE MORE OPEN TO THE KINDNESS, COMMUNITY SPIRIT, COMMON GOALS, NEW FRIENDS, EXPERIENCES AND THE KNOWLEDGE EVERYONE HAS TO OFFER IN THIS WORLD, AS I WOULD EXPECT OTHERS TO DO FOR ME. Enjoy finding or reuniting with your tribe and stay safe and well in the Summer months to come.

I have discovered through the power of much personal development, that it is okay that others crave different surroundings and I recognise my resistance has stemmed from a lack of education about groups or activities and therefore have developed an uninformed opinion and a fear of the unknown. Our opinions can also be very influenced by the ‘blueprint’ we think we should follow based on our own childhood influences, having a closed mindset and other pre-conceived ideas.

At the end of the day, everyone has their ‘thing’ that they love that brings everyone together to make them the best version of themselves and to offer support when needed. The distance between many family units and particularly the impact on the elderly, has been one of the most my sorely missed community interactions for many, myself included. Sometimes you don’t realise what you’ve got until it’s gone and alongside my family, I have found myself aching for my communities; My Parkrun community, my business team, the gym and pool gang, our business women’s network, not to mention the children’s sporting communities for their health and well-being sake. I never realised how much these benefited our world until recently.

Christie is a busy mum, dual health and wellness business owner, business builder, professional social networker, President of the Southern Business Women’s Network and also a licensed estate agent.

Christie’s personal businesses can offer solutions and products to those seeking a positive change in their world.

For further information, please email youcanactivewear@gmail.com or go to www.youcanlifestyle.com.au | www.christienelson.arbonne.com youcanactivewearandlifestyle youcanactivewear christienelson0827

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if you desire different, you need to be

different

By Erin Miller

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We are creatures of habit. Seekers of what is perceived to be comfortable. Repeat offenders of a pattern.

Therefore; ◊ ◊ ◊ ◊

If you want your relationships to be different, If you desire more from life, If you are thinking of changing your job or career path, If you would like to create and attract more wealth, health, and abundance, ◊ If you wish you could feel happier, fulfilled, and satisfied,

THEN; The best thing we can do is sit with what we perceive to be comfortable (spoiler alert) it’s probably not that comfortable at all and possibly why we believe changing it will “fix” the current challenge!

t for com

Basically, if you desire MORE for yourself in any way (and it is totally ok to desire more AND still be completely grateful for all you have)

it b a h

AM I RIGHT?!

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So, sitting with the discomfort of our current circumstance is a good thing and a great opportunity to work out exactly what is and isn’t any longer working for us.

WHY? Because when we seek change with the intention of “fixing” or “avoiding” a situation without addressing the reasons why or the repeating patternyou will find yourself back in a similar position again and again and again (it might take 5, 10 or 1 year) but at some point we will revisit this pattern because we are creatures of habit and history repeats itself without awareness and doing the deep inner work. Believe me, I’ve seen this play out many, many times not only within my own life, but also my clients.

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For example, if we hold the belief that we are not heard, seen or recognised-then this is what our external world will reflect back to us.

The desires we have for our current reality and future is determined by our past. Heal and release the past, put the past back where it belongs which is in the past and we get to create the life we dream of.

WANT TO KNOW HOW THIS ALL WORKS? One of the processes that I use called NLP Time Lining allows us to bring into alignment past, present and future. It’s super simple but packs a punch!

pat tern s

Identify the repeating pattern, belief, conditioning that we desire to move away from BEFORE we make the change.

ge n a ch

Feel free to contact me directly if you’d like to learn more at erin@erinmiller.com.au

Erin Miller is a NLP life coach, mentor, writer and proud mama to 3 very active young boys.

Her previous career roles have been quite diverse and she has a background in hospitality/travel, disability/mental health and business management.

Trained in a variety of modalities including NLP, Life Coaching and as a Soul Modes Mentor, she has had the privilege to work with clients all around Australia and also runs empowerment workshops, retreats and group events.

For further information please call 0418 328 441 or visit my website www.erinmiller.com.au or follow me on Facebook and Instagram.

Do you have a question or a topic you would like Erin to write about? Send her an email at erin@erinmiller.com.au

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EMPOWHER LEADERSHIP TEAM SUPPORTING REGIONAL WOMEN THROUGH TOUGH TIMES

THE LEADERSHIP TEAM KAREN TOUGH, VANESSA MEDLING, CHRISTINE BOUCHER, TANIA GORANITIS JODIE WILMER, CARINA TURNER + JODIE SPINKS

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A group of seven East Gippsland women have joined together in the most powerful of ways to bring guidance and support during a time when the triple threat of drought, bushfires and a global pandemic could have destroyed the hope and resilience of entire communities.

East Gippsland was reaching its third year of drought when a group of savvy local businesswomen got talking about the need for more support to encourage women to come together in a safe and supportive way.

Especially one that allowed them to grow and learn both personally and professionally.

Casual conversations turned into an exciting vision, eventually leading to the creation of EmpowHer East Gippsland, a not-for-profit incorporated association connecting, educating and empowering regional women through quarterly events and networking opportunities. In January of this year - during the peak of the devastating bushfire season - the first committee was officially formed bringing together a dynamic group of women from diverse sectors of business and employment.

Corporate Health and Performance Coach Christine Boucher of Natural Health Balance put her hand up to lead the committee as President and said the first EmpowHer event couldn’t have come at a better time for the local community.

“We weren’t even sure if our first event would go ahead. The fires affected so many of our new members, we struggled to decide if it was the right time to launch. But I’m so glad we did - so many women told us it was exactly what they needed after such a traumatic time in their lives. They were able to get so much from it, which is exactly why we exist in the first place.”

And just when communities were starting a slow road to recovery from the summer fires, a global pandemic hit, bringing countries and communities to a complete standstill. Armed with the same passion and dedication that brought them together in the first place, the committee forged ahead with their 2020 plans, changing direction to bring events online. It meant more members could join conversations from the comfort of their own homes and access life-changing resources and information in the process.

Christine, a Paynesville mum-of-two, said EmpowHer managed to bring a total of 6 events to local women - including two additional events to what was already planned for 2020 - while providing tickets at a low to no cost for people hit financially hard by drought, fires and COVID-19.

“The unprecedented challenges the East Gippsland community has endured have resulted in significant impacts on mental health, isolation, stress, depression, business, finances and the economy of the local community. EmpowHer recognises the importance of supporting women and the community to recover mentally and emotionally from these challenges. This can include managing stress, building resilience, pivoting a business to adapt to change, sustaining a viable income to support family, and developing resilience personally and professionally to recover, repair and refocus towards the future.

EmpowHer East Gippsland Inc. have just wrapped up its first official AGM and welcome Carissa Johnston, Kirstie Pearce and Clare Graham as new members to the leadership committee for 2021. Christine and the leadership committee would also like to thank outgoing members Tania Goranitis, Karen Tough and Jodie Willmer for all their hard work over the past year and helping get EmpowHer to where it is today.

Thanks to the support of the Gippsland Primary Health Network (GPHN), EmpowHer East Gippsland has been able to flourish in its first year of helping local regional women. GPHN is supported by the Australian Government to deliver the One Good Community Wellbeing Grants program to help address the long-term impacts of drought and bushfires in the region by promoting healing and recovery, and building resilience.

It’s hard not to count down the days until the end of 2020 - in what has been a very challenging time for so many of us - and look forward to a fresh new year. Which is why EmpowHer will focus its 2021 event program on the uplifting theme of “resilience”, in particular how to grow and nurture mental, emotional, financial and business strength during tough times.

There are also exciting plans to launch an online membership portal, providing support and resources at all times.

EmpowHer East Gippsland Inc. is always welcoming new faces, so don’t be shy. The association is all-inclusive and welcomes women and men living in regional communities who are keen to learn more about professional and personal development. Feel free to join the EmpowHer East Gippsland Facebook page to follow along and keep up-to-date with the latest resources and events on offer.

Clare Graham is the media and communications expert behind Clarity Collaborations which helps organisations and businesses struggling to be seen and heard.

She works with organisation committees and business owners to create effective + eye-catching communication strategies.

Whether it’s through the design of a fresh logo, the development of a new website, or overhauling social media content. Clare has spent close to 15 years as a journalist and public relations professional and knows what grabs people’s attention and how to do it in the most engaging + rewarding way. www.claritycollaborations.com

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Rose ~ Rose!

By Frank Butera

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From its origin of Provence, in Southern France, rosé can be both affordable with ease and pleasure, or spectrally expensive. However, Rose rarely falls in the too serious category. It’s often a relaxed wine with fun and adventure ahead of it.

Lets take a closer look at Rose. And most importantly, Rose is not grape varietal, no grows Rose grapes. Rose is wine making style.

Rose wine is, in fact, made exclusively from the same red grapes as the red wines are made of. These red grapes almost always have a light, often colourless juice and so the obvious question arises: Where does the dark red colour come from? The big reveal: it is because the red pigments are derived from the grape skins not the juice.

A closer look at red and white wine production to have a clearer understanding of the rose winemaking process. In red wine production, the grape skins are simply fermented together with the juice, which in the process releases the red colour. For white wine production, the skin is removed which leaves only the juice and this process is also known as the “must” fermentation.

Rosé. Rosato. Rosado. Rosewein. No matter how you say it, whether in French, Italian, Spanish or German, respectively, there’s no denying the appeal of this cheery wine style, and even more so with the warm weather.

In Gippsland, we may be limited on the red grapes types grown throughout the region. However, we do not have shortage of rose producers. Many of the wine makers dedicate our most valued red grape – Pinot Noir to producing Rose. There is an added complexity to the wine making when using lighter body red wine grapes to produce rose.

A Rose is cheeky wine, that be suited for all occasions with or without the need for celebration.

Frank Butera is the chief wine maker at Bass River winery. frank@bassriverwinery.com

The release of the pigments from the must during red winemaking typically occurs over a few weeks and, if this process is interrupted after just a few hours, only a little colouring will have been released from the grape skins.

The rose winemaker takes advantage of this and assumes total control over the colour of the wine. Once the juice has taken on a slight red hue, it is pressed and transferred to another tank where it continues to ferment without the skins. It will eventually be bottled as rose wine. So, in the strict sense, rose wines are fermented red wines that have had only minimal contact with the grape skins. Or another way of looking at it, it’s a red wine made closer to white wine making style.

Rose wines are not be confused with skin contact wines, although the color may be similar skin contact wines are mostly made with white grapes with extended skin contact. This may sound complicated but the taste and aromatics are noticeable different.

There are no regulations in Australia governing any aspect of the making of rosé. It can be made simply by running off 5-10 per cent of the juice from the must in the fermenter containing the crushed red grapes; the purpose is to concentrate the colour, tannin and flavour of the remaining must, which is then fermented in whatever manner the winemaker chooses.

Or there's a rather more involved method, which begins in the vineyard with the choice of variety/varieties, canopy management and the date of picking. Since the aim is to make a wine that is fragrant and fresh, the harvest takes place earlier than usual for the variety/region in question.

One key choice for winemakers is whether to destem, to whole-bunch press or to destem and crush. The last shortens the period of skin contact, although little turns on that. What matters is the quality of the wines and their adaptability.

We tend to find that Rose wines are produced from grapes that have been dedicated to wine rather than a wine that has evolved in the winery.

The most important decision a wine maker needs to make is when to harvest the grapes. The harvest date selected for rose wines will be a significant factor to the flavor profile of the wine.

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out of lockdown keep the motivation going + don’t stop now!

by CGS Fitness Lockdown was tough for the majority of us, yet for many people, it was also an opportunity to break the cycle and potentially adopt new routines & habits.

Which is what we spoke about last time!

So I’m sure you’ve found yourself questioning what life will look like post lockdown, or wondering what a ‘covid normal’ will look like, and hey - I was wondering the same thing! Particularly what my training routine will look like now that gym’s & fitness centres are open.

One thing to consider when you are returning to a gym based training environment, is to gradually build up your fitness levels again and be aware that you may not have the same fitness capabilities that you did pre-lockdown, and remember that this is completely normal!

Many people have adapted their fitness routine to at-home workouts, or working out from home, and that’s awesome!

But this means that we are most likely in some sort of routine, which revolves around training at home, and now that gym’s & fitness centres are opening, we have to switch that routine up once again!

So, how do we keep the positive habits & routines going that we’ve developed during lockdown?

Well, it starts by evaluating the parts of lockdown that we’ve enjoyed, and what elements we can carry into our new ‘covid normal life’, and how they can work for you & your lifestyle.

For some, this could be something as simple as keeping those evening walks as a family at sunset around the neighbourhood going. Or for others, it could be the spending your 30 minute lunch time break smashing out a 30 minute workout in the garage or backyard.

Whatever it is, evaluate which elements of lockdown you enjoyed and let’s try and maintain and carry them through, and now that we’re allowed to see family & friends again, we can even involve them in our new found healthy habits & routines!

Cristi is a qualified Personal Trainer, Social Media & Marketing Manager.

You can follow Cristi on instagram @cgs.fitness Do you have a question or a topic you would like Cristi to write about? Send her an email at cgs.fitness@outlook.com

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Now available as an Annual Subscription it couldn't be easier to get hold of your copies... also makes a great gift idea Past copies are also available in limited supplies SOUTH GIPPSLAND PUBLISHING PTY LTD. Trading as Gippsland Lifestyle magazine ABN 81 144 063 089 ADDRESS PO BOX 862 WONTHAGGI VIC 3995 PHONE 0404 301 333 EMAIL gippslandlifestyle@bigpond.com Gippsland the Lifestyle Magazine is published quarterly, usually available at the beginning of each season and distributed to selected newsagents and retail outlets within the Gippsland region and surrounding Melbourne regions and parts of Victoria.

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www.virtuehomes.com.au Photography by Open2ViewGippsland