Gippsland Lifestyle | Our Towns #01

our towns # 01

LOCH SPORT | MAFFRA | SALE

have a read on us gippsland lifestyle 'Our Towns' online ����

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have a read on us

OUR TOWNS #01 As you are all aware, we are still in the grips of Covid-19 and for the time being we will be looking back into the memory banks of what Gippsland Lifestyle has been producing in the past eleven years. It has been a great journey so far and we will be back, that is a promise, but for now enjoy our look back on some of the towns that make Gippsland so great to live in.

In our second digital magazine, we are looking at the towns of Loch Sport, Maffra and Sale.

Loch Sport was the first town to feature in our overhaul of towns in Gippsland. We no longer visited google to research the towns, instead we decided to seek out the locals, look for the town heroes and dig up history about the towns. Along the journey we have had some great advertisers from these towns. We have promoted the various business associations and tourism groups etc. We have given people their say, their chance to tell us about their towns.

After we did our feature on Loch Sport, the Maffra Business Association President, Marcus Stobie contacted me and he asked if we could do a feature on Maffra. Which we did, and a year later we produced a magazine for Maffra. I always said if every town had a Marcus Stobie, then life would be wonderful; I have never met anyone, to this day, that puts in the love and respect that Marcus has for Maffra.

Following the magazine on the Maffra town special, we looked at Sale. Sale is another town full of character, picturesque places to visit and see, and probably has one of the better racecourses and greyhound tracks. It is steeped in education; and I had the absolute pleasure in meeting and writing about two gentlemen, Kevin Hogan and John Leslie OBE. Sadly, both wonderful gentlemen have passed away, but their legacy lives on.

Enjoy our digital magazine, full of great features and characters that make up this great region of Wellington.

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LOCH SPORT

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MAFFRA

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SALE

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LOCH SPORT

A SPECIAL HOLIDAY LOCATION ANY TIME OF THE YEAR AND AN EVEN BETTER PLACE TO LIVE.

GATEWAY TO VICTORIA’S RIVIERA Loch Sport, a unique coastal town, is positioned on the southern side of the Gippsland Lakes in Central Gippsland, surrounded by Lake Victoria and Lake Reeve and views to the splendid mountains on one side and the dunes of the Ninety Mile Beach to the south, with an easy drive – just 3 hours from Melbourne, east of the township of Sale.

This beach tourist town accommodates a small coastal community, currently with a population of close to 700, though over the holiday periods can swell to around seven times as many.

The Peninsula of Loch Sport is ideally situated surrounded by the Gippsland Coastal Park and Lakes National Park, between the natural beauty of Lake Victoria and the pristine golden sand splendour of the Ninety Mile Beach which attracts an abundance of fishing, boating, water skiing, sailing, kayaking, swimming and many more water sport enthusiasts’ activities, as well as bush walking, 4-wheel driving or bike riding – embracing the great outdoors. Loch Sport boasts boat-safe waters with a beautiful marina. You could even sight the dolphins playing in the Lake.

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The National and Coastal Parks are a haven for wildlife and Loch Sport flaunts kangaroos, emus, wombats, koalas, echidnas, possums, lizards, deer, swans, pelicans and more than 190 different species of birds, including an amazing variety of parrots; not to mention a profusion of wildflowers.

So put those walking shoes on and go exploring along the nature trails, tracks and beaches and enjoy all that they have to offer.

There are a number of accommodation options that are suitable for individuals, couples, families and groups. Whether you prefer charming beachside B&Bs, beautifully appointed caravan parks, cabins, units and pet-friendly houses – Loch Sport has all of your holiday needs.

SERVICES

Loch Sport has a primary school, a bowls and tennis club, skate park, Lion’s BBQ facilities, caravan parks, a marina, a pub, RSL club, Boat Club, golf club, service station, bakery, police station and supermarket.

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POINTS OF INTEREST Stroll along the deck of the Marina and watch the flurry of activity on the water. + Watch the sunset over the lake before experiencing a good old-fashioned pub meal at the Marina Hotel, alfresco style. + Grab a rod and reel and fish off the jetty or at the beach. + Take a sailing tour with the local boat club and keep an eye out for dolphins. + Hire a canoe or kayak and paddle yourself around the lake. + Visit Rotomah Island Bird Observatory. + Walk along the 90 mile beach. + Enjoy a round of golf with kangaroos and wallabies as your spectators. + Visit Lake Reeve Lookout in the Lakes National Park. + Visit Antique Marine Engine Museum. + Check out the artwork at the Post Office Community Gallery. + Stay at the Campground at Emu Bight close to the shore of Lake Victoria which has fireplaces, picnic tables, toilets; also Murphy Hill, Point Wilson and Pelican Bay have picnic grounds. + Point Wilson was the site of an original settler’s homestead.

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LOCH SPORT

HISTORY Before European settlement, the area was used for hunting and fishing and the collection of water yams and other vegetable food. Some of their descendants still live in regional townships. Aboriginal artifacts are still present.

In the 19th century British settlers cleared the land and began farming. Sandy soils dominate the flat coastal heath scrubland, which is surrounded by brackish lakes on the north and Bass Strait on the south. Later in the 19th century Melburnians discovered the recreational potential of the lakes—fishing, swimming and boating— and by the beginning of the 20th century Loch Sport was accessible via a dirt track, with plots of land surveyed for the emerging township. With increasing use of the motor vehicle, more people bought property in the town, which in 1980 was one of the last Victorian towns to receive electricity.

Photographs by Lauren Murphy Photography + Photographs by David Barnett References: Wikipedia Loch Sport, Wellington Shire Discover Loch Sport

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JOAN GLEED

‘The little raffle making big changes’

by Lauren Murphy

When you walk into the Loch Sport Marina Hotel on a Saturday you can be sure of one thing. Joan Gleed will be sitting at her modest table, raffle tickets at the ready and money tin on hand. As the lunchtime crowd begins to roll in, each person walks past to say hello to Joan making their purchase of tickets almost by second nature.

Joan’s Meat Raffle is somewhat of an institution since its humble beginnings three years ago when she decided to help fundraise for her local community. She has currently raised over $40,000 for various charities and local people in need through her simple, yet successful raffle. “I thought we might raise about $40 a week but we just escalated.”

Today Joan is raising money for a local woman who cares for wild animals that have been injured. Previous donations have helped support numerous local services including the local Ambulance, Community Health Service, Lions Club, Loch RSL, and SES. Donations from the Meat Raffle have also helped with town infrastructure including the Skate Park and All Access Ramp at the 90 Mile Beach. The generosity of the Loch Sport community and Joan’s dedication spreads beyond this small Gippsland town with donations also being made to larger charities including Camp Quality, Red Cross, SES, Berry Street Kids, plus many more. Occasionally funds are more focused on a local’s individual needs including purchasing wheelchairs for two residents and funding primary school student Shianne, to travel to America as part of a school program. “Everyone loved Shianne, she came down and helped sell tickets.”

Joan first became a ‘local’ nearly 20 years ago. “We came down for a break, actually somebody loaned us their house. We only stayed two nights then went back home and sold our property. We came back and bought a house and since then we bought two blocks either side because I didn’t want anyone building next to me, ha!”

LOCH SPORT OP SHOP

by Noelene Brown

The Loch Sport Op Shop has been running for 27 years and first started as a stall outside the lodge, demand increasing it to a garage, and now the large shed, with a 40ft shipping container, is also used for storage. They are open Sundays between 8.30am till 12.30pm and can pick up items from people’s homes (but no removing items from second level buildings).

Their fundraising to the local CFA has been tremendous and has included being able to purchase the second, and more modern tanker, and build a new shed to contain the fire trucks and equipment.

They have also asphalted the car park (previously referred to as a ‘dustbowl’).

Every Sunday the car park is full of people exploring the Op Shop and they provide valued resources to holidaymakers and locals looking for odds and ends to furnish their homes.

“Sunday morning in Loch Sport means a visit to the Fire Brigade for most residents and holiday visitors. The big attraction is the big shed filled with all sorts of wonderful goods for sale. There is something for everyone, from buttons, bric-abrac, books, bikes, furniture etc. It is a meeting place where people get together and have a chat. Also Brigade members are there to answer all those questions people need to know about burning off and fire safety. The shed is a very important area for the community.”

Joan credits the success of the Raffle to the willingness of the local community. “The community take part, and if we sell a booklet a day we’re doing alright. That’s $200 a day.” Each week she organises the meat from the local butcher “five trays of all different meats” and then the task of deciding where to send the funds. Joan doesn’t think any vegetarians have won the Meat Raffle yet, but every winner has been over the moon to date. Joan has only won once.

As the clock hits 1.30pm, Joan or fellow ticket seller and friend Noelene scan the room for a child to help pick out the lucky ticket, “we don’t want anyone to think we’re biased and the kiddies think its fun if they pick out Mum or Dad’s ticket.” With the winner announced and delivery of the meat tray organised, Joan clocks off from her post as town fundraiser for another week. “I’ve made a lot of friends. It’s nice when you come to a village and people accept you.”

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"Congratulations to those who have improved the lives of the community by giving up their time to help".

Photographs by Lauren Murphy Photography

in memory of

Jill Hall Since I started my journey with Gippsland Lifestyle Magazine, I have over the course of the past eleven years met some wonderful people in this region.

Gippsland is rich in culture, tourism, and down to earth people and without a doubt Jill Hall was one of them. I met Jill through her husband Alan, who were at the time, the owners of the Marina Hotel in Loch Sport. The reason for the meeting was that Alan wanted our magazine to run a feature on Loch Sport. For anyone that is not sure where Loch Sport is, it is around a 35-minute drive from Sale and sits on Lake Victoria and the Southern Ocean.

Since that day back in the autumn of 2016, I have remained firm friends with Alan and Jill and like everyone else that knew the couple was shocked to hear of the passing of our great friend Jill.

I would doubt that Jill would have upset anyone in her life, she was full of life, this is what makes it so heart breaking, and no doubt Alan and his family would still be in shock.

Jill was a person who was giving, had a great sense of humour and she cared about people; she loved her town and she loved her husband and family. I have to admit, with little guilt, that I have not been back to the Marina Hotel since Alan and Jill left the hotel as I felt that the hotel was all about them, they put so much effort and time into a great establishment on the banks of Lake Victoria.

When Alan became Mayor, he could not have had a better back up. Jill was proud of her husband’s achievements, and all through the time that Alan has been Mayor of Wellington Shire, Jill was there backing her man.

Jill you will be missed, I will miss you, Loch Sport lost a bit of soul, time will move on and we will all reflect on the wonderful life and times of Jill Hall.

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Maffra

Stay a while and experience everything Maffra offers.

Maffra is an appealing and welcoming rural town in Central Gippsland inside the Shire of Wellington and about 200 kilometres east of Melbourne.

The town is situated on the Macalister River within an hour’s drive of both the mountains and Lake Glenmaggie to the north, the City of Sale 20 minutes to the south and a short distance east to the sea – Loch Sport, Ninety Mile Beach and the beautiful Gippsland Lakes…

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The beautiful township of Maffra

By Wendy Morriss

Circular Path which winds to a centre with a Totem Pole

Maffra is vibrant and possibly one of the most attractive towns in Gippsland. Its pretty treelined streets feature beautifully kept nineteenth century buildings that house a variety of specialty shops, restaurants and cafes.

It’s a thriving, friendly town situated in the centre of Gippsland on the banks of the Macalister River. It contains lovely parks, sporting reserves, including a magnificent 18-hole golf course and scenic wetlands.

The town was first settled in the 1860’s. It has a beef and dairy producing heritage and for many years was the only sugar beet processing

centre in Australia. Today the town is supported by agricultural industries, government departments and authorities and the district’s dairy and vegetable production.

Each year, due to an enormous amount of community spirit and support from local residents and groups, Maffra successfully hosts several spectacular events - The Maffra Mardi Gras in March, the Maffra Agricultural Show in October, an Easter tennis tournament in April and a Christmas festival in December.

A Farmers’ Market is held in the main street (Johnson Street) on the first Sunday of each month.

Visitors to the area can also experience motoring history at the Gippsland Vehicle Collection Motor Museum, or immerse themselves in the history of the area at the Maffra Sugar Beet Museum, a relocated building constructed in 1896 as the office and weighbridge for the sugar beet factory.

Gippsland Vehicle Collection Motor Museum houses an outstanding, constantly changing display of more than 160 special cars, motorbikes, machinery, historic vehicles and auto memorabilia. The museum is open Friday to Monday 10am - 4pm and school holidays.

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St Mary's Catholic Church

Maffra 12

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Maffra Football Club defeating Sale FC

Maffra main street Macalister River Regional Park

The Maffra Sugar Beet Museum houses archives that show the rise, success and fall of the local sugar beet industry, pre-European occupation, early European exploration and settlement of the Central Gippsland plains. The museum is open the first Sunday of every month from 10.00am to 2.00pm and available for group bookings.

Located in Maffra’s town centre on beautiful, tree-lined Johnson Street

The town’s Visitor Information Centre is an added treat, housed in the beautifully restored Maffra Court House, built in 1888. The centre has a wide range of information, local arts and craft on display and for sale, a wide range of souvenirs, heritage publications and is the home of the fascinating Pino Deriu Gemstone and Mineral Collection.

Maffra Visitor Information Centre in Johnson Street is open 7 days a week, 10.00am – 3.00pm (closing 1.00pm on Tuesdays).

For more information: Phone (03) 51411811 Park photographs by Lauren Murphy Photography Photographs by Doug Pell

We pride ourselves on offering delicious & satisfying breakfasts using local produce A peaceful, comfortable, relaxing environment close to sporting club, cafes, vehicle museum, golf club and walking trail.

184 Johnson St, Maffra 3860 | P: +61 3 5147 2111 E: admin@mafframotorinn.com.au For Bookings & more information visit www.mafframotorinn.com.au gippsland lifestyle 'Our Towns' online ����

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Maffra historical, picturesque & much more

By Lyn Skillern

There is something very special about Maffra.

When you enter the main street you cannot but think it has one of the most picturesque town centres in Gippsland. In addition to this it has many historical buildings and some beautiful tree lined streets. Maffra, like many Gippsland towns, has a fascinating history.

Sited on the banks of the Macalister River, Maffra was one of the first areas of Gippsland to be settled by Europeans who came in and occupied the land of the indigenous people.

The site of the town is in the land of the Brayakaulung Tribe of the Gunaikurnai people.

Prior to the 1840s this was their territory.

In January 1840 Angus McMillan’s party reached and named the Macalister River at a place downstream from the current town of Maffra. In the year that followed McMillan’s Bushy Park run and Lachlan Macalister’s Boisdale run were established. These two runs took up over 10,000 acres of land.

Town origins are always interesting and the reason for the location of a township is often lost in time. Not so with Maffra. The original "Mafra" was a sheepfold located on the Boisdale run south east of the present township of Newry. It had the same name as one of Macalister's properties in NSW. That property had been named after a town in Portugal where Macalister's regiment had been stationed during the Napoleonic Wars.

In 1845, 640 acres on the Boisdale Run were set aside to be used as a native police reserve.

This square mile later became the site of Maffra.

When gold was discovered in the northwest area of Gippsland a river crossing was established on the native police reserve. This was where the road from Sale and Port Albert heading to the diggings crossed the Macalister River. As a result the township developed in the following way:

1862

a punt service started to enable the river to be crossed easily

1862

a tent hotel was established near the river crossing

1863

the township was surveyed

1864

the township was gazetted and the first town lots were sold

1865

a Presbyterian Church was established

1866

the township had a post office, two hotels, two stores, a butchers, twenty permanent residents and a public school

1868

a Methodist Church was established

1870-71

a Catholic Church was established

1871

an Anglican Church was established and the existing primary school’s building erected

1875

October 14th - the Shire of Maffra was proclaimed.

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The Maffra Hotel ~ Courtesy Lyn Skillern

The Maffra Sugar Beet Factory Courtesy of Maffra Historical Society MDHS02184

As the centre of the new Shire the town of Maffra boomed. There were two cheese factories, a flourmill, banks, a courthouse, a permanent post office and very importantly, a newspaper, The Maffra Spectator. The town was a service centre for an agricultural hinterland producing beef cattle, sheep, pigs and a variety of crops.

Horses were raised for the carriage trade and the Indian army.

Further expansion in the area occurred when the railway came to the region. The branch line from Traralgon reached Heyfield in 1883, Maffra in 1886 and eventually linked into the main Gippsland line at Stratford. Local produce was now able to reach markets as far away as Melbourne and beyond.

This successful agricultural area had one crop that is unique in the history of Victoria and that was the sugar beet. This beet has a root that is high in sucrose and is grown commercially for the production of sugar. Sugar beets are grown in cooler climates while sugar cane is produced

Sugar beets

in warmer more tropical areas. Approximately 20% of the world’s sugar comes from sugar beets.

In 1871 the ‘Gippsland Times’ reported that there was growing interest in producing sugar beets in Victoria and Maffra was a place mentioned as a possible location for this industry. The best Sicilian sugar beet seeds were purchased to distribute among the farmers of Briagolong, Wa-de-lock and Valencia Creek and later the Department of Agriculture experimented in beet growing at Valencia Creek and Newry with excellent results.

Victorian government support was sought and a Sugar Beet Act was passed.

In September 1896, the Maffra Sugar Beet Co was registered and later a syndicate of town’s people prepared to grow 300 acres of sugar beets. Thirty acres of land near the Maffra

-Sale Road and the railway station were set aside for a sugar beet factory. In June 1897 the foundation stone of the building was laid with great ceremony. The machinery for the factory came from Brunswick in Germany where beets had been grown for many years.

The factory with a 145 feet high hexagonal chimney was completed in 1898. The Colony of Victoria’s first 500 tons of sugar were refined that year. However the venture was not a success due mainly to drought and the Victorian Government took over the factory in 1899.

It lay idle until 1910 when plans were made to start the factory again. Farmers in the area produced sugar beets and by 1917 the factory made a profit. By 1919 it was evident that irrigation would help the sugar industry and the Glenmaggie irrigation scheme on the Macalister River was commenced. At first this scheme was to provide water to sugar beet growers. The factory was upgraded in 1925 and the sugar beet industry flourished for the next 20 years.

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Johnson St Maffra c 1932 Courtesy Maffra Historical Society MDHS03723

World War II was the beginning of the end for the Victoria’s sugar industry. The labour force needed was taken away, including many Italian workers who were interned. Dairying became more profitable and there was little interest in reestablishing the sugar industry. The factory was closed in 1948 and demolished in 1964.

The wooden office was saved and moved 1km

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away to become the home of the Sugar Beet Museum.

There is much more history to be discovered in Maffra and district and it is being preserved by an active Maffra Historical Society. The Wellington Shire Heritage Network has a brochure that provides information on all the heritage groups

in the Shire and there are walking tour brochures for Boisdale and Briagolong. All brochures, plus three books on the streetscapes of Maffra, are available at the information centre in the old Court House. The Sugar Beet Museum is open on the first Sunday of the month from 10 am until 2 pm. This delightful area has so much to offer those interested in the past.

LOO K TO ING SEL L

Country Road Real Estate is a family owned and operated real estate agency, servicing property vendors and buyers in Maffra and surrounding areas. We provide our clients with unsurpassed service, ethics, professionalism and integrity. We provide a complete range of Real Estate services including the sale of Residential, Commercial, Industrial and Rural properties.

Our enthusiastic team has the drive and passion to provide exceptional service and to cater for your individual real estate needs. We understand the importance of buying, selling and leasing.

If you’re thinking about selling or leasing your property, come in and see us or just give us a call on (03) 5141 1026 or email us at admin@crre.com.au

136 Johnson Street | Maffra VIC 3860 countryroadrealestate.com.au

WE KNOW THE TYRE BUSINESS! MICHELIN, MAXXIS, MICKEY THOMPSON AND ALL OTHER MAJOR BRANDS

FULL SERVICE | WHEEL ALIGNMENT | TRACTORS | MAGS | TRUCKS

Phone: (03) 5147 1668

17 Johnson Street, MAFFRA 3860

Mon-Fri 8.00am-5.00pm Sat 8.00am-11.30am gippsland lifestyle 'Our Towns' online ����

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L-R: Christine Richards (GPRT Committee of Management & Member of Maffra & District Landcare Network), Bob McLaren with Kye Whelan and Elly Carmen Lee (Community Facilitator – Maffra & District Landcare Network) Carol Whelan, Danielle Whelan, Beth Ripper (GPRT Committee of Management & Member of Maffra & District Landcare Network), Darren Watts with Jill from Maffra

Gippsland Plains RAIL TRAIL The Gippsland Plains Rail Trail extends 67km from Traralgon to Maffra onto Stratford, passing through 5 small townships, in Central Gippsland, which are steeped in history.

Project in April 2016, the students from Maffra Secondary College worked with these groups to maintain the Rail Trail whilst also researching historical sites.

Many years ago trains ran in various parts of Victoria. We were the State with the biggest rail infrastructure in Australia, but over time this is not the case anymore and many of the railway tracks have disappeared. The last passenger service from Traralgon to Maffra was on the 7th July 1977 and the last freight service was on the 8th September 1994. Once passenger and goods trains were a significant transport option from Stratford to Traralgon using the route through Maffra.

Some of the best features of this trail are the beautiful views of the rolling Gippsland hills as you traverse it, which is predominantly flat and easy going. The Trail is an easy walk, jog, bicycle ride and you can take the dog for a stroll; also a safe saunter for families.

The now disused railway line has become the Gippsland Plains Rail Trail and the GPRT Committee, community-based volunteers, and Maffra & District Landcare Network have been building this project over the past 20 years.

Recently, at the launch of the Trailblazers Trail

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The Trail is unique as visitors can connect to and travel by train to either end of the Trail.

You can make Traralgon the start of your Gippsland Plains Rail Trail adventure. The first of three hills going down is just prior to the Burnetts Road car park. The views of the Great Dividing Range starts here - across the Latrobe Flood Plains on the reconstructed transom bridges then on to Glengarry with its historic buildings and the old railway crane and station.

Next town is Toongabbie steeped in gold rush history and on to Cowwarr and the next hill down with a magnificent view of the Alpine Country.

On to Dawson Flora Reserve via a road diversion then to Heyfield and its great wetlands and interesting commemorative infrastructure on the trail mid town.

Next its downhill again just prior to Tinamba with yet another fabulous view of Gippsland’s hills. You are now heading close to Maffra, entering into a pretty section of the Trail known as the Billabong Trail, where the Trail meets the Macalister River.

The bridge crossing provides a wonderful view of the river on either side, and sweeping views across to Macalister Park, where you can stop and enjoy a break.

Once in Maffra there is so much of interest, and you would benefit greatly from an overnight stay.

Options include Maffra Motor Inn, Cambrai Back Packers Hostel, Maffra Golf Club & RV Park and Maffra Caravan Park. Dine-in options are Maffra

Sports Club, Macalister Hotel, Maffra Golf Club, Cafe' L'Attitude, Coffee House 138, Chopstix Chinese Restaurant, and Duart Reception Centre.

Takeaway options in Maffra are many, and include Mr. Pizza, Maffra Fish & Chips, Maffra Hot Bake Bakery, Maffra Bakery, Richo's Pizza and Meg's Takeaway.

The sites and attractions of Maffra will certainly keep you interested and entertained: the Maffra Motor Vehicle Collection and Museum is a must for any motoring enthusiast, the Pino Deriu Mineral Collection is alive with vibrant colours and Pingvin Booksellers, Antiques, Collectables and Ephemera will delight and surprise you. There's also the Maffra Sugar Beet Museum, the old Maffra Railway Station (not open to the public, but viewable from the road), Avon Ridge Winery, Macalister Park (more tin cows!), Macalister Wetlands Reserve, and historic Duart Reception Centre.

Back along the trail you will find the old railway cutting for the Briagolong line and discover various sleepers, parts of old bridges, and platforms along the journey. At the Briagolong cutting an information board has been set up with some wonderful historical photos of the trains that once travelled up and down the line.

For a brief time in the 1990's, Powerscourt was operated as a fine dining restaurant and elegant B&B. Those who were lucky enough to dine and/ or stay there still talk of the majesty and grandeur of the ballroom in which the restaurant was housed. Although unsubstantiated, it is generally believed that the ballroom was added in 1894 by a farm labourer who had struck gold the same year and purchased the property. He added it to accommodate his daughter's 21st birthday gathering!

The Rail Trail's Powerscourt section was once the site of another busy railway station and post office on the old Stratford to Traralgon line. Nothing remains of the station today, but it is your exit to delight in the wonderful wines produced at Avon Ridge Winery, just across the road. You'll love tasting some of their amazing wines while you relax on the verandah or in the beautiful gardens, both of which afford pleasing views of the vines and surrounding countryside. Oh... and better throw in a cheese platter with that!

Reference Gippsland Plains Rail Trail Committee of Management and more Information can be found on: www.gippslandplainsrailtrail.com.au Photographs taken at the Maffra section of the Rail Trail

Then the trail from Maffra to Powerscourt is flat, solid packed, and easily ridden. Powerscourt is named after the grand Powerscourt Homestead, which was built in 1850. Although no longer open to the public, this private residence is visible in the distance from the Maffra-Stratford Road.

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MAFFRA COMMUNITY SPORTS CLUB ...more than just a club!

Friendly staff, cold beers, TAB and numerous televisions with Fox Sport, make Maffra Community Sports Club the ideal venue for a great evening!

Conveniently located in the heart of town, the club caters for locals and visitors alike.

Monday to Thursday 10.00am - 11.00pm | Friday to Saturday 10.00am - 12.00 midnight | Sunday 10.00am - 10.00pm

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Captain Johnson’s Bar and Bistro Lunch 12.00pm - 2.00pm Dinner 6.00pm - 8.30pm Member’s Lunchtime Specials For a quiet drink or a great night out, and with delicious food, Captain Johnson's Bar has it all. A wide range of beers on tap plus all your favourites, at wonderful Maffra Sports Club prices.

The Top Paddock Restaurant Wednesday - Saturday 6.00pm - 8.30pm Reservations required The Top Paddock is available for booking for private functions. Contact the friendly staff of the Club for more information.

122-126 Johnson Street Maffra Vic 3860 Tel: 5141 1566 | Fax: 5141 1944 www.maffracommunitysportsclub.com.au gippsland lifestyle 'Our Towns' online ����

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INCORPORATED GEM IN A COUNTRY TOWN

By Wendy Morriss

Maffra’s Community Sports Club has transformed a former hotel that was built during the late 1800s into an outstanding, modern community venue, equal to anything seen in a large city, whilst maintaining its original country character and historical values.

Visiting patrons and members enjoy the grand opulent environment in various ways. The choices include alfresco dining on the elevated verandah, a quiet fireside drink or meal in the member’s room, lunch, dinner or a great night out in Captain Johnson's Bar and Bistro and fine dining or function upstairs in The Top Paddock Restaurant. The venue also has TAB, KENO and numerous viewing screens bringing Fox Sport to those who don’t want to miss a game.

Kevin Lanigan who has been the club’s treasurer for the last three years and five years previously said the monumental community achievement began with a dream more than 20 years ago and a need to keep people in the town. “At the time there wasn’t a licence in Maffra for gaming machines and people were going out of the town to Sale where there were six gaming venues.”

In an effort to curb the outflow, three Maffra sporting clubs and the Chamber of Commerce tried individually to establish a gaming venue but were rejected by Tabaret. They then decided to come together representing the sporting and business community with the hope of achieving it as a group.

Eventually, the Maffra Bowling Club, Maffra Football Club and the Chamber of Commerce headed by Geoff Stobie, who was chairman and a local business owner, formed the Maffra Community Sports Club.

They started researching and meeting with representatives from the Shire, the State Government as well as representatives from Tabaret and Tattersalls. Time was then spent searching for a venue, which concluded with talking to the proprietors of the Maffra Hotel.

The newly formed group leased the hotel with an option to buy. They then did a low-cost renovation and gained a gaming licence.

To raise the money they needed for the project, they borrowed from local sporting group members and business owners through an unsecured debenture scheme. “They were promised about eight per cent interest, which at

the time was above bank interest rates,” Kevin said. “It could have fallen over but the Maffra community wanted it to happen.”

During the second year, the club were able to pay back the debenture holders and borrow money from the bank to purchase the freehold. Kevin said the club successfully continued on from there. “It’s a non-profit incorporated association with all its members owning the freehold and the profits are distributed to sporting clubs and individuals for sporting endeavours.”

Brett Pund has been club president for more than seven years. He said the club opened in 1997 and to date has given direct donations to local sporting clubs in excess of 1.3 million dollars.

Over the years, there have been a few renovations and recently a major renovation that has taken 12 months to complete. It was funded by a mortgage taken out with the Maffra and District Community (Bendigo) Bank.

“It’s a modern venue but we’ve managed to keep the character of the original hotel by keeping a lot of the old brickwork, the steel beams and some of the old Baltic pine flooring,”

Club manager John Mackay in the Members Lounge with head chef Kara Castles

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MAFFRA COMMUNITY SPORTS CLUB Brett said. “It’s a bit of a trend in pubs and clubs to do that. One of the first things we did was put back the verandah, which was taken off the front of the building during the late 1980s.”

During the building process, the community could still access the gaming machines and the bar. Brett said since the renovations, the gaming machines while still being an important part of the business, haven’t had the same focus which has been an unexpected result.

They are housed in a space of their own and barely visible from other parts of the club.

“Personally I like to have a bit of a flutter and I know there are people who don’t think they’re a great thing but we balance that out with the benefits to the town. The money is not lining anyone’s pockets or going into big hotel chains but back to the community.”

The club presently employs between 30 and 40 part-time, full-time and casual staff and provides training opportunities for young people. “The staff are fantastic and very much part of the club,” Brett said. “One of our permanent staff members built our big boardroom table, which is awesome. Kara Castles, our dedicated head chef is a local girl who completed all her training in some of the best restaurants in Melbourne.”

Staff members Wendy Sweeney and Amy Coleman

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The club only employs local people and pays an annual salary of around 1.2 million dollars, which then goes around the town. The club also sources all the fresh produce used in their menus from local producers.

He said their manager John Mackay, who came to them with 25 years’ experience in the industry and previous involvement with major renovations, was a big part of the building process. “For 12 months he lived and breathed the project and was onto everything - the builders, designers and the layout in terms of input.”

John has lived and worked in the Maffra community for the last three years and previously worked in Melbourne clubs. “My wife and I have always had a holiday shack in Gippsland and we took the chance to make a permanent tree change when this position became available,” he said.

“Many of the clubs in Melbourne don’t really have identities. They become places where people pay a membership only to gain the advantages, whereas the members here have a real community spirit and genuinely want to see it do well. People in Maffra are really proud of their thriving little town.”

He said the project over the last year has been a bit daunting for everyone but they couldn’t be more pleased with the result. “We have been blessed since the day we re-opened with a terrific crowd from very minimal advertising.

It’s great that people have taken to it like they have.”

Photographs supplied by Maffra Community Sports Club Staff photos by Lauren Murphy Photography

“Working in the club and with the committee has been terrific. Committees always make life interesting but the great thing about this committee is they all want what’s best for Maffra which is not usual in club land.

John Mackay, Kara Castles, Brett Pund and Kevin Lanigan in Captain Johnson's Bar and Bistro

Maffra Gymnastic Club Incorporated The Maffra Gymnastic Club is a communitybased, not-for-profit organisation that has the aim of teaching and promoting ‘Gymnastics for All’, in an ‘inclusive’ setting catering for people of all ages and abilities.

Maffra Gymnastic Club is a nationally acclaimed and award winning club which includes being named as a past winner of the National Club of the Year by Gymnastics Australia. This award was recognised as the most prestigious for General Gymnastics in the country, at the time. Maffra Gymnastics also won Gymnastic Victoria’s 2015 Gymnastic Club of the Year.

The Maffra Gymnastic Club continues to work towards being a “fun, friendly and inclusive” club, where everyone feels welcome and has the opportunity to learn and develop their skills, confidence and well-being.

In 2015, Maffra Gymnastic Club was awarded a Victorian Health Promotion Foundation Award in acknowledgement of the work being done in the area of ‘Building Health through Sport’ and community ‘inclusion’.

PROGRAM SESSION OPTIONS: PERMANENT PROGRAMS • Kindergym (18 months - 4 years) • Girls and Boys Recreation Classes • Girls and Boys Squad/Competition Classes • Adult Gymnastics COMMUNITY PROGRAMS • School and Pre-School Groups • Special Needs Abilities Groups • Club Fit – for Sporting Groups • Birthday Parties Maffra Gymnastic Club Incorporated Cameron Sporting Complex Morison Street, MAFFRA 3860 Telephone: (03) 5141 1211 e-mail: admin@maffragymnastics.org.au www.maffragymnastics.org.au Photography by Imaginative Images

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C Grade premiers 1989-90

SMCA Premiers 1991-92

Maffra Cricket Club...

Cricket was first played in the Maffra area back in the 1860s, prior to the Maffra Cricket Club forming; the club was established in 1882.

Allan Evans, showcasing the history of this great club, has written a brilliant book and as Allan says in his Preamble, “a cricket club isn't only about runs and wickets, it is also about the characters who comprise its membership”.

Gippsland the Lifestyle feels privileged to be able to share some of this history of the Maffra Cricket Club in our latest edition, thanks to the assistance of Brett Lanigan.

Nestanglo's Premiership B Grade team 1953-54

A Grade Premiers 1980-81

SMCA 2nd XI Premiers 1991-92

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SMJCA Under 16 Premiers 2006-07

John Hall, John McConnell and Dallas Steele with their labourers, Chris Durrant and Stephen Lanigan

First Female President Fiona Thackray

150 Not Out!

SMCA Premiers 2008-09

A Grade Premiers 1979-80

Curators, Brian and Heath Shingles and John McConnell put the final touches on the wicket before the Melbourne University - Frankston match in 2005.

Maffra Cricket Club 1st XI Premiers 2011-12

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Maffra’s Golf Club Has Everything

By Wendy Morriss

Maffra Golf Club, which is just 10 minutes off the Princes Highway, is more than a magnificent golf course and well worth a visit. The club’s relaxed, welcoming, friendly atmosphere and comradery is evident the moment anyone walks through the clubroom door.

Maffra’s beautiful golf course The golf course, established more than 60 years ago, is located in an attractive serene country setting with a view of the Great Dividing Range.

For visitors travelling to the area and planning a longer stay, the club also has a recreational vehicle and caravan park with powered and unpowered sites and shower, toilet and change room facilities. The fees are low and visitors can enjoy the surrounding area, a round or two of golf, a walk through the golf course or a quiet drink at the club’s bar.

Sue Horsford, who is club secretary, said what makes the club different to so many others is

President Rick Murray with two of his grandchildren

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the friendliness. “The club is open to new members and visitors, everyone here is just so friendly and the bonus is the beautiful golf course.”

She said a very experienced grounds person and many dedicated volunteers passionately maintain the course. The immaculate fairways and fast greens provide a challenge for serious golfers but also enjoyment for beginners and occasional golfers.

“We also have a very active and supportive ladies committee who do a lot of catering and fund raising.”

The youngest and oldest member of the club in 2001 Laura Freeman with Athol Releh playing on the 18th green

Rick Murray, who is the club’s president, said everyone tries to make people feel welcome and they are proud of the history and of what people have achieved over time. Many members volunteer to work in and around the club, which everyone benefits from. “I don’t know what it is about the Maffra community but they really do get behind their sporting clubs and make them great.”

For more information on Maffra Golf Club phone 0351 471 884.

Club President Rick Murray and Secretary Sue Horsford

118-120 Johnson Street, Maffra (03) 51472200 4 Temple Street, Heyfield (03) 51483007 MAFFRA

HEYFIELD

Gippsland Real Estate operates offices in Maffra and Heyfield to service these towns and the surrounding district. The four directors of Gippsland Real Estate Pty Ltd boast a combined experience in excess of 90 years in the local real estate market. We have five Licensed Estate Agents, three auctioneers, two dedicated Rural Agents, three Property Managers with combined experience in excess of 25 years, support staff and receptionists. Gippsland Real Estate staff are motivated, highly trained and qualified. The company has an emphasis on staff training and bringing a fresh and innovative approach to real estate services.

We specialise in all facets of real estate including: • House and land sales • Rural sales • Property Management • Commercial sales and leasing • Industrial land • Developments • Owners Corporation Management We are members of the Real Estate Institute of Victoria and abide by its strict Code of Conduct and Professional Standards. We are committed to providing superior customer service delivered professionally, with honesty and integrity and always in the best interest of our clients.

The team at Gippsland Real Estate has a thorough knowledge of the Maffra and Heyfield townships and surrounding district and contribute to a wide range of community and sporting activities through personal involvement and/or sponsorship.

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT Gippsland Real Estate is a passionate supporter of the local communities in which it operates. It places a great emphasis on contributing to the success of local businesses, groups, sporting clubs and charities. The following organisations are some that have received support by way of sponsorship, donation or personal involvement: Boisdale-Briagolong Football Netball Club Inc Cancer Council of Victoria, Maffra Branch Heyfield Bowls Club Inc Heyfield & District Museum Heyfield Football Netball Club Inc Heyfield Lions Club Heyfield Traders Association Lake Glenmaggie Community Rep. Group Little Jem Foundation Maffra Bowls Club Inc

Maffra Business & Tourism Association Maffra Community Sports Club Maffra Cricket Club Inc Maffra Croquet Club Inc Maffra & District Agricultural Society Maffra Fire Brigade Maffra Football Netball Club Inc Maffra Golf Club Inc Maffra Junior Football Club Inc Maffa Lawn Tennis Club Inc

Maffra Lions Club Maffra Municipal Band Inc Nambrok Football Club Probus Club of Maffra Relay for Life Rotary Club of Maffra Sale-Maffra Cricket Association St. Mary’s Primary School

Like us on facebook

www.gippslandrealestate.com Pat Weatherley 0412 435 644

Brett Lanigan 0427 517 577

Lindsay Wigg 0427 471 088

Kevin Lanigan 0408 472 566

David Wadey 0429 483 007

Paul Bourke 0428 451 366

Tim Missen 0488 483 000

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MAFFRA MONE Y

By Wendy Morriss

(Left) MBTA Treasurer Nick Munro, Member Peta Allman, President Marcus Stobie, Secretary Kevin Read and Member Narelle Gray (front)

The recently formed Maffra Business and Tourism Association has launched ‘Maffra Money’, a unique gift voucher system designed to keep money in the town, support local business and grow the local economy.

Association secretary Kevin Read said the vouchers are purchased by businesses in the community through the association’s base, which is a retail outlet owned and operated by committee member Peta Allman. Consumers can then use them in any participating shops or businesses throughout Maffra and the surrounding district. “It’s a great way to support the local economy,” he said.

Marcus Stobie who is president of the association, said the benefit to the consumer is, instead of receiving a voucher to use in a specific retail store; they can use them across many local retailers, businesses and hospitality outlets. “It encourages people to buy locally which benefits everyone in the community.

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“It’s an option for businesses to hand out incentives or Christmas bonuses in the form of vouchers to their employees. This keeps money circulating in the town, which builds the businesses and in turn creates more employment.”

Peta said the local sporting clubs can use the vouchers in their raffles, so the prizes can be whatever a person chooses.

“They can only be used at participating outlets.” Marcus said. “However, the amount of businesses accepting Maffra Money is steadily growing.”

He said a single voucher can’t be split between different shops and if the total of the items purchased are less than the voucher, it’s up to the individual business to decide whether or not to reimburse the difference. More often the total of items purchased, go over the voucher amount.

Kevin said the voucher system works from a float that is empty until the first participating business purchases them. “If, for example, I come to Peta and buy a 100 dollar voucher, that money goes into the float and when someone uses the voucher in the town, that business owner then comes back to redeem the 100 dollars.”

Maffra Money was originally an initiative that successfully existed ten years ago.

It was managed through Stobies Mensland retail store and instigated by the town’s former Chamber of Commerce.

The non-profit organisation ceased operating five years ago, which left the Maffra business community without a voice or communal support.

keeping money in the town support local business grow the local economy The Maffra Community Christmas Festival

In September 2015, a group of new generation traders re-launched the business group as the Maffra Business and Tourism Association.

“Maffra is growing, it’s now more progressive and the MBTA is more in line with what the town is currently doing,” Kevin said.

“It’s about getting more business into the town and tourism into the area.”

“The first six months was more like a think tank period where we just looked at what direction we wanted to take it in,” Marcus said. “Now we have some general items and it’s more about ticking those items off and steadily following through with our plans.”

Last December, the association held a Christmas festival for the community in the main street. “We formed a sub-committee for it and six weeks out from the date, we started putting things in place,” Peta said. “It was the first Christmas festival in Maffra so we didn’t have any real expectations but it was a massive night and a great success. It was a way for the community to catch up with each other during their busy lives. We had a giant Father Christmas, lights in the town’s huge Morton Bay Fig tree, things for kids to do, free giveaways and plenty of stalls. Almost 2000 people came out to enjoy it. It’s something we now plan to hold as an annual event.”

agenda include getting more businesses into the town to fill any empty shops, getting new signage up coming into the town to attract more visitors and to be involved in the Shire’s planned redevelopment of the main street.

“Maffra is the largest town off a major freeway, highway or thoroughfare in Australia,” Marcus said, and according to Kevin it’s the king of the back roads. “Also if you look at a map of Gippsland you’ll see that we are smack bang in the middle of it. We are Central Gippsland others call it but we are in the middle.”

For more information email: maffrabta@gmail.com

The MBTA has recently aligned with the Sale Business and Tourism Association to develop a shop local campaign. Other items on the group’s

A Maffra Money gift voucher

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Affordable Accommodation | FOX Sports | TAB facilities

2 Johnson Street, Maffra 3860 ph: 5147 1054

HOTEL HOURS

BISTRO & BAR MEALS

Monday - Saturday 11 am – 1 am Sunday 11 am – 11 pm

LUNCH Monday - Sunday 12 noon – 2 pm DINNER Monday - Sunday 6 pm – 8 pm

PUND & ASSOCIATES ACCOUNTANTS & BUSINESS ADVISORS

Growth

Cash Flow

Freedom

Success

Pund & Associates is a privately owned Full Service Accounting Practice based in Maffra, with a dedicated and professional team led by Chartered Accountant Brett Pund.

Brett has over 20 years’ experience advising small to medium business in various industries.

His expertise includes advice and implementation on all aspects of business establishment, succession planning, business improvement, financial modelling and business structures.

PUND & ASSOCIATES ALSO PROVIDE THE FOLLOWING SERVICES: ❖ Taxation Return Preparation for Businesses and Individuals ❖ Self Managed Superfund Compliance ❖ Business Services & Advice ❖ Budgeting and Cashflow Preparation ❖ Audit (Non profit organisations) ❖ Employer Services (Payroll processing and advice) ❖ Corporate Affairs Handling The Team at Pund & Associates work closely with our clients to help them achieve their financial goals and assist in making their business work for them.

PUND & ASSOCIATES 1-3 Pearson Street, Maffra, 3860 | PO Box 651, Maffra, 3860 Ph: 03 5141 1605 Fx: 03 5141 1608 Em: office@pundandassociates.com.au

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MAFFRA SHOWCASE JEWELLERS

your personal jeweller

Mon-Fri 9.00am-5.30pm /Saturday 9.00am-12.00pm 109 Johnson Street, MAFFRA 3860 Phone: (03) 5147 1972

OPEN MONDAY TO FRIDAY WELLA PROFESSIONAL SALON IVY BLACK Hair Studio 0407 392 003 Jac | Stace | Jordan

INNER BEAUTY 0477 055 500 Lilly

COSMETIC REJUVENATION 0412 467 985 Malu

62 JOHNSON STREET, MAFFRA 3860 gippsland lifestyle 'Our Towns' online ����

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Dodge cars for sale in 1948

r John

rothe olin’s b

Leaning on the car are brothers Naught (left) and Jock McDonald (right)

nald

McDo

ninety years of business

C

Donalda Motors is a love story that became a business story 90 years ago in Maffra. The business, now operated by third generation director Murray McDonald and his father Colin, sells and services motor vehicles, tractors and farm machinery. The company currently employs 29 people including Murray’s daughter Jemma.

Murray’s grandfather John, who was known to everyone as Jock, started the business in 1926 with his brother Naughton, who was known as Naught. They were both motor mechanics from Melbourne and they came to Maffra to set up a mechanical workshop because Naught was in love with a girl who lived in the town.

Naught had worked in Melbourne for a company that sold Rolls Royce cars while Jock worked for a company that imported Dodge cars. The family remained friendly with the importer so a little while later they added a Dodge car dealership to the business. “Dodge eventually became Chrysler Australia and then they were taken over by Mitsubishi, which is the dealership we have today,” Colin said.

By Wendy Morriss

In 1946, his uncle Naught left the business and started his own in Lakes Entrance. Jock, who had two sons and a daughter named Jeanette, continued running the business at Maffra. His son John (now deceased) who was ten years older than Colin joined the business in 1948 and Colin started working in the business in 1957 when he was 16 years old. “I was always a mechanic,” Colin said, “and John worked on the sales side of the business.

“During the war, horses faded out and tractors came in. After it ended, Dad could see the need for a tractor dealership in the area and in 1950, he started selling little Ferguson tractors and Standard cars. The business is still a Massey Ferguson dealership selling tractors and farm machinery, which are so much bigger now than they were then.”

Colin’s son Murray joined the business in 1984.

He started as a motor mechanic and now works in sales and operates the business with Colin.

Colin’s wife Jennifer operates a tractor and machinery business they have in Bairnsdale.

Jemma & her grandfather Colin McDonald in front of the 90-year-old family business

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First petrol pump in Maffra being installed in 1927

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Jock M

cDona

ld

Jemma, who is the second youngest of Murray’s four children, started working in the spare parts section of the business almost four years ago at the age of 17. She now works in the office doing the paper work for tractor and farm machinery sales. “We sell a lot of tractors and farm machinery. It’s a big part of the business, more than cars really,” she said. “We have Murray Goulburn in Maffra so there are a lot of dairy farms in the area and vegie farms.

We are a Massey Ferguson dealer but we sell other tractors as well.”

The delightful fourth generation McDonald said she likes working in the family business. “Dad and I sometimes have different opinions but it’s really good. I enjoy it.”

Colin said over the years, the business has employed several local people who started when they were 16 years old and stayed until they retired. He hasn’t retired yet and still enjoys being part of the business but said he doesn’t do as much work as he used to.

Murray McDonald

MAFFRA

BAIRNSDALE

131 Johnson Street, Maffra Victoria 3860 P: (03) 5147 1744 F: (03) 5147 3200 E: sales@donalda.com.au

672 – 678 Princes Highway, Bairnsdale Victoria 3875 P: (03) 5152 3058 F: (03) 5152 5899 LMCT 2

www.donaldamotors.com.au

Café

By Geoff Watt

It's nice to know Gippsland has always supported disadvantaged groups in our community.

A prime example in Maffra goes back nearly sixty years to 1957 when Sister Flora Johns drove the idea to develop a service for children with an intellectual disability. With the help of two teachers and a few other volunteers, a Saturday morning session with a small group of children began.

From these humble beginnings the program has gone through much growth and change, having included at various times a Special Development School, an Independent Living Skills Residential Service, an Adult Training Service and even a Hydroponics Farm. All of these services impacted positively on the development of the George Gray Centre Inc. Support Services, which has just recently celebrated fifty years of service to the community.

and all of the programs are based on the individual needs of the participants attending. They currently cater for over one hundred and fifteen participants with a disability.

In 1987 a cafe was developed in Maffra and in 1991 a garden service work crew was also established, and it is these latter two that continue to shine today. They are invaluable as employment training programs and are complemented by two Disability Support Services for persons with a disability. One of the support services is based in Maffra at the George Gray Centre and one at their other campus at the Wellington Community Connect Facility in Sale. Both support services provide vocational, recreational and independent living skills programs

I was fortunate enough to take some time out of CEO Ian Hunt's busy day to have a chat and learn more. Ian has been CEO of the George Gray Centre Inc. for the past eleven years and is responsible for overseeing all services provided by GGC and is well supported by an excellent management team.

I visited the lovely garden surrounds of Foster Place Cafe in Maffra where I met Ian for our chat.

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The Supported Employment Programs that I visited - the café and work crew - are all about empowering the participants by teaching them vital work skills and good work habits that will give them every opportunity to move into open employment.

The organisation and its history is a credit to the township of Maffra. The number of families and

individuals it has assisted and empowered over the past fifty years is incalculable. Ian explains that there is also a great holiday program for the participants who access interstate trips, bush camps and also day trips to places such as Melbourne and Sovereign Hill.

Over the previous twelve months they have even had a couple of ship cruises for small groups. This program is one of many provided by GGC that puts purpose into the participant's days by getting them out into the broader community and experiencing new places and situations. Employees from the Café and work crews also have the opportunity to access the holiday program, the cost of which is very competitive against similar trips through professional travel companies, but has the added bonus of trained support staff accompaniment.

Ian explains the process for staffing the Cafe, "Those in the Support Service Programs who wish to move into employment will be identified

and that feeds the staffing at the Cafe. When first entering the service they will complete a M.I.P. (My Individual Plan) and will tick their preferences for employment - it could be the work crew or the Cafe or it might be somewhere else in the community.

The Cafe is staffed by a bank of twelve people with a disability over any given week and supported generally by about two Employment Officers."

Skills such as cooking, food prep, cash register operation, table service, etc are all invaluable skills for the participants to learn. All employees interact directly with the general community, and of course in a café environment there are many times when 'the pressure is on' - so this is an amazing skill development program.

Getting the right people into the job of Employment Officer is crucial to the success of the businesses,

"It's really important for the organisation that a person working in the industry has empathy for people with a disability, a respect for their skills and what they can achieve and have a strong work ethic.

It's a terrific work environment we've developed here and all employees really enjoy coming to work and interacting with other staff and the community."

The difference that working in the Cafe makes to all employees seems to be something of a great, untold story. I ask Cafe Manager Lou Regan if there is feedback from the parents, perhaps thankful their adult son or daughter now has a place to go and interact with the community - a place to learn and empower. Both Lou and Ian reply with a resounding "Yes". Lou elaborates on one in particular, "One girl that started when she was eighteen about three years ago didn't have a great relationship with her mum. She has matured incredibly working here and now has a great relationship with her mum.

I've spoken with her mum who is really impressed by the way her daughter's whole attitude has changed."

One would assume that the Cafe would certainly take a lot of frustration out of the lives of the Cafe employees with a disability, who may have been sitting at home bored if not given the opportunity to use the skills they undoubtedly have. Another thing that the Cafe and work crew would give the participants is a social life. When you think about it, how many of our friends come from the places where we have worked?

The Cafe is well supported by the local community as it has an extensive menu, good service and is popular with many young parents due to its outside secure play area. Manager Lou Regan seems to represent the passion and drive around this venture when she says: "I've got a vision for this place, I think it has a lot of potential. We've had some outdoor furniture especially made for children when they accompany their family to the Cafe and we are just in the process of painting them." It seems that there is a real pride in the Cafe.

Ian further elaborates: "Our aim is to find the employees long term open employment. Obviously there will be some that may not attain the skills needed to move onto open employment but the interactions they have with the public and the skills they achieve make it a great avenue for personal development. We give all employees the opportunity to expand their skills, so their horizons are broadened."

It is still hard for some whose disability may mean they need adaptive equipment and if it is not available to them, it can further restrict their transition into open employment. For example Foster Place Cafe will make an effort to provide equipment that will make it easier for someone with a vision impairment to operate a cash register, but if this is not provided for in open employment, their opportunities may be limited. But no matter what percentage end up going into open employment, the bottom line is that one hundred per cent of the participants that come through here have enhanced their work, social and communicative skills - and this enables them to be more active in their lives and in their community.

The other main employment program is the work crew, which is a contract gardening service.

Ian elaborates, "The service originally focused on domestic lawn mowing and gardening and then after a time we had more equipment so we started tendering for larger contracts. Each tender is obtained on their merits, as is the continuing renewal of existing contracts." I was also lucky enough to speak to Glen Cater, the Manager of the work crews who told me, "There are four groups of three workers with a disability with each group supervised by an Employment Officer. They have around two hundred contracts both commercial and domestic over a rotating three week period."

Glen spoke enthusiastically about the work ethic of those crews and mentioned that the greatest reward was seeing the sense of pride the workers have - saying "we mowed that".

So if you are hankering for a great coffee and muffin, or perhaps something more substantial such as Gourmet Wraps and Focaccias, Nachos or Lasagna, this is the place. Where else do you go to enjoy a great meal and also assist persons with a disability to improve their opportunity for long term employment? Foster Place Cafe is the place.

The Cafe also has a function room, which they can provide catering for birthdays, Christmas functions, etc up to 40 people. Local commercial enterprises also avail of the great catering services in the function room.

Cafe Opened Tuesday to Friday 8:30 to 4:30pm Ph: 5147-1335 www.georgegray.org.au Ph: 5147-2221 Photographs by Wildwood Photography

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Deborah, Sonya and Nicole at Cafe

The George Gray Centre Inc. is a not for profit organisation recently celebrating 50 years of service to the Wellington Shire, providing both a day service and supported employment opportunities for persons with a disability. Over 125 participants attend the service.

Its prime aim is to provide supports across a range of lifestyle areas including daily living and vocational skills, community participation, inclusion, employment and recreation.

The supported employment component of the service is called Foster Place Business Service providing both a garden maintenance service and a commercially run café.

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Foster Place Café is situated in the small township of Maffra and provides hospitality opportunities to twelve employees with a disability.

The café is situated in a beautiful garden setting and is a popular destination for many community members residing in the district.

Each day the employees are gaining valuable paid work experience learning to operate the cash register, food preparation and waiting on the many customers. The café is highly competitive with other cafes in the township and is well known for its excellent food and coffee and has been operating for nearly thirty years.

The aim of the dedicated staff is to train all employees to a high standard, enabling them to consider a career in open employment in the hospitality industry. One recent employee, Riley, has recently achieved further employment in a local hotel.

It is a happy workplace environment with a strong team approach and provides vital employment opportunities to persons with a disability who may otherwise never have that opportunity.

By Leonie, Manager Foster Place

Tuesday - Friday 8.30am - 4pm 21 Foster Street, MAFFRA, 3860 Tel: (03) 5147 1335 gippsland lifestyle 'Our Towns' online ����

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Brothers and business partners Marcus and Ben Stobie

STOBIE’S Land and Surf

By Wendy Morriss

A favourite destination for many consumers is Stobies Land and Surf, a unique retail Brothers Marcus and Ben Stobie are third generation owners who carry a large range of high quality street and surf wear for men, women and children. The popular traders are relaxed, fun loving and helpful. They offer exceptional service and enjoy providing their customers with an old-style bricks and mortar retail experience.

“We love what we do,” Marcus said, “and we have so much support from our community. We see local characters who have been shopping

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here for many years and there are always new and interesting people coming through the door. The younger generation coming into the town are great and we enjoy the challenge of keeping them happy and satisfied.”

Marcus and Ben purchased the business from their father Geoff Stobie in 2006. His father Marcus Morton Stobie, who was known to everyone as Mort, purchased the business originally in 1952 from a man called Gordon Green.

Geoff said his father had previously served in the Australian Navy. He joined at the age of 18 and left when he was 40 and had a young family. He served part of that time on the HMAS Sydney and fortunately was taken off the ship two weeks before it sank. After leaving the Navy, Mort came back to his home town of Maffra and worked at Nestle for 12 months before purchasing the business.

He ran the men’s drapery business as a sole trader and worked on his own in the store for 15

Ben, Geoff and Marcus Stobie

Marcus Morton Stobie during his naval career and the HMAS Sydney

establishment with an interesting history in Gippsland’s beautiful town of Maffra. years until Geoff came into the business at the age of 16 years. Sadly his father died in 1966 and Geoff who was then 19 years old was left to continue running the family business.

“In his day, it was a typical small shop that you could make a living from, a bit like the farms in the area then,” Geoff said.

“He used to have Akubra hats, which we sold all the time and work wear was huge. Farmers would come in and buy rubber boots, jungle green work pants, flannelette shirts and woollen jumpers. It was about a third of his trade. He also had a rack of suits and sports coats.”

Around the same time, Mort’s mother Ivy Stobie ran a commercial knitting enterprise in the town.

She operated four large knitting machines and had a man working for her. “She worked with those machines right up until she was 80 years

old,” Geoff said. “It was the only way you could get a jumper then that was a bit different like a school or football jumper. We’ve had people come into the shop years later and even recently they still have a jumper she knitted.”

He said when he was 20 years old; denim jeans became available in Australia. They were Levi 501’s with a button up fly. After that jeans became very popular. Levi’s range of jeans increased and then other brands came in. He had one large area in the shop just for jeans and

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Geoff retired from the business at the age of 60.

He said the reason he went into the business was because of his father and the only reason he stayed in it for so long was because he really loved it.

Marcus and Ben were working in Melbourne.

They came back to Maffra in their late teens and ran an electrical store. “I wanted to keep it going because I was into music,” Marcus said, “and Ben followed his girlfriend back to Melbourne. A few years later he came back and decided working in the shop with Dad was where he wanted to be. Meanwhile, the electrical business had become too competitive to continue with so we decided to move the business on. It coincided with Dad wanting to retire and I wanted to be part of the business so we decided to buy it from him and go into partnership.”

He said they started with a yellow and pink cool surf store and traditional men’s wear shop but over the years, they’ve had to keep the business current and relevant and keep moving with the times. “During Dad’s time EFTPOS came in and he had to deal with that transition. He then had to face another challenge in the 80s when the large shopping complexes opened.

“The challenge for us going forward is online shopping so we have to market ourselves pretty heavily. People now have the luxury of shopping everywhere and anywhere so we have to give them a reason to come here. If we just opened the door and hoped for the best now we wouldn’t succeed. We have to be very proactive.”

Their business partnership is strong.

“Ben and I have always been close.

We are flexible guys, we have a laugh, enjoy each other’s company and we don’t take things too seriously."

"Ben was married when we took over the business. I think the most challenging time for him was during the first five years when I was single and probably not as reliable as he was in terms of turning up to work on time and turning up in the right frame of mind. But now we are both married with children and established here for the long term.”

sold about 200 pair a week to both men and women. A few years after the arrival of jeans, surf brands came in, which were extremely popular and the first one he stocked was Rip Curl.

His work wear continued to sell well for another 20 years until dedicated work wear shops were established and the range extended to compulsory safety gear. Flannelette shirts however, remained very popular and still are today.

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In 1978, Geoff joined the Mensland Group and the store known as Stobies became Stobies Mensland. Then in 1984, after it became evident they wouldn’t be able to make a living from the small area they had, the store was extended to double its size.

He said when he first took over the business, there weren’t any travelling sales reps. He had to go to Flinders Lane in Melbourne to buy stock but he could practically fill the store from that lane and everything then was made in Australia.

“When Dad first retired, there was a time when we both thought is this bloke ever going to just leave. He would show his face probably four or five times a day but then gradually he got used to retirement and started doing things he enjoyed. We call him ‘The Boots’; he’s the spare parts guy. He still calls in after 10 years and he helps us during the Christmas period when we are busy or when Ben and I need to go to Melbourne buying. He’s great to have around and it’s amazing how many older customers still come in and enjoy seeing him.”

STOBIE’S Land and Surf

Biggest & Best range of quality Men's & Ladies Clothing in the area... Guaranteed!

Since 1951

For any enquiries, no matter how big or small, contact the team.

60 Johnson Street Maffra, VIC 3860 Ph - (03) 51472333 Mon- Fri: 9am-5.30pm | Sat: 9am-12noon Find us on Facebook & Instagram gippsland lifestyle 'Our Towns' online ����

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Like many great ideas in Australia, the one to form the Gippsland Vehicle Collection (GVC) came about over a few beers.

The Grand Prix Rally had travelled through Maffra for the third time in a row and the Maffra and District Car Club had organised a display of cars to line Johnson Street.

That night there was a function at the Maffra Hall and three men got talking.

“We were saying it was a shame that all the great cars on show would be pushed back into their sheds and not seen again,” GVC Executive Member, Peter Quennell said.

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“One had just been to the Launceston Motor Museum and was very impressed with it. Yack, yack and a few more beers and we decided ‘we could do that’.”

And do it they did. That conversation led to two years of “hard slog” that transformed a dilapidated, abandoned building into Maffra’s, and the wider region’s, premier tourist attraction.

Since then it has displayed 3,200 vehicles, had about 93,750 people through its doors, held 32 display days and provided immeasurable hours of nostalgia, memories, education, insight and laughs for members and visitors alike.

A key feature of the GVC is that its exhibition isn’t static, but changes every four months, in line with three different display themes each year. The current display, Never Been Kissed, features vehicles that have been preserved rather than restored. On November 13, that exhibition will change over and the Off Roaders exhibition will be launched.

“We do have permanent pieces, but it was important to us that the Collection be constantly changing, so it can remain as big an attraction for locals as it is for visitors,” Mr Quennell said.

“We get such a great array of vehicles in here, you don’t have to be an enthusiast. We have

COLLECTION

some very rare, unique and otherwise special vehicles that the enthusiasts get very excited about. But our visitors get just as excited by seeing a vehicle that reminds them of going on Sunday drives with their grandparents, or visiting their cousins’ farm when they were kids.”

But that is just one dimension of the GVC. “We can give you statistics on how many people have come to Maffra to visit the motor museum and what the economic value has been to the region, but the real story goes beyond that,” Executive Member Sue Lawrence said.

By Kellie Willis

“The real story is about a group of people from all backgrounds and walks of life, who would never have had any reason to know each other but for their vehicles. The way they have come together to build this incredible asset and the connections they have forged has been something quite amazing,” she said.

“It really is a strong community of people who not only work hard to support the Motor Museum but who provide the same support for each other when it’s needed.”

“Most vehicle enthusiasts talk to their vehicles,” Mr Quennell added with a grin.

“But to have a whole organisation of people who share your passion is something quite powerful.”

As much as the incredible array of vehicles on show, these volunteers form the character, allure and uniqueness of the GVC and make it a place to keep coming back to.

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FRENCH THEME

MAFFRA'S 128th SHOW

By Wendy Morriss

Continuous innovative ideas and an enormous amount of community support have made the Maffra and District Show an outstanding annual country event.

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Show committee president Matt Coleman and show committee life member Jen McDavitt Photo by Michael Coggan

The show has represented Maffra and the surrounding district’s agricultural community for 128 years. The first show, which was held on Wednesday March 21st, in 1888 was officially opened by the then State Premier Mr Duncan Gillies. The following day, the Maffra Spectator newspaper made reference to the newly erected showroom on the grounds stating it was ‘equal to the best in the colony’.

This year, the Maffra Show, which is to be held on October 21st and 22nd, will be enhanced with a French theme. The Murray Goulburn food and wine court will hold cooking demonstrations by a celebrity chef, a frog in the pond competition for children and a pate competition for adults.

There will be snail races, a Tour de France, live music, gourmet food, local wine and beer, preparation and cooking of escargot, Frenchstyle cheese making and more.

Other items on the agenda include equestrian events, livestock judging (cattle, ponies, poultry and goats), junior calf rearing, Maffra’s Rainbow Cake with a Twist, pet parade, animal nursery, wood chop, Shetland Derby, whip cracking, mechanical bull, vintage cars and engines,

chainsaw sculpting, wood turning, Eco-shed, health awareness stands, food, art, craft and floral displays, side show and rides, KoKo the Clown, Jim the Magician and Cirque Mystique Mime.

The many wonderful displays and activities over the two-day period will conclude with a night carnival and fireworks display, which again is sure to make the Maffra Show a resounding success.

President of the show committee Matt Coleman said each year they try to maintain a traditional country show while adding many other novel and interesting items to the program.

He said unique to Maffra show is the Maffra Mile foot race, the Brian Daley Demolition Derby and being the first show in the area to host the School Friday program, an education day for children from multiple schools in the district that provides them with an opportunity to learn more about the show, what’s on offer and how to become involved.

Another item unique to Maffra Show is an artistic animal project. “Each year we have large ply

Jen McDavitt and Matt Coleman

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board cut outs of a particular animal displayed around the ground that have been painted by passionate local artists,” he said. “It’s been a really successful ongoing program for the last five years that involves another local group and it’s well supported.”

Matt is a third generation dairy farmer in the area and second generation of family involved in the Maffra Show. “My father was involved in the show for about 25 years so I grew up with it,” he said. “I was a steward and I took my calves for the calf rearing competition. It’s a great community event that I’m really passionate about and we are very grateful for the support we get from the local community.”

Jen McDavitt, who is a life member has lived in the Maffra district for more than 40 years and has been a member of the show committee for more than 20 years.

“What is great about the Maffra Show is we’ve been able to keep that original rural atmosphere while creating a lot of fun. A family friendly show that caters for all age groups providing great spectator and participation opportunities.” she said. “It’s a traditional country show with more.

We also have a very active committee and an enormous amount of fantastic community support.

“We’ve tried to keep the price down so it’s very affordable and there are many things people can do with minimal or no cost.”

MAFFRA & DISTRICT SOCIETY INC. EARLY STARTERS

Equestrian - Show Jumping 7.30am Horse Events 8.30am Stock horses 9.00am

LIVESTOCK JUDGING

Miniature Ponies & Shetlands 9.30am Poultry & Beef Cattle 9.30am Dairy Cattle & Goats 10.30am

FUN TO WATCH COMPETITIONS

Junior Calf Rearing 10.00am Rainbow Cake with a Twist 10.00am Primary School ‘French’ Cook-off 10.00am Pet Parade 12.00pm Miss Maffra & Tiny Tots 1.30pm Dog High Jump 3.30pm Wood Chop 5.30pm Shetland Derby 6.30pm Whip Cracking 6.45pm & 8.20pm

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128th

Jen also attended the show as a child. “My father always had a trade stand in the show for Wilmour Motors, the family’s Ford dealership in Maffra. My brother runs the business now and continues the tradition.

“When I first came onto the show committee, there were many trade stands but since then most of them have gone to field days. We’ve brought back some of the entertainment including the dog high jump, introduced new events and ideas and we established the night carnival. We now have a great country show that so many people put so much work into.”

For more information visit www.maffrashow.org.au

AGRICULTURAL PROGRAM – 2016

21st – 22nd OCTOBER ROVING FUN

KoKo the Clown- 10am - 2pm | Show 11am Jim the Magican - 12 - 4pm | Show 3pm Cirque Mystique Mime - 12 - 3pm

LOTS MORE TO SEE, DO, EAT & DRINK Two full exhibition pavilions - open till 9pm

DAY

MURRAY GOULBURN Wine & Food Court with a French Theme – cooking demonstrations, Frog in the Pond & Pate competitions, Snail Races, Tour de France, Live Music from 12-6pm, gourmet food & local wine & beer and more …

Also – Venomwise, animal nursery, vintage cars & engines, chainsaw sculpturing, wood turning, Artistic animals, Eco-Shed, Health awareness stands

NIGHT

Showmens’ Side Show & Rides, Mechanical Bull, Kids Zone fun, Demolition Derby, Country Kids Show, Maffra Mile, TC Trickz Trial Bikes & Fireworks

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Little dealer... big heart

WILMOUR MOTORS, THE LITTLE DEALER WITH THE BIG HEART!

The year was 1937, the worst of the Great Depression had passed and for John and Graham Wilson and James Ronald "Ron" Seymour it seemed like a good time to buy a business. On the 4th of October, 1937, Wilmour Motors was formed in what is still the little town of Maffra. One year later, at the ripe old age of 25, Ron bought out the Wilson brothers and continued to run Wilmour Motors with his sister, Noreen. Things went well at Wilmour Motors and in 1953 the dealership packed up from its original premises and moved further down Johnson Street, the main stretch in Maffra, to their brand new purpose-built Ford showroom. The selling point for the land was that it had been used as a circus showground and promised "soil well-fertilised by elephants"!

Wilmour Motors prospered as Ron built on a loyal local customer base. Through the war, and into the fifties, the small dealership delivered and serviced almost every Ford model from the early V8s, to Pilots, Twin Spinners and Customlines, until the release of the Falcon, and the modern era of cars which followed. As the years progressed, Wilmour Motors built a strong Ford brand loyalty in the Maffra region. In 1975, after nearly forty years of service to the people of Maffra and surrounds, a retiring Ron Seymour put out the call to his son, John, to "come home and take over the family business". John obliged, packed his bags, left the Ford factory in Broadmeadows and moved back to his home town.

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Since then, John has never looked back and is glad he kept the business in the family. Assuming all goes well in the new car trade, he hopes one of his own three sons will continue the business in years to come.

John has continued to build the business employing a friendly, knowledgeable and loyal team with one member of that team, the workshop manager Garry Berkelmans, who has been with him for over 40 years, which is considered a milestone in the service industry.

Workshop Manager - Garry Berkelmans reached his 40 year service milestone on 29 September 2015

Wilmour Motors boasts comprehensive workshop service as well as being an Official Ford Dealership stocking many different models in the Ford range.

Now celebrating 79 years in business, you would think Wilmour Motors would be heading towards retiring age. But there are just too many happy customers at Wilmour Motors to consider giving the business away. Businesses like Wilmour Motors are powerful examples of the strength of small business.

Supporting a local customer base are strong community ties built on long-standing historical relationships, and years of commitment and hard work. You can't buy that kind of loyalty and trust, it can only be earned.

...the little dealer with the Big Heart!

NEW CARS & USED VEHICLES

S E RV ICE D EPARTM EN T SERVICING VEHICLES / ALL MAKES & MODELS / FLEET SERVICING AIR CONDITIONING SERVICE & REPAIRS / AUTHORISED ROADWORTHY TESTER EFI INJECTOR CLEANING / ELECTRONIC 4 WHEEL ALIGNMENTS / LPG GAS REPAIRS & FITMENT TOW BAR & ACCESSORY FITMENT / REVERSE CAMERA & SENSOR FITMENT VEHICLE COLLECTION & DELIVERY ( LOCAL AREA )

163 Johnson Street, MAFFRA 3860 Phone: (03) 5147 1344 Email: admin@wilmour.autogrid.com.au wilmourmotors.com.au LMCT 1986

KEN ROBERTS HE‘ART’ & SOUL

By Ali Fullard Entering Ken Robert’s large, airy studio is like entering an Aladdin’s cave. A kaleidoscope of colours and textures from canvases, rugs, bookcases and collected items, saturates the senses in seconds. This, and the homely feel are an expression of the creative talents of this talented artist, writer, renovator, avid gardener and nurse, who resides in the township of Maffra. Ken’s home, a charming cottage, happens to be his childhood home and when he had a chance to purchase it he thought “why not?” It has been lovingly renovated, keeping many original items such as the kitchen sink from his childhood. Home life plays an integral part in his artistic journey.

His family has long ties with the area. Ken’s parents grew up in nearby Boisdale. Ken spent his childhood in Maffra, getting an education at St. Mary’s Catholic School and Maffra High School.

After leaving school, Ken worked in the office at Telecom in Sale for 16 years until a redundancy initiated a change of career. He undertook retraining as a nurse in Bairnsdale. Working as a nurse in McDonald Wing Nursing home at Maffra hospital (where Ken was also born) has been his main occupation for the last 21 years. Ken also spent some time living in nearby Boisdale.

So how did Ken become interested in Art? A trip to Greece while travelling the world when

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Ken was in his mid 20’s was the light bulb moment. Ken says, “I remember being in Greece, and looking at the blue sky and white buildings and thinking, ‘I want to paint that’.” Returning home, he started painting canvases using acrylic paint and the journey began! He says he is “self taught” and paints by “intuition with no rules”. He has continued to travel to many parts of the world but is always glad to return to his beloved area of Gippsland. Subject matter for his early works, were the people, objects and landscape Ken saw in his daily life. An early portrait of his father shows his future interest in portraiture and love of raw colour in the systematic pointillist technique of applying colour to the canvas in small dots. Ken feels “totally connected” to this land. Ken also states “Maffra is my muse. Family, people, places, environment.”

However, Ken feels his mum’s battle with throat cancer and 5 years of treatment was the main catalyst when he began to paint with a purpose. He was motivated to paint a portrait depicting her inner strength, and it was featured in a Cancer Council promotion. He also states about his mum, “How lucky am I to give the gift of recognition to the most important person in my life”. It got Ken thinking and led to him to speaking to and recording the lives of 25 local women. The underlying common theme according to Ken was “ordinary women, doing extraordinary things in their community”.

This series of portraits “Country Women Country Lives” in 2008 conveyed the strength, resilience and achievements of rural women. Ken states, “My country women exhibition, that l did for my mum, came full circle after l donated money from all the sales to Gippsland Women's Health Service who then established a wig bank for women suffering cancer. A fitting result to close the cancer circle and honour my mum.” A series of paintings of local men, titled “Country Men”, concentrating on similar themes followed in 2010.

An exhibition, “Portrait of a Country Town,” in 2011, documenting local and Maffra scenes, such as the main street and iconic buildings, saw recognition and a positive response from the community.

Being an aged care nurse also keeps Ken in touch with stories of Maffra’s past as he listens and goes about caring for the elderly. A few random stories that Ken wrote for ABC Open online became the impetus for a new compilation. Without, in his words “any idea” he wrote, published, distributed and advertised his book “Country Town Quilt”, which continues selling today. It is a patchwork of stories that detail life growing up in a country town.

Ken’s current artistic work is environment based and sees him using the traditional motifs of gum leaves, gumnuts, flowers and birds. However that

is where the tradition ends. They are depicted on large “in your face” canvases in a range of bright fluorescent acrylic colours. Ken states of these pieces, “They are fantasy pieces really. I don’t need to go away or walk out the door.” The line, form and shape combine to give a dizzying array of images in which the viewer can read into the pattern many images.

Ken uses facebook to broadcast his work and has a quite a following. A recent painting became an interesting experiment. He photographed the stages of the work, placed these on facebook, and received a variety of responses. One comment was “I love the bird in the bottom corner”. He may not have intended to paint a bird but the pattern has suggested such an image. Ken then highlighted this and actually turned it into the suggested form.

This willingness to be very interactive with his audience further shows that Ken is a being who really likes to connect with others and help give them a sense of belonging.

In a new venture Ken has designed a range of soft furnishings using specially printed fabric, depicting images from his vibrant paintings. These quality items, such as cushions, scarves and a variety of bags and small home wares are beautifully displayed on a table in his studio. He enlisted the sewing skills of locals Jenny Osmand, Irene Sherrin and Lisa Manning and a new cottage industry was born!

Ken’s work over the years has been exhibited at Yarram, Richmond, Yarragon, Bairnsdale, Meeniyan, Stratford, Sale, Maffra, Briagolong and

Melbourne. He has the honour of being “the first male to exhibit at the Queen Victoria Women’s Centre in Melbourne” as a result of his “Country Women” exhibition.

What does the future hold for this caring artist who just loves his hometown?

Not one to put off a challenge, Ken has acquired the old 1920’s former Uniting Church in nearby Boisdale, much to the delight of the Boisdale community. He hopes to restore the building to be used as a residence and studio.

He continues his community involvement being a member of Maffra and District Historical Society, Boisdale and District Progress Association, Maffra Motor Museum and Trustee with the Maffra Cemetery Trust. Ken’s ability to take up a challenge, display resilience and a positive attitude, is a testament to his Mum’s legacy.

Ken’s book can be purchased from Gippsland Real Estate in Maffra and “Rust Emporium” in nearby Briagolong. The soft furnishings and home wares will be exclusively available in December from “Rust Emporium”.

Ken’s work illustrates that you need not wander far from your backdoor to find wonder and inspiration!

“We live in a fantastic part of the world”, he says.

Ken’s contact details Mob. 0437109562 Facebook: Ken Roberts Art Photographs by Ali Fullard And Ken Roberts

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A trickle of wine

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in a river of Milk

By Stuart Hay

Grape vines are not propagated from seed they are grown from cuttings. The seed of an idea is often the best way to grow a business when planted in a fertile mind. Glenmaggie winery definitely grew from a seed not a cutting.

The Yarra Valley is an example of wineries growing from cuttings. The template is everywhere and to start your own winery you replicate a version of those surrounding you.

Glenmaggie winery had no winery nearby for some 50km and is situated in the heart of a dairy irrigation district. There would be no popping over to the neighbours for some fermentation advice or to borrow a pump.

In 1985 the family had sourced some cuttings from Graeme Leith’s vineyard at Passing Clouds in Bendigo. An acre of Shiraz and Cabernet were planted but had been left to rack and ruin.

When Tony and Fleur bought the property from his brother they set about rehabilitating the acre and planted six more in 1995; Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Shiraz and Cabernet.

Glenmaggie was to be real regional pioneering stuff.

While the vines grew Tony finished building the house and ran the family dairy farm as a source of income. It made him spend hours in the milking shed, it was important for him to be comfortable there as it has now been recommissioned as his wine making facility.

Tony taught himself winemaking by reading books and working with Peter Atkins at the Eltham Amateur Winemaking Association. It is a common thread I find in small local wineries. A strong belief that nothing is rocket science and any skill can be acquired.

So, who planted this vigorous seed and in which fertile mind?

Here begins the story.

Tony Dawkins remembered a relief milking friend of the family who was a fruiter in Melbourne insisting they should plant vines. He thought the remote bull paddock on the hill above the family property would be an ideal site. The humus of young 12 year old Tony’s mind had just the right make up to allow that seed to sink unshakeable roots. Years passed and Tony was working with his wife Fleur, in Melbourne. His brother who had bought the block from their parents had grown tired of it half way through building a house on it and the seed saw a chance to flower.

There are a few factors that make Glenmaggie’s site unique.

The rise, the winery is situated on has gravelly loam to two feet below, which is clay. This means the top layer drains freely while the vines have a reservoir of moist clay to suck water from during dry periods. The surrounding countryside is all

chocolate loam, which would give problems of excess vigour. They also benefit from being in a rain shadow. Traralgon gets 30 inches a year while their area only gets 22. The exposure of the site is excellent with the only risk factor being rare spring frosts.

When it comes to his winemaking I ask Tony what he likes to make and he replies quickly “a living”. It’s an excellent summary of the challenge of surviving on the production of a winery where the expenses are constant and the income is sporadic. That said, Fleur is a busy marketer and salesperson for the business. She leverages some of the unique wines in the range like a sparkling Semillon and an awarded Cabernet Sauvignon. Tony sees Cabernet Sauvignon as the premier varietal in his vineyard. He believes his site is particularly suited to growing ripe, expressive and fragrant Cabernet Sauvignon.

A tasting in Tony’s winery is an immersive experience that reminds of a long distant trip to France where I was tasting with small producers at their wineries. You stand amongst barrels and tanks with hoses weaving together between your feet and the detritus of a busy vintage surrounding you. It is cluttered and unkempt and completely fascinating as you watch the winemaker clambering between barrels to draw a sample with his pipette.

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Tony & Fleur

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Tony would discuss the vintage and the fruits characteristics as he let the wine fall into my glass and I soaked it all in thinking this is what winemaking and wine appreciation is all about.

Large wineries present a sterile, scientific face that only swings toward the organic once the wine is in an oak barrel.

From the tasting of Glenmaggie’s unfinished 2016 wines his chardonnay continues to standout as one of the best in Gippsland with his style moving away from richness to subtle timber savoury character and crisp white peach fruit. His cabernet has excellent structure and a cassis purity. Semillon is the surprise packet showing a structure for the long haul and demanding some be bottled as a still wine from this year.

Tony and Fleur are looking to the future with new plantings and new building ideas. The foundations of their business are strong and they are a great part of Gippsland’s far flung wine industry, doing their bit to uphold the quality, which attracts visitors to our region.

Bravo!

Glenmaggie Wines Phone: (03) 5145 1131 439 McLachlans Rd, Tinamba West 3859 www.glenmaggiewines.com Photographs courtesy of Tony & Fleur | Glenmaggie Wines

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MAFFRA FIRE BRIGADE BRINGS EASTERN DISTRICT CHAMPIONSHIPS TO TOWN

By Kellie Willis

THE MAFFRA FIRE BRIGADE ARE THE PROUD HOSTS OF THIS SUMMER’S 2017 EASTERN DISTRICT FIRE BRIGADE CHAMPIONSHIPS

With 20 teams expected to enter, from Dandenong to Lakes Entrance, the Mornington Peninsula to Healesville, a great event and fantastic competition will be presented. As well as being a chance to bring people to Maffra, it’s an opportunity for the town and its surrounding districts to come out and support their local brigades.

“We would love people to come out and support the Brigade and barrack for us. The competitions are just one element of why we are here, but they are good, competitive exercises and they help us bring the juniors through the ranks to become fire fighters.”

The Maffra Fire Brigade has a very proud history of more than 100 years continuous service in the town – it celebrated its Centenary in August, 2014. And a couple of its members have been there almost that long.

“Everyone is welcome to come along and watch the events,” long-term member and Maffra Fire Brigade Treasurer, Phil Hawkins says.

“It’s very entertaining and it’s free for spectators.

We are hoping the community will come along and support the Maffra boys as they compete.”

The Championships start on Saturday, 28 January, with a discipline contest at the Maffra Recreation Reserve, doubling as the Opening Ceremony.

“You have all the Brigades in uniform and they get judged on their attire. Then they march around the course, performing certain manoeuvres and each team is judged on its marching ability,” Third Lieutenant Kyle Hargreaves says.

From there, the action moves to Maffra’s Boisdale Street training track, where all the competition events take place across the Saturday and Sunday. The events, which are basically competitive training exercises, make for some exciting finishes. Competitions include ladder races, hydrant races, and a reel event that requires teams to lay out lengths of hose as

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quickly as possible, connect water to the hose and hit a target with the water jet to win the race.

A highlight of the weekend will be the torch light procession on Saturday night. All the teams will form a procession down Maffra’s main street, marching along the Johnson Street service lane.

Commencing at 8.45pm, the event is a visual spectacle not to be missed.

After the Eastern Districts, all the teams will go on and represent their brigades at the State Championships in March – and the Maffra boys say the team from Maryvale is the one to beat, after it claimed a stunning victory in the Victorian Championships this year.

“We haven’t won an Eastern District Championship since 1989, but we’ve been training two nights a week, and will be competing at an Inter-towns event almost every weekend from now until January, so we will be in good form,” Maffra Fire Brigade Captain, Dave Giles, says.

Former Captain Barry Bennett joined up in 1951 and has notched up 65 years of active involvement.

“In those days you turned up to a fire however you could – probably on a push bike, and there was no particular clothing or safety equipment,” he says.

“During the winter you had football or badminton, in the summer you had cricket, tennis or the Brigade. There weren’t any other sports, so a lot of people used to participate.”

“It is fairly infectious,” Mr Hawkins says.

“Once you get involved, it’s hard to stay away. It all starts through a desire to help the community, to help people in trouble. And then you find yourself involved with this incredible team and organisation, actively helping out in the community, and you are hooked.”

Back Row (L to R): Fire Fighter Ash Dickinson, Ex-Captain Ron Graham, Current Captain Dave Giles Front Row (L to R): Fire Fighter Phil Hawkins, Training Co-Ordinator Craig Gardiner

Former Captain Ron Graham adds, “I came in through the fundraising activities. I guess what we come to do is our motto – ‘We Strive to Save’”.

and other events; door knocking for the Good Friday Appeal; and inspecting and maintaining fire plugs around the town.

sure it’s visible and report any defects to the Shire.

We’re just asking the community to have an input into keeping the town’s fire safety equipment in good working order.”

Apart from the vital service of fighting fires, the Maffra Fire Brigade plays other roles in the community, including fire equipment maintenance for various premises in the town; running the Fire Safe program in local schools, working with children from Prep to Secondary levels; running the smokehouse at Kid’s Day at the Maffra Show

“The Brigade is slowly implementing a fire inspection round and promoting the concept of ‘Adopt A Fire Plug’,” First Lieutenant Ryan Wheeler says.

While the Fire Brigade is important to the community, the community is also imperative to the Brigade’s survival.

“We are encouraging residents with a fire plug outside their house to keep an eye on it, make

“We have been very lucky over the years that the town has really supported the Brigade in

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Restored 1928 Graham Brothers bush fire truck

any fundraising we have done, and we certainly appreciate that,” Mr Graham says.

“We have three vehicles that have been fully funded by the public through fund raising, all of them very well equipped. We are very fortunate with the support we get from the community.”

And also fortunate in the support they get from each other.

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“It’s a family more than anything. You join with intentions of helping the community but at the end of the day, you develop a family,” Captain Giles says.

“I started with the Brigade when I was at Maffra High, I’m getting close to 20 years with the Maffra CFA. You don’t hang around somewhere that long if you haven’t found something important.”

“And some of us were born into it,” Hargreaves adds.

“I’ve been going to competitions ever since I can remember – Dad was a part of the Maffra team.

So you just follow in your father’s footsteps. It’s always been a part of who we are and I can’t imagine life without it.”

Photographs by Lisa Maatsoo Competition photographs by Maffra Fire Brigade

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PINE HILL PARK

ALPACAS “So, it’s a view you want”, and the Real Estate agent was true to his word. Our farm sits on Pine Hill, a few kilometres north of Maffra and overlooks the Macalister Irrigation District and beyond - to the Longford Ridge south of Sale, the endless horizon that is the Latrobe Valley framed by Mount Baw Baw to the west and the Avon Wilderness Area to the north dominated by Ben Cruachen and the Mount Wellington range dominating the view also to the north.

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Welcome to Pine Hill Park. Why alpacas? Being busy professionals off-farm, we needed to have animals that were fairly low maintenance. Jill had travelled through South America in 1983, where she saw them while trekking through the Andes in Peru. She saw beautifully majestic and versatile animals. She saw them being shorn, the fibre being spun into yarn, dye them and weave them.

Having grown up on a sheep and cattle farm at Toora, her observations were well informed in terms of comparison to conventional sheep and cattle farming here in Gippsland. Alpacas have soft padded feet and nail (like humans) and have very little impact on soil. Like sheep they prefer the short grass left by larger herbivores like cattle.

Cattle were on the farm when we arrived on the Hill and it all looked quite stark. However, in 2008 the millennium drought was coming to a close and the Hill was pretty well devoid of grass. But confident that every day is a day closer to the drought breaking we could see what the place would look like in good times. In fact, we were pretty much oblivious to the drought, having moved down the year before from Katherine in the Northern Territory where we’d lived for the duration of it. We came to Gippsland as Jill’s family are scattered around here, but to also give our sons, Mark and Ben a good stable Victorian education.

During the first year, while our home was being built, we spent hours researching alpacas.

Studying books on camelids, searching the internet, visiting neighbouring Merungle Alpacas and attending alpaca farm visits around Bairnsdale, prepared us to commence alpaca farming in 2009. We began with five pregnant females and now have a sizeable herd consisting of mature females, younger females, crias (baby alpacas) and wethers. We have a variety of colours in browns, fawn and white and every alpaca has their own particular personality. At Pine Hill Park all our alpacas have names. And like all alpacas in Australia they are registered with the Australian Alpaca Association.

This year we had nine crias. With our own working certified male we manage matings and are planning for the next drop in 2017. An alpaca pregnancy is about 11.5 months and they usually birth (unpack) during the day time and takes about 30 minutes from start to finish. It is a wonderful event to watch a new cria come into the world. Alpaca mothers are very protective of their young so it’s always at a respectful distance.

Our alpacas are shorn once a year and some fleeces are sold to local spinners. We have had some of our fleeces professionally spun and are now ready for knitting and crocheting. Scarves and beanies are incredibly soft, light and super warm. It doesn’t have the scratchy or prickly feel of some sheep wool. My two boys have proudly worn their hand knitted scarves and beanies while on exchange in France. I enjoy knitting and love the idea of producing a bespoke garment from our own alpacas.

Some of the ‘not so fine’ fleece is cleaned and used to fill the most luxurious pet beds. Our family dogs love their alpaca fleece cushions. Soft, warm, natural and 100% farm produced.

The bulk of the fleece clip is sent to Melbourne where it is graded and packed for either export to China or South America for processing or used in Australia to produce the fabulous Australian Alpaca products. Beautiful coats, jumpers, scarves, socks, luxurious blankets and bedding products are also produced from Australian alpaca fleece. Maybe some from Pine Hill Park!

Alpaca fleece is very versatile. We have been using alpaca fleece for garden mulch for the past 6 years and have noticed remarkable improvement in our soil quality. Alpaca fleece is dry – no lanolin, which makes it perfect for soil improvement. The worms just love the fibre and it breaks down slowly.

Another useful alpaca by-product is their manure.

Alpacas kindly poop in communal heaps allowing

easy collection. Our vegetable garden and fledgling orchard reap the benefits of regular alpaca fertiliser.

Some of our alpaca wethers (castrated males) are in training to be guard animals for sheep or goats.

Our training program entails guarding our Dorper sheep and their lambs from foxes, dogs and eagles. They do a great job and we have even been a target of their guarding! Our dogs have a very healthy respect for the alpacas and will take a long detour around their paddock.

Pine Hill Park has alpacas, alpaca fleece and yarn for spinning/craftwork; and also a range of 100% alpaca fleece cushions for dog/cat pet beds for sale. We can be found at local markets and welcome farm visits.

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We have not ventured into alpaca meat as yet but consider this could be something to expand into in the future.

We love our alpacas and have thoroughly enjoyed the learning opportunity they presented. Our teenage sons, Mark and Ben are experienced alpaca wranglers and are an important part of shearing, drenching and general care times. It is a family experience and one we are very happy to be living.

Steve and Jill McAnulty 3141 1660 Jill’s mobile 0427 665 181 Words and photos courtesy of Steve and Jill McAnulty

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We have alpacas as guard animals from $250, pregnant females from $500 each as well as younger male and female alpacas as future breeding stock or the best looking lawn mowers on the block. Colours range from white, fawn to darker brown. We welcome interested alpaca owners to visit and spend time with us to appreciate the gentle nature of the alpaca as well as the care required prior to making a purchase.

Some of the annual alpaca fleece clip is used to create the best dog and cat cushions.

The canine and feline pets love the natural fibre offering a snug warmth in winter and cool comfort in the warmer months. Sizing is small, medium, large or size made to order.

Prices start from $50 for the smaller cushion suitable for cats or small sized dogs.

For the crafty person fleeces are available for sale for spinning or felting and we have yarn ready for knitting or crocheting. Using luxurious yarns like alpaca to create amazing garments is a delight everyone can now experience.

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Powersc the story of a home

By Kellie Willis

The “Powerscourt” sign swings stately from its sentry post at the property on the Maffra-Stratford Road, its presence indicating something special at the end of the gumtree-lined driveway.

“Powerscourt” has been home to pioneers and their hired servants, and a much-loved fine-dining restaurant. Today, it is home to Paul and Helen Bourke and their family, who are thriving in their role as its owners and caretakers.

One of the oldest properties in the district, William and Mary Power built the “Powerscourt”

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homestead in 1859. They were known for topping the Melbourne Cattle Markets, breeding successful race horses and holding annual horse racing events, and they built a home befitting their status.

The family was looking to move from their dairy farm at Newry and Paul had just started a new career with a local real estate agent. He came home from his first auction and told Helen “Powerscourt” had been passed in.

Since then, “Powerscourt” has welcomed many families, with all making changes pertinent to the times and their individual needs.

“He asked if I wanted to go out and have a look,” Helen remembers. “I said ‘No, I don’t! It’s old and it’s cold … I’m not going!’”

The arrival of the Bourkes nine years ago marked a period of change and renewal – for the family and the homestead.

“But after we’d had a look, we went home and said ‘OK, it needs this and this.’ We thought we could give the property those things.”

court

After “a lot of budgeting and a lot of planning” they decided they could make it work, and next thing, the Bourkes and their eight children were moving.

They built decking off the kitchen/living area, and the northern wall is predominantly windows and glass doors that look out across this deck to the ornamental lake.

One of the first projects they undertook was renovating the kitchen/living area.

An octagonal gazebo was designed to complement the striking circular meat house located conveniently close to the kitchen. The Bourkes use the meat house as a storeroom and garden shed but originally, cattle carcasses would have been hung in the cool building until they were butchered.

“We squared it up and made it bigger,” Helen says. “We pulled out the wall of a bedroom and we converted the ensuite of that bedroom into the laundry, which was originally outside.”

Today, the property remains a cattle enterprise.

“The farmland here worked well with our operation at Newry, so we’ve got people running the dairy and we rear all its replacement stock,” Paul says.

“We cut hay and silage, rear the Friesian bulls and have a herd of Friesian cross Angus.”

From the kitchen/living room back to the western end of the home are three outdoor bedrooms that were once servants’ quarters. “Those rooms are very plain, no fancy details,” Helen says.

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But stepping from the kitchen/living room into the formal lounge you enter a world of intricate cornices and ceiling decorations, detailed stained glass windows, ornate fire places and a stunning 90ft by 20ft ballroom with 18ft ceilings.

The ballroom was built by the homestead’s second owners, John and Rebecca Mills. Both were ex-employees of “Powerscourt” who made their fortune in gold.

Not only celebratory, the ballroom was also a base for the Red Cross during World War I for sewing shirts, rolling bandages and knitting socks.

The impressive stained glass windows along the length of the walls are a key feature of this room, and its outside doors open onto a wooden deck that was built by the Bourkes 18 months ago.

A ballroom might not feature on many floor plans today, but with their large family, the Bourkes host Christmas lunch (last year they had 48 people) and have held several family functions including their daughter’s wedding.

“And, I come into the ballroom with my morning cuppa now and again, when the sun is shining in, and just enjoy it,” Helen smiles.

For all the implied grandeur, it is clear this is a family home – family portraits adorn the walls, just beyond the stained glass windows of the ballroom there is a well-used basketball ring and Helen tells tales of family cricket games by the lake, where you can only catch the ball if you dive into the water.

While the Bourkes bring in professionals for the big jobs, Helen says she enjoys the challenge of doing the work herself. But it can take a lot of time and effort.

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She and her sister started painting the ceiling in one of the bedrooms, using two different coloured trims on the elaborate decorations and cornices.

“It took us 10 hours to do one half of the ceiling!

And that was just one coat!”

“You feel a sense of responsibility,” Paul adds. “It’s one of the oldest places in the district. Everything we do, we are either reusing or making the most of what is already here, and we match all our work to the features and styles of the period.”

Far from being daunted, Helen has taken the ongoing project in her stride.

“I had never done anything like this before,” she says.

The three-car garage at the western end of the house is built from red bricks that previously paved the back yard. It complements the original building and features heritage cobelling and plinth brickwork.

“Now, it’s a passion. You can’t do a job in five minutes. Everything we do takes months of planning, consideration and research. Making sure it will work for us, but also honour the history of the building.”

When the Bourkes widened the veranda on the southern side of the house by double, they replicated the style of the veranda at the front of the house. And during the kitchen/living room renovation, the moulded ceiling decorations around the light fittings were made to match the other rooms in the house.

Wherever you go at “Powerscourt”, there are stories – those that belong to the Bourkes, and those that belong to its history. In a fantastically lit sunroom yet to receive the Bourkes’ touch, Helen shows how the building tells its story.

“You can see from the patterns in the bricks that there used to be a window here, there was a chimney there, when this was an outside courtyard. And look,” she says as she points to a square cut out in the wooden floor.

“This wooden lid hides a concrete lid that covers a well. There used to be a windmill right here where we are standing!”

“This will be one of my favourite rooms one day, but I’m still working out how to make the most of it.”

When asked for her favourite features of the property, Helen doesn’t hesitate: “The wow factor, when you come in the kitchen door,” she says.

“Your eyes are drawn from the room to the view over the decking and the ornamental lake.

That, and the dynamic cornices and ceiling decorations.”

“When we came to “Powerscourt, we knew we could improve on what was here,” Paul says.

“And it’s a big home, our kids can get married here, there’s room for the family to grow and for the grandkids. We just thought this was something special we could do for our family.”

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DEMON BOUND

SARAH JOLLY A RISING STAR

By Olivia Skillern

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Since the announcement that 2017 would see the first ever AFL Women’s competition, excitement has been building. Australian rules football playing women throughout the country have been preparing themselves for the opportunity to play in the country’s top competition. And Gippsland was not going to miss out.

Gippsland has been producing top AFL men’s players for many years and for the inaugural women’s competition Gippsland watched with hope that someone would join the likes of Robert Murphy, Jarryd Roughead and Scott Pendlebury.

Despite the local women’s team, Gippsland Galaxy, playing in Division 3 of the Victorian Women’s Football League (VWFL), Sale’s Sarah Jolly, 23, was fortunate enough to gain the attention of the Melbourne Football Club, taken at pick 145 of the inaugural women’s draft. It was the final pick of the day.

Born in Yarragon and growing up in Sale, Sarah is a born and bred Gippslander, who still lives and works in the region. Like many local girls she played netball and tennis growing up but other than a kick in the backyard with her brother, or

at school, Australian rules football was not really on offer. Other than a few games of under 10s in primary school it was not until 2015 that Sarah pulled on the boots and played Aussie rules as part of the Gippsland Galaxy side.

“I started playing because I knew the coach personally and she just put a post up on Facebook that she was going to put together a local team from Gippsland. So I thought I’d give it a go because it didn’t clash with netball or anything like that because it was on Sunday.”

The choice to play was indeed a good one.

Sarah’s first two years playing are a constant highlight reel. She was lucky enough to play in Gippsland Galaxy’s VWFL Division 3 back to back premierships in 2015 and 2016. As part of this winning team, she was runner-up league best and fairest in 2015 topping that in 2016 by winning the award. As well as the 2016 best and fairest Sarah was also the top goal scorer for the competition. In addition to playing exceptionally well in her competition Sarah was selected for the Victorian Women’s AFL Academy.

“Also in the 2016 Grand Final I was named best on ground. I had a pretty good season this year,” she said.

All of these attributes led to the idea that maybe, just maybe, Sarah may be chosen to play in the AFL Women’s competition. Having played in a lower division competition, and knowing how many women had nominated in Victoria alone, Sarah was not overly confident in being picked.

Nonetheless, she nominated for the draft in the hopes of pulling on an AFL jumper.

Sarah’s draft day was very different to many of the other hopefuls. She had heard other girls were nervous, but by not letting herself believe she would be drafted meant that Sarah was relaxed.

“I actually only watched the draft because I was at home sick for the week, otherwise I would have just gone to work and sort of followed it online.

But because I was at home I got to watch it all. It was a really long process.

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“It was down to the last pick and I sort of was over it at this point because it had taken a couple of hours to get through it all, but when they called my name for Melbourne in the very last pick I sort of didn’t believe it for a second.”

Sarah feels that they already have a good bond and that it’s a good start for the team.

Sarah would have been happy to be playing at any of the four Melbourne teams, being drafted to the Melbourne FC is a huge honour.

Sarah was watching with her Dad and as her name was called they looked at each other and started screaming and hugging. Despite this, it still did not really sink in until she started receiving text messages and phone calls. Then she knew it was not all a dream.

“I was stoked to be drafted to Melbourne because they started it all.

They were the pioneers of women’s footy so going to a club that was already established with women’s footy is probably going to be the most amazing thing to do.”

“It was very exciting, especially because Melbourne took extra time and then they came back and requested another lot of extra time so it must have been a big decision for them but I wasn’t really thinking ‘this is going to be me, this is going to be me’, I just wasn’t thinking that at all.”

Now all that is left to do are preparations and playing. It is not surprising that the thing that Sarah is most looking forward to is getting out there and playing.

Sarah has finally met with her new team mates and describes the experience as being “unreal”.

As soon as they met in the lounge area of AAMI Park, where Melbourne FC train, the team were congratulating each other and introducing themselves.

“I’m just excited to play. I haven’t had much experience at the top level of footy but with the team that we’ve got at Melbourne, and the coaching, and the strengthening and conditioning staff, they’ll get us into shape over the preseason and we’ll be ready to go.

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“The opportunity to play in an AFL jumper is what I’m most excited about.”

The AFL Women’s competition makes its debut in February 2017. We look forward to watching Sarah take to the field for the Melbourne Football Club and will be keeping our eye on the red and the blue.

Football Photographs courtesy of Rob Giese Photography Portrait image courtesy of Sarah Jolly

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SALE

FR O M FLO O DI N G C R E E K T O CI TY

By Wendy Morriss

Sale is a large regional town in the heart of Gippsland with a commercial centre that features a mix of beautiful vintage, contemporary and colonial architecture and an attractive pedestrian mall dominated by a large town clock tower.

Highlights for visitors to the area include the Historic Port of Sale and Swing Bridge, The Gippsland Art Gallery, The Bataluk Cultural Trail, splendid world-listed wetlands and Sale Botanic Gardens established in 1860.

The town centre has several significant historical buildings including the former Municipal Offices built in 1863, which now houses The Sale Historical Museum, and the Criterion Hotel built in 1865 and one of the oldest hotels in Gippsland.

A short distance to the north east of Sale is sandy Marlay Point on Lake Wellington, the starting place for the longest overnight inland yacht race in the world that is held each Labour Day weekend in March. To the south is Ninety Mile Beach, which is one of the world’s longest stretches of unbroken sand. Then less than an hour’s drive to the east are the beautiful Gippsland Lakes.

The settlement of Sale formerly known as Flooding Creek was gazetted in 1851. It became a borough in 1863, a town in 1924 and was proclaimed a city in 1950. In 1994, the City of Sale was abolished when it became part of the newly formed Shire of Wellington.

The first road to Sale was completed in 1865 and Cobb and Co established a 24-hour coach service to Melbourne. The large former Cobb and Co stable can still be seen in the town today.

The introduction of rail to the town in 1879 provided easy travel between Sale and Melbourne.

The station, which was once the hub of the town, was eventually closed and demolished in 1983.

However, the Signal Box built in 1888, along with two level crossing gates and two semaphore signals were left intact and preserved.

The Port of Sale, established in 1890 with the construction of a man made canal and the Swing Bridge, linked the town via the Thomson River to the Gippsland Lakes and the open waters of Bass Strait. It became a busy port for steamers until the early 1900s.

A multi-million dollar redevelopment of the historic inland port was carried out in 2004. Since then it has become one of the most popular and picturesque places to visit with grassed areas and gardens, barbeque facilities, a boardwalk, walking path, fishing platform, berthing facilities and a boat ramp.

The Swing Bridge built in 1883, is about five kilometres south of Sale at the junction of the Thomson and Latrobe Rivers. The 61-metre long wrought iron structure has a central swing span of almost 46 metres. It was designed by Australian engineer John Grainger to swing open allowing steam boats travelling to and from the port to pass through. Classified by The National Trust and seen as one of the engineering wonders of Gippsland, the bridge is also the only one of its kind in Victoria and the oldest surviving operational swing bridge in Australia.

‘Port of Sale Heritage Cruises’ operate tours from the Port through the canal system to the Swing Bridge on the ‘Rubeena’, a Pittwater style ferry built in 1911 and was launched in Lakes Entrance in 1912. The beautifully preserved wooden vessel,

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originally powered by steam and later by diesel, is now quietly powered electrically enabling passengers to view birds and wildlife.

Lake Guthridge Parklands in Sale is an attractive major recreational area covering more than 35 hectares. It encompasses Lake Guthridge, the smaller Lake Guyatt and the historically significant Sale Botanic Gardens. Visitors to the parklands can enjoy sensory gardens, walking trails, many leisure activities, wetlands, wildlife, cultural activities and indigenous artworks.

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The nearby 323-hectare Sale Common Nature Conservation Reserve established in 1964, features natural marshland, red gum woodland and grassland. The reserve is managed by Parks Victoria with the acknowledgment of the indigenous traditional owners. The Gunaikurnai people, through their cultural traditions, identify the Sale Common Nature Conservation Reserve as their Traditional Country.

The Bataluk Cultural Trail follows significant traditional routes used by the Gunaikurnai for more than 30,000 years. The trail introduces

visitors to many aspects of Gunaikurnai life, history and culture including dreamtime stories, traditional lifestyles, European invasion and settlement and present day life.

Development of the Bataluk Cultural trail is a joint initiative of the Far East Gippsland Aboriginal Corporation, Gippsland and East Gippsland Aboriginal Co-operative, Lake Tyers Aboriginal Trust, Moogji Aboriginal Council, Ramahyuck Aboriginal Corporation, East Gippsland Shire Council and Wellington Shire Council.

Visitors are asked to treat all sites along the trail with respect and care to ensure they are preserved for future generations.

Another wonderful place to visit in Sale is The Gippsland Art Gallery, which was established in 1965 as one of regional Victoria’s leading public galleries. Each year the gallery hosts exhibitions featuring works by local, national and international artists. It is home to a permanent collection of more than 1000 items including paintings, works on paper, photographs, ceramics, sculpture, textiles, woodwork, metalwork and Indigenous

art. The collection’s focus is Gippsland artists, Gippsland themes and the natural environment.

highlight the role played by Gippslanders in the country’s defense forces, both in peace and war.

The Gippsland Armed Forces Museum at West Sale Aerodrome houses an interesting collection of more than 1500 items preserving the history of Gippsland’s military service from 1885 until now. It includes personal items, weapons, photographs and maps as well as items from Gallipoli, France and Belgium. It also incorporates the George Aucterlonie Collection from Egypt, Sinai and Palestine during World War I. The museum aims to preserve Gippsland's military heritage and

While there are many fascinating and attractive places to visit in Sale, it’s also a wonderful base to explore the beauty in the surrounding area. The town’s major annual events are The Marlay Point Overnight Yacht Race and the Sale Music Festival in March and then the Sale Cup and Sale's Agricultural Show in October.

For more information visit www.tourismwellington.com.au

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The friendly and professional team at Flying Colours are constantly furthering their impressive knowledge with extensive training programs and travel to destinations within Australia and overseas.

They check hotel rooms and services, fly on different airlines, travel on day tours, local trains and buses, all to ensure that when they talk with you about your holiday plans, they are imparting the most up to date and relevant information about your chosen destination, seats, cabins and classes of travel.

In addition to this, they offer detailed itineraries and documentation presented prior to you departing.

They have an amazing range of suitcases and travel bags, PLUS give advice on the best way to manage your travel money with the instant issue of a Travelex Foreign Currency card, and if needed, provide you with a 24 hour local contact.

What are you waiting for!!! “Experience our Experience�

Flying Colours Travel 83 Cunninghame Street, Sale 3850 Phone: 5144 3199 Hours: Mon- Fri 9.00am to 5.30pm - Sat 10am to 12.00pm www.flyingcolourstravel.com.au

Connley McInnes Lawyers Pty Ltd Appearing in all courts from Bair nsdale through to Melbour ne •

Family Law

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Criminal Law

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Commercial Law

•

Wills and Probate

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Estate Planning

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Small Business

• Conveyancing • Mediation

Sale Court House Rod Connley and Jennifer McInnes were both born and raised in East Gippsland and have maintained strong connections with the region’s farming, construction and retail industries. The firm and its predecessors have been providing quality legal services to the Gippsland community since 1979 and are committed to providing clients with comprehensive and broad based advice to enable them to make fully informed and cost effective decisions to better achieve their objectives. To optimise client outcomes Rod and Jennifer personally represent their clients in all jurisdictions including VCAT, Magistrates, County, Federal Circuit and Supreme Court throughout Gippsland and Melbourne.

Connley McInnes Lawyers use advanced information technologies to enable clients’ needs to be identified, prioritised and satisfied with minimum cost and delay. Rod and Jennifer through frequent court appearances, regular attendance at professional seminars and their positions on the executive of the Gippsland Law Association, bring the most up to date knowledge and skills to bear on all issues with which they deal. Connley McInnes Lawyers take pride in their ability to provide clients with a firm direction and strategy for the future management of the issues concerning them.

Suite 1, Dove Court, Sale 3850 Ph: (03) 51 446 800 office@cmlegal.com.au

THE SHOP IN SALE R E H C U O V E-

The SBTA started as the Sale Business Community Association many years ago and in recent times the name was changed to Sale Business & Tourism Association to reflect the bigger focus on the wider more diverse business base we have in Sale.

The Shop In Sale Voucher system was established using a unique online gift voucher system, which can be ordered online and printed instantly to then redeem at any participating local business The system was created to encourage shopping in the locally owned stores and services rather than travelling outside the region to shop at the larger chain stores.

The SBTA has an increasingly diverse member base. Starting out with a largely retail membership it has grown to include tourism, hospitality, service, trade and industry based businesses that vary from sole traders to large companies. The aim is to include all locally owned businesses and encourage networking with a common focus to improve the local community.

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The beauty of being involved with the SBTA is networking with business and gaining an understanding of how they are trading. Mostly we hear that the businesses that are being innovative and assess their business regularly are trading strongly. The businesses that have embraced technology and ways to develop their business around the internet are finding strong sales and growth from areas that they would have traditionally not.

The networking with other business owners and also building a strong relationship with the shire has been a great positive for the members and the greater community being able to work together for the good of the local community.

Unfortunately, within the local shire there have been real challenges with the dairy industry, which has had an ongoing impact on the local economy.

The SBTA are working to promote the support local message to the community so it can continue to support each other keeping the money and jobs in the community and creating a stronger economy for future generations.

The voucher system that is in place is very easy to access and use, creating a local focus with the ability to redeem the instant online vouchers at any of the large number of participating members. It was important to ensure a user friendly approach and re-establish the program with the community as well as major corporates and institutions in Sale and district.

The Shop in Sale Voucher program has continued enjoying great support from local businesses using the vouchers as gifts and rewards as well as receiving a massive boost with the support of the Hazelwood Health Survey purchasing the vouchers as rewards for their participants. With nearly $30,000 of vouchers purchased in the last financial year and currently over $16,000 in circulation, it is such a great boost injected into the local economy.

L-R: Julian McIvor (vice president), Elisa Walter, Leeanne Pearce (president), Naomi Cranston (executive officer), Jeanette Henwood, Justine Andrew, Tim Munckton (secretary), Brad Seeber (treasurer)

The enthusiasm and dedication of the project team led by Trent Fairweather supported by all board members of the SBTA and the professional expertise of the contractors employed to develop the concept, particularly the technology of the E Voucher system was a big drive to the program, which was greatly supported by government grants.

The SBTA Committee has been able to provide a number of very successful events and benefits this year, kicking off with our President's Cocktail Party in February, which was very well supported by the increasing membership.

The opening of the fantastic new public toilet has been a great benefit to the CBD. The SBTA has also provided our members with extra services under the new VCCI membership offer.

The recent Spring Carnival 3 hour sale, which was part of the Sale Cup Carnival, provided more opportunities for the members to get to know each other and network amongst likeminded people.

Our members receive a monthly newsletter, along with direct emails and the general public can access information through our websites: shopinsale.com.au and salebta.com.au, as well as our Facebook page which includes our new focus of "Meet our Members" profiles.

The SBTA is looking at introducing more regular networking events to help the members stay up to date and in touch with other business owners, helping them to benefit from local knowledge and experience.

The Board has been able to continue an increasingly positive relationship with the Wellington Shire Officers and Council Members, as well as improving communication with our members through the continuation of the executive officer’s position.

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Gentleman John

By Chris West

In an incredible life nearing sight of a century, retired former businessman, Councillor, Arts patron and philanthropist John Leslie continues to be one the most respected members of the Sale community. Few others can claim to have made such a contribution to the local area in so many ways.

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It is not easy to find people who are extremely close to John Leslie. It’s not that he isn’t popular or well liked. Far from it, in fact. It’s just that at 97 years of age, he’s outlived most of his family and friends.

“My grandfather built up a chain of four department stores in Warragul, Traralgon, Maffra and Sale. He later sold the Warragul and Traralgon stores and concentrated the business on Maffa and Sale,” John explains.

“My father had wanted to do other things in life, just as my grandfather had done, and the plan had been for my brother to take over the business, but that of course all changed when he was killed in the war,” John says.

Apart from his military service during World War II, John has always made Sale his permanent home.

“But he was a man who was always in a hurry and was actually more interested in breeding Ayreshire cattle and racehorses on his stud farm in Sale than spending all his years as a retailer. Sadly, he was knocked down by a motorcyclist while in Sydney and later died of his injuries, but he had already handed the business over to my father by then.”

“If I’d gone to the farm upon my return from New Guinea, my father was saying he would most likely have to sell the business if I wasn’t going to follow in his footsteps. I didn’t want that to happen, as I knew the business was too good to sell. Although I wasn’t enthusiastic about working in retail, once I started I found I actually quite liked it,” he states.

Growing up in Sale, John spent his early years living in a house in Lansdowne Street that his grandparents owned but had loaned to his parents. When John was seven, his family relocated a short distance to a house they had built in Macarthur Street. This residence became the place he called home for the next 53 years.

Initially, John was learning the ropes in the Sale store. But when his father died in 1948, he was thrust into a much more prominent position of responsibility.

“I have known no other town for any length of time. This is a very nice area to live in and I’ve never wanted to be anywhere else,” he says.

“Nowadays I don’t know that many people because the majority of my friends have died. But each year I still have a Christmas party and invite my diminishing number of friends along.”

John has remained a bachelor through all his years, although he has had three lasting romances during his life, the most enduring of which blossomed for more than three decades.

Born in Sale on 6th February, 1919, John is certain of the date but unsure whether his birth occurred at home or in the nearby private hospital. He and his elder brother Jim enjoyed a happy childhood.

The siblings were close in age, having been born only fifteen months apart.

“I have just wonderful recollections of growing up as a child in Sale. I had a lot of friends and in those days life was very simple and uncomplicated,” John reflects.

“I suppose there must have been times when I was unhappy, but I don’t remember them.”

John’s roots are firmly entrenched in Sale. His family’s association with the town traces back several generations.

“My great grandparents were originally from Scotland. The village of Leslie is about thirty miles from Edinburgh. They paid fifty six pounds to emigrate to Australia in 1854, sailing from England and arriving in Melbourne. My grandfather was born in Sale twelve months later and my father was also born here,” he explains.

John’s great grandfather James Leslie was a skilled engineer, which brought him to Sale in pursuit of boat building work soon after arriving in Melbourne. His great grandparents reached the town by a fairly unconventional route.

“They came to Port Albert by boat and walked the rest of the way to Sale,” he says.

As a boy, John attended the local elementary school before completing his secondary education at Scotch College in Melbourne. World War II was under way when John joined the Army in 1940 at the age of 21. His brother Jim had already joined the Air Force.

“My parents wanted to spread the risk a bit I think, so I went into the Army,” he says.

John spent considerable time in training at various locations in Victoria and interstate until finishing up in the Armoured Corps.

“We were trained in desert fighting and were waiting to go to the Middle East when the Japanese entered the war and things changed,” he explains.

“I was re-trained as infrantry and ended up serving for just under two years in New Guinea.”

While away fighting for his country in New Guinea, John received devastating news from home.

“A letter arrived from my mother telling me that my brother had been shot down and killed in a bombing sortie over Berlin. It was awful news to get and knocked the stuffing out of me.”

John survived the war and returned home to Sale at the end of 1945. He was contemplating going to work at his mother’s farm “Allandale” located at Mathoura between Echuca and Deniliquin, but instead joined his father William Leslie in the family’s retail business in 1946.

“My dad also had two brothers, Alex and Jim, involved in the business. Alex was an accountant who managed the Maffra store, while Jim worked with us in the Sale store, where he looked after the Manchester and softgoods department. He didn’t want anything to do with management or staff and wouldn’t take on any additional responsibility,” John recalls.

“My uncle Alex became managing director of the company after my father died and I was promoted to manage the Sale store. Alex eventually handed the business over to me in the mid 1950s.”

But while he was running the company, John had other plans in mind for his life, particularly a desire to get involved in the local community.

“Fortunately we had a very good accountant for our company, Hugh Keane, who over time took on a lot of my responsibilities which enabled me to pursue my ambitions and spend more time away from the business,” he says.

John became a member of community-based organisations Rotary and Apex, before joining the City of Sale Council in 1958. His grandfather had served on the former borough council many years earlier, but his father didn’t believe in mixing politics and business so had not followed suit.

“At the time I got on the Council I had been getting a bit vocal about improving things for Sale,” John recollects.

“The town was getting bypassed when it came to government grants and things generally were just not happening here. At times like that, you either shut up or do something about it.”

John’s great grandfather installed a engine in a boat for a local Sale identity named Phillip McArdle.

The pair later established a tannery business together and John believes his great grandfather also worked for a time as a blacksmith.

On both sides of his family tree, John has blood ties to some of the most prominent names in Gippsland’s past. His mother Isabel was a Widdis, a daughter of Edith Widdis who in 1915 became the first woman to own a Melbourne Cup winner when Patrobas triumphed in Australia’s greatest horse race. John has many great memories of spending time with his grandmother Edith at her property Nambrok House near Rosedale during regular visits over more than a decade.

“My grandmother was a remarkable woman. She was a Nixon, a famous family who were pioneers of the Orbost area,” he notes.

On the paternal side, John’s grandfather William D. Leslie founded a successful retail business in 1886 that stayed in the family for a century.

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“Marjorie’s heart was really in Melbourne and she always lived there. I was not prepared to live in Melbourne permanently, as my home was in Sale.”

The pair did, however, reach something of a compromise. When Marjorie moved permanently into a new apartment in Melbourne, John also purchased one for himself in the same complex for occasional use when spending time in the city.

Over many years, John served on numerous committees and councils across the Arts and Education domains, including the Building Committee of the Victorian Arts Centre in Melbourne and the Monash University Council.

In his later life, John has continued to be a highly influential figure in the local Arts scene.

Since 2000, the John Leslie Art Prize has been awarded every two years by the Gippsland Art Gallery in Sale. It is now firmly entrenched as one of Australia’s most prestigious and valuable prizes for landscape painting.

John’s tenure on the Council spanned three terms from 1958 until 1967 and included three years as Mayor. Amongst many notable achievements for Sale during his time on Council were the construction of the Memorial Hall with Library and Arts Centre, along with seeing the completion of the town’s sewerage system.

He is particularly proud of having instigated the development of the Gippsland Art Gallery in Sale.

“Bert Hyland, who was our Member of Parliament, accompanied me to Melbourne to see Victorian Premier Henry Bolte about funding for the project,” John recalls.

“Henry asked how much I wanted and I said forty thousand dollars. His sharp reply was straight to the point. He said: I’m not going to give you that much! You can have twenty thousand. Take it or leave it.”

With John having secured less money than he had hoped for from Premier Bolte, the plans for the gallery were downsized slightly and the required remaining funds were raised locally to ensure the facility could still be constructed.

John also gained immense satisfaction from having been the driving force behind the establishment of the Sale Elderly Citizens Village, which opened in 1972 and continues to operate today.

“I was mindful that there was nowhere in Sale for elderly citizens to spend time back then and it is wonderful to see the facility still providing so much benefit to the elderly in our community more than forty years later,” he says.

By the completion of his Council service in 1967, John had lost most of any remaining passion for the family business and sold his interest in the company to three of his cousins the following year.

He expresses a sense of disappointment that the family business that he handed over is no longer in existence today, having ceased trading in the late 1980s.

During the 1970s, the performing arts became an increasingly important part of John’s life, although his involvement came about by chance rather than by design. While attending a function in Melbourne in 1973, he was approached by Victorian Premier, Dick Hamer about becoming a member of a committee to advise him on the Arts. Beside being Premier of the State, Hamer was also Minister for the Arts at that time.

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“I had some interest in the Arts but not to any great extent, so I was a little surprised that Dick sought me out to be part of the Advisory Council he was putting together,” John states.

“The establishment of the art prize was my idea, but it was not my idea to have my name on it,” John says with typical modesty.

“I asked him if I could have some time to think about it. He replied: Yes, you can have five minutes.”

That decision was made by the Gippsland Art Gallery Committee, which understandably deemed it appropriate that the prize should carry the name of its creator and long-time Patron of the gallery.

John trusted the Premier’s judgement and accepted the invitation. Alongside him amongst the other members of the Arts Advisory Council which commenced in 1974 was Marjorie Tipping, the widow of prominent journalist Bill Tipping.

John’s name is also perpetuated through the John Leslie Theatre at the Esso BHP Billiton Wellington Entertainment Centre in Sale.

“Marjorie was very much into the Arts. More so than me. She had a real passion for Chinese Art and was also President of the Royal Historical Society,” John remembers fondly.

“Through our involvement on Premier Hamer’s Arts Advisory Council, Marjorie and I had to go to a lot of functions and assess various theatre and ballet perfomers and directors. As a result, we spent considerable time together. Although Marjorie and I had different tastes in some things, we found that we had a lot of interests in common.”

John and Marjorie became close companions for the next 35 years until her passing in 2009.

“We contemplated marriage on several occasions but never actually progressed beyond talking about it,” John says.

After so many years of dedicated service to the town, John’s contribution was formally recognised with an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday honours in 1978. He received a letter notifying him of his nomination, but his humility caused him to question whether he was deserving of such recognition.

“I didn’t really think I had earned it,” he says.

“I went to see my friend Milton Lewis who was editor of the Gippsland Times and asked him if he thought I should accept it. He said I should take it of course.”

John travelled to Goverment House in Melbourne for the presentation of his OBE medal and certificate, which states that the honour was bestowed upon him in recognition of his long and distinguished community service as Mayor and Councillor of the City of Sale and Sale district.

He is also the only individual to hold the keys to the city of Sale, which were presented to him in 2005.

Whilst it is not in John’s nature to draw attention to all his achievements, one of his longtime friends, Daryl Page, was more than happy to pay tribute to him.

“I have known John for about fifty years and have spent time travelling with him,” says Daryl, a former surgeon in Sale who now owns the historic local bed and breakfast establishment and function centre, Kilmany Park.

“He is a delightful, knowledgable and generous man who has made an incredible contribution to the local community in Sale. I’ve never heard him say a bad word about anyone. He has supported so many charities and given away so much money over the years and is still doing so. Some of John’s donations are given anonymously. He just never wants any fuss.”

John has kept remarkably good health throughout his life but is not sure if there is any secret to his longevity.

“I don’t know really. Lots of people ask me that. Maybe it’s doing things in moderation,” he suggests.

John still finds plenty of things to keep him active, including attending the University of the 3rd Age in Sale at least once a week.

“Rarely does a day go by without there being something for me to do. I seem to be able to stay busy enough,” he comments.

With a little over two years to go before reaching the grand old age of 100, John is not preoccupied at all about the milestone.

“I just wanted to make it to eighty,” he says.

“I had a party at eighty and then another at ninety, so I guess I have to now start to think about the prospect of another if I last to one hundred.”

Whilst he is downplaying the century, John does have one ambition foremost in his mind.

“They are rebuilding the Arts Centre and Library here in Sale on the old Council Chambers site. It is due to be finished by September next year and I very much want to be still around to see that.”

Photograph of Painting John Leslie OBE 2014

by Dawn Stubbs, 2012 Black Swan Prize Portraiture Winner Photographs by Wildwood Photography

John Leslie passed away in December 2016

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Darren McCubbin Wellington Shire Councillor

Darren McCubbin as Inspector Sherman Jones

Loud&Proud When it comes to being vocal about Sale, theatre-loving Wellington Shire Councillor, Darren McCubbin is happy to take centre stage.

By Chris West Darren at the World Town Crier Championship in Chester

In Chester Cathedral

Rolling first ball on new Maffra Bowls Club surface

On the streets of Sale and around the town, Darren McCubbin is one of the most recognisable people in the community. If you haven’t seen him, chances are you’ve heard him.

a period in Cloverlea near Darnum. Next stop was Hurstbridge in Melbourne’s north before another shift to Narre Warren in the city’s south eastern outskirts, where he went to high school.

“I thought the Institute had forgotten about me for a while. It took them two years to finally send someone down to do the classroom rounds and see if I knew what I was doing,” he laughs.

Many know Darren as a passionate local Councillor and former Mayor, others have encountered him through his creative pursuits in the theatrical world, while some are more familiar with him from his occasional appearances as Sale’s town crier.

Darren continued his education in Melbourne at Monash University and obtained an Honours Degree in Applied Mathematics majoring in Meteorology. Upon graduating in 1982, Darren’s ability with numbers helped him secure work at Bureau of Meteorology in Melbourne as a trainee weather forecaster.

After moving to Sale, Darren met Jill Boulton, who lived nearby on a farm in Clydebank. The pair went travelling together in Europe for a year, which brought Darren’s first teaching stint of three years to a close. Upon returning home, he resumed teaching for a further four years.

Wherever he goes, Darren is comfortable meeting people and makes enough noise to stand out from the crowd. For him, it’s been that way for as long as he can remember.

“I was really loud as a kid. At school, I was always the kid down the back of the class who has been told off. I recall that at primary school, if you got caught talking they’d put your name on the board and if you got caught out a second time you missed out on recess. I think I missed out on recess for about two and a half years,” he laughs.

“Nothing really changed at high school. It was pretty much the same story. In Year 12 they put me in my own special desk so I wouldn’t talk to anyone.”

“It didn’t take long to realise that the job wasn’t for me. Nine months into the training I gave it away,” he says.

Darren instead decided to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a teacher. The fact that he didn’t have a teaching degree failed to deter him.

“I figured I could talk my way into anything,” he chuckles.

Living at that time in Armadale, Darren only wanted to look for teaching jobs in Melbourne and chose to limit his applications to positions based in the city and suburban areas.

“We went wherever dad’s work took us,” he explains.

“Somehow, something went wrong. For some reason, I must have got confused with my applications because out of the blue I got accepted for a vacancy at a Catholic school in Sale. They wanted me to teach Year 12 physics and maths and pretty much gave me the job on the spot,” he recalls.

During Darren’s childhood, his family relocated to Darlington in Western Victoria for three years, before returning to Gippsland where they lived for

Darren relocated to Sale and undertook teacher training at the Gippsland Institute in Churchill while on the job.

Darren was born in Yallourn Hospital, but his father’s job as a primary school teacher resulted in his family being regularly on the move.

The relationship between Darren and Jill continued to progress and the couple exchanged vows in 1990.

“I married the farmer’s daughter, much to his great disappointment I suspect,” Darren says.

“My father-in-law Cyril wasn’t impressed that this school teacher from Melbourne who had won his daughter’s heart was never going to get his hands dirty on the farm. Cyril and I actually ended up getting on very well, even though he knew I was never going to be any kind of farm boy.”

After leaving teaching, Darren then reached an important crossroad in his career.

“I decided to work on my real passion which was the theatre,” he says.

The career shift was not a difficult transition for Darren.

“I was always fairly theatrical. After Year 12, I had the choice of going into the Arts or Applied Mathematics but went down the maths pathway.

But performing was always somewhere in the

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The Murder Company Team

background. I had been involved with lots of amateur theatre companies around Melbourne and at uni I was part of a troupe that performed in shopping centres,” he explains.

“I was always happy to have a go, whether it be singing or playing the ukulele. I can pretty much turn my hand to anything when it comes to performing and entertaining.”

Darren started broadening his theatrical involvement, including making short films and organising murder mystery nights, which led to him establishing two businesses - the Murder Company and Wishbone Children’s Theatre.

The murder mystery nights were aimed at the corporate market and interest spread into Asia as far as Beijing and Taiwan, whilst Darren’s endeavours with the Wishbone Children’s Theatre involved running shows at numerous festivals and events.

According to Darren, the murder mystery concept comes out of improvised theatre. He gives clients a choice of 24 different plot scenarios, all of which were written by him.

“The murder mystery is our signature show. It’s a whodunit done in improvised real time. I play the role of the detective and certain audience members are characters in the plot. Information is provided beforehand so they are prepared for their part,” he explains.

“In our shows, people just say what comes into

With Kevin Rudd in Traralgon

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their head and together we create the story.

Nothing is taken too seriously. There is a path I guide them along as the crime is solved.”

Darren enjoys how the show’s off-the-cuff format encourages audience members to unlock the creative side of their personalities.

“When you’re a young kid, everybody role plays.

When we grow up, we think we don’t need to do that anymore. I think that’s silly. We all role play in our lives,” he says.

“Whether I’m running a show for a corporate client or a sporting club, people get right into it and enjoy themselves.”

Darren has been operating the Murder Company for twenty years.

“We were doing about 350 shows per annum at our peak, but have eased back to around 150 a year now,” he notes.

Clients often ask if he can base a show around familiar television favourites such as Sale of the Century and So You Think You Can Dance, which he is usually able to do.

“It’s very rare that I find a request that I am unable to do or refuse to do. Thinking back, I did say no to jelly wrestling once,” he giggles.

Darren also has a keen interest in the past. He leads historical walks and has hosted This is Your Life shows for clients. Adept and at ease in any public speaking setting, Darren is often asked to make presentations on a variety of subjects.

“I am a natural story teller,” he says.

With Fiona Nash and Darren Chester at launch of Cultural Hub in Sale

One thing that is certain with Darren is that he is never short of colourful tales to recite. For instance, when the Council needed a town crier for the opening of the clock tower in the centre of Sale many years ago, somebody thought of him.

“It was known that I was involved in local theatre, so I was asked to perform the role of town crier for the official ceremony. They dressed me up in a rented costume and I gave it a shot,” he remembers.

“I thought it was nice that they chose me, but I discovered later on that I was actually the fourth person they asked,” he adds with mock indignity.

Town crying proved to be more than a one-off novelty for Darren and his vocal chords have since taken him to all sorts of places.

“It turned out that being loud is something I’m reasonably good at,” he says.

Darren happened to be at Seaspray one day and was asked by a town crier if he knew there were competitions to test their vocal skill against their peers.

“This town crier at Seaspray was aware that I had done it in Sale and suddenly declared he was going to take me to the Australian Championships.”

Darren journeyed to the Knox Shopping Centre in outer eastern Melbourne and prepared to take on the best town criers in the nation.

“People were taking it super seriously,” he recalls with some derision.

With Minister Lily D'Ambrosia and Richard Owen of Esso at the opening of the pipeline through Rosedale

Recent Japan Trip - Family

“There were contestants back stage doing warm up exercises with their breathing. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing and didn’t feel the need to get that absorbed by it or go to so much effort.

I just went out and came second in that one which was great.”

Darren has since gone on to compete in a number of international events.

“I’ve been to Toronto in Canada and Chester in England, where I finished second in the World Championships in 2014. I have also been fortunate enough to win the Australian title a couple of times,” he notes.

“I pay my way on my travels and I get to spruik the Gippsland area wherever I am which is a really good side benefit of doing it.”

Nowadays, Darren turns out as town crier about a dozen times a year at the familiar clock tower in the centre of town, where it all began for him.

“It’s a bit of fun, but I’d hand it over in a heartbeat,” he insists.

Darren has been politically aware for a long time.

He has served as Wellington Shire Councillor since 2003 and has twice stood for the Federal seat of Gippsland, firstly contesting the 2008 by-election before standing again in the 2010 election.

In early November this year Darren concluded his third one-year term as Mayor of the Wellington Shire, handing back the reins to his predecessor Carolyn Crossley soon after the Council election in late October. His two earlier periods as Mayor were in 2008 and 2009.

“I’m a strong supporter of the mayoral responsibility being turned over amongst Council members reasonably regularly,” he states.

When polling was counted at the recent Council election, Darren was first over the line in the Central Ward, securing 25% of the vote. Whereas he was able to maintain his popularity with public voters in the local community, several other previous Council members were not so fortunate.

“We had four existing Councillors returned and gained new members,” Darren reports.

But far more than any building or new service, it is integrity that matters most to Darren.

“I think we’ve assembled a really good team.

They are a nice group of people,” he comments.

Darren is now well accustomed to all the mechanisms of Local Government.

“For me, the most important legacy I can hope to leave when my time on Council comes to an end is the good governance and approachability of the Shire. In my opinion, in general we’ve been pretty stable in terms of the way we do business,” he asserts.

“I’m an old hat at this, but there’s always things you can learn,” he says.

“I’m not a town planner or engineer or any of those things. It’s not my job to be an expert in any of those operational areas. My job is to bring a community perspective to the table.”

Wellington Shire encompasses 11,000 square kilometres and contains a population base of 40,000 people. Such a large area requires huge infrastructure, including 3,000 kilometres of roads and over 40 public recreation reserves.

Darren relishes all the challenges that he and his fellow Councillors face.

“Council has to manage all the infrastructure and facilities, which is part of the excitement. I really like that,” he says.

“It’s important that we have a range of services spread evenly around the Shire and maintained appropriately which obviously comes at considerable cost. State and Federal Governments are pulling back more and more from country areas. It’s not cost effective for them to maintain services in country areas. More and more, it’s Local Government that has to provide those services. People want high standard facilities and services, but we have to maintain a balance.”

Darren has seen several major projects successfully implemented since commencing his involvement on the Shire Council.

“The Equus Centre in Sale opened in the first week I became a Councillor. It has had a couple of upgrades since its establishment and has been really exciting for the town,” he suggests.

“Aqua Energy has also been fantastic, as has the Gippsland Regional Sports Complex with its indoor basketball and netball facilities. Now we have the new cultural hub under construction with art gallery, library and performing facilities which gives us more to look forward to in the near future.”

“I think that it is really important for Local Government to maintain the trust of the community in terms of good governance. That’s the thing I’m most proud of. Whereas other Councils are constantly plagued by in-fighting, that hasn’t happened to us in my fourteen years on Council.”

Darren says the current challenges faced by residents of the Sale community are very similar to other regional areas.

“Like all country towns, we’re in a bit of a struggle to retain our population base and we’re facing a battle for growth. The challenge is to grow in a manageable and appropriate manner.”

He also recognises that localised employment opportunities are also fundamental to the economic future of the region.

“People live in the country because they don’t want to live in an intense urban area. They want an attractive lifestyle away from the rat race.

We’ve spent a lot of the time over the past ten years putting in facilities and services here that improve the lifestyle level. That’s great, but the crucial element is that you’ve got to have jobs to offer the kids.”

Darren sees expansion and relocation of the local TAFE as being vital.

“We are getting a generation of young people who are unable to access further education in our town. The TAFE here is about fifteen kilometres away which is a big deterrent to many kids. If you put barriers in their way for education, they just won’t do it. The TAFE needs to be moved in to town and developed with a range of new courses.”

But in order for such a change to occur, Darren concedes that considerable lobbying is required at both State and Federal Government level.

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Darren with Steph Ryan and Danny O’Brien

Launch of Maffra Historical Book

“It’s incredibly difficult. We have been prioritised by the TAFE Board which is encouraging, but talk needs to turn into action,” he says.

“The older I get the keener I get on writing and performing plays and honing my writing skills. My ideal would be to write more and perform a little less,” he says.

Darren is clear on where he believes the priorities should be placed in order to build a prosperous future for the local community.

Having lived in several homes in and around Sale since moving to the area, Darren presently resides on a four acre property in Longford with wife Jill and daughters Marnie, 13 and Ella, 12.

“It’s about education. It’s about young people. We want young people to be comfortable living in a country area and feel proud,” he states.

“In culture and arts for instance, we think everything cool comes out of Melbourne and it really irritates me. We have plenty of home grown talent here. We have some exceptional artists and thinkers in our area and we need to keep pushing and promoting that fact.

“I think the Arts in country areas is a lot better than the city in many ways. You actually find people are much more engaged with their local community and there is far less of a sense of entitlement than you find in the Arts scene around a big city like Melbourne.”

Darren is just as passionate now about the interests of the community as he was when he joined the Council and he is able to successfully juggle his Shire commitments with his widereaching theatrical pursuits.

“Council is only part-time and I also have people working for me at the Murder Company in teams based in both Sydney and Melbourne,” he says.

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“It’s peaceful there. The only sound that bothers you is the birds. Then again, they have to put up with my noise, so it goes both ways I guess,” he laughs.

These days Darren finds himself taking his creative flair back to his educational roots.

“I’m finding lots of work in schools writing plays and performances. People ask me why I am bothering to do that when I’m in politics,” he remarks.

It is a blinkered viewpoint that bewilders and frustrates Darren.

“We have this weird thing in Australia where we think politicians should be lawyers or accountants, when in actual fact I believe that creative thinkers, problem solvers and innovators are the ones who should be in politics.”

Darren aims to do more writing in the future, whilst also continuing his political involvement.

Darren only travels to Melbourne occasionally now and dreads the heavy traffic when he does.

“It makes me wonder why anyone would want to live in the city. I wouldn’t be anywhere else than here,” he insists.

Darren is perfectly content to enjoy the lifestyle in the Wellington Shire and work on his writing projects. He is also counting on his murder mysteries and other shows to maintain a regular flow of income.

“Hopefully the popularity of the shows will continue and I won’t have to go out and get a real job,” he concludes with a trademark grin.

Photographs courtesy of Darren McCubbin

Opening Hours Monday 9.00am to 5.30pm Tuesday 9.00am to 5.30pm Wednesday 9.00am to 5.30pm Thursday 9.00am to 5.30pm Friday 9.00am to 7.00pm Saturday 9.00am to 5.00pm Sunday 10.00am to 5.00pm

Woolworths Open 7 days 7.00am to 11.00pm Coles Open 7 days 6.00am to11.00pm

Target Mon-Wed 8.00am to 6.00pm Thurs & Fri 8.00am to 9.00pm Sat 8.00am to 6.00pm Sun 9.00am to 6.00pm

SITUATED IN THE HEART OF THE GIPPSLAND REGION IN EASTERN VICTORIA The Gippsland Centre aims to make your shopping experience as friendly and easy as possible.

Check out the specials and offers.

But be quick!

The Gippsland Centre offers exciting retail shopping for all ages with retailers such as Target, Coles, Woolworths, Priceline Pharmacy, The Reject Shop, Best & Less plus specialty stores covering fashion, food and leisure. The natural light that enters the Centre gives the customer the feeling of space with airconditioned comfort to enjoy their shopping experience.

The Centre also has ample parking, free wheelchair availability, an indoor playground and a 5 Star Parents Room, for your convenience.

Should you require any assistance, the centre management team are only happy to help and they can be contacted on 03 5144 7133.

37 – 39 CUNNINGHAME STREET, SALE 3850 PHONE: (03) 5144 7133 Find us on Facebook

www.gippslandcentre.com.au

PULLING TOGETHER In the quiet serenity of dawn, the Thomson and Latrobe Rivers at Sale are still.

This tranquillity is gently broken by the boats of the Gippsland Grammar Rowing Club as the dedicated students undertake their morning training.

By Olivia Skillern

Under the guidance of their coaches the students are put through their paces with the dream of competing at the highest level. Their devotion is clear. While most of us are still warm in bed these students are undertaking a two-hour training session. All before breakfast.

Established from very humble beginnings in the early eighties Gippsland Grammar Rowing Club has grown into a competitive force at both State and National levels. Notwithstanding the challenges faced by regional schools, the rowing club has continued to grow and be successful.

Despite rowing existing in Sale in the fifties and sixties there was yet to be a rowing program at the local schools. What is now Gippsland Grammar

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Rowing Club was initially formed by Andrew McColl and John Payne who attended St Anne’s and Gippsland Grammar School (STAGGS), now Gippsland Grammar in the early eighties. John was the son of the School’s Physical Education teacher Laurie Payne and knowing his father had the keys to the old Sale Rowing Club boat shed, suggested to Andrew that they check out the boats.

Despite most being beyond repair they were able to find a racing coxed pair to fix up. Its name was Ladies Gift. Although in these early years Catholic College Sale was advancing their rowing program at a faster pace, the STAGGS boys were able to achieve their dream of competing in their trusty boat and encourage other students to join them in the rowing club. The contribution of the

McColl family was later recognised when the club’s committee was named the “McColl Club”, a name that continues today.

While students continued to row at a low level from this time, it was in the early to 2000s that the club found a stable grounding under the guidance of Frank Stone. After many years at numerous top rowing schools around the country, such as Scots College in Sydney, Geelong College and Melbourne Grammar, Frank moved to Gippsland bringing with him many years of rowing experience, but no intention of coaching. Luckily for Gippsland Grammar he did coach again and went on to become Director of Rowing.

ROWING AT

GIPPSLAND GRAMMAR

Frank’s previous schools had very strong traditions of rowing and a huge pool to select crews from.

At Gippsland Grammar students rowed because they wanted to and although there were not the numbers comparable to other schools, Frank felt they were easier to coach and that coaching the students was very enjoyable. In only a few years, Frank had crews rowing in A Finals of the National Championships. It was a significant feat given the competition being the big rowing schools.

The growth and success brought the rowing program into its current status through Frank’s hard work and determination. In addition to the school rowing program, Frank inspired Sale’s time as a Sculling Centre of Excellence, and as Victoria’s Under 17 Development Coach had many top

rowers come and train in Sale, resulting in some local rowers competing in the squad as well. The success of these programs can be seen through Frank guiding Gippsland Grammar’s students in bringing home numerous state and national titles.

Over the past decade, Gippsland Grammar crews have won a multitude of medals at the Australian National Rowing Championships, most recently Gold in 2009 and 2010, Silver in 2014 and Bronze in 2009. It is even more common to see Gippsland Grammar standing on the podium at the Victorian State Rowing Championships. In the 2015 season alone, crews from the school won seven State medals, including two Golds - quite a feat for a small school entering only seven crews.

Old Boy Jackson Harrison is another illustration of the success of the program. He went from rowing at Gippsland Grammar to row for Australia at the 2014 Sydney World Rowing Cup. Jackson is now the Head Coach at Strathcona Baptist Girls Grammar School and coached their crew to second place at the National Championships in 2016, their first medal at that level. A great success for the former student.

Frank’s retirement in 2015 saw the rowing program take a new turn with the appointment of a new Director of Rowing, Peter Campbell. Building on the strong foundations of the rowing program, Peter brought additional ideas for the continuing program.

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PULLING TOGETHER ROWING AT GIPPSLAND GRAMMAR Peter says rowing is the ultimate team sport and his aim at the school is basic, he wants to get children into rowing. Coming from the UK, where rowing is highly regarded, Peter brought with him significant experience to share and an understanding of what it takes to compete at a high level.

The program that Peter is running is a high performance development program that continues the good work of the past. The students commit to the program with the aim to do the best they can do, and by doing so the results will likely follow.

Alongside many general regattas Gippsland Grammar’s rowers attend several major events.

These are the state based Rowing Victoria State Championship Regatta, the Head of Schoolgirls Regatta in Geelong and the NSW Schoolboy Head of the River Regatta. Crews that perform to a required standard are also selected to compete at the Australian National Rowing Championships.

Although the aim to row at an elite level is desired, Gippsland Grammar is committed to being an inclusive rowing program. Therefore, any student who wishes to row is encouraged to give it a try

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and is coached equally. The rowing program is not only about winning but developing well rounded individuals who give their all to be the best they can be.

Under Peter, the rowing program is in its infancy but he has the goal of emulating the culture of professionalism, pride and performance the program has displayed over the years which in turn establishes a high standard of dedication, commitment and hard work. All integral to being part of the rowing program.

The success of the club has been significant but goals for the future are also clear. Peter hopes that the club can continue to grow and become selfsustaining where the program speaks for itself with more students taking up rowing and continuing throughout their studies.

Currently the rowing program at Gippsland Grammar has approximately 40 students participating each year. With a population of around 1000, this equates to four percent of the student body. It is hoped that, for the program to become self-sufficient, the numbers could increase to ten percent. This increase in the number of students participating into the future will result in greater success at a State and National level.

Although for many people rowing is a specialty of elite city schools, Gippsland Grammar is a local school giving their students the opportunity to embrace this prestigious sport. Through the support of the school and the growth of the program Gippsland Grammar Rowing Club hopes to propel Sale into being the centre of rowing in Gippsland.

The rowing program requires significant commitment by the students. The early morning and lunchtime training sessions take up much time and energy alongside other commitments.

With this hard work perhaps Gippsland Grammar Rowing Club can produce the next Jackson Harrison or Drew Ginn.

As they pack up their boats and equipment after their early morning training the rowing students from Gippsland Grammar contemplate their school day ahead.

Photographs courtesy of Gippsland Grammar Rowing Club

Whole Squad - 2 Gold, 3 Silver, 2 Bronze - Vic States - 2016

Jess - Senior School Girl Single 2016-17

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FRIENDS + COFFEE + FOOD

Wild Honey stands out as one of Sale's longest running and iconic cafes. Our dedicated staff aim for the very best in food, coffee and service with a friendly smile. Wild Honey has a range to please every customer.

that you can choose to your liking, it is the health kick your body desires!

With the addition of a fresh juice bar and a selection of over 30 different juices

We also provide Catering (Delivered) Private Functions

HOURS: Monday to Friday: 8.00am – 5.00pm Saturday: 8.00am – 2.00pm Sunday: Closed

Wild Honey invites everyone to enjoy the experience and friendly atmosphere, indoor or al fresco.

76 Cunninghame Street Sale 3850 P: (03) 5144 5001 follow us on facebook

THE BEST QUALITY & SELECTION OF MEATS BY FAR AT AFFORDABLE PRICES!

FAMILY OWNED AND OPERATED BUTCHERY OFFERING GOOD OLD-FASHIONED PERSONAL SERVICE, WHILE ALSO EMBRACING THE FUTURE OF RETAILING. HOURS MONDAY – FRIDAY 6.30AM TO 6.00PM SATURDAY 7.00AM TO 1.30PM

293 RAYMOND STREET, SALE 3850 T: (03) 5144 4370 follow us on facebook

The Gloriously Outstanding

The vast, magnificent and peaceful environment of Heart Morass near Sale is the result of an extraordinary undertaking by hunters, conservationists, educators and government and is one of the largest wetland habitat restoration projects in Australia.

It began in 2006 when after a few years of negotiations, Field and Game Australia's, Wetland Environmental Taskforce purchased 801 hectares of heavily grazed, dry, salt encrusted privately owned wetland. A few years later, they purchased another 312 adjoining hectares for stage two of the project and another 223 hectares in 2013.

Heart Morass, now an ecologically flourishing wetland and woodland covers 1,336 hectares between Sale Common Nature Conservation Reserve and Heart

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Morass State Game Reserve. A large part of Heart Morass is also one of the largest areas in Victoria covered by a protective covenant with Trust for Nature.

habitat reconstruction, removal of flood debris, track maintenance and liaising with the other project partners.

This was all achieved with funds from FGA memberships and branch donations, generous funding from the Hugh Williamson Foundation and passionate volunteers. Partners in the project with WET are the HW Foundation, Bug Blitz, which is funded by the foundation, Water Mark Inc. and the West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority.

He said WET initiated the project. Watermark Inc. then provided introductions to the various trusts.

When an understanding between the organisations was established, a management plan was written in conjunction with the various groups and overseen by the WGCMA who manage water flows throughout Gippsland.

Gary Howard is an Australian Field and Game member and a WET representative on the Heart Morass committee of management. His role is the on-ground management of the project, which involves weed and vermin control, fencing, revegetation works,

He said all three parcels of land were previously used for grazing. “We purchased the first property during a drought. It had been heavily grazed and was severely degraded by lake salinity. The second and third were purchased out of the drought and weren’t as bad

Heart Morass

By Wendy Morriss

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although I do recall calling my mate at the WGCMA after the third purchase and saying ‘well we’ve bought a blackberry farm’.

“The first task was cleaning up and getting rid of things that come with farming like fencing wire. Then there was fencing to sort out and we went to work on water management, the salinity and revegetation.

We’ve since moved on from there and now it’s general management and maintenance.”

Gary is enormously proud of what the community groups together have been able to achieve for the broader community. He said included in the works has been the planting of 60,000 indigenous trees, shrubs and grasses. “It’s more than 10 kilometres from the front gate to the back gate of the reserve so it’s an enormous project.”

One major ongoing issue is acidic soil and the other is carp with both being part of the management plan.

“We brought in professional carp fisherman and in two separate days, they removed 32 tons of carp.”

He said the reserve’s habitat changes depending on water levels and climate conditions.

The returning wildlife includes at least 80 identified species of aquatic birds and two rare frog species, which means the habitat is improving and the water quality is good.

In 2002, FGA members created the WET trust with the aim of purchasing and restoring Australia’s remaining wetlands to ensure their preservation for future generations.

Heart Morass is open to the public however, groups and individuals will have to obtain a key from the FGA to open locked gates. “We’d love to leave the gates open but we can’t risk having the reserve damaged.”

The Field and Game Association formed in Sale in 1958, have always wanted to manage their own wetland, and showcase their credentials as a hunting and conservation organisation. “In the early days, there was a tax incentive for draining wetlands and turning them into farms,” Gary said. “Members of the association could see then that the culture was wrong. They approached the State Government about introducing a game licence and using the money to purchase land for a state game reserve system, which

Gary said what the hunting group has achieved in conjunction with other community groups is amazing.

“Bug Blitz uses the reserve and has had up to 600 children over three days looking for and learning about bugs, plants and aquatic wildlife. They had a wonderful time and that’s what I think this project is all about.”

For more information call Gary on 0427 432 540.

Photographs by Lisa Maatsoo

they did. Hunters were at the forefront of conservation in the state before our National Park systems were put in place.”

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Heart Morass

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MONDAY – FRIDAY 6AM TO 3PM | SATURDAY & SUNDAY 7AM TO 1PM

GET YOUR FIX

The Coffee Pit is Sale's one stop drive thru cafe/coffee shop!! Conveniently located on the main highway, we pride ourselves on offering outstanding customer service, amazing coffee and fresh food made to go, eat in or take away!! The Coffee Pit also provides Catering Services for corporate functions and private occasions.... Pop in and see us or Call 5144 7255

317 York Street, SALE, 3840

Phone: 5144 7255

www.facebook.com/The-Coffee-Pit

JOHN BRADY Wood Scultpure Gallery • Wood Sculpture • Paintings by Local Artist • Wooden Furniture & Gifts • Coffee & Handmade Chocolates • Cypress Slabs & Timber cut to order Open Weekends & Public Holidays: 9.30am to 4.30pm Group Bookings and appointments at other times welcome

FOR OVER 15 YEARS

Jaycar Electronics Authorised Stockist

GIFTS AND GADGETS, UHF RADIOS, TV ANTENNAS

Contact John 0409 187 590 / Alison 0422 393 040

4176 Princes Highway, Fulham, 3851

MONDAY TO FRIDAY 9.00AM TO 5.30PM SATURDAY 9.00AM TO 12.00PM

Ph: 5144 7700

306 Raymond street, Sale 3850 www.electronicbarn.com.au Like Us on Facebook

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FROM BATON ROUGE… TO GIPPSLAND

by Geoff Watt

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It's no ordinary event when Sale is about to play host to an artist who has sold over 55 million records worldwide! Especially when you also add to that the fact that the artist will go down in history as a true icon due to the incredible impact she has had on popular culture. I am referring to Suzi Quatro and the concert event is set to happen at the Sale Botanical Gardens on February 19, 2017.

I was only eleven when Suzi Quatro's first album was released in Australia in 1973. But even at that age I observed first hand the effect Suzi Quatro had on the consciousness of a generation. My older sister at the age of seventeen and her friends saw Suzie as an agent of empowerment, taking it up to the 'boys' by singing and playing bass out front of a male rock band - she was it's leader, it was her band and she was the driving force. Even my older brother (when he was nineteen) and his friends loved Suzi because she was clad in leather, the music was hard and tight and she was well, pretty damn hot.

Any way you look at it, Suzi Quatro was a pioneer. Sure there were other great female singers before and after - Grace Slick, Gladys Knight, Karen Carpenter, Debbie Harry of Blondie, Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Annie Lennox of the Eurythmics and Marie Fredriksson of Roxette to name a few. But none of these women were singing while playing an instrument and leading the band. I would even be as bold as to say that the reason we have so many great women rock musicians goes back to the pioneering work of Suzi in breaking down the stereotypical image that then existed of a rock band.

We Gippslanders are indeed very fortunate to have Suzi Quatro and her band coming to Sale for a show that will rock the neighborhood. I was lucky enough to get to interview Suzi, and in view of the aforementioned, it is the first thing I have to ask about:

GW Firstly, thank you so much Suzi for this opportunity to interview you. We are so excited that you are visiting Australia again in 2017 for your 'Leather Forever Encore Tour'. Suzy, you were the first true rock chick. It was your band and you empowered so many girls by leading a band of guys and not just being a token singer, but also playing an instrument integral to the sound of a rock band - the bass. Did you have any idea at the time how significant it would be?

SQ "My reason for doing what I did was simply to remain true to myself. I knew I was different - not quite sure why. I realised what I had done when I looked back at it a few years later. It was quite incredible. I gave women 'permission' to be rockers. And serious ones too."

GW It's quite a legacy isn't it?

SQ "It's a heavy load to carry. Luckily I have a strong back from fifty-two years in the business swinging my bass guitar!"

GW You were trained at piano and percussion but took up bass guitar. Why did that become your instrument of choice?

SQ "Because it felt right...as soon as I put it on...it was an epiphany. I didn't want to be behind drums or behind a keyboard. I had to be out there. I had to be rockin' with that neck in my hands."

Suzi is a great bass player. In her recordings the bass is always there with good tone and her bass lines are a major part of holding the rhythm together. Songs like 'She's In Love With You', 'The Girl From Detroit City' and 'Walking Through The Changes' highlight her creative and driving bass. On stage she also does incredible bass solos - there are many of her live bass solos on You Tube. Suzi's hero growing up was Elvis Presley, so I naturally ask her about 'The King'.

GW You have said that your hero was Elvis and there is a searing version of 'Jailhouse Rock' from your 1975 tour of Japan on You Tube, which also displays your great showmanship with your audience. Was the leather Elvis wore in his '68 Comeback Special an influence on what you did?

SQ "Yes, one hundred percent. When I was searching around for an image in my all girl band days I saw him on the 1968 Comeback Special and went out and bought my first leather jacket first thing the next morning!"

Being a pioneer and innovator is one thing, but the bottom line is that you don't get to Suzi's position in popular music nor have the longevity that she has had without great songs. Suzi had a string of rock hits in the seventies such as Can The Can, 48 Crash, Daytona Demon, Devil Gate Drive and The Wild One. The singles in the 1970's were written by the songwriting duo Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman who at the time wrote many of the hits songs for The Sweet as well (e.g.

Ballroom Blitz, Blockbuster). But it was the album tracks where Suzi's own songs shone and many a fan would find the real satisfaction in the album cuts rather than the singles. It was a great mix.

GW I asked Suzi if she had always written her own songs growing up or if songwriting was something she developed when in the band?

SQ "I have always written poetry - I started writing poetry at around the age of eight. I have been writing songs since I was about eleven years old. I am an artiste and I am always creating. I love, love, love writing.....love, love, love the written word and I love the music that sometimes goes with it".

Suzi has toured the world many times over and has come to tour Australia 31 times. That is a hell of a lot of times to come down under from the other side of the world! There are ample clips on You Tube demonstrating her prowess as a performer and entertainer and she is always engaged with her audience, the playing is tight, the vocals strong and plenty of hits to satisfy her fans. I was at one of her concerts at Festival Hall back in the seventies with my big sister (probably around 1975) and the crowd atmosphere was just electric.

GW I asked Suzi if country music resonated with her growing up?

SQ “I think most authentic rockers can also turn their hand to country. I do love it, and certain songs I just love to sing. If the lyrics resonate with me then it works. I just can't sing words that I don't believe. 'Stumblin' In' and 'If You Can't Give Me Love' are the evergreens and are loved the world over."

GW Suzi, you have had many collaborations - recording with Chris Norman, Jeff Beck and Cozy Powell to name a few. Do you have fond memories of working with your contemporaries?

SQ "Yes I do, very fond memories. I was absolutely thrilled Jeff Beck agreed to play on 'Desperado'...what a guitar player! Chris of course has a great ballad voice and Mike (Chapman) wrote an amazing song. Cozy Powell, well he was in Detroit with Jeff Beck when Mickie (producer Mickie Most) discovered me. So there is a lot of history there...RIP Cozy."

I made reference to Cozy Powell because I happen to have the single of it - from 1973. It is called 'Dance with the Devil'. Cozy Powell was one of the all time great drummers (Jeff Beck Group, Rainbow with Ritchie Blackmore, Whitesnake) and it was very unusual for a guy who played drums to release an instrumental as a single. But it was a cracking song. I never knew Suzi played on that record until I was researching for our interview - a nice surprise!

GW Suzi has released fifteen albums and as a songwriter has written many great songs over her career. I asked her if there are any that, looking back now, she regards with special admiration?

SQ "I do have some favorites. 'Singing with Angels', which is my tribute to Elvis. I recorded it in Nashville with James Burton (Elvis' guitarist) and the Jordanaires (Elvis' backing singers). Another one is 'Sometimes Love is Letting Go' which is pretty special to me. And there is a new song on the new album coming out for this tour by our new group, which is called QSP - it is me, Andy Scott and Don Powell. We are opening the show.

The song's name is 'Pain' and it is beautiful. This new album also contains what I like to refer to as my masterpiece - broken pieces suite."

GW What was it like being on the road touring so much in those heady days?

SQ "I loved it. It was what I was born to do.

I am happiest living out of a suitcase, knowing what each day entails...flight time, hotel, sound check time, stage time... then repeat the next day. There is a beautiful military precision to it all.

I love it, even fifty-two years later!"

In the later part of the seventies Suzi stretched out her style and revealed her creative diversity.

Songs like 'Stumblin' In' (nearly 30 million viewings on You Tube) and 'If You Can't Give Me Love' saw a softer edge to both the music and Suzi's vocals - a tinge of country even. The songs really showed a richness and variety in Suzi's voice. Suzi has also recorded a great version of the Eagles classic 'Desperado'.

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That's right - Suzi has got together with Andy Scott (the well respected guitarist from The Sweet) and Don Powell (the incredible drummer from Slade) - a formidable lineup indeed. As well as her own show, Suzi is unveiling QSP for the first time; a supergroup of seventies legends that apparently was the idea of her husband promoter Rainer Haas who had previously worked with The Sweet and Slade. It will make for a unique concert experience and by all reports some great new songs have been written.

GW How did you get this group together Suzi?

SQ "Ten years ago my husband had the idea when we were discussing organic musicians.

Then two years ago it started to become a reality.

We went into the studio with two cover choices each and then we started to write. And then things really took shape. We have something original and we are all very proud of it - QSP look out Australia! You are witnessing the birth of this act. Act 1 of the show on the tour is QSP and then Act 2 is of course the Suzi Quatro Show. I'll be part of my own support act."

GW The Sale Botanic Gardens will be a beautiful outdoor venue to perform in. I do notice however that your tour also takes you to the iconic Sydney Opera House. Sounds very special. Have you ever performed there on a previous tour or is this the first time?

SQ "I have never performed there. How is that for an honour? And yesterday I was made an honorary Doctor of Music, receiving my award at Cambridge University dressed in a cap and gown - it doesn't get much better."

GW For those who are going to see you live on the 2017 'Leather Forever Encore Tour', what can they expect from your large and diverse songbook?

SQ "Something for everyone. A few surprises and of course lots of their favorite hits and album material. We are going to rock every single joint we play in including the Opera House!"

Suzi's career hasn't just involved music but encompassed Radio Hosting (BBC2), T.V. (including Happy Days, Minder, Midsomer Murders and Absolutely Fabulous) and West End Stage (Annie Get Your Gun) - reflecting the quality and diversity of her talent. I would love to have been able to talk about more but one would need literally days - so creative has Suzi's journey been thus far. Always creating, always true to herself, always rocking and always approachable.

Thank you so much Suzi Quatro.

“No problem Geoff.”

Photographs courtesy of Dianna O’Neill Publicity

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PORT OF SALE AND THOMSON RIVER There is nothing better in life than spending some time cruising Gippsland's vast arrays of waterways with Terry Raymond of Crawford Marine in Morwell.

Port of Sale has a rich and diverse history. It is the gateway to the three rivers that meet - Thomson, Avon and Latrobe and of course the nearby Lake Wellington.

The weather was fine and we soon had the boat expertly dropped off into the Port; there are two boat ramps side by side with easy access for departure and arriving.

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In this issue Terry chose to bring along the Stacer 429 Outlaw SC with the 40HP Mercury motor and we were soon underway. Together with good weather we had glass-like conditions on the water, and literally without a bump, we were off down the port and into the equally calm waters of the Thomson River.

The Stacer 429 Outlaw Side Console is the perfect boat for fishing, with plenty of room to move around the boat, the seats have full turning capacity and with the canopy it would lead to a great day any time, any where.

This Outlaw has the Factory Bimini, deluxe side console, motor guide electric motor mount, live bait tank rear step and rail and tackle draw.

There are many things to see when cruising along the Thomson River, bird life is aplenty; you will often see pelicans by the banks or flying above in their graceful manner. Of course there is the historic Swing Bridge and you fully appreciate the workings of this bridge when you are actually underneath it. This bridge is a massive structure and is a big part of the history of Sale.

The Stacer 429 Outlaw SC with it's single hull style is 4.4 metres in length and it is easily one of the best fishing boats I have been on, so I can clearly imagine that this boat is rigged up for a great day's fishing, in any of Gippsland's rivers, ports, bays etc.

The Mercury Motor did what it had to do, but with the waters so calm, it was able to pick up speed quite efficiently and then murmur (or purr) similar to a cat with quiet ease.

And when travelling along the Thomson River, you might see other boats out and about and The Rubeena was on one of its regular sightseeing day trips. I can imagine the stories being told by the Skipper as to what looked like a boat full of happy people.

The boating people of Sale should be proud of their waterways, the Port of Sale is historic and it is an outstanding waterway that proudly accompanies this great town.

After out trip we had lunch at the Sale Greyhound Club, top service, good food and that capped off another great day with Terry Raymond of Crawford Marine, where to next?

Doug Pell 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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KEVIN HOGAN Taken in ABC Gippsland FM studio whilst presenting his regular sports show

Voice of Sport

The

by Chris West

On and off the field, media veteran Kevin Hogan’s many achievements have made him a sporting institution in Gippsland.

Reflecting on his life in sport, Kevin Hogan says one of the greatest highlights has been all the remarkable people that he has come into contact with, including some who he regarded as heroes of his own.

“We travelled together by car and they were both fantastic to spend time with. It was actually my first ever trip to Gippsland and certainly an experience I’ll never forget,” he says.

From his earlier junior footballing days, Kevin also recalls a trip to Tasmania in 1947 where they were given a talk by the famed Roy Cazaly, who was later immortalised by the Mike Brady song Up There Cazaly.

In his prime Kevin played football and cricket for South Melbourne in the 1950s before coming to Sale in the 1960s where he had a significant impact on both sports over many years.

During his 70-game football career with South Melbourne, Kevin came face to face with many of the game’s greats on and off the field. He played in the match against Footscray in 1956 where his Bloods team mate Bobby Skilton made his debut, before going on to win three Brownlow Medals.

Opposing his team for Footscray was the great Ted Whitten, a player Kevin rates as the best in his era.

While playing for South Melbourne, Kevin recalls fondly a time after a home game at the Lake Oval in 1957 when club officials were looking for someone to go to Moe for an anti cancer fundraiser with two other sportsmen. The officials were struggling to find a volunteer when Kevin enquired as to whom was also participating.

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“What I remember most about him was his enormous hands,” he says.

At cricket, Kevin progressed as far as District 2nds level with South Melbourne as a batsman, but did have the distinction of keeping wickets one day to Ian Meckiff, a left arm fast bowler who went on to play 18 Test matches for Australia before being controversially banished from the game after his action was judged to be illegal.

When told it was Australia’s legendary billiards champion Walter Lindrum and former South Melbourne footballing great Laurie Nash, Kevin jumped at the opportunity.

Kevin is also of sufficient age to have seen the greatest cricketer of all, Don Bradman, in action towards the end of his unsurpassed career.

“My grandfather took me to the MCG for the Australia versus India Test in 1947 when I was thirteen and I saw both Bradman and Arthur Morris make centuries,” he recalls.

“I can still remember it clearly. Bradman was absolutely magic. His strokeplay sticks in my mind, particularly his powerful cover driving. The ball just flowed off his bat.”

“I got cleaned up one day and had to have my spleen removed,” he laments.

“As a result, I dropped out of senior coaching in 1962 and 1963 and just looked after the juniors in those two years, but I did keep playing. Then I came back to the senior coaching role for 1964 and 1965.”

Regarded as the doyen of the local sporting scene, Kevin’s workload and role has adjusted over the years, just as the whole media landscape has evolved in recent times.

“He lived just three blocks from the Lake Oval and we barracked for South growing up.”

“I used to send stories to the Herald in Melbourne and do a country round up when there was a Saturday night edition of the paper. Now all the local results are available online,” he observes.

Kevin’s footballing ability as a rover and wingman for the Benalla Colts caught the eye of some of the clubs in the VFL in Melbourne and he was approached by representatives from Collingwood and North Melbourne as a potential recruit.

“In the early days I would be working long hours, combining my newspaper and radio roles with my full-time work at GBG Concrete and Construction.

These days my workload is much more manageable, but it still keeps me busy enough.”

But Kevin was happy to end up going to the team closest to his heart, South Melbourne, where he went on to play from 1954 until 1960. He remembers the typical playing wage being around 15 pounds per match in that era.

Kevin still contributes to the Gippsland Times and every Friday morning hosts a sports show on ABC Gippsland FM which includes guest interviews and match previews. He also covers every race meeting at Sale Racecourse, where he writes stories and takes photographs.

“Unlike the players today who are full-time athletes, we all had to have jobs,” Kevin notes.

When Kevin’s playing days at South Melbourne came to an end at the finish of the 1960 season, he looked for options to continue his football career.

He considered a move to South Australia to join his younger brother Frank at West Adelaide, but decided it was too far from home.

Kevin finds it impossible to place his passion for journalism, broadcasting or photography into any order of preference.

“I couldn’t split them. I love doing all of them,” he insists.

Kevin was born and raised in Violet Town in north east country Victoria, but it was his city-based grandfather who was his connection to South Melbourne.

“I worked at Devon Motors in Queensbridge Street in the general office and sales area, before later going to Kings Parking Company in Flinders Street.”

“In the early days I had a dark room at home where I would develop and print all the photos. Then came colour film and now everything is done on digital, which makes it so much easier,” he says.

Upon his arrival in Sale, the football club president Cliff Gamlin also employed Kevin in a full-time position at his company GBG Concrete and Construction, where he continued to work until 2001.

Kevin’s first exposure to sports media work occurred in 1964 when he was asked by ABC Gippsland to call the Latrobe Valley Grand Final on radio alongside Dick Evans. He must have impressed behind the microphone, for when Evans left ABC Gippsland the following year Kevin was given an opportunity to work for the station.

“As I worked full-time at GBG Concrete and Construction for forty years, my work in sports media developed as more of a sideline that I managed on a part-time basis,” Kevin explains.

“I started at the ABC in October 1965 and reached 50 years there last year,” he says proudly.

Around that time, Kevin heard that Sale was looking for a new coach and he successfully applied for the position. He had married his wife Xavier in 1960 when living in Melbourne and their first child Christopher was only a fortnight old when they relocated to Sale in February 1961. They rented for a few months before purchasing a weatherboard house close to Sale’s home ground where Kevin still lives to this day.

Sale recruited Kevin as playing coach, but his first season in 1961 was curtailed by injury.

In the same year that he commenced at the ABC, Kevin also started part-time work as a journalist with the Gippsland Times at the invitation of editor David Tulloch.

“David asked me to start reporting on the local football and cricket and I reached the 50 year milestone with the paper last year as well.”

Kevin added photography to his media CV in 1966, again at the suggestion of David Tulloch.

Although Kevin believes he has photographed just about every sport during his career, the most celebrated image he has captured to date had no sporting connection whatsoever.

“I once had a photo published on the front page of the Herald in Melbourne many years ago,” he recollects.

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At the Sale Football ground

“A friend of mine in Seaspray phoned me one day to tell me he had a ewe which had given birth to five lambs and wondered whether I would like to take a photo. I couldn’t get down there quick enough. While trying to get the photo arrangement right, I asked my friend’s young daughter to grab hold of the lambs and while she was doing so the ewe came up alongside stamping her feet. That made the photo quite special.”

Kevin is full of admiration for the talents and qualities of many of the outstanding sports men and women he has interviewed over the years.

“In recent times one of the most impressive people I’ve spoken to was Peta Mullens, a local lass from Sale who started out in athletics, marathon running and triathlon, but has gone on to become a champion road cyclist and mountain bike rider. She is hoping to make the team for this year’s Olympics in Rio,” he says.

After arriving in Sale fifty-five years ago, Kevin has never felt inclined to leave. He loves Gippsland’s strong sporting culture and history.

As well as becoming a revered figure at Sale Football Club, during the summer Kevin also

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donned the whites with distinction at the Sale Cricket Club for about 20 seasons from 1961/62, including two premiership winning years. He has been awarded Life Membership of both clubs, as well as the Gippsland Football League.

In 1984, Kevin received an Order of Australia Medal for his contribution to local sport and visited Government House in Melbourne to be presented with the honour.

“It was a proud day for my family. My wife’s brother Vin Heffernan, who was a Government Minister, received one at the same time,” he reveals.

Others have also bestowed special recognition on Kevin over the years. A recent example was local Sale musician Gary Rose, who penned a tribute song to coincide with Kevin’s 50 year milestone at ABC Gippsland last year.

“He put some homework into it and did a pretty good job,” Kevin suggests.

After moving to Sale in 1961 with a wife and first newborn child, Kevin’s family grew considerably in size in the ensuing years. He and Xavier eventually raised eight children - seven boys and one daughter.

One of their sons Damian is now Principal of St Patrick’s Primary School in Stratford and his boy Nick is a promising footballer with Gippsland Power. Kevin proudly remembers Damian and his younger brother Brendan, who is now the parish priest at Narre Warren, playing football together in Sale’s premiership side in 1986.

Kevin suffered a huge blow when he lost his wife Xavier in May last year, but he is kept occupied through his work and ongoing involvement as a Committee Member of the Sale Football Club and Treasurer of the Netball Club.

Over the years, Kevin has made a network of contacts which still enable him to keep his finger on the pulse of happenings in sport throughout Gippsland.

Despite having entered his eighties, the local media veteran is not thinking of retirement. He appears unlikely to be ready to put down his pen or camera, or sign off from the airwaves any time soon.

“I’m just happy doing what I am doing,” he says.

Kevin may not be as agile as he was in his heyday, but there is still plenty of life left yet in Sale’s voice of sport.

Kevin Hogan passed away in 2019

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COX’S BRIDGE TO COX’S PLACE

Ride for Research & Care

The second annual bike ride event was held in October 2016 to honour Bruce “The Doc” Cox a tireless worker within Sale, Loch Sport and Gippsland communities, who lost his fight to battle the degenerative, unrelenting Motor Neurone Disease.

The race was flagged off at the starting line by past Essendon AFL Footballer, Neale Daniher who is a sufferer of MND during the Daniher’s Drive to support the caring for MND research and raise funds to find a cure for this merciless disease.

Amongst the riders and supporters were Bruce’s wife, daughters and friends who were there to honour his memory and wish that this event be held annually to raise awareness of MND. Also, contributing were family of the late Monica Best who passed away 12 years ago due to MND who did their bit with either a ride or walk.

These are all her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren, cousins and other family members. They are standing under the finish line, which was kindly donated by Riviera Triathlon Club for use during the event.

Photographs by Chris Holmes Photography and Lotje McDonald Photography

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Donna Cox, Judy Cox (Bruce's wife), Denise Retzlaff (Secretary Loch Sport Bus & Tourism - Event Director)

Hans Retzlaff (Ride Co-ordinator), Neale Daniher and Tracey Cox

Donna Cox (Bruce Cox's Daughter), Neale Daniher, Tracey Cox (Bruce's daughter) at the commencement of the ride Cox's Bridge in Sale

Neale Daniher waving riders off at starting line

Quirky Pictures

by Marguerite Sharlott

t ave’s brigh D r e m r a F d to Sale, is was On the roa with the Dairy cris pe idea to co w heads! fe a g turnin

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