Mail - Ferntree Gully Star Mail - 5th July 2022

Ferntree Gully Belgrave

Census shows changing Dandenongs

Writers group reunites for literature lovers

PAGE 6

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Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

Mail

A Star News Group Publication

Horticultural Society celebrates 90th birthday

New fire rating system being developed

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PAGE 25 Phone: 5957 3700 Trades and Classifieds: 1300 666 808

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Breathing new life into walk

By Parker Mckenzie

Violet Gollogly-Rich with artist Renate Crow.

Picture: STEWART CHAMBERS

At the end of Mason Grove in Sassafras, two new art installations have taken flight along the Ridgewalk.

When walking up the steep hill — known locally as the Old School track — you’ll be greeted by nine Mayan-inspired path marker birds created Peter Mcilwain and a sculpture of a tawny frogmouth by Renate Crow.

Made to breathe new life into the trail as a part of Yarra Ranges Council’s Ridgewalk project, the artists joined the Star Mail in walking the track to view their artistic depictions of birds.

Ms Crow and Mr Mcilwain took a different approach from each other in achieving the desired effect, with spectacular results.

Read more on page 14

Lanterns light up Local schools, kindergartens and community groups participated in lantern-making workshops, with some even putting their craft skills to the test at home.

Grants and events coordinator for the Bel-

grave Traders Association Jeremy Angerson said a “beautiful, generous, triumphant” spirit returned on the evening of Saturday 25 June.

But not long after the event had finished, Billy Crombie, co-owner of Babaji’s Kerala

Kitchen started a petition on change.org calling for more funding to save the festival - with more than 1000 signatures in support.

Turn to page 2 for more on this story

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Belgrave’s 2022 Lantern Festival kicked off with a resounding welcome after a two-year hiatus on Saturday 25 June, with 10,000 people flocking to the Main Street to celebrate the winter solstice.

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Belgrave light reimagined

By Tyler Wright Roughly ten thousand people had the joy of experiencing this year’s Belgrave Lantern Parade; the town’s first openly public annual festival since 2019 before the pandemic began.

With new dispersed entertainment precincts and the Belgrave Food Garden showcasing their site before the event, Grants and Events coordinator for the Belgrave Traders Association Jeremy Angerson said a “beautiful, generous, triumphant” spirit returned on the evening of Saturday 25 June.

“The train station was just pumping people from down the line into the township; just throngs of people,” Jeremy said.

“The width and breadth of the main street, I don’t think you could [have] squeezed another soul into that street on the night.

“After two years of lockdown, it was essential that we brought back the light in Winter.”

Lanterns created by schools, kindergartens and community groups across the Hills have brightened Main Street each year since 2007.

The Belgrave Food Garden, which formed in late 2021 and is located behind the Cameo Cinemas and Inspiro Health, held lanternmaking workshops and the opening of their information board.

“We had a huge number of families come to make their own lanterns out of recycled fabrics and materials…about 200,” the garden’s Head of Committee Ellie McSheedy said.

“We had really great support from Belgrave traders… [with] the lantern making we were using recycled milk cartons which came from all the cafes on the high street which was a great use of plastic that would usually get carted off to be recycled.”

“We had people who were there for an hour to an hour and a half, doing the craft listening to the acoustic music, we were sharing mulled apple juice or a nice warm drink, and we had quite a few people playing in the flower beds and chatting before the lantern parade started,” Ellie said.

Families; locals and visitors alike; flooded the streets of Belgrave at this year’s Lantern Festival on 25 June.

“It was lovely to share that moment with them to really get the message out about the garden, and the community space [where] we’re trying to create workshops, and the working bees that we offer to really give people skills and confidence to be able to grow their own produce, which is particularly important with the rising cost of food and growing food insecurity.” Three different local acts took to the stage in the new precincts, and a partnership with Yarra Ranges Council’s ‘Defrosted Events’ youth group brought what Jeremy Angerson called an “enormous amount of energy

and fire” to the event.

“Because we’re coming out of Covid and we didn’t want everyone sort of clumping together in one area, we wanted them doing a lap of the township and rediscovering what else the township has to offer,” he said.

“All of its little nooks and crannies and spaces were creatively activated; and that can invite participation at a whole new level as well.

Showcasing all that Belgrave has to offer; from its alleyways, to its arcades, to its carparks to its beautiful green gardens all working together as one.”

Pictures: SUPPLIED

Alongside the annual parade were entertainment precincts designed to encourage festival-goers to explore more of the township.

Future of the iconic Belgrave Lantern Festival in doubt

By Tyler Wright Belgrave residents and traders have flocked to sign a petition created on Tuesday 28 June to support the continuation of the Belgrave Lantern Festival, despite a massive turnout Saturday 25 June.

Billy Crombie, organiser of the change.org appeal which recorded over 1,000 signatures, took to the site to express concerns the festival may not run in coming years.

“Road closure and traffic management costs almost doubled this year”, she wrote.

“This reduces the amount the event has to spend on the more creative enterprises, and the depth to which it can engage with the community.”

As co-owner of the local Babaji’s Kerala Kitchen, Billy said contributions made by volunteers “cannot be taken advantage of” and the event was run on a “skeleton budget” in 2022.

Yarra Ranges Council contributed $12,000 to the Belgrave Lantern Parade in 2022 through their Creative Communties 20182022 Partnership Grant Programs. $3,000 was supplied from Bendigo Bank and old Belgrave Traders Association funds, according to Ms Crombie, with an additional $10,000 worth of equipment provided by local production agency OBG Productions.

“We are really calling for it to be properly funded so the event can continue to grow and be run professionally - and more importantly - safely,” Billy told the Star Mail.

“It’s relied so heavily on volunteers over the [17] years, this year included, that it’s getting to the point where it’s at risk of not being able to continue…

“The traders are usually involved in getting this event up but that wasn’t the case this year because of Covid and everybody trying to survive the staff shortages - it’s been a really tough year for all businesses” “A lot of people who have done this through the absolute love of the Hills community and 2 MAIL

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Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

A parade of lanterns, performers, singers, drummers and more fill Belgrave’s Main Street for the celebration of the winter solstice.

Pictures: SUPPLIED

New entertainment precincts were created to maintain a Covid-safe event, but concerns are being raised over the festival’s future.

“My family’s first time attending was this year. I’m really surprised I hadn’t heard of it before this,” another signer wrote.

Yarra Ranges Council’s Director of Communities, Jane Price, said the Creative Communities funding stream “supports not for profit groups and organisations to deliver activities that enhance local culture, celebrate community spirit and contribute to the liveability of Yarra Ranges”.

According to Ms Price, the council regularly reviews its Partnerships and Grants Program, including funding allocation, to ensure to ensure it is meeting “broad community needs” and “delivering on the aims of the program” and part of this involves feedback from grant recipients.

“The Belgrave Lantern Festival was a recipient of a Partnership grant 2018 - 2022,

where Yarra Ranges Council partnered with Belgrave Traders Association with a $60,000 grant program over a five year period,” Ms Price said.

“Later this year, we will be opening our next Partnership Grant program where the Belgrave Traders Association are welcome to submit a new application where a new funding request can be made.”

Billy Crombie said local traders are grateful for the funding received from Yarra Ranges Council.

“I’m going to try and get five to ten thousand petition signatures so at least we can go to [the] council with evidence of how loved this event is,” she said.

To sign the petition or learn more, visit https://www.change.org/p/save-the-belgrave-lantern-festival

love of this event over the years have gotten to the exhaustion point so they’ve not been able to be involved in it anymore.”

But for the festival to survive, the trader said more funding from Yarra Ranges Council needs to be delivered to improve road management and build public toilets.

Her estimate of required monies is at least $30,000.

“We’re quite genuine when we have to question whether or not that event will be able to run unless it is given much more support financially through the council,” Ms Crombie said.

One commenter on the petition said her and her family “love” the Belgrave Lantern Festival and “the festival nor any other similar type of celebration in the area, should not be overlooked for funding.”

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IN BRIEF

Another Code Red

By Callum Ludwig

Free flu vaccinations extended The Victorian Government’s free flu vaccination program has been extended until Sunday 10 July.

The flu vaccination is already free for children under five years, people over 65 years, pregnant women, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and people with increased risk medical conditions.

Health Minister Mary-Anne Thomas said this was shaping up to be the most aggressive flu season we’ve seen since the start of the pandemic, with thousands of cases being recorded across the state each week.

“Getting vaccinated against both Covid-19 and the flu not only keeps the pressure off our hospitals but also gives you and your loved ones the best protection possible over the winter period.”

Car theft in Monbulk The fifth Code Red of 2022 was called by Ambulance Victoria on Tuesday 28 June. Picture: ON FILE are provided with a full clinical assessment to check on their condition during this period and provided advice.

High acuity code 1 patients are those whose circumstances are deemed to be life-threatening and time-critical.

VicRoads privatisation generates $7.9b

By Parker McKenzie On Friday 1 July, Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas and Minister for Roads Ben Carroll announced parts of VicRoads would be sold off through a joint venture between the State Government and a consortium.

The consortium —made up of Aware Super, Australian Retirement Trust and Macquarie Asset Management — has entered a “40-year partnership in which the Government retains ownership of VicRoads, while generating $7.9 billion in upfront proceeds for the state” in exchange for the licensing and registration portion of the governmentowned corporation.

Treasurer Tim Pallas said the move was a win for all Victorians.

“It means a better experience for drivers and owners of cars, motorbikes, trucks and boats, and continued investment in VicRoads for future generations,” he said.

“It’s a terrific start for the Victorian Future Fund, which will deliver major benefits for Victorians as we continue to recover strongly from the shocks of the pandemic.”

The money made by the sale will be in-

A man has tragically died following an incident in Gembrook on Wednesday 29 June.

The man was injured while using a harvester at a Ure Road farm at about 10.50am and was declared deceased at the scene.

It’s believed the 82-year-old was working alone on a harvester in a paddock before he was found unresponsive.

Police will prepare a report for the coroner and the incident will be investigated by WorkSafe.

Worksafe said the death brings the workplace fatality toll to 24 for 2022.

Learner and probationary license fees will be reduced under the new “joint venture”.

Picture: ON FILE vested in the Victorian Future Fund, which aims to offset debt from the Covid-19 pandemic through investment returns.

Minister for Roads and Road Safety Ben Carroll said the move will also see fees for learner and probationary driver’s licences reduced to zero.

“Getting your Ls and Ps is one of life’s most significant milestones,” he said. “The agreement protects the jobs and conditions of VicRoads workers and will see us create new roles as well.”

The Victorian Government is claiming

the move — which it said is a “joint venture” and not partial privatisation — will create a better service for customers and businesses.

Victorian Greens Spokesperson for transport Sam Hibbins said the decision was a “neo-liberal shocker”.

“The sell-off of VicRoads’ licencing and registration function has put the interests of private profit over the public good,” he said.

“The lease, which will not expire until the 2060s, will mean higher fees, lower quality customer service, and less jobs, lower wages, and conditions for workers for decades to come. It will put control over another public asset in private hands.”

He pointed to the privatisation of the Port of Melbourne, Land Titles Office and public housing estates as examples of the “biggest privatisation agenda since Kennett.”

“The Government’s so-called future fund is a neoliberal economic policy using the sale of public assets and public land to service debt,” he said.

“Even more concerning is that the Government has not ruled out or excluded future fund investments in climate change causing fossil fuels.”

A white Holden Commodore has been stolen after a break-in at a residence at Menin Road, Monbulk on 21 June.

Alongside other items, the 2009 Commodore with license plate XHA780 was stolen.

Police said the ute has an SSV badge on the tailgate, a squire hitch towbar and a K&N sticker on the back window. It does not have the usual Holden Lion Badge on the rear tailgate.

Anyone with information in relation to the burglary and theft is asked to contact Yarra Ranges Crime Investigation Unit on 9739 2401.

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The fifth Code Red of 2022 was called overnight on Tuesday 28 June, with zero ambulances available from 12.15am.

Four hours later, ambulance services were able to resume as normal. The last code Red was called on Friday 27 May shortly prior to 1am, which lasted just over an hour.

An Ambulance Victoria spokesperson said they enacted the red escalation in response to a period of limited fleet availability within metropolitan Melbourne.

“The situation was able to be resolved, with services returning to normal within four hours,” they said.

“We thank the community for helping us save Triple Zero (000) for emergencies.”

On Monday 27 June, 146 Ambulance Victoria staff were unable to work because of sickness through COVID-19 or caring for family or friends with the virus.

Ambulance Victoria was prepared to issue community messaging in the case of an extended escalation but was not activated as internal actions and support from partners improved the situation quickly.

Resourcing levels are constantly under assessment to determine the ability of Ambulance Victoria personnel to respond to changes in demand, fill any late absences and relocate resources.

Even during a red escalation, all patients, including high acuity code 1 patients, continue to get support and receive a follow-up call from experienced senior paramedics and nurses from secondary triage. These patients

Harvester accident results in tragic death

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Heart treatment available

By Tyler Wright

A seriously stenosed aortic valve, open.

Phil Holmes lived in Olinda for 17 years and underwent the TAVI procedure in 2019, which is now included on Medicare for certain heart disease patients.

Pictures: SUPPLIED

An open aortic healthy valve.

me… but I also had no idea what a TAVI was…

I considered the risks and decided to go ahead and have the TAVI procedure.”

Performed by a specially trained interventional cardiologist or cardiothoracic surgeon as part of a heart team, a TAVI involves a small incision, usually in the groin, where a catheter is inserted into the femoral artery.

The artificial heart valve is then guided up to the heart and expanded into place.

“I had mine on the Friday afternoon [and] I was up eating and doing normal things on Friday night. I was walking around the hospital on

“It allows patient preference in terms of treatment to come into play, which prior to this was not feasible because of hospital constraints and the ability to do low-risk patients as per Medicare.“ With the new indication, Dr Adams said his hospital could expand its lists, heart team, and extend the option to more patients.

“When someone has a TAVI in our particular cohort, 72 per cent of our patients go home the next day, which is quite extraordinary, because it means that, especially [during the pandemic], we’re not putting pressure on the hospital system,“ he said.

He also predicted the costs of a TAVI, prior to this announcement, would be up to $50,000 in Melbourne if a patient was not deemed suitable for the procedure in a public hospital.

“We do around 100 a year at the moment and will do up to 200 in the next five to 10 years,“ he said.

“Improved access will also lead to benefits, not not just for us but also for research and development for getting better quality devices and better quality adjunct devices to reduce the risk of complication.“ Phil Holmes, who recently bought an acre of land in Glenda Ruel, about 25 minutes outside of Ballarat, said he has been given another 20 to 30 years of life and is enjoying the time he has left.

Of the estimated 66,500 Australians living with aortic stenosis, nine in 10 are not undergoing treatment each year, according to a recently published Ipsos survey.

“It’s so important that you listen to your body, and men in particular don’t like going to the doctor and talking about things - but they should, and it’s nothing to be ashamed of,” Phil said.

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Road disruptions: Closed roads Union Road, Surrey Hills

Saturday, down the cafe with my wife and came home on Monday,“ the businessman said.

“On Monday afternoon, I was sitting on the couch but I was doing emails for work - I was pretty much back to work on the Tuesday, feeling fantastic. No side effects,” he said.

If not identified or treated effectively, more than half of those living with severe symptomatic aortic stenosis may die within two years, according to the report, Timing of aortic valve surgery, published in BMJ journals.

But Dr Heath Adams, interventional and structural cardiologist at the Hobart Heart Centre and Royal Hobart Hospital said the progession rate of the disease was fortunately very slow.

“It’s also important to emphasise that symptoms can’t be blamed on old age alone,“ Dr Adams said.

“If patients notice they’re more short of breath than usual, they’re more fatigued than usual, if they experience chest pain or blackouts, they need to be assessed by their GP and they need to have their heart listened to with a stethoscope.“ “If there’s a suspicion, they can have something called an echocardiogram, which [involves] rubbing gel on the chest wall and taking pictures with an ultrasound - and that will give a diagnosis if that’s what the patient is suffering from.“ Dr Adams said up until 2017, the TAVI was not on the Medicare benefits schedule, meaning hospitals had to pay for the procedure outof-pocket and cardiologists could only perform the incision on those who were “inoperable“.

“Patients are now able to have it regardless of surgical risk - and basically the patient population is patients over 70 who have varied comorbiditities or other past medical history,“ he said,

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Victorians suffering from the potentially lifethreatening disease aortic stenosis will now have a better chance of accessing minimally invasive treatment to get back on their feet.

Non surgical treatment transcatheter aortic valve implantation, or TAVI, was included on Medicare form 1 July - meaning patients experiencing the narrowing of the heart valve resulting in their heart working harder to pump blood around their body, an impact of the condition, will now have the chance to recover with reduced procedure time and a shorter stint in hospital.

Patients can also expect lower risk of complications, improved quality of life and extended life expectancy, according to cardiologists.

Phil Holmes, 72, was living in Olinda when he made the decision to undergo a TAVI on 20 September 2019 at the Alfred Hospital.

“I’d been going to gym five days a week for about seven years before I had the procedure. I was very fit and very active, [doing] two crossfit classes on a Tuesday and Thursday,” Mr Holmes said.

“A group at the gym decided to do the push up challenge - [in 2019], it was 3128 push ups in 21 days - we decided we’d do 4000 in 28 days…”

“In the third week, I really really struggled.

By the time Wednesday came, I was just done… I was getting quite breathless. I didn’t know what it was but I knew something wasn’t right.”

It was then Mr Holmes sought the advice of a cardiologist, who confirmed the father of three and grandfather of five’s aortic valve was “not great” and warned he could potentially suffer a fatal heart attack at any time.

“I was really shocked because I’m only a very social drinker, non-smoker and very fit,” Mr Holmes said.

“I had the two options of either having open heart surgery, which was not appealing to

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Phil is now able to enjoy a new lease on life with his wife, three children and five grandchildren. mailcommunity.com.au

NEWS

Top honours for Richard Less than two weeks after his community service was acknowledged with an Australian Fire Service Medal in the Queen’s Birthday Honours, Sassafras-Ferny Creek Fire Brigade’s Richard Cromb has received another three honours closer to home.

At the brigade’s annual dinner at Dine Divine in Sassafras on Friday 24 June, Mr Cromb was awarded a 50-year service medal by CFA Chief Officer Jason Heffernan.

Mr Cromb also received the brigade’s 2021 Fire-fighter of the Year Award and will have the brigade’s primary fire-fighting tanker named in his honour.

He said he was “totally gobsmacked” by the honours.

“One reason I have stayed so long at this brigade is the people,” Mr Cromb said.

“So many here have made such a fantastic contribution to this community.”

The dinner was attended by around 70 people, including Mr Cromb’s close family members.

Mr Cromb joined the brigade in 1970 and CFA staff in 1999. As a former brigade captain, he oversaw the local response to the tragic fires which tore through Ferny Creek and the Dandenongs on 21 January 1997.

Assistant Chief Fire Officer David Renkin

Richard Cromb with the tanker named in his honour.

Picture: SUPPLIED spoke of the respect and affection held for Mr Cromb by staff and volunteers because of his passionate and skilful contribution to training and firefighting.

Brigade Lieutenant Geoff Horner was also awarded a 45-year service medal and presented with life membership in the brigade.

Richard Laidler and former member John Schurink were acknowledged for 35-years of service.

John Tomada and Gwen Horner were commended for 30-years’ of service.

As Dandenong Ranges residents sit through Winter and things look a little stormy, the DRREA are holding a session to discuss solutions for after the power grid goes down.

Picture: RUSSELL MARNOCK

Talking renewable energy

By Tyler Wright The Dandenong Ranges Renewable Energy Association (DRREA) will be holding an event at the Emerald Hills Hub on Thursday 7 July, from 7:30pm to 9:00pm, to discuss planning for when the power grid ‘goes down’.

Ian Conibeer, DRREA member and technician with experience in the renewables industry, will be presenting alongside a Yarra Ranges Council as well as retired electronics engineer Russell Marnock.

The speakers will tailor their presentations to questions from attendees.

“We’ll be busting a few myths; looking at the return on investments,” Ian Conibeer, Gembrook resident owner of solar energy equipment supplier Energy Connections said.

“There’s a lot of concern about grid reliability…there’s a lot of people contacting us directly…about ‘what are we going to do if the power goes out?’ ‘how do we mitigate that?’ “[After] the 12 month anniversary of the big storm that wiped a lot of power out for people week after week…[there’s] always that concern for people in the Hills - bushfire concerns in the Summer and big storm events in Winter.”

Russell Marnock, Treasure of the DRREA, is planning to speak about preparations and what locals should take into account when their power is lost.

“We’ve got a couple of users of Tesla Powerwalls (energy storers) that are going to have a five minute piece on their experiences of those” The Yarra Ranges Council representative will speak about what the council did during last year’s storm event, and how the council established community places for people to “charge their gear” in emergency situations, Russell said.

Peter Cook, President of the DRREA, said the main question will be how maintain basic power supply, and if not, to ensure the outage causes a minimum amount of convenience.

“In the future people might also be able to, if they own electric cars, use the stored electricity they have in their EVs to substitute for the grid,” Peter said.

“We’re looking at the options available to people to prepare for future breakdowns of the grid,” he said.

To RSVP for ‘When the Grid Goes Down, email info@drrea.org.au by 4 July 2022.

For more information, visit www.drrea. org.au 12556762-NG27-22

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Yarra Valley is growing

By Parker McKenzie The 2021 census data was released on Tuesday 28 June, allowing residents of the Dandenong Ranges and Yarra Valley to see the changing demographics compared to previous years and the rest of the country.

Yarra Ranges Shire grew by 6531 people since 2016, with the median weekly household income rising by $380 in the same time period from $1501 to $1881.

The median age of residents remained the same at 40-years-old, above both the Victorian and Australian average of 38.

The number of people born in Australia rose slightly from 77.9 per cent to 79.4 per cent, and England remained the second highest place of birth with 4.9 per cent. English ancestry was the most common for residents in the Yarra Ranges, but grew from 30.7 per cent to 43.3 per cent in 2021. Australian and Irish took out 2nd and 3rd position.

10.3 per cent of residents reported having a mental health condition such as depression or anxiety, a statistic which wasn’t recorded in 2016, making mental health the largest type of long-term health condition in the Yarra Ranges, with asthma second at 9.6 per cent. 57.9 per cent of responders reported no long-term health conditions.

In the electorate of Casey, which covers parts of the Dandenong Ranges and the Yarra Valley, residents said they have become less religious in the past five years, with 53.3 per cent reporting they have no religious affiliation in 2021 compared to 40.5 per cent in 2016.

Tecoma Uniting Church Minister Matt Cut-

ler from said he wasn’t surprised to see the results of the census.

“I don’t think the church has ever done well when it was the largest seat at the table, or whenever it was wedded to power or was too big. It’s always distorted itself,” he said.

“People now engage in religious traditions by choice, not by cultural hand down. Today, there’s very little inherited people a part of faith tradition.”

People of Catholic belief were the largest religious group in 2021 with 15.2 per cent, with Anglicans representing the second largest with 7.8 per cent. Both saw a drop, however, with 19 per cent of people reporting to be Catholic and 11.2 per cent reporting as Anglican in 2016.

Minister Cutler said the people living in the hills were often spiritual, if not religious.

“I keep finding through our community, that we have a very high amount of those who say I can’t do the tradition stuff, I can’t even do the god stuff but there is some kind of mystical thing I want to have a conversation about,” he said.

“For me, I want to continue to be the kind of church that serves the local community, regardless of numbers. I like the fact that people think Tecoma United Church is one of those churches, that is really valued for the food program, for our community hub, as somewhere go if needs arise.”

56.9 per cent of Casey residents belonged to Secular beliefs, other spiritual beliefs and no religious affiliation.

You can see all the statistics for the Yarra Valley and other geographical areas at: https:// www.abs.gov.au/census

Revealed changing attitudes in the Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges.

Picture: AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

2021 Census data highlights rental unavailability

By Callum Ludwig Initial statistics from the 2021 Census are out, and they have further highlighted the dearth of rental properties in the Yarra Ranges.

The Yarra Ranges as whole rents far less than the rest of the state and country with only 14 per cent of the population of the area renting, compared to 28.5 per cent and 30.6 at a state and national level respectively.

Director of Professionals Yarra Valley Ashleigh Hall said the number of rental properties in the area has declined massively in his time in the real estate industry.

“I’ve been in real estate for over 20 years and when I started there were a lot of rental properties around our area, but they were ageing properties and houses that were previously rentals have been snapped up by first home buyers,” he said.

“A lot of rentals have been in the same ownership for the past 15, 20 or 30 years and need work. I’ve been working with two landlords recently who have owned theirs for 25 years and want to turn those over to have money for their retirement as well.”

Anglicare’s Rental Affordability Report for 2022 in the Yarra Ranges saw the number of advertised properties in the area decrease from 82 in 2021 to 73 in 2022.

Mr Hall said traditionally rentals were not attractive for investors in the Yarra Ranges.

“Originally, the amount of rent that they were getting was quite low compared to the property price. It wasn’t an area that people would look at as a straight investment to buy an investment property,” he said.

“The capital growth was there but hadn’t been there previously and in recent years prices in our area have gone up a lot, but we’d still been one of the most affordable areas for first home buyers to buy, so even an investor may have wanted to buy a house, they have often been outbid by prospective first home buyers.”

34 per cent of renting households according to the 2021 Census reported that their rent payments were more than 30 per cent of their household income, indicating that rental affordability is also on the decline in line with the rising inflation and wage growth stagnation seen in Victoria and nationwide. For the reference of readers, this stat cannot be compared to historical data as applicable households in the calculation 6 MAIL

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Rentals are becoming increasingly unavailable in the Yarra Ranges. changed from prior censuses.

According to Anglicare’s Rental Affordability Report for 2022, the median weekly rent in the Yarra Ranges was $455 in March 2022, compared to $430 a year ago. It was even lower according to the 2021 Census, with median rent at $380.

Mr Hall said he has seen the effect the lack of rental housing has had on renters.

“We’ve been selling rental properties and the tenants who’ve moved out have had to actually move to other areas because they have not been able to get a rental back in back in the same area they were living,” he said.

“I think it’s a massive issue Australia-wide and definitely Victoria-wide. It’s a shame local people need to leave the area, even with kids going to local schools and things like that, it’s really sad the government haven’t got ways to help these people buy a house, even though they have been trying with incentives.”

Local residents have taken to social media to accuse short-stay accommodations like AirBnB of being responsible for the lack of rental availability in the area.

Mr Hall said he doesn’t believe short-stay properties are to blame.

“These properties probably aren’t the ones that would traditionally have been rental houses. I met with some short-stay owners today and the reason they buy the short-stay properties is they want to use it themselves,” he said.

“A lot of these people may work from home, even part-time, so they may spend a week up here and use it as a short stay to subsidise having the property in the meantime. “ A trend of landlords selling up has also been seen following the changes in the Tenancy Act that came into play on the 29 March 2021, which for better or worse, included a ban on rental bidding, new rental minimum standards, no eviction without a reason, al-

Picture: ON FILE lowable modifications by renters such as painting and urgent repairs. As a result, some landlords have felt the hassle of owning investment properties has outweighed the benefits.

Despite the concerning trends, Mr Hall said there is plenty of opportunity in the Yarra Ranges now for potential investors.

“If someone was looking to buy an investment property, I think the area the area has a lot to offer especially as rent has definitely gone up a lot, and I still think it is an area that has room to improve growth-wise,” he said.

“While landlords and renters alike traditionally do not like spending money on rental houses, now traditional rental areas like Millgrove, Launching Place and Woori Yallock’s estates have seen property owners painting them, doing the fences and improving the gardens and all those types of things.

With such a low vacancy rate as well, it makes it a lot easier to get good tenants.” mailcommunity.com.au

COUNCIL NEWS

Shire adopts draft budget for 2022-23

By Parker McKenzie Yarra Ranges Council has adopted its proposed 2022-23 budget at a meeting on Tuesday 28 June.

Mayor Jim Child moved the motion with Deputy Mayor Johanna Skelton seconding in support.

Ms Skelton said there hadn’t been a huge amount of engagement from the community with the budget.

“This is one of the big items we consider and something that touches everyone in our area,” Ms Skelton said.

“One of the big principles we are looking at tonight is the percentage rate increase which is the state government cap at 1.75.”

Community engagement for the budget closed on Wednesday 15 June.

She said the rate increase was appropriate because expenses for Yarra Ranges Council went up in 2022-23 and the money will be used for services the entire community to enjoy.

“I’m pleased to see we have the biodiversity and nature plans in there and the actions that come out of that, which is something we all hear of,” Ms Skelton said.

“We’ve got the food scrap and glass collection coming in, massive changes, Indigenous heritage visibility project, we’ve got the Ridge Walk Art Trail which is going to make access throughout the hills so much better and also have a beautiful cultural destination.”

The Local Government Act 2020 limits local council’s from raising rates by more than 1.75 per cent each year.

Cr Tim Heenan spoke against the motion but congratulated officers for putting together the document and the 10-year Capital Expenditure Program.

“In keeping with my commitment to community of not agreeing to a rate rise I’ll be voting against this tonight,” he said.

“In saying that councillors, I believe the document we have here tonight with our expenditure and action plan, and the budget

New library

By Parker McKenzie

Yarra Ranges Council voted to adopt the draft budget plan for 2021-22.

Picture: YARRA RANGES COUNCIL being put together is something we should be proud of.”

Mayor Child said the budget was a “tightening of the belt.”

“I must emphasis this is a very strong budget when you consider the circumstances we’ve been through in the past couple of years, dealing with the pandemic and dealing with recovery,” he said.

“For us to stick to a 1.75 per cent rate cap rise is a very significant achievement on our behalf.”

The motion was carried, with only Mr Heenan opposing the motion.

Within the budget, $3 million was allocated

to storm recovery projects and initiatives.

The Ridgewalk, a 26km trail in the Dandenongs, has been allocated $1.9 million alongside further funding from the State and Federal Governments.

Council has also allocated 4.6 million for positive ageing services and $7 million for the maintenance and renewal of community buildings. $86.4 million has been allocated towards council services, including $6.3 million for early year development, and early childhood education and care.

The now adopted draft budget can be viewed at shaping.yarraranges.vic.gov.au/ draft-budget-2022-23

$200K savings with new energy provider From Friday 1 July, Yarra Ranges Council have switched their small and large energy accounts to renewables under the Victorian Energy Collaboration (VECO) contract through Red Energy.

Following a unanimous vote at the 25 May Council meeting, the decision was approved which will cut its emissions in half and save over $200,000 per year.

Deputy Mayor, Johanna Skelton said it’s great to know Council is responding to community feedback and climate science and transitioning away from coal and gas.

“Over time there will likely be even more electricity needed to power more electric vehicles, aquatic centres, cooktops and other infrastructure that currently use fuel and gas - so it is essential to make sure Council has set up an energy source that minimises air and land damage, as well as reducing the energy needed wherever possible,” she said.

“I appreciate that when Council improves or replaces any assets, reducing energy use is always a key consideration.”

Red Energy currently provides the renewable energy used in street lighting in the Yarra Ranges, which saved Yarra Ranges Council more than $90,000 in the last year, with a 20 per cent reduction in emissions.

Cr Skelton said that the community was at a pivotal time in history, and taking action on the climate was crucial.

“Every climate action we take now is making the years ahead safer. Individuals in this country can do a lot to reduce emissions, but government coordination is vital to guide and encourage the process,” she said.

“Working with other councils to bulk buy mailcommunity.com.au

Knox City Council and Yarra Ranges Council both voted to wind up Eastern Regional Library Corporation and create a beneficial enterprise.

Picture: ON FILE

Yarra Ranges Council is making the switch to renewable energy sources. from a safer energy source is now another way Yarra Ranges Council does this.

Council-managed facilities including, venues, community links, the Civic Centre, libraries, aquatics centres, public toilets and public lighting will all be run with 100 per cent renewable energy following the change.

Cr Skelton said it was such a fantastic result with the street lighting contract in its first year and was a very easy decision for Councillors to vote to move remaining energy accounts to a renewable source.

“Of course, we will take whatever opportunities we are able to, in making the climate safer, and we’re doing fantastic work in generating solar power on our community facilities with over one megawatt capacity on roofs - and now the energy we draw from the grid is entirely from renewable sources,” she said.

Picture: ON FILE

“There’s more we’ll need to do in coming years, but this is a fantastic outcome. It gives community members optimism to see steps forward made by Councils and I hope that this gives more residents and businesses motivation to look at Climate Change and say, ‘Game on’ instead of ‘Game over’.”

The change comes as part of the Yarra Ranges Council’s Liveable Climate Plan, outlining it will move towards net zero emissions by 2040, including using 100 per cent renewable energy by 2030, with zero operational energy expenditure by 2040.

46 Councils across Victoria formed a buyers group as part of VECO to make a power purchase agreement and the VECO agreement was the winner of the Local Government Pro Awards for Excellence in their Sustainability category.

Both Knox City Council and Yarra Ranges Council have voted to fast-track the winding up of the Eastern Regional Library Corporation, with it being replaced by a beneficial enterprise called Your Library Ltd. Under the Local Government Act 2020, existing regional library corporations must be wound up before the expiry of a period of 10 years and be replaced by beneficial enterprises — a business or trading activity undertaken by local government. on Tuesday 28 July, Councillor Andrew Fullagar moved a motion at a Yarra Ranges Council general meeting to wind up Eastern Regional Library and adopt the beneficial enterprise proposal.

“Councillors don’t have a lot of choice in this particular decision. Our legal team has advised our actions comply and the risks are acceptable,” he said.

“Council is now ready to make this step and I put it to the rest of the councillors.”

Councillor David Eastham said the one thing Yarra Ranges Council had a say in was how quickly it acted to move on proposed changes.

“I believe we were given 10 years but all the discussions I was privy to — I should mention I was a member on the board for the first year of my councillor term – highlighted getting onto this early and providing certainty,” he said.

“I’d take this moment to thank the collaborative efforts between the staff at Eastern Regional Library and the other representatives from Knox and Maroondah, working to a great outcome.”

At a Knox City Council meeting on 27 June, Councillor Yvonne Allred said following recent changes to the Local Governments Act, Eastern Regional Library’s executives and council representatives on the board have been thorough in their approach to ensure the council complies with the legislation and the newly established corporation is reflective of the current regional library services.

“Each member council will appoint two members to the board of Your Library Ltd, which will remain Councillors Timmers-Leitch and myself,” she said.

“I’m of the opinion council is wellpositioned to move towards the outlined beneficial enterprise model as proposed in the report, and ensure the ongoing high performance of service.”

She said Eastern Regional Library Corporation had a $2 million surplus mainly due to reduced services during the Covid-19 pandemic, which will be placed in a reserve account and used to acquire, refurbish and maintain library facilities.

The motion to transition to a beneficial enterprise and to support the establishment of the reserve account was passed unanimously.

Eastern Regional Library services three local government areas: Knox, Yarra Ranges and Maroondah. A corporate representative from each will be appointed to the board.

Councillors Marcia Timmers-Leitch and Yvonne Allred from Knox and Mayor Jim Child and Councillor Andrew Fullagar from Yarra Ranges Council will be appointed as inaugural directors of Your Library Ltd. Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

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NEWS

An intermediate Auslan Class held at Olinda Community House.

Pictures: SUPPLIED (AMELIA)

By the time a student complete’s Michelle Hughes’ intermediate Auslan classes, they are able to refer to cup measurements and oven temperatures.

Auslan courses popular

By Tyler Wright A new Australian Sign Language (Auslan) community course has been welcomed by Hills residents hoping to learn to communicate with their Deaf and hard of hearing family, friends and peers.

Sassafras resident Michelle Hughes started her community teaching course at Olinda Community House at the beginning of 2022, and said there has been an evident “growing interest” towards learning sign language in the Dandenong Ranges.

“I couldn’t believe the amount of enrollments we got - it was crazy,” Michelle said.

“I didn’t want to knock anybody back because of my own experience trying to learn; when you enrol in a course, if they don’t get the numbers they cancel the course and you get your money back - then you wait another six months or a year to enrol in another [one].”

The communication support worker’s small business runs beginner, intermediate

and conversation Auslan courses and term one saw 28 beginner students with another 17 joining in term two taught by three mentors per class.

“I’ve written the course and we teach with deaf tutors and mentors because I understand cultural appropriation; Auslan is not my language and I like to to be an authentic experience taught by a native Auslan signer as well as breaking down that communication barrier,” Michelle said.

“One lady learns with her 10 year old son…

I’ve got a lady enrolling next term [who already] did beginners; she wants to repeat the class because her 12 year old son wants to do it [and] she wants to progress with him.”

Auslan was first recorded in Australia’s Census of Population and Housing in 2001, but for the first time since was included as a prompt in the most recent five-yearly count in 2021.

Under the question ‘Does (person) use a language other than English at home?’ the prompt question in ‘other language’ will now

state “If other, for example, Auslan, please write here,’ a move Deaf Australia has been advocating for.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics data released in late June showed nearly nearly 4,500 Victorians used Auslan to communicate.

Since 2001, every Census has noted a significant increase in Auslan users; increasing from 5,306 in 2001 to 16, 242 in 2021.

Michelle, who is also now a tutor for families with Deaf children, decided to learn Auslan herself five and a half years ago and travelled from the Dandenong Ranges to Geelong for a personal development course where she got “hooked”.

Finding further courses, however, provided a challenge.

“I enrolled three times in their courses and had my money refunded,” she said.

“I then found a community course in Mitcham...and again the enrollments weren’t enough”

Then at an intermediate level, Michelle’s class was combined with beginners to make six students - which still didn’t work out and led to the class being split in half to continue.

Her focus now, as a teacher, is to ensure there is always a class for students.

“We’re really excited that we’ve been able to go into our third term and still have the interest in this area - [It’s] fantastic.”

In term three, an Auslan course for ‘Absolute Beginners’ will be running at the Sassafras Primary School on a Wednesday night from 6:30pm to 8:30pm.

There will also be an intermediate course on Thursday nights at Olinda Community House from 6:30pm to 8:30pm, along with a conversation class at the same venue from 6:30pm to 8:30pm on a Tuesday.

Those interested can visit the ‘Auslan Pay it Forward’ Facebook page or contact Michelle via email michelle.payitforward@gmail.com.

Foothills Community Care Op Shop opens

By Parker McKenzie Foothills Community Care has opened its new Op Shop in Ferntree Gully, with all proceeds going towards programs to support the vulnerable members of the local community.

The Mountain Gate Community OpShop, located at Mountain Gate Shopping Centre, is currently open on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 10am to 3pm and 10am to 2pm on Saturdays.

Foothills Community Care founder Stephen Barrington said the charity has taken over the running of a previously established op shop.

“They approached us about whether we wanted to take it over. It was really exciting because for the last couple of years, two or three years, we’ve been developing a bit of a business plan around opening an op shop,” he said.

“It sort of came out of the left-field at first, but it made a lot of sense and it’s working out really well.”

Foothills Community Care was established in 2002 to provide a space where people can connect and engage with each other, as they address challenges like family and domestic violence, homelessness, addiction, poverty, mental health issues and social isolation.

Mr Barrington said all the proceeds will go towards supporting the local community through programs run by the charity.

“All the proceeds from it will go into our meals programs and our domestic violence, peer support programs and supporting people in the immediate community,” he said.

“That’s what I love about it. People shop locally and all the profits are going back locally to support other people. It’s a real winwin.”

The Foothills Community Care Op Shop at Mountain Gate Shopping Centre has now opened.

Picture: FOOTHILLS COMMUNITY CARE Foothills Community Care has served over 42,000 fresh meals, delivered over 15,000 food parcels and worked with over 250 volunteers in the past 12 months.

Mr Barrington said it was an exciting time for the charity to have a shop in the local community.

“We’re always asked for volunteers to join our team there and people volunteer for a whole range of reasons,” he said.

“It’s a great way to give back to the local community, it’s a great way to meet people, it’s a great way to build up some skills, and it’s a great way to contribute and to help a bigger cause.”

The Op Shop is currently unable to accept furniture donations but is seeking donations of good quality clothing, bric-abrac items and shoes among other things.

An official launch will occur in around six weeks according to Mr Barrington.

Mountain Gate Shopping Centre is located at 1880 State Route 22, Ferntree Gully.

To find out more about Foothills Community Care, visit www.foothillscare.org.au

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NEWS

Madi and Rinny from The Patch Store with historic photos of the store from 1955 and 1945. 287011 Picture: STEWART CHAMBERS

Nat (centre) from The Patch Store with members of The Brass Harpies.

Picture: JASMIN VAN DER WERF

Views of The Patch history

By Tyler Wright The Monbulk Historical Society was pleased to facilitate the display of 35 historical images highlighting the history of The Patch and surrounds on Saturday 18 June.

Photographs of early settlers and their dwellings in the 1890s, panoramic views of The Patch from between 70 and 120 years ago and the Monbulk Jam Factory were on show at The Patch Store from 10am to 1pm on the day.

Monbulk Historical Society president Armin Richter said fellow Society member Bev McAllister “loved” the old pictures of The Patch store (that she lives opposite to) posted of Facebook, and imagined it would be great to share more historic images of the area with locals.

“Bev is also a co-founder of the Dandenong Ranges Music Council and thought it would be a great way to get the community together again after Covid with a combined performing arts and history display in The Patch,” Armin said.

“The day was a success as many people

turned out and even included a family reunion of descendants of early settlers, some of whom had never met before,” Steam punk group The Brass Harpies performed and a photo booth allowed visitors to snap pictures of themselves on location.

Jasmin van der Werf, post office manager at The Patch Store, said old residents visited on the day to witness the exhibit.

“It was really nice to have everyone together again…because the weather was quite nice too, we were very lucky, we set a few more tables outside and everyone sat together, mingled and got to chat with each other,” Jasmin said.

“I think it was nice for the [older generation] to look back on the photos from the past and see what it looks like in comparison to now.”

The display will be up until Friday 8 July, and Armin Richter also thanked Natalie from The Patch Store for hosting the exhibit.

The Patch Store is located at 16 The Patch Rd, The Patch if you wish to view the display before Friday 8 July.

Patrick McAlister in 1894.

An image of The Patch Store taken in 1950.

Visitors at The Patch Store enjoying the historical picture display.

Picture: SUPPLIED

Yarra Valley Water running plumber information session

By Tyler Wright Yarra Valley Water is calling on Dandenong Ranges plumbers to attend an information session on Thursday 7 July at 74 Main Road Monbulk from 4.30-5.30pm.

The session, held at the Yarra Valley Water Community Sewerage Program shop, will cover an overview of the authority’s Community Sewerage Program, pressure sewerage systems 101, what is involved with a pressure sewerage connection and what is required from a technical and plumbing perspective in regards to connecting households.

“We’re holding an information session for our contractors to let them know about upcoming works in the Dandenong Ranges area,” Bridie Fennessy, Yarra Valley Water general manager, distribution services said.

“We encourage local plumbers who are interested in finding out more about our new pressure sewerage system to come along to the session,” Ms Fennessy said.

To register, visit bit.ly/PSSInfoSession.

To contact Yarra Valley water for more information or questions, call 9872 2551 or email CommunitySewerage@yvw.com.au

The session will be home to topics such as what is required in connecting houses from a technical and plumbing perspective. mailcommunity.com.au

A free playgroup will commence in Belgrave’s Birdland Reserve from Monday 18 July, but bookings are essential.

Picture: UNSPLASH

Dandenong Ranges plumbers are being called to attend an information session held by Yarra Valley Water on Thursday 7 July at 74 Main Road Monbulk.

Pictures: YARRA VALLEY WATER

Weekly bush playgroup to start in Birdsland Reserve A free weekly bush playgroup will start on Monday 18 July until Monday 15 August at Belgrave’s Birdsland Reserve.

Facilitated by Eco Explorers on behalf of Yarra Ranges Council working in partnership with Mums of the Hills, the five sessions will allow children to connect, learn and play in nature.

The sessions will run from 10am to noon, with limited places available and bookings essential at bit.ly/3baa5sh Birdsland Reserve is located at 271 Mt Morton Road, Belgrave Heights.

Preference will be given to to families who did not attend in Term 2.

Those who did attend in Term 2 are advised to contact Yarra Ranges Council Community Recovery Officer Jess Adams to go on the waiting list.

For more information, contact Ms Adams on j.adams@yarraranges.vic.gov.au State Government Covid-19 regulations will be followed.

Please do not attend if you are experiencing any Covid-19 like symptoms (coronavirus.vic.gov.au/symptoms-and-risks).

Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

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COMMUNITY COURSE GUIDE

Fire up for term three

Emerald Community House tutor with jewellry.

Picture: SUPPLIED

Emerald Community House is offering fired arts courses in Term 3 including pottery, enamelling, jewellery making and glass fusion.

These courses are the perfect antidote to escape the trials and tribulations of what has become our new normal life.

Emerald Community House can connect with our inner creative and put the world aside.

Working with clay, enamel and metal is a creative tactile tonic after the upheaval of the last two years. Working with your hands is good for your mind.

The new Fired Arts Centre will carry on this tradition where students can explore the ancient materials of clay, metal and glass with their hands and conjure up contemporary objet d’art. There are a range of classes and the skills can be further developed at home with minimal equipment.

Enamelling is a perennially popular art form where metal is prepared for enamelling and then, using a kiln, enamels are applied to achieve different colours and effects.

Glass fusion is a process of joining and melting glass and covers a range of different glass forms from making small fully fused glass pieces suitable for jewellery to coasters and bowls.This fun and immensely rewarding class will teach you how to cut glass, how to shape it, fire it and form it.

Our pottery studio will specialise in constructive clay sculpture, mugs and tableware, jugs and tiles. Students will learn about different construction and hand building techniques. After the initial learning process, they

will move on to sculpture and building forms on an armature.

Of course, children love working with clay too and they also get a chance to use the new studio by holding their birthday parties in the fire arts workshop in our hall. Kids’ fire arts birthday parties are suitable for up to 14 children.

ECH is also running a course in sustainable energy to fill in the gaps of this fast moving technology and where we should apply it. The Course will run in Term 3 and is currently being updated with the latest information. Find out what is best for your home sustainability, where the jobs might be and costs savings to be had.

Emerald Community House’s perennial favourite courses in permaculture and improving your writing skills are on again in Term 3.

The children’s hobby garden is opening up to volunteers post-covid regulations and there is a greenhouse to erect for seedling and plant propagation. The Dig In Community Grocery charges along with healthy choices, seasonal produce, local suppliers and some free food as well.

It’s time to invest in your own wellbeing and rediscover Emerald Community House’s healthy programs and activities.

Check out Emerald Messenger for the complete Term 3 program and details. https:// www.echvic.org.au/emerald-messenger. For more information call 5968 3881 on Monday, Wed and Friday 10-3, or email emhouse@iinet. net.au.

What's On Term 3 at Japara We offer a wide range of educational and social support services for the people of Kilsyth and beyond. Visit our website for more information or to enrol. www.japarahouse.com.au

Early Years Childcare Service

Industry Taster Course 29th July - 9th September Friday 10:00 am - 12:00 pm

$300

Enamelling, Glass Fusion and Jewellery Making Sat July 23, 8 weeks, 2-4pm

$250

Kids Pottery Class Sun July 24 & 31, 10am-12pm

$50

Permaculture Design (w/ Pete the Permie) Thurs & Sat, 12 weeks, September 8th – December 1st, 9am-4.30pm

$750

Cooking Class for Adults with a Disability Mon July 11th – September 12th, 12–2pm

$100

Literacy for Adults with a Disability Mon July 11th – September 12th, 9.30-11.30am

$100

Developing Your Writing Skills Fri July 22nd – September 9th, 12.30pm-3.00pm

$50

Emerald Wellbeing Group Thurs July 14th – September 15th, 10am-12pm

Free

Tax Help, Childcare and venue hire all available at ECH 5968 3881, emhouse@iinet.net.au, Learn Local provider 10 MAIL

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Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

Assistance for those entering or reentering the workforce. Identify your personal aspirations and goals, and explore employment and study options.

Gardening for Sustainability 16th July - 28th September Saturday 11:00 am - 4:00 pm

Our programs are run by qualified staff with years of experience in all age groups and service styles. Permanent and casual positions available.

Japara's Messy Movers - Learn Through Play 21st July - 15th September Thursday 9:30 - 11:30 am

For anyone interested in horticulture and Music, movement, and messy play! gardening, and those looking for work in Together we will explore, learn, and navigate our environment through body the horticulture and nursery industry. movement and sensory engagement.

FREE Bonsai Information Session Facilitated social, gross and fine motor Thursday 4th August | 6:30 pm - 7:30 pm skills building class, followed by a time of A 1-hour presentation covering the fun and connection. basics of bonsai, how to keep a bonsai We're Going on a Bear Hunt! alive, and how to start a bonsai tree.

Thursday 15th September Gentle Exercises for 50+ 9:30 - 11:30 am | $5 per child 19th July - 13th September Enjoy squishing and squelching your way Tuesday 9:50 -10:30 am through The Bridge House Garden Fun and friendly for anyone, including dressed as your favourite book character those recovering from injury or illness. to discover the prize at the end!

Exercises for strength, coordination, Baby Massage mobility, balance and chair-based Fortnightly Tuesdays | 9:30 - 11:00 am

exercises.

Happy Tails - Dog Walking Saturdays once a fortnight

A social walking group for all dogs, big and small! Explore the best local paw friendly walks, dog parks and occasional cafe. All fitness levels welcome.

Enjoy bonding with your baby whilst encouraging development, relaxation and sleep in a casual and safe environment. Facilitated by a myotherapist and remedial massage therapist. Learn new skills and connect with others.

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Pottery Sat July 23, 8 weeks, 10am-12pm

Monday, Wednesday and Friday 9:00 am - 2:00 pm

54-58 Durham Road, Kilsyth | Phone: 9728 3587

Email: info@japarahouse.com.au | Web: www.japarahouse.com.au 12554085-AV27-22

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COMMUNITY COURSE GUIDE

Thank you to volunteers Volunteer for Knox Manager Sally DustingLaird and Coordinator Mandy Limb celebrated Volunteer Managers with a Garden Party in the beautiful grounds of Coonara Community House on Tuesday 5 of April.

With the backdrop of Coonara’s stunning historic building and surrounded by lush gardens the setting was a perfect way to welcome guests.

Over 40 Volunteer Managers from Not forProfit Volunteer Involving Organisations in the City of Knox joined in for a day of recognition and reflection on what has been a challenging two years throughout the pandemic.

Tables adorned with white table cloths and fresh flowers were scattered throughout the grounds, guests were seated and enjoyed fresh Seoul origin wraps, sweet treats and cool Ice Tea. Mayor Susan Laukens and Dobson Ward Cr Meagan Baker joined in the celebrations in formerly thanking the amazing dedication and hard work of each and every Volunteer Manager.

As a token of Coonara’s appreciation, each guest received a certificate of appreciation and a T2 gift box and a specially designed cookie to take home.

Mandy Limb said, “This was a fabulous opportunity to reconnect face to face and finally share some of those trials and tribulations of lockdowns and network on ways to re-engage volunteers in a new Covid normal world.”

Volunteer for Knox can’t thank Volunteer Managers enough for the support, guidance and teamwork they have provided their Volunteers during the year. A celebration for achievements in leadership was just the boost needed to re-energise and focus on the year ahead.

The garden party for volunteers was enjoyed by all at Coonara Community House. 287611

Gifts were provided to volunteers to thank them for their dedication. 287611

If this is your year to upskill or return to work, Reconnect is here for you

Volunteer for Knox Manager Sally Dusting-Laird and Coordinator Mandy Limb.

COONARA COMMUNITY HOUSE

Choose from various support options at no cost to you

Funding for pre-accredited & accredited courses

Access to wellbeing programs

Resume support & career guidance

Funding for employment related expenses

• Intro to office skills • Intro to Bookkeeping • XERO for small business • Getting your Small or Micro Business Started • Online Marketing

• Intro to working in community serivices • Intro to Aged Care for domestic staff roles • Intro to Professional Writing • Intro to Mental Health & Peer Suport Work

• Digital Essentials Level 1 & 2 • Intermediate Excel • Preparation for Online Learning using Gsuites • Smartphone Photography

• Design & Construction with textiles - Level 1 • Upcycled textile & Clothing confident beginners • Refurbished/Upcycle your furniture

These courses are available for Term 3.

To enroll, visit our website: www.coonarahouse.org.au or call 9758 7081.

Please contact Kerri Gravina at Mountain District Learning Centre for more information on 0481 993 182 Monday to Friday or via email kerrig@mdlc.org.au Delivered by Mountain District Learning Centre 13-15 The Avenue, Ferntree Gully VIC 3156 www.mdlc.com.au | 9758 7859 | RTO 3969 Reconnect is an initiative of the Victorian State Government

Coonara Community House offers a wide variety of room hire as well as hire of their beautiful grounds all year round! Enquire today by emailing hire@coonarahouse.org.au

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MAIL 11

MEDICALLY SPEAKING

Fix aching feet and legs Most people suffer foot, ankle or knee pain at some point in their lives but as the experts at Foot and Leg Pain Clinics explain, it can be difficult to find effective treatment with longterm results.

With 25 years experience Foot and Leg Pain Clinics provide solutions to alleviate pain, heal injuries, assist arthritis and even delay or eradicate the need for surgery, and provided us the following insights and information.

Incorrect diagnosis of foot and leg conditions is common, which can lead to inappropriate and ineffective treatment. This is often due to misinterpretation of scans or symptoms by health practitioners and radiologists.

Often only symptoms are treated, with the cause and contributing factors being left unaddressed. When these are addressed, the symptoms often take care of themselves.

The site of pain is often not the culprit, therefore the entire lower limb needs to be understood and considered.

E.g. Bad foot posture can continually pull other parts of your body out of alignment, causing pain and injury to ankles, knees, legs and hips. Many foot and knee conditions are incorrectly treated with outdated protocols like cortisone injections, anti-inflammatory medications and/or arthroscopies.

These may provide some temporary relief but can delay healing or cause further tissue damage, so it’s important to know if and when to utilise them.

Finding the correct practitioner with the knowledge and skills to deal with your lower limb condition is key to effective treatment, and this is often where problems arise.

An experienced musculoskeletal podiatrist with an in-depth understanding of foot and leg biomechanics, degenerative conditions

Specialists can assist with foot, leg and knee pain. and growth and development concerns is the most appropriately trained person to deal with lower limb pain and injury.

The good news is that with correct diagno-

sis and appropriate treatment most foot, knee and leg pain, injury and degenerative conditions can be assisted quite easily.

To celebrate their new clinic in Ringwood,

Foot and Leg Pain Clinics is offering $50 OFF initial consultations in both Ringwood and Doncaster East clinics.

Bookings: 1300 328 300.

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MEDICALLY SPEAKING

The impacts of heel pain There’s a belief out there that heel pain is an unavoidable part of life.

If you don’t have a sore heel now, you will know someone who’s heel gives them trouble in the morning or when they walk more.

Because of the prevalence of sore heels, you might assume that it’s normal to have heel pain.

For years medical science had this belief too - there’s still textbooks in print today that state heel pain is self limiting, that it hurts but it will go away all on its own.

This couldn’t be further from the truth.

Heel pain has proven links to ongoing pain, disability and depression for years and years after symptoms first start.

Research out of La Trobe University in Melbourne has connected the negative impact on our lives of having heel pain. (1) So what can you do about it?

Having heel pain is common, so knowing that you’re not alone with your sore heel is the first step to moving forwards and resolving your pain.

The next steps are to find out the exact causes of your sore heels, and then what you need to do to treat and resolve your pain.

For that, we turn to the expert advice of our local Emerald podiatrists, Tanya Contis and Laura Ward.

Tanya and Laura have given us their top three tips of what someone can do to overcome their heel pain: Tip 1: Get an accurate diagnosis.

Tanya said, “Most people get a sore heel and think that it has to be a heel spur, which is certainly a common type of heel pain, but not usually the culprit. Visit a podiatrist for an accurate diagnosis so you can then treat the cause of your symptoms.”

“You’d hate to waste time and money treating a heel spur when you actually have plantar fasciitis or achilles tendonitis,” Laura added Tip 2: Commit to change The podiatrists agree that change needs to happen to resolve heel pain.

Laura said, “If you want to get rid of your heel pain and to do that you need to wear a different pair of shoes, orthotics or do some exercises at home, you need to commit to change some behaviours and habits.”

With the research out of La Trobe Uni connecting the mental health challenges of heel pain suffering this can be hard on your own.

Laura has another tip - “To change we need to make some things easier, and others harder.

For shoes this might mean moving your good shoes to the front of the cupboard and placing the shoes less ideal for your heel out in the shed for a few weeks. That distance will make you more likely to wear what your heels need for a while.”

Tip 3: Follow the evidence There’s now shocking amounts of evidence that different types of heel pain can be treated effectively - and one of those treatments is

Podiatrist Laura working on step 1 - assessing a foot to determine the cause of heel pain. known as Shockwave Therapy.

The podiatrists at Emerald are now offering Shockwave Therapy and are very happy with the results.

Tanya explains, “With shockwave therapy we’re able to send comfortable, targeted zaps of ultrasound energy waves into heel tissues that kick start the healing process. When we combine improved healing rates with other evidence based treatments like shoes, orthotics and exercises your heel pain can be treated and reduce your chances of serious long term effects too.”

And with that, our urgency to avoid the negative long term effects of heel pain is spurred into action. You don’t need to wait and see your heel pain deteriorate and interrupt your life long term.

Follow the advice of the podiatrists Tanya and Laura and you have a new path away from heel pain.

Reference: 1. Depression, Anxiety, and Stress in People With and Without Plantar Heel Pain (Journal of Foot and Ankle International, 2016)

DON’T LET HEEL PAIN GET YOU DOWN ‘WALK MORE’ ‘STRESS LESS’ ‘FEEL BETTER’

STEP ONE SEE YOUR PODIATRIST VISIT US AT PRIDE YOUR CARING LOCAL PODIATRISTS

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To book an appointment, call 9754 7555 mailcommunity.com.au

9068 0966 prideplus.com.au Emerald 1 Murphy’s Way 12554924-HC27-22

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Monbulk 1 Mt Pleasant Rd

Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

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MAIL 13

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Violet Gollogly-Rich with artist Renate Crow in the Frogmouth sculpture.

Peter McIlwain with his artwork on the trail.

Ridgewalk art takes flight At the end of Mason Grove in Sassafras, two new art installations have taken flight along the Ridgewalk.

When walking up the steep hill — known locally as the Old School track — you’ll be greeted by nine Mayan-inspired path marker birds from artist Peter McIlwain.

He said the idea for the markers was dreamed up while sitting at the bottom of the hill.

“I have been working on this method of constructing this sort of three dimensional laser cut idea and I thought birds are fun, people enjoy that,” he said.

“The colours are designed to really sort of jump out in a marker kind of way, so it’s all primaries with gray and black.”

The colourful markers use 3D printed shapes to create different and unique birds, drawing on the mythology of both the Mayans and Indigenous Australian spiritual beliefs.

About 50 metres up the hill, a large statue of a tawny frogmouth stands towering over a seating area. The artist Renate Crow was delighted to discover a local family with their young daughter Violet Gollogly-Rich having already spent time exploring the sculpture.

Ms Crow said she was asked by Yarra Ranges Council to design an art piece for the Ridgewalk.

“I chose the tawny frogmouth because they’re common in our landscape, in both suburbia and the forest. “I love the way they like to hide and pretend to be a stick. They’re really generous with their time and sometimes they kind of play with you.”

The Ridgewalk is a project by Yarra Ranges Council aiming to deliver 14km of new and improved tracks featuring permanent sculptures, land art and a program of temporary exhibitions and performances.

Ms Crow learnt to weld for the project, which she said was a daunting task.

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Publish

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Tuesda

“I had this crazy idea that I wanted to build something like this and I went to a steel fabricator with my model to see how much this would cost to build,” she said.

“They weren’t able to do it because of Covid and the backlog it created.”

Someone at Westy’s steel fabricator in Ferntree Gully suggested she learn to weld instead and with the help of retired boilermaker Alex Ruschanow, Mr Crow slowly became adept at working steel into the shapes she needed.

“He worked with me and taught me the rudiments of how to weld and bend steel, which was pretty amazing,” Ms Crow said.

“My very first welds had a lot of roughness, but by the end of this project they were they were looking way better.”

The steel structure is covered in dried indigenous and exotic leaves to form the feathers on the bird, with its large yellow eyes prominent when you sit inside the hollowed-out belly of the Tawny Frogmouth sculpture.

Ms Crow said the materials came from places special to her.

“Most of the materials are from my garden.

A couple of pieces are from the family farm that I grew up on, which is now becoming a housing estate,” she said.

“There’s a couple of pieces of what wedges of grass that are in there that I grabbed just as this property that meant a lot to me was getting sold.”

Mr McIlwain said having two bird-themed art installations was unplanned and happened by coincidence, while also thanking Gretel Taylor from Yarra Ranges Council for her support of the projects.

“I’ve never made anything like this before,” he said. “I’m very happy I think with the final result.”

The artwork was funded through the Victorian Government’s $40m COVIDsafe Outdoor Activation Fund.

Artist Renate Crow with Frogmouth sculpture.

Pictures: STEWART CHAMBERS

Where to pick up a FREE printed copy of your...

AVONSLEIGH Avonsleigh News & General Store 445 Belgrave Gembrook Road BELGRAVE Belgrave Newsagency 1704 Burwood Highway BELGRAVE Woolworths Supermarket 1629 Burwood Highway BELGRAVE IGA 151 Belgrave-Hallam Road BELGRAVE Chandler & Co Real Estate 1689 Burwood Hwy BELGRAVE First National Real Estate 1 Bayview Road BELGRAVE SOUTH Belgrave South Motors 138 Belgrave-Hallam Rd BORONIA Boronia Mall Newsagent Corner Floriston Road & Chandler Road COCKATOO Ranges First National Shop 2, 24 McBride Street COCKATOO IGA Cockatoo 34 McBride Street EMERALD Kaye Charles RE 12a Kilvington Drive EMERALD Ritchies SUPA IGA 342 Belgrave-Gembrook Road EMERALD Emerald Village Newsagency 4 Kilvington Drive EMERALD Woolworths Supermarket Belgrave Gembrook Road EMERALD Auto Plus More Petrol Station 365 Main Street EMERALD Shell Service Station 336 Main Street EMERALD Barry Plant Real Estate 1/ 321 Main Street EMERALD Bell Real Estate 313 Main Street

FERNTREE GULLY Upper Ferntree Gully Newsagents, 1202 Burwood Highway FERNTREE GULLY Glenfern Road Milk Bar , 83 Glenfern Road FERNTREE GULLY Coles Supermarket Mountain Gate SC Ferntree Gully Road FERNTREE GULLY Woolworths Supermarket Mountain Gate SC Ferntree Gully Road FERNTREE GULLY Mountain Gate Newsagency & Lotto Mountain Gate SC 9b Ferntree Gully Road FERNTREE GULLY Ferntree Gully Authorized Newsagency Shp 2/69 Station Street FERNTREE GULLY Shell Service Station 1140 Burwood Highway FERNY CREEK Ferny Creek & Post Office 195 Mount Dandenong Tourist Road GEMBROOK Gembrook Post Office& Newsagent 72 Main Street GEMBROOK IGA Supermarket 83/85 Main Street KALLISTA Kallista Cellars 85 Monbulk Road KALLISTA Kallista Real Estate 76a Monbulk road KALORAMA Post Office 1209 Mt Dandenong Tourist Road MONBULK Best Repairs & Accessories Monbulk - 26 Main Road MONBULK Food Express 128 Main Road MONBULK Woolworths Supermarket Main Road & Moores Road

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MONBULK Monbulk Newsagency & Officesmart 76 Main Street OLINDA Monbulk Bowling Club, 11 Moores Road OLINDA Olinda Cellars Shop 7/540 Mt Dandenong Tourist Road OLINDA Ranges at Olinda 5 Old Main Road OLINDA IGA Supermarket 1526 Mt Dandenong Tourist Road OLINDA Bell Real Estate 11 Main Road SASSAFRAS Sassafras General Store 391 Mt Dandenong Tourist Road SILVAN Shell Princi Motors, 275 - 277 Monbulk Road TECOMA BP Service Station 1524 Burwood Highway TECOMA Bon Ton General Store 1537 Burwood Highway TECOMA O’Brien Real Estate 1567 Burwood Highway TECOMA McDonald’s Restaurant 1529 Burwood Highway THE PATCH The Patch Store and Post office 16 The Patch Road TREMONT Caltex Service Station 100 Mt Dandenong Tourist Road UPWEY Newsagent 18 Main Street UPWEY IGA Supermarket 62-64 Main Street UPWEY Yarra Ranges Shire Council 40 Main Street

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By Parker McKenzie

mailcommunity.com.au

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Writers are back

By Tyler Wright The Emerald Writing & Critique Group, now nicknamed the Sandwich Club, has made a comeback after Covid stopped members in their tracks.

The first session, on Wednesday 29 June at Emerald Library marked the beginning of the fortnightly meetings from 6:00pm to 7:30pm.

Organiser Terri-Ann Varga originally started the group in 2019 and said she wanted to get like-minded people and a “community of writers” excited about the art form.

“We’ve set up a workshopping email account so we can all share our work with each other and then we can come together and discuss each other’s work,” Terri-Ann said.

“It’s also an arena for people to chat about what books they’ve read and how it’s influencing their writing and bringing together the knowledge we all have.”

Members of the group range from beginner writers to published authors; with the aim to create a welcoming space for all. “[Writing is] a pretty subjective world, like any art form, so it’s more about sharing the ideas and giving some feedback on pace, adding more description and things like that,” Terri-Ann said.

“When people are new I like to keep it sandwiched; say something good, say something more constructive and then say something good again so people are encouraged to keep writing,” she said.

Currently made up of five writers, genres range from children’s literature and fantasy to historical and drama - and residents from suburbs throughout the Dandenong Ranges are welcome to join.

Work is sent around to participants beforehand, so the hour and a half session is solely dedicated to chatting as well as giving and receiving feedback.

“I find it very inspirational to hear what everyone’s doing and writing…it’s good to get feedback on creative work you’ve let your mind go crazy with…it gives you accountability and you think ‘oh, I better write something for the next one,” the organiser said.

If you’re interested in joining the group or

John-Duke will be presenting his artworks at Victor Alexandre Design from Friday 8 July.

Pictures: SUPPLIED

Chat with John-Duke

By Tyler Wright

Terri-Anne Varga’s writing group nicknamed the ‘Sandwich Club’ has recently restarted after it was stopped due to the pandemic.

Picture: SUPPLIED

Terri-Anne writes fiction, poetry and for her job and enjoys being inspired by other writers. learning more, a new instagram account (@ emerald_workshopping_group_vic) has just popped up and you can find them on Face-

book at Emerald Writer’s Community.

For more information, contact Terri-Ann at emerald.workshopping.group@gmail.com

Writing with environmentalist Dr Bob Rich

By Parker McKenzie If there was one way to describe Dr Bob Rich’s array of 19 published books, it’d be variety.

From self-help and practical skills to science fiction, the eccentric writer, psychotherapist and self-described mudsmith says environmental conservation underpins all of his writing.

“Everything I write is designed to save a future for your generation and a future worth living in, whether it’s fiction or nonfiction,” he says.

“It’s not necessarily on the surface. In nonfiction, I might have an essay that sets out what I believe in and what people should do first. In fiction I let my characters do the work.”

Having retired from his counselling service, you may have seen him around the area during the federal election when he was campaigning for the Green’s candidate Jenny Game.

Dr Rich says his journey as a writer began by chance after injuring himself playing soccer with a group of teenagers.

“In the hospital, I was bored weightless. I stole the office typewriter — in 1980 there were no computers yet — and I wrote an article for Gardening Australia magazine about my way of making mud bricks,” he says.

“It got accepted and they even paid me for it, so I asked the publisher Keith Smith if he was interested in more articles and he told me the simpler the better, so I wrote how to hammer.”

Mr Smith would go on to co-author Dr Rich’s first book, Earth Garden: How to Build Your Own House. During the 1990s, he published Woodworking for Dummies Like Me which sold 60,000 copies. mailcommunity.com.au

Dr Robert Rich has published 19 books.

Picture: PARKER MCKENZIE “Is not just how to build your house but why you should do things for yourself,” he says.

“Live simply and sustainably, recycled and have less of a footprint on the planet.”

He has taken Ernest Hemmingway’s advice of “write what you know about” to the extreme.

From building mud bricks to writing a book on building your own home and working at the CSIRO to writing science fiction, the impressive variety in Dr Rich’s bibliography reveals a deep knowledge of a wide variety of subjects.

He says thee isn’t a huge difference between the process of creating fiction and nonfiction, and both are “like cooking.”

“A new cook needs a recipe with very clear directions. As you gain experience you can improvise, I don’t have this at the moment, I’ll put this in and adjust this way,” he says.

“A chef writes recipes and the master chef doesn’t even need recipes, he just cooks intuitively.”

He suggests starting with one or more characters and devising a situation, letting “them

tell you what happens next.”

After this, write a sentence on what the book is about before expanding it to an elevator pitch where the idea can be explained in two to three minutes. Then expand it into a 1000-word synopsis and again into chapters with lists of paragraphs.

“That is guaranteed to result in a good book, probably not brilliant. As you start writing those paragraphs, you’ll find you change the order,” he says.

“You say I think I need a new character to do such and such, and then you have to go back and insert a new character.”

Dr Rich says even though the framework might be the same, the writer’s unique voice will shine through.

“People have done research on this and there is something like 12 major themes. Every story that anybody has ever thought is one of those 12 things,” he says.

“But If I say here’s an opening page of 300 Words, and I give it to a dozen people to finish, you’ll get a dozen entirely different stories because people are unique writers.”

Dr Rich says one of his favourite authors is Isaac Asimov, who inspired his own science fiction books.

“His chemistry textbook was the only science textbook I’ve ever enjoyed. He said in good science fiction, you make one unrealistic assumption and everything else would follow the science,” he says.

“In his Empire series, it was faster than light travel. Everything else is scientifically valid or can be projected from current science.”

You can find out more about Dr Bob Rich and his writing at bobswriting.com

A Tecoma resident is preparing to display his colourful works at Olinda’s Victor Alexandre Design Boutique on Olinda-Monbulk Road from Friday 8 July.

Artist John-Duke will be at the exhibition to discuss the paintings and experience the area with attendees on Friday 8 July and Sunday 10 July from 11:00am to 4:00pm, while the art will be at the store available for purchase until Sunday 31 July.

“I was shocked to get the third lockdown on 18 August, and I thought ‘enough is enough,’” John-Duke said.

“Instead of me working really long hours, I thought ‘no, I’m going to start painting and use it [for my] mental health.”

“I came into the design office and started painting, and it was exciting; I wasn’t as frustrated as I was in the [previous] lockdowns - putting on 80s music and painting with lots of bright colours.”

With an abstract style and using happy colours including yellows, blues, torquoise and aqua, John-Duke also shared his creations to help his close friends with their mental wellbeing.

“Every two hours I’d ring up someone special to tell them about my art and send them text messages of photos of my art…getting their opinions and their excitement,” John-Duke said.

“Sometimes I might do a theme like the sadness of what’s happening in Ukraine; sometimes I go and twist it and do something historical like the Ned Kelly story.”

The works on show will be all originals, not prints, replicating the artist’s creative lifestyle at his Mentone studio and boutiques in Olinda and Brighton co-owned with partner Victor Alexandre.

“Olinda’s a very arty kind of town because I would say 80 per cent of the stores have got some type of art or local artists showing in there,” he said.

“I do support other local artists; I go and buy something just for the sake of buying from them because I notice they’re Australian made but also making them excited that I’m appreciating their art and I’m actually looking to analyze the beautiful workmanship.”

The site of the exhibition, Victor Alexandre Design, is located at 25 OlindaMonbulk Road, Olinda.

‘Love all around me’ by John-Duke.

Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

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MAIL 15

NEWS

Garden memories bloom

By Tyler Wright The Ferny Creek Horticultural Society has reached a significant milestone - celebrating 90 years of operation in 2022.

Established in 1932, the self-funded volunteer organisation promotes the study, practice and development of horticulture, brings together community members and provides and operates facilities for members and visitors to learn and hone their passion for cultivating plants in gardens.

Eric Watson, secretary of the Ferny Creek Horticultural Society, joined the group after buying a property with a lovely garden and wanted to gather information on gardening while making use of the amazing people there with enormous amounts of knowledge.

“We look after 10 acres of gardens which have been allocated to us to look after and care for. There’s a lot of gardening involved and we also have our flower shows as well and our general meetings,” Eric said.

“We have three flower shows and the plant collectors’ expo every year.”

With about 250 members keeping the property in Sassafras running, Eric said some locals who have lived in the area were not aware the gardens existed.

“We have probably 1000 people that come and have a look at [our] flower shows, we have some home-schooled kids who come on a regular basis to add to their education by learning a little bit about gardens and plants, and we have our interested groups who come for tours around the gardens, from time to time, several times a year,“ Eric said.

“We also get people from far and wide.

Coachloads of people come in for our shows to have a look and enjoy what we’ve got.“ Beginning with meetings in a log cabin at Ferny Creek Reserve, the Society originated as a meeting place for like-minded people to discuss their love of horticulture.

King Protea in the Society’s grounds.

Mike Hammer, Karen Petersen, Keith Ross and Ian Wallace from the Ferny Creek Horticultural Society planting at the Sassafras site’s acreage.

Pictures: STEWART CHAMBERS

Mike Hammer with propagated plants.

For its 25th anniversary in 1957, members were allocated four acres next to the reserve, and a few years later another six acres to bring the total 10 acres (four hectares).

Eric said the group had gone from strength to strength.

“We’ve got some proper professional horticulturalists who are part of the part of the Society and have either now or in the past had nurseries that they’ve been doing professionally, but we’ve also got people who who are hobby gardeners as well... they generally learn from the horticulturalists,“ he said.

“We even had [a fellow] who is no longer an active member anymore, but who had a degree in botany and lectured at a university in the subjec,; so it’s quite a wide range of abilities

propagation group, rhododendron and camellia enthusiasts, rock garden and craft groups to suit your interests.

The Spring Show Schedule will be available soon, and Eric said there were further activities for the 90th anniversary in the works.

Membership involves a $25 yearly fee to attend the group’s shows at no cost and get involved in the sub-groups.

For more information on the Ferny Creek Horticultural Society and future events, visit fchs.org.au/ You can also perouse the Society’s socials @ fernycreekhorticulturalsociety on Instagram and the same name on Facebook.

The group’s site is located at 100 Hilton Rd, Sassafras.

and knowledge making up our members.“ The upcoming Ferny Creek Horticultural Society Spring Flower Show on Saturday 3 September and Sunday 4 September will feature flower displays, officially judged exhibits, guided garden walks, plant and flower sales, commercial traders, refreshments and a sausage sizzle for visitors to enjoy.

A nominal fee will be charged at the door for non-members.

“You can go and ask [members and gardeners] really basic questions and they’re very enthusiastic about giving the answers. They’re very free flowing with their information,“ the secretary said.

A variety of groups are available to join, including an Australian native plants group,

Need local staff?

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Need local staff?

Then give us the job... we will advertise it in our employment section and attract local staff

12544966-DL15-22

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Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

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SYLVAN GLADES RETIREMENT VILLAGE SYLVAN Glades Retirement Village offers affordable, independent living for retirees over 55’s.

Located in the highly sought after Dandenong Ranges, this private and peaceful village offers an affordable downsized lifestyle living.

Our solid brick, bright and spacious units are available in both one and two bedrooms and offer flexible layouts with modern extras to make life even easier.

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SUBURBAN, COUNTRY & LIFESTYLE PROPERTIES ACROSS THE REGION mailcommunity.com.au

Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

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MAIL 17

HOME FOCUS

ENTERTAINERS DELIGHT WITH LOTS OF PARKING GOT too many toys or need space for vehicles? This home offers plenty of that.

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There is a fully fenced yard to keep the kids and animals in, and established gardens with pathways and garden edging making maintenance easy for you. Flat and usable land just finishes the job right off – oh and did we mention Wellington Road providing easy access to the eastern suburbs and great exposure if you happen to have a business to promote!

Creature comforts include multiple split systems, ducted heating and a wood fueled heater for cozy nights in! Whatever your style, live your best life here.

Just 5 minutes drive to all that Emerald has to offer with its beautiful parks and gardens, fabulous local shops, schools, eateries, sporting clubs, community hub and much more to discover including a short walk to the Paradise Hotel at the top of Wellington Road for a quiet ale or a meal! ●

HOME ESSENTIALS Address: 2032 Wellington Road, CLEMATIS Description: 3 bedrooms, 1 bathroom, 5 garage Price: $800,000 - $880,000 Inspect: By appointment Contact: Mick Dolphin 0429 684 522, RANGES FIRST NATIONAL - 9754 6111

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Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

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Real Estate you can trust!

We ’ r e h e r e t o h e l p FOR SALE

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ARCHITECTURAL DELIGHT ON THE FORESTS EDGE 4A 2B Surrounded by a magical forest setting and architecturally designed to boast elevated ceilings and 4 levels of sun-filled living space, this stunning family home, put simply, is breathtaking. With the walking trails of Sherbrooke forest right on your back doorstep, you can holiday at home and enjoy the stunning scenery from every window. So close to town you can wander down to either of the wonderful eateries at the end of your road or, take a walk into Belgrave Main Street where you can enjoy a movie, grab a drink or jump on a train to anywhere!

This unique offering sits on a splendid 1,057sqm (approx.) allotment with permaculture front gardens, incredible established oak tree, and expansive hen house to inspire hobby farming. Comprising 2 dwellings, including a dream studio currently used for recording with 3 separate rooms and a full bathroom, there are no bounds to the potential this space provides. The main residence evokes a warm and welcoming feel rich with style. The open concept lounge and dining area boasts an exposed brick wood fire.

Sharyn Chandler

Brad Conder

M 0439 882 442 | E sharyn@chandlerandco.com.au

M 0422 639 115 | E brad@chandlerandco.com.au

STYLISH HOME WITH STUDIO ON FABULOUS FLAT BLOCK

3A 2B 1C

FOR SALE

$1,150,000 - $1,250,000

28 McNicol Road, Belgrave

EXCEPTIONAL RESIDENCE FOR ELEVATED LIVING

4A 2B 2C

Displaying a decisive blend of period character and premium upgrades, this property is a designer showcase. Beautifully appointed and offering a wealth of comfort for growing families, there are no compromises required with this complete lifestyle package.

Framed by impeccably landscaped gardens with keypad locking gates, double garage, level front lawn, and multiple entertaining areas boasting cosy firepit with lighting, Polito pizza oven, and plumbed-in BBQ zone with Jetmaster fireplace, this impressive 948sqm (approx.) allotment simply enriches the spectacular residence on offer.

Sam Adamson

Daniel Steen

M 0421 023 760 | E sam@chandlerandco.com.au

M 0434 979 142 | E daniel@chandlerandco.com.au

9754 6888 1689 Burwood Highway, Belgrave VIC 3160 www.chandlerandco.com.au of fice@chandlerandco.com.au mailcommunity.com.au

Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

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MAIL 19

HOME FOCUS

STUNNING LIFESTYLE PROPERTY ENTER the luxury entranceway, with gorgeous detailed electric gates, and be impressed by the grandeur of this spacious, impressive and private family home situated on just over 10 acres. This property offers you the ultimate in comfort and luxury living in the heart of the Dandenong Ranges and provides the perfect space and layout for the entertainer and growing family.

With picturesque views from every window including views of the Gembrook and Warburton Ranges this home offers the perfect lifestyle for those seeking a peaceful, private and luxurious escape from the world. There are 6 sizable bedrooms, all with built in robes and a stunning family bathroom upstairs, whilst downstairs you will find the master wing with massive walk-in robe and ensuite with powder room and amazing picturesque views from the master bedroom. Set over three levels, there are four spacious living zones including a lounge with a wood fireplace, a separate dining room with spectacular views, a bright open plan casual family zone which opens onto a spacious deck to enjoy the outdoors and a rumpus room downstairs.

Made for entertaining, this grand home has a large games room set next to the amazing solar heated, indoor, salt-waterchlorinated swimming pool with attached spa, with convenient access to a bathroom with toilet, shower and vanity making entertaining easier. Adjacent to this is an outdoor entertaining area perfect for indooroutdoor living, family life and parties.

No expense was spared on quality fixtures and fittings throughout the home including slate floors, lush carpets, stylish window coverings and granite bench tops. The modern white timber kitchen has stainless steel appliances, plenty of preparation space, large pantry and outstanding views of the rolling foothills surrounding this home.

Drive into your 4 car double-brick double garages and enter through the mud room

and huge laundry perfect for storage and drying close in the wetter months. Add to the already many features gas ducted heating, NOBO heating, two split systems, evaporative cooling, ducted vacuum, and spectacular views from every window, this home offers the ultimate country lifestyle.

Outside there are two large entertaining areas, a storage/accommodation hut, 7 paddocks with horse/goat shelters in each, electric fencing, water and shelter in the post and rail fenced horse paddocks, a grass arena, a massive outside parking

area perfect for a huge shed or stables, outside parking to fit your boats, floats and caravans or maybe you have always wanted a tennis court? There is also a large shed with concrete floor and even a luxury cubby house for the kids and a secure yard for them and your fur babies to play.

There are 3 dams of which one is stocked with trout, and supplied by a year-round fast-flowing, spring-fed creek that you can view from several areas of the home. There are solar panels, backup generator for power outages and 100,000 water storage

capacity, making this the ideal lifestyle property for a family, horse lovers, animal lovers or those seeking a hobby farm. This spacious and inspiring property is in the heart of sought-after Macclesfield, ticks all the boxes and must be seen to be truly appreciated!

Please note: All property details shown are correct at time of publishing. Some properties may have been sold in the preceding 24 hours and we recommend that you confirm open for inspection times with the listing agent direct or the listing office. ●

HOME ESSENTIALS Address: 172 Spillers Road, MACCLESFIELD Description: 6 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 4 garage Price: $2,700,000 - $2,900,000. *OFFERS CLOSE 16 JULY 2022 - IF NOT SOLD PRIOR* Inspect: By appointment Contact: Samantha Scott, 0438 680 032 or Declan Palmer, 0427 062 148, BELL REAL ESTATE, EMERALD

BEAUTIFUL CEDAR FAMILY HOME WITH dual access from Kilvington Road and Wintle Road, and on just over an acre, this beautiful cedar home has a great deal to offer. Set in the sought-after location of Emerald, Victoria in the Dandenong Ranges close to Puffing Billy, Emerald shops, schools, and more this home is a must-see.

This fully fenced property is perfect for a large family or tree-changers offering picturesque views from every window, 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a study, a studio, split level living offering multiple living areas, and a double carport.

Enter this character-filled home into the dining room with timber floorboards throughout, cathedral ceilings, exposed brick walls, Coonara, and an open plan to the lounge and kitchen. The warm timber country kitchen has a gorgeous Falcon oven, large pantry, stainless steel appliances, and breakfast bar where you can sit and enjoy the beautiful views.

The master wing has a great sitting room, study space, ensuite, large walk-in robe, split system, and fan and is set away from the other bedrooms for the ultimate in privacy.

The family bathroom has been beautifully renovated with grey floor tiles and a subway backslash and blends modern and country styling perfectly. The remaining bedrooms have large built-in robes, timber floors, and plenty of character features.

Close to Wintle Road is a small studio space perfect as a he/she shed, home

office, guest/in-law space or teenage retreat.

With its own access, a kitchenette, and a bathroom this space will make working from home a holiday.

Outside there is a large entertaining area, a huge yard for kids and animals, a hen house with hens if you wish to keep them, an array of fruit trees, and a kid’s play space with cubby, slide, monkey bars, and swings.

Fruit trees and fruits on the property include lemon and 7 apple trees, quince, nashi, pear, 3x plums, 2x apricots, mulberry, lime, mandarine, oranges, cumquat, pomegranate,

and even a macadamia tree. There are also raspberries, logan berries, boysenberries, and rhubarb. There is a huge space at either end of the property for parking caravans, boats, trailers, and more. This property has it all so don’t miss out!

Please note: All property details shown are correct at time of publishing. Some properties may have been sold in the preceding 24 hours and we recommend that you confirm open for inspection times with the listing agent direct or the listing office. ●

HOME ESSENTIALS Address: 72 Kilvington Drive, EMERALD Description: 5 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2 garage Price: $1,000,000 - $1,100,000 Inspect: By appointment Contact: Bethany Day 0438 844 968 or Brennan Mileto 0422 996 451, BELL REAL ESTATE, EMERALD 20 MAIL

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Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

mailcommunity.com.au

172 Spillers Road, Macclesfield

$2,700,000 - $2,900,000

Stunning Lifestyle Property on 10+ Acres

72 Kilvington Drive, Emerald

$1,000,000 - $1,100,000

Cedar Home in Emerald Main Street

On 10 acres+ this home has 6 bedrooms with built-in robes & a family bathroom, a master wing with walk-in robe and ensuite, 4 living zones, a lounge with a wood fireplace, formal dining room, open plan family zone & rumpus roomthis home has it all. Made for entertaining, this home has a games room set next to the solar-heated, indoor, salt-waterchlorinated swimming pool with attached spa, & adjacent bathroom. The kitchen has stainless steel appliances & large pantry. Features include gas ducted heating, NOBO heating, 2 split systems, evaporative cooling, & ducted vacuum.

Outside is 2 entertaining areas, a hut, 7 paddocks with horse shelters, electric fencing, a grass arena, & 3 dams, 1 is springfed & stocked with trout.

With dual access from Kilvington Road and Wintle Road, and on just over an acre, this cedar home has 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a study, split-level living offering multiple living areas, and a double carport. Enter into the dining room with timber floorboards throughout, cathedral ceilings, Coonara, and open plan lounge/kitchen. The kitchen has a Falcon oven, large pantry, stainless steel appliances, and breakfast bar. The master wing has a sitting room, ensuite, walk-in robe, and split system. The family bathroom has been renovated and blends modern and country styling. The remaining bedrooms have built-in robes, and timber floors. There is a studio perfect as a home office or teenage retreat with its own access, a kitchenette, and a bathroom. Outside is a large entertaining area, a huge yard for kids and animals, a hen house & a huge array of fruit trees.

Contact: Samantha Scott 0438 680 032

Contact: Bethany Day 0438 844 968

11 Hazel Street, Cockatoo

$775,000 - $850,000

4/2 Rangeview Road, Boronia

$590,000 - $645,000

3/4 Acre with Lovely Family Home!

Lovely Unit Close to Shops

Set on over 3/4 of an acre, this 3-bedroom home has a spacious living room with heaps of storage and main bathroom access. Then wander through to the separate, modern kitchen/dining room with gas oven and cooktop, dishwasher, and stainless steel range hood that opens onto the veranda. Features include colonial window frames and floating floors, character arch detailing, gas ducted heating, 2 x air conditioning units, and 3 spacious living areas. The second formal living space has plush grey carpets, large windows, and sliding door access to the veranda. The master bedroom has a walk-in robe and ensuite with a picturesque outlook. Outside there is a 3-space carport, 12 panel 3kw solar and established gardens featuring lovely Canadian and Japanese maples, fruit trees, manicured gardens with a hedge, a 4x5mtr shed, and a fully fenced yard.

This home is just a short walk to Boronia Junction shops and Boronia K-12 College. Beautifully presented with polished hardwood floors, plush carpets, a split system, gas ducted heating, security screen doors, and modern fixtures and fittings, this unit is ideal for downsizers and investors. With large windows, there is an abundance of natural light filtering into the spacious lounge/dining space. The kitchen has plenty of storage and prep space, an electric oven with a gas cooktop, and a dishwasher. Both bedrooms have builtin-robes with neutral colour tones, and are complemented by the family bathroom which has been beautifully renovated with modern fixtures, fittings, and plenty of storage. Outside there is a covered outdoor entertaining space, manicured gardens, a fully fenced backyard for your pets and a single garage.

Contact: Samantha Scott 0438 680 032

Contact: Bethany Day 0438 844 968

bellrealestate.com.au mailcommunity.com.au

5968 6222

311-313 Main St, Emerald Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

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MAIL 21

Ranges

We put you first

lIGHT & SPaCIouS VERSaTIlE dESIGn

SElF-ConTaInEd STudIo and oWn CREEk

SELBy 5 THoMaS STREET QUIET LOCATION ON 1/2 ACRE

CLEMATIS 10 ClEaR BRook Road QUIET STREET WITH A RURAL OUTLOOK

$1,000,000-$1,100,000 5A 3B 2C 1E

architecturally intriguing, this residence encompasses all the facets required for joyful ‘Hills’ living. Set over several levels, this comfortable home has separate entries so is ideal for extended family or perfect for a work from home arrangement. Walls of glass invite the outside to your chairside and every room has a pleasing aspect. Features 5 bedrooms & a study/retreat, luxurious spa, multiple living spaces, open fireplace, custom cabinetry, a covered deck, sealed driveway and established gardens with grassed areas on 2094sqm.

Mick Dolphin 0429 684 522

Emily Hudson 0418 570 474

GREaT VIEWS!

GEMBROOK 40a MaIn STREET MODERN HOME ON A FLAT 1406SQM BLOCK

9754 6111 rangesfn.com.au 22 MAIL

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Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

5A 3B 1E

Privately located on a no-through road and situated in a tree fern-lined valley with a rural outlook from the rear. Features zoned living with the master suite and office/5th bedroom at one end of the house and an additional self-contained Studio for extended family or currently run as an airbnb. Creature comforts include evaporative cooling, d/H, ducted vacuum, wood heater and there is plenty of parking for cars, caravans, boats or trailers.

Set on approximately ¾ of an acre (3040m2 approx) with grassy open areas.

Mick Dolphin 0429 684 522

Emily Hudson 0418 570 474

RESToREd oRIGInal HIllS HoME

$1,000,000-$1,100,000 4A 2B 2C 1E

Centrally located and private, this stylish Sienna home is only 6 years young(approx) with a 6-star energy rating. Full of natural light and a versatile floorplan it, features multiple living zones, 11-foot ceilings, kitchen with an abundance of storage & a walk-in pantry, entertaining deck with roller blinds and stone paved area with a motorised awning, spacious yard with flat lawns, raised veggie patch beds, a mix of fruit trees, plenty of offstreet parking, fully fenced with an electric front gate – oh and views to the distant hills!

Mick Dolphin 0429 684 522

$1,100,000-$1,200,000

Emily Hudson 0418 570 474

BELGRAvE 26 MonBulk Road AN ELEGANT HIDDEN TREASURE

$950,000 - $1,045,000 4A 2B C 1E

From the moment you step inside this gorgeous character-filled home you won’t want to leave as the peaceful and private setting provides the perfect relaxed atmosphere for enjoyment, and yet is only 350 meters away from the bustling township of Belgrave.

Features bay windows, living zones over 2 levels, distressed timber kitchen, leadlight windows, baltic floorboards, high ceilings, heritage light fittings & skirtings, 3 F/P, sunroom/ study, separate studio/office, Jarrah verandahs and established gardens on 1644sqm.

Jan Brewster 0409 558 805

“We Put You First”

1 Bayview Rd, Belgrave Shop 2, 24 McBride Street, Cockatoo mailcommunity.com.au

PUZZLES

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William Matthews Funerals FAMILY OWNED AND OPERATED

24 HOUR SERVICE ALL AREAS

9739 6868 45 Cave Hill Rd, Lilydale www.williammatthewsfunerals.com.au mailcommunity.com.au

12410397-ACM06-19

Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

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MAIL 23

OPINION

Listening to the voices that matter Casey is more than a place on the map. Casey is a home to raise a family, build a business and create a future. As a lifetime local, I know it, and it is where I am raising my two kids with my wonderful wife.

What makes Casey truly special is our strong and warm communities, joined together by local spirit and stunning scenery. This is what we are known for, across Australia and beyond.

Over the years, I have seen our communities across Casey grow. From Dixons Creek, to Belgrave South. From Chirnside Park to Reefton and every town in between.

These communities are the beating heart of Casey, and they hold a special place in my own heart too. It is why I put my hand up to be your local MP and why I will be fighting for them, not just here, but in Canberra too.

Casey has a unique spirit that I have lived throughout my life, going all the way back to the Italian and agricultural communities that I was born into. It reaches into our school communities, where I was raised as a student and now watch over as a proud parent. I have seen it in the local sporting communities I have grown up in. It is alive and well with the Township groups I have worked with to give our local towns a voice.

During the campaign I had the privilege of

Sci-fi has robot depth

From my

desk

After Yang Starring Colin Farrell, Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja and Justin H. Min Rated PG 3.5/5

Federal Member for Casey spending more time with our amazing local community organisations. Groups like Treasuring our Trees, Montrose Township Group, The Yarra Junction Bowls Club, The Oonah Belonging Place in Healesville and Burrinja in Upwey – to name a few. Each of them showed fierce community spirit and passion.

As a local, I am always out and about in our communities, so if you see me out for a walk or a coffee, come and say hi.

I have a strong belief that few people know what a community needs, better than the community itself. Being out in our towns, with local groups has made that belief even stronger. Whether it is our state MPs, stakeholders, local council or community groups, everyone has a role to play and a voice to be heard. I am here to listen and work with all of them to do the best for Casey.

Based on a short story by Alexander Weinstein, After Yang is a lightweight but touching science fiction drama about Jake (Colin Farrell), a tea salesman who seeks to repair his daughter Mika’s (Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja) android companion Yang (Justin H. Min). Director Kogonada crafts a very immersive nearfuture world through the prism of family life. Sometimes the best world-building is light on specifics; themes of machine consciousness, cloning and self-driving cars blend into the background, producing a setting that feels distinctly lived-in with no need to fill us in.

The performances are realistically low-key, and Min is graceful and subtly melancholic as Yang. As Jake investigates Yang’s history and explores potentially shady details behind his construction, we gain insight into Yang’s mind, told through beautiful montages and snippets of perception. Yang is shown admiring his family and nature, bonding with a mysterious woman and reflecting on himself, including regret on how he cannot think or feel like humans. Revealing unknown depths to Yang’s consciousness, Jake’s search serves as a metaphor for mourning a family member: sometimes we come to truly know them when they’re gone.

On these terms, After Yang feels like a gentler cousin to Alex Garland’s Ex Machina. However, like Paul Thomas Anderson’s The Master, After Yang is an engaging character study with misguided focus. The Master is an enthralling study of cult leader Lancaster Dodd, told through the less interesting focal point of disciple Freddie Quell. In After Yang, Mika and her relationship with Jake receive very little development, despite her substantial presence in the film. The lack of closure may be true-to-life, but will frustrate some viewers.

An affecting, immersive drama about robots that feels a little shallow on the human element, After Yang is playing in select Victorian cinemas.

- Seth Lukas Hynes

Aaron Violi with his wife and two children at the poll declaration.

Picture: MIKAYLA VAN LOON As your local member I will be listening closely to these voices across our towns. It is what I will be taking with me to Parliament when I go to Canberra.

Whatever challenges may come, I will be fighting for our communities in Casey. It is where I have been all my life and it is what I will be fighting for.

Celebrating family and community A review of Family Tree

by John Pyke and Ronojoy Ghosh With Season 13 of the documentary reality genealogy series Who Do You Think You Are? recently starting on SBS, it’s time to revisit Family Tree, the book selected for this year’s National Simultaneous Storytime.

Each year in May, a picture book created by Australian artists is chosen by the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) to be read simultaneously in libraries, schools, homes and children’s facilities all over the country and beyond.

The event promotes the value and fun of books in communities. This year, there were 2,18,347 registered participants from 59,038 locations in Australia and overseas Family Tree was written by Josh Pyke, illustrated by Ronojoy Ghosh, and published by Scholastic Australia. The first-person narrator is a gum tree.

As it grew, so did the notion of a family: “It started with a seed, and that seed was me...

Seasons came and went, feast and famine, drought and storms. Laughter, tears, silence, song. Our roots dug deeper. Our roots grew strong.”

A family is much more than a gathering of people. As the “red bricks were laid...the walls

CARTOON

PASSION FOR PROSE WITH CHRISTINE SUN climbed to meet a red roof with a chimney on top”, a house became a home when it was filled with laughter and “little hands reaching higher and higher.”

Then, one day, the family tree was outgrown: “My own seeds, too, caught the wind to fly from my boughs, and dance upon the air, to settle in lands I wouldn’t see and couldn’t know. Forever away. Forever my own.”

As families continued to expand, next generations were born, new relationships formed and fresh connections made. Thus communities were established.

In turn, each family became stronger: “I reached my branches toward the sun so that

they could climb higher. Ever higher. And they did. They climbed all the way to the sky.”

That’s the beauty of the full circle of life, with new seeds being generated and growing to become new family trees spreading love and joy throughout communities.

Each generation leaves its mark on a family in the same way that little hands make carvings on a tree.

In an interview, Ghosh explained how he saw the words of Pyke’s story in his mind’s eye: “I have a very big eucalyptus tree growing in front of my house, and it drops really big branches on my roof and I get very scared at night, but I love that tree also.”

That tree is part of Ghosh’s lived experiences. While his family is originally from India, he has lived in Indonesia, Singapore, New Zealand and Australia. That multicultural background is vividly reflected in his illustrations.

In Ghosh’s words: “When my son was born, my wife and I wanted to give him a place to call home. We wanted to give him roots so he can come back home. So the book was very reflective of my own life, my own family tree – it really resonated with me.”

Family Tree is definitely a book where we can see ourselves and our families.

Venturing outside the Yarra Ranges to see some shows Diamond Valley Singers present Beauty and the Beast As the story goes… an arrogant young Prince and his castle’s servants fall under the spell of a wicked enchantress, who turns him into a hideous Beast until he learns to love and be loved in return. The spirited, headstrong village girl Belle enters the Beast’s castle after he imprisons her father, Maurice. With the help of his enchanted servants including the matronly Mrs Potts, Belle begins to draw the cold-hearted Beast out of his isolation Season: 1 to 8 July. Showing Friday, Sunday and Wednesday to Saturday.

Venue: Warrandyte High School Theatre, Alexander Road Warrandyte.

Eltham Little Theatre presents The Wind in the Willows The show is an adaptation of Kenneth Gra-

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24 MAIL

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Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

Kemp’s curtain call ham’s delightful tale of Rat, Mole, Badger and Toad.

Tired of spring cleaning Mole leaves Mole End and ventures out to the riverbank where he befriends the resourceful Ratty, the gruff Badger and the infamous Toad of Toad Hall.

Season: 9 July at 5pm and 6.30pm. 10 July 1pm and 2.30pm. 16 July 1pm, 2.30pm, 5pm and 6.30pm.

·

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NEWS

Rockin’ Retro fundraiser

By Parker Mckenzie

The new fire danger rating system will take a wider variety of vegetation into account.

Picture: ON FILE

Fire ratings change

By Callum Ludwig A new Fire Danger Rating system is currently being developed to help ensure more accurate, relevant and effective communication ahead of next summer.

The new system will be used Australiawide, with cooperation from the Country Fire Authority (CFA), Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) and Emergency Management Victoria (EMV) among others.

An EMV spokesperson said most importantly, the new system will improve the way that fire danger is communicated to communities.

“The new fire danger rating system will have four levels with action-oriented messages to encourage people to take action to protect themselves and others in the face of bushfire risks,” they said.

“We know this new national system will improve the scientific accuracy behind fire danger predictions.”

The new Fire Danger Ratings, which utilised community feedback to be easier to understand, have four levels (instead of six) - Moderate, High, Extreme and Catastrophic, with recommended actions for each level so residents will know what to do to protect your life, family and property with the new Fire Danger Ratings to be seen online and in local communities from 1 September 2022.

Hillcrest CFA firefighterFiona Burns said the new system will help local CFAs to communicate effectively with residents and visitors alike.

How new Fire Danger Ratings signs will look.

Picture: SUPPLIED “Having a consistent message across the country, no matter what state you will be in will enable people who are visiting us, or who are visiting all the states, to understand what the new Fire Danger Rating System will mean for them in the same way in every state,” she said.

“The four levels in the new system will also enable a much easier way for residents to integrate their fire plan based on what each level will mean for them. It’s very important that everyone has a bushfire plan, and that it is relative to the risk on any given day before the start of the fire season.”

Having remained largely unchanged for more than 50 years, the new system takes into account our greater understanding of fire and that fire behaviour has changed.

In recent years, the vegetation across the entire country has been mapped, with the new system using eight different types of vegetation to determine the fire danger, making it more accurate compared to the current system

using just bush and grass.

This means fire agencies like CFA will be able to better assess the conditions and the consequences of a fire if one was to start.

Ms Burns said previously that different terminology in different states caused some confusion and our understanding of fire is far greater.

“In Victoria, we’ve previously used Code Red which will now be Catastrophic and be the same regardless of the state,” she said.

“We have a better understanding of the science behind fires, and an understanding of the different types of vegetation is really important for our fire agencies, but also for residents and members of the community to be able to understand what risk it is that they are facing when they live in certain areas.”

The following are the recommended actions for each of the four Fire Danger Rating risk levels: Moderate: Plan and prepare High: Be ready to act Extreme: Take action now to protect your life and property Catastrophic: For your survival, leave bushfire risk areas Heading into the next bushfire season, residents can check the daily fire danger for their area on the CFA website or use the VicEmergency app, while hundreds of local Fire Danger Rating signs in communities across the state are set to be updated in due course.

Fundraising for the centennial birthday celebration of the Sacred Heart Church in Gembrook will continue with a Rockin’ Retro afternoon at the Grove in Upper Beaconsfield on Sunday 10 July.

Organiser Samantha Willis said the event will feature a variety of entertainment.

“It’s an afternoon that we’re hoping to take people back to the ‘50s and ‘60s and give them a really great fun afternoon,” she said.

“Grab your friends, your girlfriends or family and come and get a table to have a really fun afternoon, dancing the afternoon away.”

The Weathered Heads will be playing live music and Shine Dancing will be performing live for attendees. Miss Flamingo’s fashion, a Rock n Roll dance show by Alley Catz and Old School Cruises will also be providing entertainment.

Ms Willis said the indoor event would be a great day out for family entertainment.

“People can get all dressed up in their ‘50s or ‘60s costumes, beautiful rockabilly dresses,” she said.

“There’s a best-dressed prize that we’re giving away as well as door prizes, raffles and silent auctions to help with the fundraising.”

All profits from the event will go toward holding a celebration for the Centennial of the Sacred Heart Church in Gembrook, on 13 November.

More information about the event can be found at facebook.com/events/s/ rockin-retro-the-grove/715182796300318 Tickets can be purchased at eventbrite.com.au/e/rockin-retro-the-grovetickets-347088159027?aff=eand

· · · ·

The event is raising money for a centennial celebration of the Sacred Heart Church in Gembrook.

Picture: ON FILE

Check out these upcoming Hills Creative Alliance events Free event and diary date: Healing in the Hills Aboriginal Elder Murrundindi joined stormaffected locals at Kalorama Oval last July to perform a Healing Ceremony, recognising the trauma experienced by the forested environment and the people of the Hills.

A year later, the Hills Creative Alliance has been funded by Yarra Ranges Council to create a day of free activities and free catering on Sunday 17 July, for local people to join together and make this an annual event in the Hills.

Starting at noon, there will be a range of free activities and music, with a petting zoo and face painting, as well as opportunities to meet people from the services that supported the Hills communities after the storm.

Kawarra Gardens will be open, with guided walks supported by the Friends of Karwarra Garden, and the Reflections of the Storm Community Art Exhibition will also be open. This will be a chance for people to meet the artists and perhaps have a go themselves.

The Community Art exhibition is proving very popular and is currently open in Karwarra Australian Plant Garden on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 1-4pm each week. mailcommunity.com.au

Murrundindi introduced last year’s Smoking Ceremony.

During the afternoon the Djirri Djirri Dancers will hold a workshop to introduce Aboriginal dance, with opportunities to join in and then Aboriginal Elder Murrundindi will reflect of the time of healing with a Smoking Ceremony.

Picture: SUPPLIED

The Kalorama Collective has teamed up with the Hills Creative Alliance, as well as other local organisations.

“It really will be a joint community effort, bringing new groups working together in the

Hills, as well as those groups that are more established,” Hills Creative Alliance secretary Liz Millman said.

Olinda Community House has also been supporting another of the Hills Creative Alliance initiative, running Community Focus Friday sessions from 10.30am - noon every Friday with a warm welcome, a cuppa and cake.

These are opportunities for the community to get together are now well supported.

This Friday 8 July, David Younger, a disaster recovery psychologist who has worked with communities impacted by natural disasters will join the session - he was unable to make the previous date arranged.

Recognising that one year on, around 200 families are still either living in badly damaged homes, awaiting repairs to be completed, or living in rental accomodation while their homes are rebuilt or repaired, David will share advice and explore strategies about how we can best look after our neighbours, family, friends and the community in these challenging times.

For more information contact Liz Millman, secretary Hills Creative Alliance 0412 970 050 Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

|

MAIL 25

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Successful applicants will be tasked with folding, fabricating, welding and fitting of our aluminium/ steel trays and aluminium canopies. Welding experience is not essential and we are happy to train the right candidate. Full time, part time and casual work available. Current driver's licence or reliable transport is a must, fork lift licence would be a bonus.

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MAIL 27

SPORT

Mixed results for Hawks For Round 11 of the Outer East Premier Division, Monbulk faced the most daunting of challenges - Narre Warren Magpies at Kalora Park.

Narre Warren was undefeated and on top of the ladder in each grade that Monbulk would face them in.

A calm and overcast day with sunny breaks was perfect for football, if not a little cold for spectators. The Monbulk Seniors had strung together three wins before the bye and felt ready for the challenge. The first quarter was competitive but Narre flexed their muscle in the second term and blew the game apart when they put on eight goals and two behinds to a solitary point for the Hawks. The Magpies kept on showing clean skills and systematic ball movement while being able to put Monbulk under constant pressure. The way that the Magpies were able to nullify the Hawks’ defensive structures, something that Monbulk had prided itself on, means that the Hawks will have to regroup this week to get back on the winner’s list. There were many encouraging passages of play though to suggest that it will require more of a tweak than a rebuild to get the Hawks back on track.

Narre Warren 21.15.141 def Monbulk 4.6.30 Best: Lochlan Beecroft, Jared Major, Pat Barge, Glenn Strachan, Bailey Rutherford Goals: Glenn Strachan 2, Taylor Joyce 1, Hayden Finlay 1 The Monbulk Reserves continue to be a work in progress, Just 16 players were available this week, not the sort of handicap that you want to concede when it is the last placed team playing first. Coach Billie Hicken was also unavailable, assistant coach Brodie Emmett had been released from hospital during the week to fill his role and injured seniors’ captain Jonathon Hevern took the reins. The Hawks started off with plenty of spirit, led by their inspirational captain Matty James. They had a very respectable three goals on the board to Narre’s six by early in the second term. After that, the weight of numbers counted against Monbulk, although they fought the game out to the end.

Narre Warren 20.14.134 def Monbulk 3.2.20 Best: Matthew James, Thomas Trezise, Chris

· ·

·

match it with anyone in the League.

Narre Warren 52 def Monbulk 40 Best: Nicole Macdowell, Paige Whitworth, Stephanie Puopolo Goals: Tarnee Adams 22, Stephanie Puopolo 15, Sophie Stubbs 3 In B Grade it was a top-of-the-table encounter between another unbeaten Narre Warren team and a Monbulk side that had lost just once this year, to the Magpies by 16 goals on April 23. Since then Monbulk had steadily collected the scalps of the ensuing opponents and faced the return match with a sense of optimism that a hard four-quarter effort could deliver the goods. By quarter time it seemed that beating Narre might be a bridge too far. The Magpies led 13-7 at the first change but Monbulk rebounded in superb style with a 9-4 second term to nearly tie it up again. The second half was an enthralling tussle as the lead kept changing and no more than a couple of goals separated the sides for the last 30 minutes.

Some brilliant defensive intercepts in the dying stages allowed the Hawks to grab the lead and hold on until the horn sounded. Monbulk has now defeated every other team in B Grade in succession and is equal first on the ladder with a two-game break over the chasing pack.

The 9 consecutive wins are a club record for the B Grade team since it was formed in 2006, eclipsing the streak of 8 wins in 2019.

Narre Warren 34 def by Monbulk 36 Best: Olivia Crook, Dayna Walsham, Chloe Heppell Goals: Dayna Walsham 17, Iris de Wit 10, Olivia Crook 9 The Monbulk C Grade team has been making steady progress during the season. Facing a dominant Narre team that had beaten them by 52 goals (68-16) earlier in the year, the girls played a hard game to trail by just 13 at threequarter-time. The Magpies asserted their supremacy in the last stanza to sink the Hawks by 27. The improvement in team play has been noticeable with a losing by 25 goals less than their previous meeting.

Narre Warren 44 def Monbulk 17 Best: Tasha Selby, Jamie Sands, Chloe Schmidtke Goals: Jamie Sands 15, Chloe Schmidtke 1, Lisa Boyle 1

· ·

It was mixed results for Monbulk Football Netball Club over the weekend.

Separovic, Daniel Ruffle, Dale Ross, Aaron Smith Goals: Matthew James 1, Steven Shankly 1, Dale Ross 1 Narre Warren might have been undefeated in the Under 19s but the Hawks had gotten within two points of them back in Round 2 and knew that if they could apply their game style then they could cause an upset and topple the ladder leaders. Injured and promoted players missing from the Monbulk side were replaced by four Under 17s from the Olinda-Monbulk team which fortuitously had a bye this week.

An early lead by the Hawks was whittled away by the Magpies and it was goal for goal in a low-scoring arm-wrestle. Early in the last quarter, Narre hit the front with a long goal before Monbulk responded with three quick goals to establish a handy break, including one to an injured Noah Rutherford who sat in the forward line to free up the on-ball rotations.

Narre kept attacking and wiped two goals from the deficit but some determined play by the young Hawks allowed them to hang on in a three-point thriller. This win will give the team great belief as they head into the second half of the year.

·

Picture: SUPPLIED

Narre Warren 7.1.43 def by Monbulk 7.4.46 Best: William Henderson, Riley Finlay, Noah Rutherford, Nick Taylor, Jayden Spencer, Jed Noar Goals: Harry Fleming 3, Lachlan Smith 1, Noah Rutherford 1, Riley Finlay 1, Jai Farmer 1 The Monbulk Women’s team travelled further down the highway to Pakenham to take on the locals. Hard work didn’t translate into scoreboard rewards until the last quarter when the play opened up and the Hawks were able to break through for two well-earned goals.

Pakenham 5.8.38 def Monbulk 2.2.14 Best: Molly Horne, Jade McCormick, Maddison Dodd, Yanessa Hancock-Wolfe, Simone Beattie, Laura Gillard Goals: Emily McKay 2 For netball, Monbulk fielded a strong squad against the all-conquering Narre Warren side which had former Australian representative Erin Bell on their side. Little separated the two teams in the first term but in the second quarter, a couple of turnovers cost the Hawks as this lifted Narre’s confidence. The Magpies eventually won by 12 goals as they were slightly more consistent in their ball movement but the Monbulk players know that their best will

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Gembrook Cockatoo versus Healesville results RESERVES:

· Gembrook Cockatoo 9 Goals 10 points = 64 points · Healesville 7 Goals 8 Points = 50 points · Gembrook Cockatoo Goal Scorers · Reece Pepi 2, Bailey Neyland 1, Nick Jackson 4, Marley Appleyard 1, Christopher Bourne 1 Best Players, Lachlan Ramage, Nick Jackson, Reece Pepi, Christopher Bourne, Tim Weller, Jake Mawson.

SENIORS: Gembrook Cockatoo 10 Goals 10 Points = 70 points Healesville 15 Goals 9 Points = 99 points Gembrook Cockatoo Goal Scorers Myles Wareham 2, Michael Firrito 2,Aaron Firrito 1, Lochie Taylor 1, Liam Henzen 2, Jay Ver Hagen 2.

Best Players Brayden Weller, Matt Frazzetto, Konnor Allcott, Liam Henzen, Damien Volta, Aaron Firrito VETERANS: Gembrook Cockatoo Goals 4 points 9 = 33 Points Healesville Goals 9 Points 9 = 63 Gembrook Cockatoo goal scorers Steve Nuutinen 2, Tristan Whytcross 1, Jared Goldsack 1, Gembrook Cockatoo best Jared Goldsack, Nathan Brown, Ben Fenton, Ryan Adam, Tristan Whytcross, Sean Sierakowski.

Note: It was Tristan Whytcrosstcross’ 350th game.

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Gembrook-Cockatoo and Healesville faced off in a close contest.

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Colin Bastow and William Kristelly-Kelety contest for the ball.

Pictures: STEWART CHAMBERS

Zac Loewe comes away with the football. mailcommunity.com.au

SPORT

Olinda Women downed The Olinda Women’s team found themselves in the losing column for the third week on end, going down to ladder leader Upwey by 24 points in a solid showing at home on Saturday night.

Olinda struggled with Upwey’s flood all game and was caught flat-footed and out of position a couple of times as Upwey swarmed forward Pagan’s Paddock-style.

The accountability continues to waiver at times during games, and it keeps costing Olinda goals.

The team has taken visible steps over the past three weeks, however, contested work and ball movement are consistently improving.

One of the more pleasing aspects of the game was that Olinda’s intensity built quarter by quarter, until the last quarter when Olinda both scored and held Upwey scoreless.

Forward entries are still a problem but were certainly better Saturday night, and the presence of captain Maddie Collins as a permanent forward made every entry look very dangerous.

The best play of the game came in the second quarter and started on the half-back line.

After a gut-busting run from dynamo Claire Hyett to half-forward, the ball was delivered precisely to captain Mads, then on to full-forward Phoebe Dixon for an excellent goal.

The most spectacular moment of the game

Grace Belloni’s marking was a feature of the game. came in the third quarter with last week’s hero Emmalee Keegan bouncing from contest to contest trying to win the ball. All of a sudden, Emm bounced out of one contest and almost cartwheeled, picking up the ball in the middle of the spin, landing on her feet and getting the kick out of the danger zone. It was an amazing

Bloods maul Tigers for Bendigo Bank Shield

By Frank Seal It was a big week for Olinda Ferny Creek’s senior side, the club needed to regroup and review their method after two disappointing losses back-to-back.

This week, the challenge was against a hungry Upwey-Tecoma side, fresh off a dominant win over Officer the week before.

In cold, but otherwise perfect conditions, both teams were eager to take the four points and the Bendigo Bank Community Shield to go with it.

The Bloods’ intent around the ball was positive from the first bounce, with no player preparing to take a backward step, unlike in previous weeks. The territory battle was in Olinda’s favour early, midfielders Pat Rosier and Pete Lucas were hunting the footy and clearing it forward.

The most encouraging sign, however, was the ferocious display of forward pressure by the likes of Lachy Taylor and Percy Hyett, laying tackles and locking the ball inside 50 on numerous occasions, forcing slow exits and nervous fumbles from their opponent. Despite this, the Tigers managed to hit the scoreboard through fast offensive transition and turnovers, nailing three goals for the quarter to Olinda’s two.

The quarter-time address was positive, but the Bloods were well aware of the scoreboard and looked to respond early in the second. Through sustained effort and intensity around the contest, Olinda did respond by getting well on top in the midfield and feeding the forwards with damaging kicks.

The forwards were impacting every aerial contest inside 50, forcing numerous defenders to fly. Noah Desta and Matt Rosier were damaging at ground level, gathering the ball cleanly while prohibiting their opponents from doing the same. The highlight of the quarter, however, was a significant gesture of Bloods’ leadership from Lachy Taylor, who marked the ball inside 50, saw an open Ned Ford running toward goal, and passed the ball off to give him his first goal in senior footy. This gave the Bloods a major boost heading into half-time, leading 42-26.

From here there was no turning back, as Olinda put their foot to the floor and blitzed through the Tigers in the third quarter, piling on goals to put the game out of reach.

The back six were confidently playing high up the ground, forcing forward half turnmailcommunity.com.au

Noah Desta snaps a left-foot goal.

Picture: TREVOR CURRIE overs and killing the energy of their opponents.

Defenders Dale Rohrmann and Callum Beatie were refusing to let the ball past them, taking powerful intercept marks and launching the Bloods into quick offensive transition. Tyler Belloni was valuable through the midfield, adopting a solid defensive mindset and halting the Tigers’ offensive flow. It was a dominant quarter which saw the Bloods add seven goals to Upwey’s one, establishing a 53-point lead into the fourth.

The final quarter was heated, as Upwey amped up their physicality in response to Olinda’s gameplay dominance. Olinda was up to the fight, continuing to win territory and threaten the Tiger defence. Lachy Taylor and Noah Desta each kicked their sixth goals for the match, while Matt Rosier and Percy Hyett joined in, adding five between them.

With the result beyond doubt and the tension building between the two teams, an all-in brawl broke out in the dying stages.

As the final siren blew, Olinda were 124-58 victors in a convincing performance to get their season back on track.

In other results, The Olinda reserves (75-47) were defeated by Upwey-Tecoma (105-65).

Upwey-Tecoma’s senior women (5-7-37) defeated Olinda (2-1-13).

The Olinda u/19s (3-7-25) were beaten

by Mt Evelyn (18-13-121).

Picture: TREVOR CURRIE

move that was part acrobat, part ninja.

Grace Belloni’s contested marking is top class, and she halted many of Upwey’s forays forward with her sure hands on a night when not many marks were taken.

Claire Hyett’s speed and courageous attack on each contest saw her continually putting

her body in danger to get the footy, and clearing it to the advantage of her teammates.

Lily Carlin’s tenacious pressure on the ball carrier and use by foot are elite. Lily’s 10 pressure acts for the game were almost double that of her nearest teammate.

Alex Gunn has exploded onto the competition this year as a potent defensive weapon, and her blanketing of Upwey’s most dangerous player was very important for her team.

Leah Cody’s brute strength and fearless attack on the football saw her stints at centre half back and in the ruck an important reason for Olinda’s resurgence.

Emmalee Keegan continued her stellar form with another hardy performance at halfback, repelling many entries and pressuring Upwey players at every opportunity.

Ness Bateman fought hard in her position as a stand-in ruck and won some hard-fought contests. Kim Smith and Maddie McCheyne were lively on the flanks as were the mosquito fleet Ellie Andre and Emma McLaughlan.

Olinda’s backline was staunch as always, even after having to cope with the early knee injury of Laura Clarke. Keeping the top of the ladder team to only five goals was a great effort.

Overall it was a pleasing performance against a premium opponent.

Comfortable win for Seville

By Mick Morris Seville headed out to Chandler Recreation Reserve in Avonsleigh to take on Emerald in a top-of-the-table clash.

There was a very positive mood in the Seville rooms before the game and the players were keen to get back on the winning list after their narrow one-point loss to Gembrook the previous week.

The Blue Boys sprung out of the blocks hitting the scoreboard within a couple of minutes thanks to a Maxi Dickinson goal.

Emerald had no answer to Seville’s pressure in a quarter the Blues laid 22 tackles and slammed on seven goals to one to head into the first break 38 points up.

Emerald hit back early in the second quarter, registering two goals in the first couple of minutes to show the locals they weren’t giving up without a fight.

Deng Nai was dominant in the ruck giving Strachany and Weightman first use of the pill.

Several turnovers saw the Seville defence working overtime with Paul Bailey standing tall and the Sciortino brothers repelling several attacks.

Seville did well to restrict Emerald to four goals and kick one themselves to head into the main break 19 points up.

A good showing of local footy at its best was displayed by both clubs had supporters up and about and very vocal at times.

The third quarter was a real arm wrestle with both teams keen to take any advantage that came their way.

Seville gave Emerald a few advantages, coughing up 13 free kicks to nil for the quarter.

Goals were hard to come in the third and saw a great solo effort from the Big Panda Jack Nolan after spilling the mark and then recovering to slot his seconnd goal for the match.

Seville slightly improved their lead, scoring two goals to one for the quarter but was down to only two fit players on the bench after injuries to Andrew Condello and Sony Hollywood Saniga.

Three-quarter time saw the Blues leading by 22 points with Emerald having the breeze in the last.

Another tight quarter with both teams’ backlines under the cosh with some free-flowing football being played.

Emerald hit the scoreboard with a goal to reduce the margin to only 16 points.

Seville seemed to have control after that, playing some possession football and laying tackle after tackle when they turned the ball over.

The 26 tackles for the quarter and 89 for the match showed how desperate Seville was to hang onto their lead.

‘Commilitoni’: The Condello brothers Alex, Andrew and Michael took to the field together for the first time for Seville. Picture: SUPPLIED A couple of quick goals sealed the deal for Seville who went on to a 32-point win.

Seville now finds themselves two-and-ahalf games clear on top of the Division 1 ladder.

The best players for Seville were Jake Strachan, Deng Nai, Brendan Dickinson, Pual Bailey, Jack Nolan and Bayley Sciortino.

Goalkickers were Strachan with three, Nolan with two and Dickinson, Dylan Broadway, Aaron Stevens, Rob Petracca, Sonny Saniga, Michael Condello and Hayden Pleming with one apiece.

With a bye next week, Seville will be back in Round 14 playing away to Healesville on Saturday 16 July.

Other football results: Emerald Reserves defeated Seville Reserves 10.10, 70 to 3.8, 26. The best players for Seville were Luke O’Keefe, Gordon Gosland, Phil Muscara, Jayden Noble, Kyle Mountjoy and Aaron Stewart.

Warburton U18s defeated Seville U18s 21.17, 143 to 0.2, 2. The best players for Seville were Willow Pearce, Dylan Baker, Tyden Keenan, Corey Daniel, Luke Elderhurst and Jacob Humphries.

Yarra Junction Senior Women defeated Seville Senior Women 7.0, 42 to 4.0, 24. The best players for Seville were Lillian Pagels, Jess Beraud, Nicole Kimpton, Zoe Kendall, Madi Ward and Tamara Kendall.

Netball: 17Blue: Narre Warren 17Blue defeated Seville 17Blue 24 to 22.

D Grade: Emerald defeated by Seville 26 to 33.

C Grade: Emerald defeated by Seville 41 to 43.

B Grade: Emerald defeated by Seville 27 to 70.

A Grade: Emerald defeated by Seville 33 to 49.

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Support for umpire

By Tyler Wright For the first time, goal umpires in the Outer East Football Netball League have taken to their posts wearing blue beanies to support one of their own in the fight against Motor Neurone Disease.

On Saturday 18 June, goal umpire Matt Stickland sported the ‘Big Freeze 8’ head gear while officiating the Gembrook Seniors and Reserves matches - and so did 24 of his peers across the league’s games.

In 2015, the 52 year old Emerald resident was diagnosed with MND - a debilitating disease which takes away the use of a person’s arms and legs, the ability to eat and swallow and eventually the ability to breathe - all within an average time-frame of 27 months.

Matt was given between 24 to 36 months to live, but seven years later is now goal umpiring on Saturdays and loves the way footy “brings people together”.

“I can’t run...but I can signal correctly and move a bit,” he said.

[The league] have welcomed me with open arms.”

For the husband and father of three, having his peers stand in solidarity with him to mark the awareness campaign was “amazing”.

“It showed me that there are many, many people in all corners of the community that are not just in my corner but also in [the corner] of other people with motor neurone disease and their families,” Matt said.

“When [a person] is diagnosed, they’re told there’s no cure, there’s no effective treatment for motor neurone disease; and what the FightMND cause has done is give people with motor neurone disease and their families a little bit of hope.”

Head of Umpiring at the Outer East Football Netball League, John Howarth, said alongside the Sockit2MND round, umpires wearing the Big Freeze beanies helps awareness of the impacts of MND and promotes inclusivity within the league. “[Matt] spoke to a group at training about what it meant to him - and he was just over over the moon with all the support,” John said.

Now in its eighth year, the Big Freeze, run

by FightMND (co-founded by AFL legend and

Maria and John Sartori won Ferntree Gully Bowling Club’s Singles’ Championships this year.

Picture: SUPPLIED

Pair of wins

By Parker McKenzie

Outer East Football League goal umpires Alistair Raskas (L) and Amelia Gemmil (R) wore their Big Freeze beanies on Sunday 18 June to raise awareness of the impacts of Motor Neurone Disease.

Pictures: SUPPLIED MND patient Neale Daniher), reached a record-high fundraising tally of almost $20 million.

The funds, generated through beanie sales, donations and community fundraising efforts, will be invested in research to find effective treatments and a cure for MND. Matt has seen this collective effort at a local level in his area of Emerald and surrounds.

“We ordered 120 odd beanies and friends of ours have sold them through their hairdressing salon or through their Pilates studio,” he said.

“We had to order 30 more - so that’s 150 beanies through friends and family and local businesses - everyone’s got behind the cause we feel really supported and encouraged.”

In 2017, Matt took part in the original ‘Lighthouse trial’ alongside 49 other participants and now take the Triumeg tablet daily.

He has noticed symptoms slowing, as four new clinical trials set to begin this year with the help of fundraising.

“Many of us might not be around to see the

Eva, Gemma, Matt and Baxter Stickland with footy great Neale Daniher. cure found…but it does give us a glimmer of hope that we’re heading in the right direction and people are supporting us,” Matt said.

For more information on the Big Freeze, or if you wish to donate to FightMND, visit https://fightmnd.org.au/

A local wife and husband have made history by being the first married couple to take out Ferntree Gully Bowling Club’s singles championships in the same year.

John Sartori won the 2021-22 Men’s Singles Championship by defeating Max Ritchie in the final and Maria Sartori beat Gail Bowen to win the 2021-22 Ladies Singles Championship.

Mrs Sartori said the win felt like a huge achievement.

“John has won one in the past two or three times at least. For me, I’ve been playing for the past six years and it’s the first time,” she said.

“We wouldn’t want to go anywhere else, it’s a good club and everyone is social.”

Ferntree Gully Bowling Club was first established in 1965 and play at Glenfern Road, Ferntree Gully. Club Secretary Brian Raisbeck said Mr Sartori has been involved with the club since the 1980s.

“Maria joined in the past few years because she’s been quite busy,” he said.

“John was celebrating his 80th birthday over the weekend so it was a good present.”

The club competes in the Tuesday and Saturday Pennant seasons and runs other social events outside of winter.

Mrs Sartori said they celebrated the victory at a family reunion.

“We had a couple of wines and we went out for dinner,” she said.

“Next year we will try again and go out there as club champions.”

Council endorses Egan Lee Reserve synthetic pitch plans

By Parker McKenzie The development of a synthetic soccer pitch proved a contentious issue among counsellors at the Knox City Council meeting on Monday 27 June. With members of Knox City Football Club in attendance in the gallery, councillors debated the merit of the synthetic turf pitch at RD Egan Lee Reserve.

Counsellor Lisa Cooper said Knox City Football Club and other users of the facilities have developed their programs based on the expectation of a synthetic pitch.

“In my view, this club sets the standards and expectations all community clubs should aspire to,” she said.

“After many strategic meetings between our clubs and council, we finally endorsed a master plan for the sports precinct at Egan Lee Reserve.

“There have been some very clear and realistic expectations council will deliver this.”

She proposed an amendment to the plan to ensure more trees were planted around the development of the pitch.

Baird Ward Councillor Yvonne Allred spoke in opposition to the motion and said the 2018 master plan noted council should investigate the installation of a synthetic pitch.

“Masterplans are not as prescriptive as we might believe, they have some ability to move and flex over time,” she said.

“Officer Recommendations are already deviating from the plan by repositioning the proposed pitch.”

A moment of contention arose between Ms Allred and Cr Darren Pearce when Ms Allred said a climate emergency declaration had been adopted by Knox City Council.

“The master plan for Egan Lee Reserve was endorsed in a previous term of council and is 30 MAIL

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Tuesday, 5 July, 2022

Knox City Council voted in support of a motion to endorse plans to construct a synthetic pitch at RD Egan Lee Reserve.

Picture: KNOX CITY COUNCIL already four years old. In that time, the council has seen a change in elected representatives,” she said.

“Just last year Knox Council adopted the climate response plan alongside the climate emergency declaration.”

Mr Pearce called for a point of order and said the statement wasn’t factually correct and there was no climate emergency declared by Knox Council.

“Declaring a climate emergency is a very specific declaration,” he said.

“It is very important and has a very definite context, we never did that.”

Ms Allred accepted the point of order and corrected her statement.

She said Egan Lee Reserve was close to ecologically significant areas and was already being fragmented by development.

“I am speaking on behalf of Knox residents who have passionately raised their concerns with this proposed synthetic turf.” she said.

She said she would not be supporting the recommendation in the report or the alternative.

Mr Pearce said he was glad the plan had finally come to council and it should have “taken five minutes and finished off months ago.”

“We have a responsibility to act in the best interest of as many residents as possible,” he said.

“When looked over a ten-year period on an average cost per an hour of usage, synthetic

pitches are half the cost to maintain of natural pitches.” He said the best possible solution for the facility was the most cost-effective and the council received 131 positive responses compared to 26 unsupportive responses to the master plan.

Councillor Jude Dwight said financially the proposal wasn’t stacking up.

“In just 12 months the estimates given to council for a synthetic surface has gone up $300,000 dollars,” she said.

“What happens when we go to tender and those outcomes are too expensive, where are we going to compromise?”

Councillor Timmers-Leich, whose son plays for Knox City Football Club, supported the motion and said the synthetic pitch would aid in ensuring the club had access to the facilities it needs.

Councillor Grasso said she would support the motion based on the cost-benefit and a decrease in injury associated with synthetic pitches. Mayor Susan Laukens said the issue was a conflict of priorities.

“I don’t like how the environment always gets shifted to the side for other competing factors,” she said.

“It does not sit comfortably with me but I also understand our community needs areas to play sport.”

She said she would be supporting the synthetic pitch because of the need of the community.

The motion passed seven votes in support to two in opposition. Councillors Allred and Dwight were the two who opposed the motion.

Council endorsed the recommendation for a southwest Soccer pitch at RD Egan Lee Reserve to be converted to a synthetic soccer pitch and the proposed changes made by Ms Cooper. mailcommunity.com.au

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