Interviews with John THE UNCERTAIN FUTURE OF THE BULLETIN

My interview this month is with the Bulletin team to talk about the work they do behind the scenes and to discuss the uncertain future of the Bulletin.

John: What is your role on the committee and how long have you been involved?

John: I am the current President and I also do a great deal of the editing and initial proof reading. I submit the quiz each month along with the word search and sudoku and write the occasional short story. I also look after the distribution of the Bulletin in Tatura, Dhurringile and Murchison. I have been on the committee for eleven years.

Lois: I have been on the committee for sixteen years and I am currently the Treasurer and do most of the office management. I also assist with advertising, editing the articles, the Bulletin layout and respond to queries on advertising and articles. I am also the backup for sorting the Bulletins ready for distribution.

Bill: I’m the Assistant Secretary and I also do some of the editing of the articles when they come in. I have been on the committee for two years.

Janice: I have been on the committee for seven years and I help with the advertising and conduct most of the interviews around town. I contribute a variety of articles along with the monthly recipe. I also help to deliver the Bulletin around Tatura each month.

Melissa: I am the current Secretary, which involves attending the monthly meetings and taking notes. I also do the ‘paste-up’ each month with Lois which involves arranging all the articles and advertisements on a layout page to form the template for the publication. In addition to this, my role at Rodney Printers includes proof reading, printing, and making of the booklets. This is my thirteenth year on the committee.

Wendy: As a committee member it is my role to come up with ideas for articles each month and to help to iron out any problems that may arise. Along with Carol Ryan, I also assist with the proof reading prior to the articles being sent to Melissa and Lois for paste-up. This is my second year on the committee.

John: Why did you join the committee?

Bill: I had the time and I thought I could use my past experience to assist with the editing.

Melissa: When Justin and I purchased Rodney Printers from Rod and Judy Diffey I went to a committee meeting with Judy to see what happened behind the scenes. I really enjoyed helping so I decided to commit each month.

Lois: There was a ‘Call to Arms’ in 2007 regarding the future of the Bulletin and I thought I could help out. The Bulletin had been going for 25 years and it seemed a shame for it to fold due to a lack of volunteers. I enjoy being involved in the community and had skills which I thought could be used. Two months after I joined, I became Secretary and continued in that role for eleven years before becoming Treasurer.

John: I had recently retired from working at Unilever and my book ‘Memories to Die For’ had just been published. A couple of the committee members thought it would be beneficial to have a writer on the committee and invited me to a meeting. Twelve months later I was the President.

Janice: I attended the AGM after reading a request for helpers and decided to join the committee.

John: What other voluntary roles have you recently undertaken within the community.

Lois: I currently help with Family History at the Tatura Community House. I am also the Secretary for the Euroa Historical and Genealogical Society as I grew up in that area. In addition to that I am involved in a group trying to get better banking facilities in Tatura. I the recent past I have also been involved with the Australia Day Committee, BPW and the Moyola Gardens Committee.

Janice: I am currently President of the Tatura Hospital and Parkvilla Ladies Auxiliary.

Wendy: I am or have recently been involved with Probus, the museum and Harston Tennis Club.

John: I was recently the President of the Tatura Community House.

Helen: I am currently President of the Tatura Lions Club.

Bill: I am involved with the National Parks weeds program and species reintroduction and have also been a golf club committee member and captain.

John: What feedback have you received from the community regarding the Bulletin?

Melissa: It has always been positive and how much it is valued in the community. I also have many people comment about volunteering and asking me how I find the time but my commitment to the Bulletin is up to me to nominate. There is no pressure to do more or less.

Wendy: All I hear are positive comments and people saying how lucky we are to have the Bulletin.

John: I attended a Shepparton Council meeting several years ago and there were representatives from all the surrounding towns and they all said that they wished their town had something like the Bulletin. They were very jealous of Tatura.

Janice: Quite a lot of great feedback for the publication in general, but particularly for Ma Merle.

Lois: All I hear is good feedback. The Bulletin has been around for so long now that I think people just take it for granted.

John: Are you concerned about the future of the Bulletin?

Bill: I can see that it might struggle in future years, but the current group have it well in hand.

Lois: Yes, I am definitely concerned. The Bulletin has been going for almost forty years and is produced entirely by volunteers. As most organisations are finding at the moment, it is hard to get volunteers. The main issues seem to be lack of time, concern about what is involved, what commitment is required, the skills needed or simply a lack of interest. On the occasions I have mentioned that the Bulletin may fold if no more volunteers put up their hand the response has been, “Oh no! I really like the Bulletin.” Unfortunately, that doesn’t translate into volunteers. Social media plays a part in getting information out into the community but not everybody is on social media, and many older members of the community like to have a paper copy. Social media doesn’t get to every household in Tatura, Toolamba and Murchison like the Bulletin does. You may be thinking, “How can I help?” Not all the things that need to be done to produce the Bulletin take a lot of time. You could help out by looking after our stationery, asking new businesses if they want to advertise or following up local clubs and organisations for articles. You don’t have to write the articles yourself. Maybe you have computer skills and can help with the Excel spreadsheet listing monthly advertisers. Even better would be MYOB skills so that this Treasurer could have a backup and go on holiday or step down from the role in the future.

Melissa: I am very concerned! We definitely need more members of the community to help. We are a small team and if one of us is unavailable it places enormous strain on the rest of the team. There is always something to assist with or take on, but it is crucial that volunteers stick around and commit each month. Whether it be one hour or five hours, commitment is the key to producing a successful Bulletin.

Wendy: I’m very concerned about the future. We would like to have a succession plan in place for when our key members retire but unfortunately there is no-one currently to take their place.

Janice: I think all the committee members are concerned. If we don’t get any new volunteers in the next twelve months then the future of the Bulletin is very doubtful and will most likely fold, which is a pity.

John: There is no doubt in my that without a proper succession plan in place, the Bulletin may last two more years but it could certainly fold sooner if one of us became very sick or decided to head north to a warmer climate. That’s how close it is. The thing is, our current volunteers only spend between one to four hours a week, depending on where we are in the monthly cycle. Lois and I do most of the editing, although we sometimes call on Bill if one of us is unavailable, and some weeks I might spend one hour and other weeks five hours but the work is neither continuous or onerous and we set our own hours in order to complete this work. So, as you can see, volunteering at the Bulletin won’t take up a great deal of time. Probably the two main areas of concern are training back-ups for both the editing process and for advertising. Neither of these areas could be regarded as rocket science and would not be difficult for somebody with basic computer skills. All they need is a working knowledge of either Word or Excel.

John: So, if somebody wants to volunteer at the Bulletin, how do they go about it?

John: Come along to our AGM on Tuesday, August 1 at 7.00pm at the old police station building next to the old courthouse. It is across the road from the Indian restaurant. They are usually rather quick meetings as we don’t bother with guest speakers and the like.

John: Is there anything else you want to add?

John: Yes there is, and thank you for asking. If anybody enjoys meeting new people and having a bit of a chat with them, we’re looking for someone to conduct the occasional interview with new businesses in town or with locals who have achieved something significant. I did this for several years and then happily passed the baton onto Janice, and now she is looking to pass the baton on as well. If you think this is something you would like to do, then send an email to the Bulletin and we will be in contact with you. Our email address is: info@tatbulletin.com.au. Don’t worry if you think you might not have the skills as either Janice or I will train you.

John: Okay, well good luck attracting some new volunteers.

John: Thank you, and thanks also for giving us the opportunity to explain the situation.

John: You’re welcome.

ASSOCIATED WOMEN OF THE WORLD (ACWW)

Rural women are the background of families, communities, and nations from across the World. It was with delight that Bill and Glenys Stockdale (Tatura) travelled to Kuala Lumper, Malaysia to attend the 2023 triennial Conference of ACWW.

ACWW addresses and works toward gender equality. It also commits to being an anti-racist organisation, asking all members to collaborate and to ensure that voices of women, women of colour and indigenous women are heard. Glenys is a proud member of Associated Women of the World. The work of this organisation is very similar to CWA locally where Glenys and the other women of G.V.West branches are working towards the same determinations. The next triennial ACWW Conference will be held in Ottawa, Canada in 2026.

Glenys stated that it was a very enlightening experience to meet so many other women of the world, all striving towards the same outcome. The conference is held every three years providing women across the world to meet and create new friendships. Glenys met up with her good friend from Ireland which created many hours of chatting. A highlight for Glenys and Bill was to enjoy dinner with the King and Queen of Malaysia at the Palace.

- Barbara Carter

Tatura Community House

Fashion Parade in memory of Phyll Bramley. Our fashion parade on May 23 was a great afternoon for everyone. We remembered Phyll Bramley, an amazing supporter and friend of the community house for many years. More than 40 outfits from different decades of the last and this century were modelled. We had more than 30 guests come together for a wonderful afternoon of marvelling at our models and their outfits, enjoying a cuppa and a savory treat and just have a good time.

We would like to thank: Cheryl Dedman for the wonderful job she did as the MC for the afternoon – supported by her granddaughter

Gracie, Jacob Dedman for the amazing photos and wonderful video collage, Jenny Stammers and the chop & chat group for yummy snacks and refreshment, our volunteers – especially Janice and Liz – who worked tirelessly so that everything could come together nicely. Our models were Pam, Sharee, Mia with Sydney, Adele and Nadine. Thank you, Adele, for organising this great event – job well done!

A big thank you goes to the many people in our community and also from far away that trusted us with their precious outfits and lent them to us for this special occasion – Thank You! And last, but definitely not least, thank you Phyll for having the idea for the fashion parade, you would have absolutely loved it!

With the money donated in Phyll’s memory, the community house purchased a digital photo frame for the coffee hub, one of Phyll’s favourite spots in the community house.

Get Tech Savvy with “Digital Essentials”

Digital Essentials is starting on Thursday July 13 from 10:00am to 1:00pm. Would you like to learn the basics of how to operate your smartphone or tablet in a small and friendly group setting with plenty of time to learn and apply your knowledge straight asway? Then these 10-session classes are the thing for you! Each session is three hours, course fee is $130 full fee and $103 concession. Please call the community house to register for this class 5824 1315.

SUDOKU

No. 83

Join our group “Be Creative with Bianca” on Wednesday mornings.

Join us for a creative, relaxing, and inspiring art & crafts group on Wednesday mornings from 10:00am to 12:00pm, starting on Wednesday 19th July. Bianca will introduce you to different aspects of creativity and art, including mosaic, 3D painting, mandalas, patterns, scrapbooking and more. We accommodate all abilities; support workers are welcome to attend. Fee for 9 sessions $50, materials included. Please register for this group 5824 1315.

First Aid in July

First Aid Course – Thursday, July 20, 9:00am – 3:00pm. Register with the community house to refresh your skills or learn first aid for the first time! We offer CPR, Provide First Aid and Provide First Aid in an Education and Care Setting.

Power Saving Bonus – every household is eligible! Get $250 in ten minutes! The community house can process your power saving bonus application quickly and ensure that all documents are uploaded. Bookings essential – 5824 1315.

Victorian Sick Pay Guarantee – up to 38 hours of sick pay for casual workers paid by the Victorian Government!

If you are a casual worker in hospitality, food trades and food preparation, supermarkets, retail or sale, aged care and disability, cleaning, and laundry, then you may be entitled to 38 hours of paid sick pay per year. You need to work an average of 7.6 hours or more per week, be older than 15 years and work in Victoria. The community house can register you and support you in claiming your sick pay. Bookings essential – 5824 1315.

Women’s Health Clinic – Free Bulk Billing. In partnership with GV Health, a Women’s Health Clinic will be available at the Community House for women and LGBTIQA+ people of all ages. The clinic will provide information, support, clinical services and appropriate specialist referral services in an informal and relaxed environment. The clinic runs every first Tuesday of the month during school terms from 10:00am to 12:00pm. Give us a call.

High Tea is back in August

High Tea @ Olive & Vine – A great Tatura Community House tradition! We invite you to bring some friends and dine in elegance while savouring an assortment of treats made specially for you. Please ring the community house to book your spot 5824 1315.

When: Tuesday, August 8, 10:30am – 12:00pm at Olive & Vine, 115 Hogan Street,Tatura

Cost: $15 per person

Coming Soon – Tatura Community House Walkway Gallery – Volunteers needed We are transforming our hallways and foyer into a community gallery. We are looking for art loving volunteers for the gallery committee. Give us a call to inquire and have a chat.

Volunteers Needed - If you would like to get involved, give the Community House a call on 5824 1315.

Recipes

Carrot And Lentil Soup

Ingredients:

3 Tbsp Olive Oil

2 Brown Onions, diced

6 Cups Carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

3 Tbsp roughly chopped Ginger

1 Tbsp Cumin Seeds, ground

1/2 Tbsp Turmeric

250g Split Red Lentils

1.5 Litres Vegetable Stock

Sea Salt to season

1 1/2 Cups Greek-style Yoghurt

Method:

Brown onion and carrots in large pot with oil. Cook, stirring regularly, 5 mins until onion softened.

Add the ginger and spices and cook until fragrant.

Add lentils and stock, simmering for 20-25 mins until lentils soft and carrot cooked through.

Blend and then stir through yoghurt and sea salt to taste.

- Janice Dreyer