Page 8 The Moorabool News – 1 March, 2022
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Photo by Mikhail Nilov from Pexels
Mask rules ease, well some have
Valleria has strong family connection By Lachlan Ellis A local man has shared an historical photo close to a century old, to mark 100 years since his father was born – with many descendants of the families pictured still living in Moorabool. Patrick Flanagan shared a photo of four generations of his family – his father Aeneas Flanagan in the lap of Bridget Vallence (nee Green), the mother of Henry Vallence (Jr), who was father of Ellen Flanagan (nee Vallence), Aeneas’ mother. “There are still many descendants of Henry (Snr) and Bridget in and around Bacchus Marsh. Moira Ross (nee Flanagan) a 1st cousin - is the principal at Coimadai Primary School,” Mr Flanagan told the Moorabool News. “I have been tracing my family for some time now - and do have an extensive family tree. There was a Vallence reunion in the Marsh several years ago - and my research was used.” The Valleria property which the photo was taken at no longer belongs to the Vallences, but can still be found at the top of the hill on Vallence Road, near the corner of Vallence Road North and Finn Court. It was sold to a young family when Amy Vallence died in the early 1980s and renovated. Mr Flanagan also shared his childhood memories of Valleria. “There was a quarry across the road - next to which was the dairy. My recollection is a little foggy as I did not live in the Marsh and was a child - but we did frequently visit Amy and her two brothers, Harry and Eddie, who were all younger siblings of my grandmother,” he said. “As a child, I remember sitting in the kitchen visiting grand aunt Amy Vallence and counting the carriages on the train as it passed - whilst she cooked biscuits and/or scones on the stove - heated by wood gathered from the farm. I remember my mother asking her how she knew the oven was hot enough - and Amy replied, ‘I can feel it on my face’. “There is a story that Grandma was celebrating her birthday in the front room of the house when the news reports re the landing of Gallipoli came over the wireless.” Aeneas Flanagan was born on 19 January 1922, and passed away on 20 August 2013. He had four children, including Patrick, with his wife Kathleen Carew.
Requirements for wearing a face mask were further eased last Friday, as part of an announcement which also included new rules around surgery and vaccination deadlines. With Victoria passing its peak of cases of the Omicron variant, mask mandates were removed for most indoor settings at 11.59 pm on Friday, 25 February. Masks will still remain mandatory for those on public transport, in taxis/rideshare, on planes, indoors in an airport, in a hospital, and those working in hospitality, retail, courts, justice and correctional facilities, and at events with over 30,000 attendees. They will no longer be required at secondary schools, but students from Grades 3 to 6, and workers at early childhood centres and primary schools, will still need to wear them. Opposition Leader Matthew Guy criticised the decision to keep masks mandatory for primary school students in Grade 3 and up. “Masks being kept for Grades 3 - 6 is ridiculous and unfair on kids. The Andrews Government needs to stop playing COVID politics with our kids. Priority should be catching up on two years of lost learning,” he said on social media. Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said the move was temporary, and due mainly to the low vaccination rate among children. “Those kids, 5 to 11 in particular, have the lowest vaccination coverage because they’ve been the last to be eligible. And so it’s for their direct protection in part, but also it reduces overall transmission, which protects all of us. So I think it’s a proportionate measure, it won’t be forever,” Mr Sutton told Virginia Trioli on ABC Radio Melbourne’s On Mornings program. The recommendation to work from home if possible has also ended, with masks no longer required in offices. Finally, remaining restrictions on elective surgery were lifted on Monday 28 February, and third dose deadlines for workers in education, who were fully vaccinated on or before October 25, will be extended by a month if they have a booking within that time. Minister for Health Martin Foley said the changes had been introduced thanks to the number of Victorians rolling up their sleeves. “Victorians have done such a great job getting vaccinated, so we’re able to take safe steps to get more people to return to the office,” he said. “We’re balancing the need to support our health system with the benefits of easing restrictions in a careful and sensible way.” As of Friday 25 February, 93.9 per cent of eligible Victorians 12 years of age or older have had two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, while 57.6 per cent of those eligible 18 years or older have had a third dose. On Friday, 18 February, the State Government also removed density limits at hospitality venues, and made QR code check-ins at retail settings, schools, and many workplaces voluntary. For more information on the changes, visit www.coronavirus.vic.gov.au.
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