Roxane Manley

World Croquet Day Celebrations In Forbes

May 8, 2025 by Elvy Quirk

World Croquet Day was celebrated by the Forbes Croquet Club on Thursday 1 May 2025, with 30 in attendance. All who attended enjoyed the fun games that had been organised including Circle in a Circle and Knock a Dolly. Everyone enjoyed the atmosphere, the fun and laughter was evident as many tried their luck at the special games with some minor prizes awarded.

Aussie Croquet was also played on the day before before finishing with a light lunch in the shade area, catered for by Peter Ashcroft. A cake depicting World Croquet Day was also cut by the longest serving member of the Forbes Croqut Club, Robin Pols.

President, Elvy gave a brief outline on the introduction of worldwide Croquet and a short history of when Croquet began in Forbes.

On Saturday 3 May Aussie Croquet was played with a small number in attendance.

All three games were won by John Browne, Elvy Quirk and Peter West, whilst two games were won by Noel Jolliffe, Colleen Liebich, Robin Pols, Kevin Rubie, Harley Stewart, Cheryl Toohey and Barry White.

There were many good scores on the day of 1 4/13, 14/12, 14/11 and 14/10. Well done to all those who won.

As usual, Golf Croquet was played on Tuesday 6 May with only a small number in attendance. 28 players took to the field.

All three games on the day were won by Ray Martin, Kevin Rubie anf Peter West.

Well done to those players. On the day, two games were won by Russell Anderson, Graham Falconer, Frank Donohoe, John Farah, Colleen Liebich, Fay Picker, Elvy Quirk, Bill Scott, Rex Toole and Barry White. Also congratulations to those players. On the day there were many good scores recorded, 11/2, 10/3, 9/4 and 8/5.

By Elvy Quirk

Clear Winner For Wilf Hodges Trophy

May 8, 2025 by Roxane Manley

On the weekend the Mens golf participants were playing for the ‘Wilf Hodges Trophy’, sponsored by the Hodges Family. The event was contested by 54 visitors across an Individual Stableford event. The weather was perfect for good scoring but only a handful of players played to or bettered their handicap. The greens had maintained their pacey nature after the Mens Open the previous week which may have contributed to the results.

Winner of the ‘Wilf Hodges’ Trophy was Dave Mylecharane with 40 points. After a bogey start he played near flawless golf to finish a clear winner.

In the Stableford comp the Div-1 winner was Dave Mylecharane (40 pts). Despite two bogeys on the front-9 he turned on 18 points then carved up the back-9 to score 22 points. Runner-up was Adrian Matthews with 37 points. Scoring well on the front-9 but managing only 18 points on the back-9.

The Div-2 saw Jake Banks enter the winners circle, his 37 points was primarily due to his front-9 effort. Runner-up was Paul Pymont with an even handicap 36 points. He was slow on the front-9 but was warmed up for the back-9 where he managed 20 points.

The ball sweep went to 32 points on count back. Check in the Pro Shop to see if you were among the recipients. The NTP’s went to: 9th Reggie Murray; 18th Stephen Uphill. Both of them converted for a ‘2’ and were among the ten scored overall.

This weekend is the May Monthly Medal sponsored by Adept Plumbing. Sunday will have a Stableford Medley as a diversion from the ‘Mother’s Day’ celebrations.

Kross Brothers On Court At Act Open

May 8, 2025 by Roxane Manley

Congratulations to Henry Kross on a fantastic weekend at the ACT Open. He won the Junior Open, and managed to also make the Mens Open Final going down 3-2 to place second.

Artie Kross played some great squash, and showed some fantastic sportsmanship to come 6th in his division.

Upgraded Forbes Public School Returned To Community

May 1, 2025 by Roxane Manley

Images of some of the flood rebuild indoor and outdoor spaces at Forbes Public School.

Students and staff at Forbes Public School are celebrating as they return to their upgraded school two and a half years on from the destructive 2022 Central West floods, with school improvements making way for the return of play space and the removal of demountables.

Forbes Public School’s flood rebuild project, delivered by the Minns Labor Government, features 14 refurbished classrooms, library upgrades, an upgraded school canteen, 12 new air conditioning units and two new bubbler stations.

The school’s toilet facilities have also been upgraded with new water-saving toilets and taps, handbasins, and partitions.

The project also included updating of 11 school buildings with new doors, fresh paint, new carpet and laminate flooring, and essential electrical infrastructure upgrades. These improvements involved repainting and refurbishment of the shade structure, resurfacing the main sports court, landscaping of outdoor play areas, and the installation of new seating.

Overall, 1,050 litres of fresh paint was applied across interior and exterior walls and surfaces, and 1,080 square metres of new flooring was installed.

The 25 demountable classrooms used to support the school during the works will begin to be removed next month, including those on the school oval, with works on track for completion by Term 3.

Minister for Education and Early Learning Prue Car said “After the devastation of the 2022 floods, it is fantastic that we are now welcoming students and teachers back to permanent, upgraded facilities at Forbes Public School.

From The Mayor’s Desk

May 1, 2025 by Roxane Manley

First I would like to say thank you so very much to everyone in our community who marched and attended the services on Anzac Day. Honestly I am so proud of this town and the amazing number of people in attendance. There were old and many, many young people – it was very inspiring.

Thank you to everyone.

I would also like to acknowledge the anniversary of Molly’s passing last week and I remind everyone to keep her family in your prayers. Council continues to work to make real changes to enhance and to continue to strive for DV prevention education from an early age. Our community needs change and we need to keep having these hard conversations to make sure promises of change are kept.

Have you purchased your tickets to Frost and Fire 2025 – they are on sale now. Better yet if you buy anything from the Visitor Information Centre you can go into the draw to win two free tickets and two free Frost and Fire stubby holders. Keep an eye out for other local business offers, the Forbes Business Chamber had a meeting this week about how, we as a community, can collectively market and promote this key destination event. This is our sixth year of Frost and Fire and we have another outstanding line up of acts including the internationally known Wolfe Brothers. I can’t wait. It is on Saturday 21 June 2025. See you there! Another exciting date for the calendar is the 2025 National BBQ Championships.

Following the success of last year we will again be hosting a two day event for grilling and smoking events so start thinking of your team members and get grilling to perfect our BBQ skills. It is on this year 18 and 19 October for two days of BBQ perfection.

A reminder to all to make sure you cast your vote in the Federal Election by Saturday. You can vote at the Town Hall, Forbes Tennis Club, Forbes High School or Bedgerabong Public School from 8am to 6pm.

Until next week,
Phyllis Miller OAM
Mayor Forbes Shire Council

Snippets…

May 1, 2025 by Roxane Manley

A showcase of creativity, passion, and imagination.

Forbes Youth Action Team: Celebrating the incredible talent from the FYAT art competition. A big thank you to Kim Featherson and Katie Ragg, the ladies from the Forbes Art Society joined as judges. Kim and Katie shared that they were blown away by the quality of entries across all categories! Winners: 5–10 years winner Willa Thornton, 11–17 years winner Imogen Collits. Highly Commended Awards: 5-10 years Darby Edgerton, 11-17 years Saranchuluu Zorig.

Rural Women’s Network: The RWN is running a survey of people across rural NSW to answer these questions and more. Have your say at bit.ly/RWNSurvey2025 before the end of May 2025.

Parkes Shire Libraries: Storytime and Rhyme Time return for Term 2 next week at Parkes Library! Storytime is for pre-school children aged 3-5 and Rhyme Time is for babies ages 0-3. For bookings, please ring the Library on 6861 2309.

R U OK? As humans, we crave connection. That’s why life’s ups and downs are better shared. Create space for your people to share the good and bad times. Follow our four steps: www.ruok.org.au/howto-ask

Dolly’s Dream: Bullying shatters lives, but together, we can create a kinder, safer world for everyone. This Do It For Dolly Day, let’s go blue and take action: Wear it, wave it, or bake it. Host a blue event. Fundraise to support Dolly’s Dream. Every donation directly supports programs that protect children and strengthen communities across Australia. Go blue on 9 May and make an impact.

PCYC Parkes: Healthy Harold’s Colour Run is returning to Parkes. Come and join the fun. Wednesday 7 May, 3.30pm – 5.30pm, Keast Park, Parkes NSW. This free event is a great way for families to enjoy time together while learning about health, safety and wellbeing: Run, walk or skip your way through a colourful chalk course. Enjoy a free BBQ and fun giveaways throughout the afternoon.

Forbes Evening Branch CWA: On 29 April Forbes CWA and Forbes CWA Evening Branch participated in the ACWW Walk the World Day with friendship, to raise awareness of their work and to support their charity. Some of CWA values include supporting each other, advocating on community issues, sustainable development and the protection of the environment and social Issues. CWA gives women a voice to help make change.

Some of the work CWA does in our community can be viewed on the Facebook page: Forbes CWA Evening Branch.

Be Seen @ Forbes Squash Club 2025 Forbes Open

May 1, 2025 by Roxane Manley

Women’s C Grade: 1st Jo Cabban, 2nd Debbie Bryant, 3rd Lindy Cowhan, 4th Ellie Cowhan, 5th Colleen Campbell, 6th Lucy Cowhan and 7th Brianna Celedoni.

Men’s Open: 1st Bradley Fullick, 2nd Tate Norris, 3rd Henry Kross, 4th Jay Kross, 5th Eric Reynolds, 6th Darryn Piper and 7th Jennifer Condie.

Men’s B Grade: 1st Darron Lane, 2nd Lockie Jones, 3rd Patrick Corme, 4th Chris McQuie,5th Will Markwort, 6th Laurence Brayne and 7th Tim Coombs.

Don’t Forget To Vote On Saturday 3 May

May 1, 2025 by Roxane Manley

Election day is Saturday, 3 May. You can vote at any polling place on polling day, just don’t forget to vote. Polling places are usually located at local schools, churches and community halls, or public buildings. Voting locations can be found at aec.gov.au On election day you’ll receive two ballot papers: a green one for the House of Representatives and a white one for the Senate.

On the white ballot paper you can choose to vote either above or below the line. On the green ballot paper, you need to number every box for your vote to count.

Major centres in the Parkes Electorate include Moree, Walgett, Narrabri, Coonabarabran, Coonamble, Gilgandra, Dubbo, Forbes, Parkes, Condobolin, Cobar, Broken Hill, Bourke and Brewarrina.

Candidates for the Parkes electorate will appear on the ballot paper in the following order:

Mark Carter (Pauline Hanson’s One Nation)Stephen Pope (Shooters Fishers and Farmers Party)Trish Frail (The Australian Greens Party)Petrus Van Der Steen (Trumpet of Patriots)Bob Wilson (Independent)Nathan Fell (Australian Labor Party)Jamie Chaffey (National Party of Australia)Maurice Davey (Family First Party)Stuart Howe (Independent)Sally Edwards (Libertarian Party)

Driving With Purpose For Beyond Blue

May 1, 2025 by Roxane Manley

Life Pharmacy Group CEO Warwick Marx and Chief Operating Officer Michael Flannery.

Heavy rain and challenging conditions didn’t deter the Life Pharmacy Group (LPG) team from hitting the road for the 10th annual Beyond Bitumen Rally, raising funds and awareness for Beyond Blue.

The Beyond Bitumen Rally entourage of 72 vehicles travelled almost 2000 kilometres from Taree to Port Stephens via Grafton and Armidale (March 27 to 31).The Cavaliers, which includes LPG CEO Michael Flannery (Originally from Forbes) and Chief Operating Officer Warwick Marx (From Dubbo), raised more than $34,000 for the charity this year, taking out the highest fundraising honours for an individual participating car. “We’ve been taking part in the Beyond Bitumen Rally for seven years now,” Life Pharmacy Group CEO, Michael Flannery, said.

“It all started after a mate of mine shared his mental health battles and the role Beyond Blue played in supporting him during his darkest times. It didn’t take us long to find ourselves a car and The Cavaliers were formed.”

Did you know men are three times more likely to take their lives in Australia? and remoteness is a major contributing factor.

Growing up in regional Australia, The Cavaliers understand the importance of checking in on friends and seeking the appropriate support. “Most of us grew up in the bush and this rally is a great opportunity to hit the road with our mates, see parts of the country we may not have experienced previously, support communities along the way, and raise money for Beyond Blue,” Michael said.

“As a team we’re very proud to have raised more than $200,000 for the rally over the past seven years, and we’re thankful for the support we’ve received from our colleagues, friends, and families along the way.”

Since its inception, the Beyond Bitumen Rally has raised more than 3.5 million dollars for charity.

Be Seen @ Parkes Services Squash Courts

May 1, 2025 by Roxane Manley

Parkes Services Squash Courts had a blast hosting a Squash NSW Regional Pathway Camp.

Kids from Dubbo, Forbes and Cowra Squash Clubs joined in with the locals for a great day of squash.

The camp had national, state and regional players, as well as kids trying squash for the first time – well done!

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