Member for Riverina and Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack

Member for Riverina and Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack has welcomed the Australian Government’s $17.6 billion economic stimulus package, saying it will help keep rural and regional businesses open and people in jobs during the coronavirus crisis.

“I’m particularly pleased $1 billion has been budgeted to support regions and communities which have been disproportionately affected by the economic head-winds the coronavirus has created, including those heavily reliant on industries such as tourism, agriculture and education,” Mr McCormack said.

“Tourism, agriculture and education are three important pillars of the Riverina and Central West economy and we need to back them all the way.” Mr McCormack also welcomed the strong emphasis on supporting small and medium businesses, keeping apprentices and trainees in jobs and household stimulus payments which will benefit the wider community.

The package has four parts:
• Supporting business investment.
• Providing cash flow assistance to help small and medium sized business to stay in business and keep their employees in jobs.
• Targeted support for the most severely affected sectors, regions and communities.
• Household stimulus payments which will benefit the wider economy.

The one off payment to pensioners and those on Newstart should come as a huge relief to those who are inevitably feeling the pressure of poverty, pressure that is exacerbated by panic shopping and hoarding pantry items which has significantly reduced the amount of basic staples that socio-economically disadvantaged people often rely on.

Forbes Lions Park was a sea of purple for the International Women’s Day champagne breakfast.

Last Sunday saw record numbers in attendance at the annual International Women’s Day Champagne breakfast organised by Forbes Shire Council. Forbes women arrived bright and early and impeccably dressed for the sell out event at Lions Park, which was beautifully decorated in purple, a colour used on International Women’s Day for its historical association with justice and dignity.

Guests were treated to a diverse line-up of inspiring, resilient and successful women. Guest speakers included business-woman Louise Bernardi, Forbes Preschool Director Amy Shine, trailblazer and boilermaker Natasha Schmalz and mental health advocate and agricultural icon Sally Downie. The list of inspiring speakers would not be complete without Forbes’ very own Mayor Phyliss Miller, whose personal story of strength, resilience and determination is one that proves women should never be underestimated. Deputy Mayor, Jenny Webb was MC and Gracey Denhem-Jones lent her beautiful voice to the day, keeping guests entertained.

Entertainment provided by Gracey Denhem-Jones.

Louise Bernardi, who is involved in several charities aimed at empowering disadvantaged women, spoke about how “empowered women, empower women”, a fervent reminder that while having allies in male dominated workplaces is important, it is the support of other women that inevitably leads to success in gaining equality. Forbes Preschool Director Amy Shine has worked to ensure that Forbes Preschool is a beacon of support, inclusivity and community involvement and national recognition is testimony to this.

While Australia has made leaps and bounds in terms of legal equality since the first wave of feminism, there are still many women who are faced with attitudes of dismissal and failure to acknowledge women in the workplace in male dominated fields. Natasha Schmalz and Sally Downie shared their own experiences in the boilermaker and dairy farming industries that were disappointing, yet unsurprising. Despite this, both ladies were confident in the continued progress of change in attitudes towards women.

Forbes Lions Park was a sea of purple for the International Women’s Day champagne breakfast.

 

Kim Muffet, Penelope McGufficke, Wendy Muffet, Olivia Turner, Emily Brotherton, Wayne O’Neill and Lisa Cameron represented Grazing Down The Lachlan at the 2019 Australian Tourism Awards gala evening in Canberra.

Last weekend Forbes’ very own, Grazing Down The Lachlan was awarded Bronze in the Festival and Events category at the 2019 Qantas Australian Tourism Awards.

Grazing received the accolade in front of industry representatives from across the Nation at a gala evening held at Canberra’s National Convention Centre on Friday evening.

Queensland’s Groundwater Country Music Festival took out gold in the category, while The Unconformity contemporary arts festival in Tasmania was awarded silver.

The award rounds out Grazing’s most successful year since its inception in 2017, having been awarded silver at the Regional Tourism awards and gold at the NSW Tourism Awards last year, as well as a sell-out event for the third year running in 2019.

Chair of Grazing Down The Lachlan Committee, Wendy Muffet said, “Grazing has exceeded our expectations in every way and recognition at the National level is truly the icing on the cake. Grazing’s success is an example of what this amazing little river town of Forbes can achieve when we all pitch in.”

The Australian Tourism Awards are the tourism industry’s peak Awards – recognising and promoting excellence in tourism across every state and territory.

The award was well earned, the ever-humble husband and wife team and 2020 Forbes Citizens of the Year, Kim and Wendy Muffet, were keen to thank and recognise the volunteers and community, with Wendy saying, “Heartfelt thanks to our sponsors, the local Wiradjuri mob, our volunteers and the small local businesses that work alongside our dynamic volunteer committee to make the magic happen.” Wendy has never missed an opportunity to show her appreciation to the community and volunteers who make the event possible.

Woolworths Forbes is calling on residents to get behind Share the Dignity’s annual Dignity Drive this month and support the fight to end period poverty for those women in need across the region.

With over 3 million Australians living under the poverty line and the number of women experiencing periodic poverty across NSW on the rise, local residents will be able to help make a difference to their region by donating a sanitary item via the Dignity Drive boxes located in Woolworths Forbes throughout March.

Woolworths Forbes Store Manager, Noel Reardon said: “Last year we saw so many of our customers generously donate to the Dignity Drive. It was heart-warming to see how enthusiastic they were in helping us support local women in need.”

“We hope our customers will get behind Share the Dignity again this month and help us raise vital supplies for girls and women experiencing poverty, homelessness and domestic violence.”

Deborah Ferguson, Chief Executive Officer of Share the Dignity, said: “While the number of vulnerable women in Australia is sadly growing, we remain committed to our vision to eradicate period poverty in this country. When you are shopping at Woolworths this March, Share the Dignity encourages you to think, “one for me, one for her”, because while it may seem like a small gesture, we know small dignities make a big difference.”

Funds committed by Woolworths from the sales of sanitary items in stores across the country over the past year have been used to purchase ‘Dignity Vending Machines’. Known as ‘Pinkboxes’, the machines dispense free period packs to women and girls supported by domestic violence services, homelessness hubs and schools.

Councillors and staff of Forbes and Parkes Shire Councils with Regional Lifestyle Magazine staff at the launch on Saturday, 15th February held at Forbes Town Hall.

Connection and Collaboration were the themes of the evening for the launch of the 28th edition of Regional Lifestyle Magazine (RLM) at the Forbes Town Hall last month.

Forbes and Parkes collaborated for the feature to showcase the unique culture, scenery, rich history and various events that can be found throughout the two regions.

Forbes Shire Mayor Phyllis Miller OAM warmly welcomed the 80 guests in attendance which included Council representatives, featured local personalities and businesses which advertised in the magazine.

Parkes Shire Mayor Ken Keith OAM thanked RLM for the opportunity to work with Forbes Shire Council for a combined Forbes/Parkes feature. “I think it’s fantastic that we can support one another, as well as celebrate and share the success of each other’s events,” said Ken.

Regional Lifestyle Magazine Editor, Elizabeth Tickle acknowledged the success of the partnership between the two regions before officially launching the Autumn edition. “This particular project has been six months in the making… 113 pages dedicated to the beautiful Forbes and Parkes areas.”

Copies of the Autumn 2020 edition are available online at lifestylemagazine.net.au or from local newsagents.