Articles Archives - Page 325 of 405

Entries Double In Cycling Event

May 25, 2017 by Maggi Barnard

Entries for the Forbes Flatland Cyclo Sportif last weekend doubled with about 80 riders from all over NSW competing in the two events.

Line honours in the 120km event went to Dubbo’s Michael Ticehurst averaging a blis- tering 40km/h. He was followed by Adam Coleman from Orange and Hayden Bird from MacGregor ACT. The first female fin- isher was Jennifer Short.

The 72km event was dominated by Ba- thurst cyclists with Harry Bryant in first posi- tion, Stuart Renshaw second and Thereisa Gallagher third. Local Nick Turner and Nick Field flew the Forbes flag with top ten placings.

Matthew Hancock said the club was really happy with the day and received fan- tastic feedback from riders who did not real- ise how lovely Forbes was to ride in. “They can’t wait for next year’s event.”

The club thanked the sponsors and the many volunteers who helped on the day. The profits of the day will be donated to a charity still to be decided on.

Debutantes Dance For CanAssist

May 25, 2017 by Maggi Barnard

Eight stunning young ladies and their handsome partners took to the dance floor in April to raise valuable funds for Forbes CanAssist.

They raised over $1,300 dollars running various events. John Schrader, President of CanAssist said the funds would go a long way in assisting local cancer patients and their families. Rachel Wythes choreographed the group’s dance and their performance delighted family and friends.

Ruby Markwort and Jett Peckham were the perfect flower girl and page boy as they led Kaitlyn Wright and Mitchell Ashcroft, Lillyann Mason-Spice and Kaidyn Haines, Kiah Peckham and Bradley Clifton, Maggie Wallace and Ethan Stewart, Janssen Mores and Kristian Markwort, Montana Palazzi and Ethan Markwort, Shanika Harpur and Mark Simmonds and Jada and Zeke Hartwig for the presentation ceremony.

Record Funding For 53 Forbes Applicants

May 25, 2017 by Maggi Barnard

Twenty-two community organisations in the Forbes Shire have received record funding from the last round of the Department of Social Security Volunteer Equipment Grants Program.

A combined total of $102,400 has been awarded under the Federal Government program, which is aimed at supporting not- for-profit community groups to buy badly needed equipment to support their work. Applicants can apply for up to $5,000.

On Tuesday, Forbes Shire Council hosted a free sausage sizzle for funding recipients, to celebrate the record milestone and acknowledge the hard work of community groups.

More than 30 representatives from local organisations came along to enjoy some lunch and share stories about what the grant means for them.

Forbes North Public School received $5,000, part of which will go towards air conditioning for the canteen.

“The canteen runs five days a week and the lovely ladies in there need to be in a comfortable environment. It’s a work health and safety issue,” said Laurinda Ray.

The Calarie Hall Committee also received $5,000. “You don’t know what it means for us,” said Ann Fisher. “We started out years ago making egg sandwiches to fundraise. This money will help us put heating and cooling in the hall, which will be better for people who want to use it.”

The Men’s Shed, Valley FM Community Radio, Forbes Handicraft Centre, North- side Temple, the Toy Library, the Forbes Band, and the Forbes Historic Machinery Association were also among the grant re- cipients.

Andrew Rawsthorne, Grants Officer at Forbes Council said 53 funding applications (council and community) were approved to a value of $3.2 million this financial year. Another $4 million is potentially coming our way with 38 other applications pending.

Andrew is available to help local organisations with funding applications, and can be contacted at Council on 6850 2300.

By Rochelle Bright

Friends And Fun Fuel The Food Revolution

May 25, 2017 by Maggi Barnard

Fruity faces, healthy pancakes and even kangaroo stew were available for the community to enjoy at the Forbes Food Revolution Day held last Friday at the Church in the Schoolyard.

Most of the visitors were children from lo- cal schools who came to try different foods with their friends.

They also got to dig their hands into buckets of compost with Netwaste’s Sue Clarke, and taste different kinds of olives as Marg Applebee from Landcare explained how they are grown.

Between activities, the kids lined up for spray-on tattoos, courtesy of Neighbourhood Central volunteers.

This is the fourth time organisers Lucy Pearce and Maree Yapp have run the annual event.

“I believe in teaching kids from a very young age to make healthy choices,” said Lucy, who is the local Food Revolution Am- bassador.

Maree, from Schools as Community Centres (SaCC), is passionate about food security and land care.

“I’m interested in the whole cycle of food,” she said. “And between us, we’re trying to extend the message about eating healthy right through the year.”

During May, Maree and Lucy also run Real Food Tasting sessions, which aim to encourage children between the ages of three and eight to try different fruits and vegetables.

This year, they expect to reach over 800 local children.

“We get so much feedback from parents about kids that have always refused to eat fruit or vegetables suddenly deciding that, because they’ve tried it at school with their friends, they eat fruit and vegetables now,” said Lucy.

To find out more about Food Revolution or the Real Food Tasting program visit the Facebook page, contact Maree Yapp at SaCC on 6852 3008, or Lucy Pearce on 6851 5809.

By Rochelle Bright

Snippets…

May 25, 2017 by Maggi Barnard

Local Land Service (LLS) Election: Local farmer Chris Sweeney is standing in the LLS Election held this month. He is one of eight candidates seeking election for the Central West Local Land Services. The other candidates are Jenny Bradley, Don Schieb, Sharon Portelli, Alan Smith, Penny Heuston, Peta Tumpey and Will Martel. The election is held every three years and is an opportunity for ratepayers to elect a member of the board to represent them and their views on how the Local Land Ser- vices will be structured over the next few years. Enrolled rural ratepayers can vote online or via postal vote until 5pm on 31st May.

Water Bills: Forbes Shire Council is reminding ratepayers that the latest water bills are for the period from the end of November to mid-March. This works out at an average of 108 days usage at $1.14 per kilolitre of water used. General Manager Danny Green said it was important to con- sider how many days were included rather than just comparing to the previous charge as the former period was for only 88 days. An increase of 11 cents per kilolitre of wa- ter used for 2016-2017 was also included.

Hair-razing effort! The extraordinary peo- ple who shaved or coloured their hair and their generous sponsors have raised al- most $5 million in NSW in support of this year’s World’s Greatest Shave.

The money raised for the Leukaemia Foundation will help to fund projects to provide safe and comfortable accommoda- tion in the city for families living in regional NSW, and to offer free transport, counsel- ling, information and practical support to the 60,000 Australians living with a blood cancer.

Nomination: The #MonteFamous show on 2LVR Valley FM has been nominated in the 2017 Community Broadcasting Asso- ciation of Australia Radio awards. James ‘Monte’ Irvine hosts #MonteFamous on Monday nights with a guest co-presenter, interviewing three independent or un- signed Australian musicians each week.

Monte has interviewed 201 artists since the program’s inception, and has given
a number of the artists their debut on the air waves.

“Monte and his show are a great contribu- tion to new and unsigned Australian artists who wouldn’t necessarily get interviewed or airplay on other radio stations,” said John Berger, President of 2LVR Valley FM.

Show Your Heart Some Love!

May 25, 2017 by Maggi Barnard

Did you know that heart disease is the single leading cause of death in Australia?

This means that on average, one Australian dies from heart disease every 26 minutes.

Heart disease is associated with a number of factors including high cholesterol, high blood pressure and can lead to heart attacks, strokes and heart failure. Many of these signs are silent meaning there are no obvious symptoms. That is why it is important to have regular checkups with your pharmacist and GP.

There are a number of simple measures that you can take to reduce your chance of suffering the complications of heart disease, such as:
• Know your blood pressure (have it

checked regularly at the pharmacy).
• Exercise – as little as 30 minutes brisk walking, five times per week.
• No smoking – smokers are six times more likely to suffer a heart attack than non-smokers.
• Get tested for diabetes and keep it under control.
• Know your cholesterol and triglyceride levels – ask your GP.
• Eat lots of fruit and vegetables.
• Maintain a healthy weight – the higher your BMI the higher your risk of heart disease.
• So show your heart some love and don’t become a statistic!

Help us to help you avoid heart disease and get to know ‘your numbers’. Call into Flan- nery’s Pharmacy or Life Pharmacy for a blood pressure check, a cardiovascular risk assessment, quit smoking assistance and weight loss support – all of which are free during the months of May and June.

Boscars Sponsors Announced

May 25, 2017 by Maggi Barnard

Evolution Mining – Cowal will be the overall naming rights sponsor for this year’s Boscars awards. General Manager Jason Grieve said: “It is a great opportunity to con- tribute, and we are excited to be part of the event. We see it as pivotal to support local businesses in the community.”

Mayor Graeme Miller said Forbes Shire Council was proud to be a Gold Sponsor. “It is fantastic that a number of the award categories are aligned with the NSW Business Chamber regional and state awards as it furthers the opportunity to be recognised at state level, as happened with HE Silos last year,” the Mayor said.

Other sponsors include Silver Sponsor: HE Silos, Television Sponsor: WIN Television and Award Sponsors include: Roylances Auto One, Flannery’s Pharmacy, The Forbes Phoenix, Bernardis, Crowe Horwath, BEC, NSW Business Chamber, Westpac, Agriwest CRT, Walkers Ag N Vet and News on Rankin.

How Your Business Can Be The Best

With the date set for the Forbes Business Chamber Boscars gala event on 15th September, it is time to start thinking how your business can become involved. The Forbes Business Chamber will be holding an information and networking night on Wednesday 7th June at the Forbes Servic- es Club. RSVP to Marg Duggan on 0428 514 415 or register online at http://www.inxcess.com.au/boscars/

Entries for the Boscars open on 19th June and close on 10th July.

Elaine’s Rich Memory Brings Local History To Life

May 18, 2017 by Maggi Barnard

Elaine Imrie has lived in Forbes for all her lively 90 years. To mark Heritage Month, she was invited to share some of her memories at Neighbhourhood Central’s social morning tea on Tuesday.

“I know many of you will have the same memories as I have about living in Forbes,” she said, standing with the aid of her black cane, and joking that she would stand as long as she didn’t fall over.

She began her talk with her memory of the day that peace was declared at the end of World War II, when she was 17 and working in the local solicitor’s office.

“I was sitting in there typing away, and all of a sudden this wild-eyed man burst through the front door and yelled at me and said: ‘The war’s over! The war’s over! Peace is here.’”

Elaine described a feeling of shock, and heading out into the street with her boss to see “perfect strangers hugging and kissing one another”.

As she spoke, it was as if the audience of around 30 people could hear the church bells ringing, and see the man in an old car dragging a rusty iron tank up and down Lachlan Street just to make a noise.

Laughter filled the room when Elaine reflected on having a bucket of water emp- tied on her head as she stepped beneath the balcony of the old Flannery’s Hotel. She didn’t care, she said, “because the war was over”.

But she admitted to feeling uncertain because she couldn’t remember what peace was like.

Elaine captivated the group as she then backtracked to describe what it was like to live in Forbes during the war. She shared her experiences of supporting the troops, food rationing, entertainment and “making do”.

She described how the troop trains would move slowly through the station, and how she and other young women would hand out cigarettes, mittens, gloves and other “comforts” to the soldiers as they passed.

When it came to food rations, Elaine talked about how she managed her share of butter. She would divide a half-pound ra- tion into seven pieces so that she would have butter for every day of the week, while her brother would finish his in two days.

She recalled her mother taking down dining room curtains to make a dirndl skirt for Elaine to wear to her first job.

Before she finished, Elaine had the group laughing again as she described almost knocking her brother out with a golf club one night as she walked home from music lessons.

Applause and questions made it clear that Elaine’s rich storytelling was a treat for everyone.

The Forbes Neighbourhood Central social morning teas provide a great opportu- nity for clients of Neighbourhood Central and HACC to enjoy each other’s company, listen to a guest speaker, or enjoy some entertainment. They take place on the third Tuesday of every month.

By Rochelle Bright

Nothing Can Dampen Local Mother’s Day Spirit

May 18, 2017 by Maggi Barnard

More than 50 people braved a chilly, wet morning in Forbes on Sunday to support the Mother’s Day Classic fundraising walk for breast cancer research.

In pink t-shirts, wigs and tutus, walkers of all ages brightened Lions Park with their smiles and enthusiasm. Many were breast cancer survivors, and others had come in honour of friends and loved ones.

When you’ve been through tougher battles, a bit of rain isn’t a problem.

“These girls are all survivors,” said organiser Yvonne Shaw, referring to her fellow volunteers. “We’re all happy to wear our pink shirts, and even if we only make ten dollars, that’s ten dollars more that can help.”

This year is the 20th anniversary of the Mother’s Day classic in Australia, which has raised over $30 million.

It is the third year of the local event, which has so far contributed over $2,000 to the cause.

One of this year’s largest donations came from the Forbes Breast Cancer Support Group, which offers support to women and men diagnosed with breast cancer.

Yvonne and fellow organiser Denise Jelbart are breast cancer survivors and mem- bers of the group, which Yvonne set up in 1992 while working as a women’s health nurse.

Yvonne was later diagnosed with the disease at the same time as her daughter, Sandra, in 1998.

Denise wants people to know local support is available. “It is a frightening thing to be diagnosed with breast cancer, but if you have the support of your family, and if you do know a group it’s good to be involved in that group. There are a lot of people out there who want to help you,” she said.

The Mother’s Day Classic is one of the group’s biggest fundraising events, and Yvonne and Denise will run it again next year, rain or shine.

By Rochelle Bright

Welcome Rochelle Our New Reporter

May 18, 2017 by Maggi Barnard

Rochelle Bright moved to Forbes from Canberra just six weeks ago. She has spent the past several years working in communications in government, and for organisations like the Australian Red Cross Blood Service and Headspace.

A writer all her life, Rochelle is involved in the Central West Skywriters Project, and is about to embark on her first novel. She is thrilled to have the chance to get to know members of the local community and share their stories. She would love you to contact her with your good news, your heart-warming news, your record-breaking stories, your unique stories, your events, your news tips and your photos, whether social, funny or just of interest.

You can contact Rochelle on 0419 017 762 or reporter@forbesphoenix.com.au

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