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PAGES 13-18 PUBLISHED TUESDAYStarTheGreatSouthern

Published at Leongathafor South Gippsland

TUESDAY, JANUARY 5, 2010 -- 56 PAGES

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By Brad Lester

MILLIONS of tourist dollars are being lost as a shortage of caravan park spaces forces thousands of visitors away from the South Gippsland coast.

Up to 3000 tourists have already been turned away from the Cape Paterson Caravan Park this summer.

And the problem is expected to worsen dra-matically with the closure of two caravan parks at Phillip Island and another at Inverloch.

The park closures will result in tourists leav-ing the district, stripping about 600 caravan and camping sites from the shire, and vital tourism dollars from the economy.

Cape Paterson Caravan Park proprietor David Wilson, estimates he will have to turn a further 1000 people away for the Labour Day long week-end in March and up to 2000 people at Easter.

He believes another park should be opened in foreshore bushland at Cape Paterson and is calling on the State Government to encourage the develop-ment of more caravan parks along coastal Victoria.

“The phone has just been ringing hot today with people wanting to stay one or two nights. It’s a disaster the way it is happening, but the govern-ment is not doing anything about it,” Mr Wilson

said last Wednesday.“The opportunities for people wanting short

cheap stays are limited. It’s not just here but also in shires in other coastal areas as well.”

Mr Wilson has approached the Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) to create another caravan park in existing bush between the caravan park and the Cape Paterson Surf Life Saving Club.

But he said Bass Coast Shire Council told him the DSE would be unlikely to approve such a development.

“The State Government needs to sit down and seriously think about the future of caravanning and camping in Victoria,” Mr Wilson said.

“Lots of international tourists drive around and look for sites but they can’t fi nd any and end up staying on the roadside. It’s the same with in-terstate tourists.”

Mr Wilson believes the bushland also poses a major fi re risk to his park. A fi re in that vicinity several years ago nearly destroyed the park.

“It should be thinned out a bit because if we got a fi re with a south-westerly wind behind it, it could go through the park,” he said.

With 98 per cent of sites re-booked from sum-mer to summer at Cape Paterson, the opportuni-ties for new guests are limited.

Continued on page 5.

ParkbrakeCaravan park shortage costs millions in tourism dollars

Beach rescues Stony poniesPage 3. Sport

THE Watbalimba Dancers were happy to do a traditional dance routine for The Star when the paper visited the Welshpool Sea Days festival on Satur-day. The dancers are from the Gunnai people of Gippsland.

The troupe has a strong history in performance and the troupe is very much a family affair. Headed by Wayne Thorpe (back) and Allan Williams Snr. (second from back), the renowned performers also include young and talented artists Allan Williams Jnr., Teekin Thorpe and Wayen Thorpe.

Rhythm stick

PAGE 2 - “THE STAR”, Tuesday, January 5, 2010

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THE Fire Service Levy attached to prop-erty insurance is “inequitable” and de-manded review, the state’s peak farmer body said last week.

The Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) made a submission to the Bushfi re Royal Commission re-garding its Fire Service Levy (FSL) and Insurance Discussion Paper.

That submission highlighted the problems asso-ciated with an insurance-based system for the fund-ing of fi re services and proposed a more equitable alternative.

VFF president Andrew Broad said that the cur-rent system of linking fi re services funding with in-surance was inequitable and the government needed to take heed of suggested alternative models.

“The VFF has long argued that the funding of fi re services via a levy on insurance is wrong. It is an outdated system which most of the other Aus-tralian states moved away from a long time ago,” he said.

“We are very pleased that the Bushfi re Royal Commission is looking at the funding of fi re ser-vices as a part of its review.

“We hope that the Royal Commission will prove independently that the current model is inequitable, and that these fi ndings will prompt the State Gov-ernment to listen to those organisations providing evidence of a more appropriate alternative.”

The VFF supports a charge on building values and car registrations to provide funding for fi re services.

“This is a fairer and more broad-based funding system which will ultimately translate into lower costs for every Victorian,” Mr Broad said.

The discussion paper released by the Bushfi re Royal Commission poses 10 questions relating to the funding of fi re services in Victoria.

The VFF’s submission is available at www.vff.org.au and the discussion paper is available at http://www.royalcommission.vic.gov.au/Discus-sion-Paper.

THERE was goodwill aplenty at the Meeni-yan Uniting Church as more than 40 people gathered to share Christmas lunch.

Dilene Hunter of Venus Bay, shared Christmas with her family before December 25, so that she could go to Meeniyan and help out. She hadn’t been before.

She said the community atmosphere there was wonderful.

“It was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had. It brought back the goodwill of Christmas.”

Dilene said one of the most appealing aspects of the day was that the people attending were aged be-tween two and 90.

“That really touched me. The day was about peo-ple just wanting to be with others. I felt privileged to be part of it.”

Run by the combined churches of Meeniyan, the lunch is designed for those who would otherwise be without extended family or on their own on Christmas day.

Bill Comans, who is one of the organisers, said the event was “a great success”.

By Jane Ross

SOUTH Gippsland Water ended the last fi nancial year with a loss of $288,000.

When the $100,000 profi t that the authority had budgeted for is taken into account, the loss is closer to $400,000.

Its causes are complex said managing direc-tor Steve Evans, but they include borrowings for capital works and reduced water consumption.

The good news is there’s no plan at this stage to recoup the money from increased tariffs.

Mr Evans said South Gippsland Water is a $22 million-a-year business which “is fairly well on budget” so far this year and the 2008/09 loss should not cause any long term problems.

Times have changed since the debt-free days demanded by the Kennett Government after the forced merger of water boards.

Tariffs are now set by the Essential Services Commission with input from individual water authorities.

The tariffs are set for a fi ve year period but can, on application, be altered. South Gippsland Water has three years of the current fi ve-year agreement to go.

While some other Victorian rural water groups are having to meet defi cits through raised tariffs, Mr Evans said South Gippsland has not reached that stage.

He said the authority relied on income from its customers, particularly through water usage. Consumers are no longer on the tight water re-strictions of recent years but their willingness to reduce water consumption has stayed with them.

That’s a good thing from a water conservation point of view said Mr Evans, but it’s had an im-pact on income.

The authority’s capital works include ongo-

ing pipe upgrades and a $16 million sewerage scheme for Poowong, Loch and Nyora. The $5 million pipe between Wonthaggi’s Lance Creek Reservoir and the desalination plant site at Wil-liamsons Beach is not included because it is being paid for by the desalination project. Mr Evans said the pipe is not fi nished yet, but South Gippsland Water has been reimbursed for the work so far.

He said his staff are preparing fi nancial docu-mentation to present to the authority board when it meets in three weeks’ time.

“Board members already know the situation but we need to confi rm that.”

Meanwhile, an annual independent survey has shown that 98 per cent of South Gippsland Water customers were satisfi ed with the service provided by authority staff.

“One of the best results was in managing ser-vice diffi culties and faults, with 100 per cent of customers satisfi ed,” said Mr Evans.

The survey also found that 99 per cent of cus-tomers whose properties were connected to the authority’s wastewater services, were satisfi ed with those and 98 per cent were content with their water supply.

“The past year has been a challenge in terms of securing supply and ensuring quality,” said Mr Evans. “It is heartening to see that our customers have benefi ted from our efforts.”

The telephone survey involved more than 400 customers in 15 towns across 10 water supply districts.

Mr Evans said South Gippsland Water ex-celled in a number of areas, notably in how it treated and disposed of trade waste and overall satisfaction.

Survey results are used to focus on areas need-ing improvement.

The authority has undertaken regular custom-er satisfaction surveys since 1999.

Water in the red

Season spirit

Change fi relevy: VFF

“THE STAR”, Tuesday, January 5, 2010 - PAGE 3

A BOY was the fi rst baby born at Leongatha Memo-rial Hospital in 2010.

Ryder Mitchell Walters was born at 5.25am on January 1.

He is the second child of Trent and Deanna Walters of Leongatha and a brother for 13-month-old Aydan.

Ryder was due on January 4, but perhaps knew there was no status in that arrival time.

Mum said Ryder had been a really good baby so far.

2010’s fi rst born: baby Ryder Walters with mid-wives Chris Busuttil and Sharyn Rayson, and student midwife Cheryl Green.

Baby of the year

To the rescueBy Brad Lesterand Matt Dunn

THE summer saving season is in full swing, with lifesavers across the region rescuing stricken beach goers and hapless fi shermen.

Inverloch lifesavers alone have performed 13 rescues since Boxing Day, with “most of those occurring in the two days be-fore New Year’s Eve”.

Speaking yesterday, Inverloch Lifesaving president Phillipe du Plessis, said he believed more rescues would need to be per-formed in the coming days with the weather again hotting up.

“It’s defi nitely higher than normal. It’s a product of the amount of people and the weather. We certainly had some trou-ble with the crowds over that warm period,” he said.

Mr du Plessis said most of the rescues are for children who have been lost and those who have strayed outside the fl ags that designate patrolled waters.

“We had 10 lost children and 16 fi rst aid incidents. There hasn’t been any huge incidents where we’ve had to call an am-bulance,” Mr du Plessis said.

Venus Bay has been less busy than Inverloch, with a natural phenomenon making life a little easier for the lifesavers there.

“It’s been very quiet. The way the beach has developed, we’ve got a trough, with a sandbar about 200m out. We’ve got this sort of protected area right near the beach,” Venus Bay pub-licity offi cer Julian Seri said.

At Waratah Bay there was more action, with lifesavers re-turning a stricken vessel to shore on the evening of Sunday, December 27.

A boat with two on board broke down three kilometres di-rectly south of the Shallow Inlet entrance.

Four members of the Waratah Beach Surf Life Saving club responded in a Rigid Infl atable Boat, towing the six metre boat inside the inlet by 8.30pm.

Rescuer and club past president Tim Barbour said the inlet entrance was fortunately calm, allowing the rescue to be fi n-

ished before darkness fell.“The inlet is a trap. It’s easy to fi nd your way out but it’s

hard to pick the entrance mouth because it’s on such a long beach,” he said.

“It’s nearly impossible to identify the inlet unless you are experienced. You really need to know your landmarks.”

Mr Barbour has known boaters to direct their vessels into the surf, mistakenly believing they were approaching the inlet bar.

“With the wrong type of boat, you can be trapped by the breakers and you’re in all sorts of trouble,” he said.

Three young lifesavers joined Mr Barbour on board the res-cue boat: daughter Courtney, Jack Alexander and Tim Halkier.

“Luckily the boat owner was aware of his position and we were able to spot him on the horizon exactly where he said he was,” he said.

“There has been a lot of activity on the beach and so far, so good. We have not had any other rescues. The weather has been beautiful and there’s lots of boating, sailing and water skiing on the inlet.”

Sea patrol: the Waratah Beach Surf Lifesaving Club’s infl atable boat has been a handy acquisition.


“The next thing, a strong gust of wind blew the wall of his house down on him and he was scrambling in the water. When he came up his baby was gone. The man found himself outside, and because the wind was so strong, he was just blown in the water for hours.

“Finally he was going past a tree and someone grabbed him and helped him get up into it. People were climbing into trees all over the place.”

He said the people’s backs were “completely shredded” because of the debris tossed by the wind: “It was like getting sandblasted.”

“In the morning there were no leaves on the trees. They just had all these people hanging in them, like fruits hanging in trees. Most of them were dead, and they went for miles and miles around,” he said.

The couple, who now have an eight month old

baby, Priya, have been madly collecting toys, clothes and other items to take back to a country still trying to fi nd its feet.

They are likely to stay there.

Gary said the cyclone had left more than destruction and death in its wake. Superstitious rice farmers refuse to till the land where people have died, leaving masses of arable land unused.

Superstition may well lead to a food crisis.

Gary, who has been volunteering his services as a handyman and educator at Leongatha Primary School, said much of the impetus for the aid mission came through Laywah.

“Laywah is very much the driving force behind this, because she is very keen to take stuff down into the village where she was born,” he said.

“People are always suffering in Burma, but

they’re suffering even more because of the cyclone. That’s what the aid was all about.”

Laywah’s cousin had a family of eight, who were all swept away in the storm surge.

Local people and charities have been keen to show their support for the Nelsons’ mission.

“It’s one of those things you start and it begins to snowball. I’m not sure when or if I should put the brakes on,” Gary said.

“Vinnies op shop is collecting stuff for us, the Anglican op shop is still collecting stuff for us and the Leongatha Primary School has been helping out too.”

To date there are probably “one or two very large crates” worth of materials, which will be sent by ship. But the generosity of people has been overwhelming and the donated goods continue

Burma bound By Matt Dunn

WHEN cyclone Nar-gis hit Burma on May 2, 2008, Gary Nelson did not know whether his wife, Laywah, was dead or alive.

For fi ve painfully long days he waited for news of her, constantly calling a number that was forever dead.

Laywah was visiting relatives back home at a village along the Irrawaddy Delta when the cyclone tore through, while Gary was back in Australia.

“I didn’t know if she was dead or alive or what was going on. It was pretty scary for a while. Fortunately the place where she was, was a little more on the edge of it,” the Leongatha resident told The Star.

“Fortunately it wasn’t affected as badly as other parts.”

But Laywah still counts her blessings. A large tree fell across her path during the cyclone, missing her by mere centimetres.

How close? She holds her thumb and index fi nger close together.

Would she have been killed if it had fallen on her? “Oh, yes.”

While the villages along the delta area are two metres above sea level, the wall of water that swept through the region topped fi ve meters.

Stories abound of tragedies and miracles.

“One chap I spoke to who was in his little house, said the water was coming up and it was up to his neck. He had his baby with him, so he decided the only way to do this was to tie the baby to his back, so he could hold onto things and keep himself secure,” Gary recounted.

to fl ow in. The family is planning

its departure for late February or early March and can only guess how much stuff they will have by then.

Cyclone Nargis was the worst natural disaster in the recorded history of Burma. Causing catastrophic damage, the cyclone claimed at least 146,000 lives, with thousands more people still missing.

Some fi gures put the death toll at more than 300,000.

Damage was estimated at over $10 billion (USD), which made it the most damaging cyclone ever recorded in this basin.

“I was over in Burma for over 10 years. I went there originally to purchase some rubies – they have the best rubies in the world. I had a client who wanted a fl awless three carat ruby, which was a $30,000 to $40,000 stone back then in those days,” he said.

He was in the business of selling high quality stones. But he found a greater jewel in the country itself.

“I fell in love with the place. It’s a very special spot, and it’s an incredibly safe spot for a foreigner,” he said.

His greater love, of course, was Laywah, who he met at a village Christmas party in 2001. The couple was married in India in 2002.

Those fi ve days when he did not know her fate were like a death to him.

“I thought I’d never see her again.”

Donations can be left at Gary’s house at 32 Parr Street, Leongatha, near the garage. The garage is located at James Crt.

Call Gary on 0408 053 010.

Wedded bliss: the couple was married in India in 2002.

Burma bound: Gary Nelson, baby Priya and Laywah, at home in Leongatha.


By Danny Buttler

AN infl ux of illegal campers in hired minivans has seen calls for greater enforcement of camping regulations.

Local tourist park operators are concerned about the increasing number of travellers who use roadside reserves and car parks instead of paying for a camping site in the region’s numerous parks.

“Wicked” campers, which are cheap mini-vans popular with overseas tourists, are regularly seen parked illegally overnight around South Gippsland. They are distinguished by their colourful, sometimes bawdy, paint jobs.

There are now numerous other companies that have followed the success of Wicked in hiring out no-frills vans to low-budget tourists.

Waratah Bay caravan park operator Jimmy Harry, said the illegal campers were not only refusing to pay for sites, but were sneaking into the park to use the shower facilities.

“They park down the road and then drive up here, park on the corner and have a hot shower,” he said.

“It is happening everywhere.”Mr Harry said the “gap” camping

ground, which was shut down several years ago, had become a mini-van car park.

“All the fi asco of the gap shutting down and they just go down and camp there now,” he said.

“All it has done has created a carpark

for them to pull in and do what they please.

“We even have the (more luxurious) Maui vans and Britz vans down there.”

Mr Harry conceded that local councils are unable to police the entire shire, but believes responsible locals should be given the power to tell illegal campers to move along.

“Give someone in the area some sort of authority to do something like that,” he said.

“I’ve even seen them at the gate of the prom … they just park the van on the side of the road and head off into the bushes with a roll of toilet paper and do their business.”

Geoff Clark from the Long Jetty

Caravan Park in Port Welshpool said the parade of Wicked vans going along the South Gippsland Highway had drastically increased in recent years.

“You see a lot of them on the South Gippsland highways; I could tell you half a dozen sites where they just pull up and camp along the side of the road,” he said.

Mr Clark said some camper van travellers even have the temerity to walk in and ask for showers.

“We get a lot of them asking to use the showers, but at this time of the year we won’t let them,” he said.

“We’ll save the showers for the people who actually pay for a camping site.”

The same problems are occurring at Inverloch, where small camper vans

are often parked in a row at the Rotary Centenary Park along the foreshore.With million dollar views of Anderson Inlet, the car park is one of South Gippsland’s most popular sites for illegal camping in vans.

Inverloch Foreshore Camping Reserve operator, Adrian Edwards, said he had noticed the increase in illegal parked vans over recent years.

“The illegal camping is something we do ring the shire about,” he said.

“Right now we have one right outside … that happens a fair bit at this time of year.”

Mr Edwards believes that many of the vans’ occupants are overseas travellers who do not realise that campsites are

usually booked out at this time of year.Bass Coast Shire said the majority

of its problems with illegal camping involved younger people from Melbourne who pitched tents on nature strips or on beaches.

A shire spokeswoman told The Star that it had received reports of camper vans setting up illegally.

A ranger would usually attend and decide what action needed to be taken.

“There have been some instances where they were overseas tourists who do not realise that they can’t camp where they want,” she said.

If people do wish to report illegally parked camper vans in Bass Coast, they can call 1300 226 278.

Campers’ wicked ways

Park brakeContinued from page 1.

“We like to take repeat bookings because we are guaranteed income from them, but if we were to put aside 10 sites or so and allow them to be occupied for one or two nights, then we could nearly get the same revenue,” Mr Wilson said.

Being located on Crown land, Mr Wilson is unable to expand without govern-ment approval.

All 105 camping and caravanning sites, plus eight cabins, are booked out at the park until January 30.

The Inverloch Holiday Park and foreshore camping reserve are fully booked, with most of the 41 tourist cabins, 60 powered sites and 186 foreshore sites oc-cupied until January 17. Proprietor Adrian Edwards said many guests are repeat visitors lured by the attraction of a coastal retreat.

“It’s pretty usual for this time of year and the only difference is that we are booking out marginally earlier every year,” he said.

“It’s the busiest time of the year for us and I would imagine that most Victo-rian coastal parks would be pretty much the same.”

POLICE BRIEFSPOLICE BRIEFSKnife attack on

Wonthaggi policeWONTHAGGI Police arrested a 41-year-old man after he threatened to kill an offi cer with a carving knife and punch another on Saturday, December 27.

The police were responding to a domestic dispute at a Dowling Street address at about 5.20pm.

A neighbour reported hearing screaming and property being damaged.

As police escorted a woman and two chil-dren to a police vehicle, the man who had been involved in the incident produced a large carv-ing knife and threatened to kill Acting Sergeant Glen Riley.

“We were talking to him out in the middle of the street, when he produced a large carv-ing knife and threatened to kill me,” Act. Sgt Riley said.

Act. Sgt Riley said it was “fortunate” that situations like these were not a regular occurrence.

The man was known to police, and the members were able to persuade him to throw down his knife. However, he threatened to punch another police offi cer.

Police overpowered the man, placing him in handcuffs.

The man was charged with threats to kill, threats to intentionally cause injury, criminal damage, assaulting police and weapons of-fences.

He was remanded in custody and appeared

at the Latrobe Valley Magistrates Court. He was bailed and will appear in the court again on January 19.

San Remo drowningA 43-YEAR-OLD Kew man drowned after be-ing swept off rocks while fi shing on Wednes-day, December 30.

The man was swept away by a wave on the southern end of Potters Road at about 1.30pm.

He had been fi shing with another man who was able to pull himself back onto the rocks and raise the alarm.

A search was conducted from the air by po-lice air wing and Westpac chopper and in the water by water police units as well as jet skis and land searches by the SES.

The man’s body was recovered by police search and rescue approximately 20 metres from where he was seen to enter the water just after 6.30pm.

Bin rage A LARGE window of an unoccupied shop was broken in Hyland Place, Leongatha, between late Saturday night and early Sunday morning.

“Investigation is ongoing. That probably happened at two or three in the morning when the pub tipped out. A Sulo bin was thrown through the shop window,” Leongatha Police’s Senior Constable Michael Thomas said.

“If anyone has information please contact Leongatha Police.”

Quick pitstopTHIEVES broke into Meeniyan’s Pit Stop

Café in the early hours of Saturday morning. Snr Constable Paul McDonald said $2500 worth of cigarettes and cash were taken after the front door was forced open. It is estimated the burglary occurred between midnight and 4am, when the theft was discovered. Anyone with information can call Meeniyan Police on 5664 7281.

Fiery crash A CAR crashed on the Wonthaggi Korumburra Road, between Wonthaggi and Korumburra in the early hours of New Year’s Day.

“The car ended up catching on fi re. Korum-burra and Kongwak CFA crews were called to put it out,” Wonthaggi Police’s Sergeant Dale McCahon said.

“No one was injured, fortunately. The man ran off the road and some time later the car caught on fi re.”

Stubby attackTWO Wonthaggi men were attacked by men throwing stubbies of beer on Wednesday, De-cember 23, at 11pm.

“The 22-year-old victim was walking home when he was hit by a stubby thrown by some-one passing him in a vehicle. It hit him in the face, causing lacerations,” Wonthaggi Police’s Sergeant Dale McCahon said.

“They then threw another stubby and hit him again. A second victim – an 18-year-old - who was with the man, was punched in the left eye.

“The attackers got back in the car and drove away.”

Enquiries into the attack are pending.

Tractor crash A 21-YEAR-OLD Korumburra man fl ed his ve-hicle with a friend after crashing it into a tractor on the Fairbank Road at Arawata on Monday, December 21.

Emergency services crews responded to the incident at about 8pm.

It was the end of a busy day for the pair.“They were questioned for a petrol drive off.

There were also allegations that there were false plates on the vehicle. There were also concerns about the sobriety of the driver,” Korumburra Po-lice Sergeant Clive Smith said.

“That’s why blood tests were taken and we’ll wait for analysis there.”

The driver of the tractor is still believed to be shaken by the crash, which destroyed both the tractor and the Commodore the man was driving.

The car burst into fl ames upon impact. Incident controller and Ruby CFA captain

Darren Hardacre attended the scene of the crash. “You occasionally hear of tractors and vehi-

cles colliding, but I think this one was just some young fools going a bit too hard. They’ve come around the corner on the wrong side, nearly gone over the edge and crashed into the tractor,” he said.

“The tractor driver couldn’t have got any fur-ther off the road. If he had he would have been climbing the banks. The tractor was well and truly in his rights and wasn’t doing anything stupid.”

Mr Hardacre said the car was “fully ablaze” when his crew arrived.

“We had to protect the tractor and extinguish the blaze, which we did successfully,” he said.

Police caught up with the two occupants of the car further down the road.


By Jane Ross

RESEARCH in the booming and fascinating world of nano-technology is being spearheaded by two young brothers from Inverloch.

Liam and Greg Hall, the sons of Ter-ry and Lois, are scientifi c whizz kids.

Both went to Newhaven College, al-though Greg completed his schooling at Gippsland Grammar.

Liam, 27, credits his father with ig-niting a keen interest in maths which lead to his path in physics, while Greg said his passion for chemistry was en-gendered when Liam started studying science at Newhaven College.

“I was amazed at how chemistry ex-plained things,” he said.

Now the brothers, both PhD candi-dates, plan to pool their respective skills on cutting edge joint research in the fi eld of nanotechnology.

They will write a paper together in the new year, the prospect of which ex-cites them greatly both professionally and personally.

“Not many people get the chance to write a paper,” said Greg, “least of all with their brother.”

Liam was dux of Newhaven College in 2000.

He recalls a school life of good help from his teachers in maths and science, and many hours of guidance from staff member John Ward and principal Mi-chael Brewin. Liam was, he admits, a bit of a handful.

Greg, aged 23, said he was “very lucky” to have had good teachers at school, particularly in chemistry.

Liam won a scholarship to the

Halls of learning

University of Melbourne and between 2001 and 2008, took a double degree in science and engineering. He gradu-ated from both with fi rst class honours, distinguishing himself with a pass mark of 99 per cent for his honours research project.

He is undertaking his PhD at the University of Melbourne’s Centre for Quantum Physics, where, under the supervision of Professor Lloyd Hol-lenberg, he has made a discovery and written a paper on nanoscale magnetic

fi elds that has the potential to advance aspects of medicine in a major way.

The paper was published in the American Physical Society journal Physical Review Letters and is likely to be picked up by the highly-regarded Nature.

A review of the paper by the Massa-chusetts Institute of Technology, includ-ed this comment, “Cell biologists ought to be turning back fl ips over this.”

Very basically, Liam’s research re-lates to ion channels, cell walls and

magnetic fi elds. The potential end result he explained, could replace CAT scans and medical imaging with much faster systems, as well as reducing from years to months, the amount of time needed to test new drugs.

Greg, who graduated in 2009 from Monash University with fi rst class hon-ours in his Bachelor of Science degree, has a post graduate scholarship to un-dertake his PhD at Monash, starting this year. According to Greg, the university has the best chemistry department in

Australia.As part of his honours work, he has

been creating nano balls which have no magnetic activity at low temperatures but change when heated.

The nano balls are used to create a safe and effi cient means of storing the hydrogen gas used in hydrogen-fuelled cars.

Without such storage, the gas is dan-gerous.

Both young men have been lectur-ing at their respective universities, with Greg in particular wanting to continue this in the years ahead.

Liam is expecting “there is every chance” his research will lead to a posi-tion overseas but in the long run, he’d like to head up his own research group in Melbourne. Greg wants to stay in re-search too.

Brilliant boffi ns they may be, but Liam and Greg know how to relax and have fun.

They surf, they practise karate to keep fi t and share a common brand of humour.

Liam is married to the former Emily Edwards, whom he met at Newhaven College. She studied science at Mel-bourne University too and now teaches maths, physical and general science at a secondary school in Melbourne.

Greg’s girlfriend Sanae Roberts gained fi rst class honours in 2008 in a Bachelor of Exercise and Sports Sci-ence degree at Deakin University. She remains with the university as a health and nutrition researcher.

Terry and Lois Hall are proud of them all, particularly of their sons.

“They’ve worked very hard,” said their father.

Brothers in science: Liam (left) and Greg Hall at home in Inverloch with the family dog “Buffy”.

By Jane Ross

MOTHER Nature turned on an unexpected spectacle at the annual Pyramid Rock Festival at Phillip Island on New Year’s Eve.

The storm was so fearsome, the main stage and bar had to be evacuated, with patrons advised to sit in their cars with the windows shut or lie low and keep still in the main arena.

Some revellers packed their bags and fl ed home in fear of their lives.

Organiser Angus Cameron, said the storm raged for about 40 minutes, with “amazing” lightning including the hori-zontal sheet variety and horizontal rain. Winds of up to 100km/h were recorded in the main stage area.

“It was like end of the world-type stuff, it was quite incredible.”

No one was hurt but Angus said the storm disabled lighting and the audio sys-tem on the main stage and the last four bands on the 58-act program, had to be cancelled.

The second stage was safe and opera-tional, so the 15,000 festival-goers weren’t left entirely without entertainment.

According to Angus, the sky went “black as midnight” as the storm hit at around 9pm. He said he and his col-leagues had had four hours’ notice of the storm’s intensity.

He said he was grateful that everyone had come through it safely.

Thunder and lightning disturbed holi-daymakers at Sandy Point on Friday night. Rain fell heavily, leaving lots of puddles for the following day.

The weather and its affects on agricul-ture and horticulture fascinate Margery Robson of Ruby.

Noting that 68.5mm of rain fell over 10 days of December, Margery said the total for the year was 899.5 over 159 days, just slightly more than 2008, with 829mm over 162 days.

“It’s interesting to note the differences in things like fruit crops,” she mused. “Last year there were heaps of apricots, nectarines and pears – this year, hardly any.

“Last year, not a lot of grass for stock, this year there is plenty.

“If I was younger, I’d think about studying meteorology!”

Meeniyan recorded 52mm in Decem-ber, taking the annual tally to 814.2, rather more than the not-quite-700m in 2008 and well up on the 635mm in the dry year that was 2006.

At Fish Creek, December’s 53mm was below average and the year’s total of 970 was about 75mm below average. Never-theless, it was better than 2008’s 820mm. So far in January, 9mm has fallen.

There was no rain at Wonthaggi’s Lance Creek Reservoir over the period of December 28 to January 4. Nevertheless, the holding is 91 per cent full.

During that time, 4.8mm fell at Leon-gatha’s Ruby Creek which stands at 84 per cent. There are no further rainfall de-tails for Leongatha because recorder Kay Puru is away.

At Korumburra, Coalition Creek re-corded 6.6mm and the reservoir holds 83 per cent. Fish Creek’s Battery Creek is 94 per cent full, Foster’s Deep Creek Dam where 10.2mm fell between December 28 and January 4 is full and Little Bass which serves Poowong, Nyora and Loch, is 86 per cent full. That area recorded 7.4mm of rain.

The Tarwin, Agnes and Tarra rivers are fl owing well, which is good news for the people of Meeniyan, Dumbalk, Welshpool, Port Welshpool, Toora, Port Franklin, Port Albert, Alberton and Yar-ram, who draw their water supplies from those rivers.

AN outbreak of blue green algae at Wonthaggi’s Lance Creek Reservoir has been contained.

The algae was discovered just before Christmas.

Heavy weather


By Chris Brown

RABBITS are breeding like, well, rabbits.

According to locals there’s more around this year, with places like Wara-tah Bay and the rail trail at Meeniyan overrun with the furry creatures.

A great spring and plenty of green grass have made it a good breeding sea-son for the introduced pest.

Rabbit research co-ordinator for the Department of Primary Industries, Steve McPhee, said the longer the grass stays green the better breeding season rabbits will have.

“As soon as the autumn break occurs and the feed becomes green, rabbits start to breed, and at the end of the breeding season, which is about now, rabbits are at the peak,” he said.

Mr McPhee said there were always enquiries about the rabbit population in-creasing at this time of the year.

State Government monitoring shows that in areas where warrens have been destroyed, rabbit numbers are signifi -cantly lower than before the introduc-tion of the calicivirus in 1996.

Numbers are returning to 1990s lev-els in places where conventional control techniques, such as baiting followed by ripping up rabbit warrens then fumiga-tion, haven’t been used.

Mr McPhee said that in areas where there’s been no additional management, rabbit numbers are about 65-70 per cent of pre-calicivirus levels.

The DPI has rabbit monitoring sites at 17 locations in Victoria.

One of these is at Woodside, near Yarram.

Between 1985 and 1996 there was an average of 23 rabbits per spotlight kilometre in the monitoring area.

Now only about three rabbits are spotted over a kilometre.

This is despite a “pretty average” control operation in the Yarram region due to the reliance on landholders work-ing together.

Mr McPhee said rabbits could be managed if people work together.

“Where groups of landholders have worked in a co-ordinated control pro-gram, based on the destruction of rab-bit warrens and follow-up fumigation of ripped warrens, rabbit populations have been reduced by more than 90 per cent,”

he said.Summer was a critical time to take

out rabbits that are immune to the calici-virus to reduce numbers next season.

Mr McPhee said the key was to hit them hard with a co-ordinated approach to get the numbers down.

“There are lots of hurdles to over-come, but numbers need to be less than one rabbit per hectare for native vegeta-tion to re-establish,” he said.

Recently released research states that where all rabbit warrens are ripped up with heavy equipment there is a 97 per cent reduction in the animal numbers a decade later.

There are more than 40 million rab-bits across Victoria that are responsible for about $24 million in annual agricul-tural losses.

A pair of breeding rabbits can multi-ply to 184 rabbits in 18 months.

Resistance to biological control agents such as calicivirus and myxo-matosis is increasing among rabbit populations.

Mr McPhee said the majority of adult rabbits have survived a previous exposure to the calicivirus.

“This gives them protection from fu-

Rabbits hop back

Introduced pest: favourable weather means rabbit numbers are high thisyear. ture exposure,” he said.

“Rabbits less than six weeks of age have more than a 50 per cent chance of survival if they come in contact with calicivirus and are then immune for life.

“Furthermore, immune breeding rabbits are capable of transferring pas-sive immunity across the placenta to their young.”

In DPI trials, all rabbits older than 15months have survived when exposed tocalcivirus after developing antibodies.

“While the disease still kills rabbitswithout antibodies, it leaves a popu-lation of immune rabbits for the nextbreeding season. If left unchecked theimmune population gradually increas-es,” he said.

By Matt Dunn

WHEN a farmer is lovesick, sometimes only a doctor can pro-vide the cure.

And so it was for newly arrived Korumburra South dairy farmer Evan De Gooyer, whose GP wife Sinead proved the perfect antidote to a lonely life on the land.

The couple has travelled all over, but was drawn to the region by dreams of a country idyll.

With young children Cecily, 2 ½ and Manning, fi ve months, the share farm seemed the perfect spot to etch out the preliminary sketches of a new life.

“I was 38 weeks pregnant when we arrived here on July 1 last year. I had Manning 25 minutes after midnight on July 15,” Sinead said.

The doctor, who has begun working on a part time basis at Leongatha Healthcare, has nothing but praise for the local hospital, where her infant

Love of the land

son was born. Sinead has done a lot of

GP obstetrics, but said the service at the hospital was “great”.

“I’ve been used to regional facilities. Certainly the hospital here does need some work,” she said.

While she could see the

obvious signs of decay in the building itself, she said the friendly staff were fi rst class.

She and Evan met in Timboon, in the south west of the state. Like South Gippsland, the region is prime dairy country.

“We’ve been to a few different places. We started

off in Warrnambool, had a year travelling around Victoria. Ev really wanted to go into dairy farming,” she said.

“We found out about this place and we’d been looking at it for a while. Thankfully, that was it.

“It’s been a fairly full-on 12 months.”

The former dairy veterinarian knew enough about cows and felt a yearning to earn his living from the land.

“Share farming’s still a pretty good opportunity for someone to get into the industry and build equity. I suppose there’s always that ultimate goal to buy your own place,” Evan said.

“We’ll see what we feel like in fi ve or 10 years time.”

For Sinead, the benefi ts of having a man on the land are clear. Even when he’s busy, he’s still around.

She said the children love knowing their dad is nearby.

For Evan, explaining why he loves farming is not easy, but the “variables and challenges” have a lot to do with it.

“When everything goes well, there’s satisfaction in that,” he said.

“I had friends and relations who had dairy farms, and I guess I was exposed enough as a kid to want to do it.”

Milk of human kindness: Evan and Sinead De Gooyer with children Manning and Cecily, at their Korumburra South property.

CATEGORIES for the environment and fami-ly achievement will be added to the Bass Coast Australia Day Awards.

Councillors agreed to the additions as recommended by the Bass Coast Australia Day Committee, which met earlier this month.

Award winners


Festival of fun

Father and son rule: practicing their sand sculpting skills were father and son team Jack and Michael.

THE Port Welshpool Sea Days festival draws people from all over. And why not? With surf, sun, Aboriginal dancers, vintage cars, jumping castles, renowned sand sculptors and more, it’s a fun place to be.

Left: King of the castle: Lachlan Judd took a mo-ment out from bouncing to smile for The Star.

Caught out: Peter Bohn from Foster was looking for a big catch.

The Watbalimba Dancers: the Aboriginal dance troupe thrilled crowds with a traditional tribal dance of Gippsland’s Gunnai people. Photo G.S.Bruning, www.fourcornersframing.biz.

Queen of the castle: Leongatha’s Dale Allen was the friendly attendant for the jumping castle.

Sand sculpting extraordinaire: artist Ricardo Al-ves-Ferreira’s work was a big hit.

Hooking in: Foster’s Yasmine Bohn was hop-ing to land a whopper.

Driving force: motherand daughter, Tania and Abbie, had a great time driving around.

Classic not plastic: Vintage cars were a favourite for festival-goers, with members of the South Gippsland Historical Car Club putting their most prized possessions on display. Photo G.S.Bruning, www.fourcornersframing.biz.


THIS SUMMER YOUR TASK IS

NCASP-495

THE Venus Bay Farmers Mar-ket struck a popular chord with visitors last Wednesday.

Held for the fi rst time, at Jupiter Boulevard next to the Fishing Vil-lage Cafe between 8am and 1pm, the market had more than 20 stalls, selling fresh local produce.

Fresh vegetables, fruit, cheeses, eggs, honey, olive oil, jams, cakes and local wines were on offer.

Property owner John Ockenga do-nated the use of his land for use by the market, which was appreciated by the organisers.

The market concept originated from an idea by two local business women, Lyne Hodges, from South-coast First National Real Estate, and Diana Burns from the Fishing Village Cafe.

They wanted to add to the holiday spirit of Venus Bay and for the benefi t of local organisations.

There were 21 stalls showcasing local products. Market convenors, Re-gional Farmers Markets were the con-venors of the event.

Around 1000 people passed through the gates in the morning. The Tarwin Lower CFA was delighted with the response. It raised $1200 from stallholder donations and a public raf-fl e. Two hampers of produce were do-nated by the stallholders. The winner was Debbie Draper, from Melbourne, who stayed with friends in Venus Bay.

The local fi re fi ghters also received acknowledgement from the public for their magnifi cent contribution to the community.

The next market is on Wednesday January 6, again from 8am to 1pm and

every following Wednesday in Janu-ary.

Other local organisations to benefi t from the community support will be the Venus Bay Surf Lifesaving Club, CERTS (the emergency response unit), The Men’s Shed and the Venus Bay Community Centre.

Raffl e winner: The Venus Bay Market and raffl e raised $1200 for the Tarwin Lower CFA. From Mel-bourne at her Venus Bay holiday house, Michelle Godfrey accepted the hampers on behalf of her friend Debbie Draper who won the raffl e last Wednesday. “She was staying with us, but she’d gone back to Melbourne before we got the call,” Michelle said.

Market strikes a chord

MOST South Gippsland secondary schools gained VCE median study scores in the 20 to 30 range, regarded by the Victorian Cur-riculum and Assessment Authority as at or below average.

The exception is Newhaven College, with a me-dian study score of 33, regarded as above average.

In a statement the VCAA says, “The median study score has been chosen as the best indicator of the typi-cal level of achievement in a school.”

But, it adds, ranking schools according to the proportion of students with top study scores is not a measure of a school’s worth, just as a high VCE study score is not the only measure of a student’s worth.

Newhaven College also recorded the region’s highest percentage of study scores of 40 and over, rated by the VCAA as exceptional. Fifteen per cent of the school’s 2009 VCE students gained study scores in this range.

Both Leongatha Secondary and Mary MacKillop College had median study scores of 30, with eight per cent of Mary MacKillop’s students and three per cent of LSC’s gaining study scores of 40 or over.

Wonthaggi Secondary College, South Coast Christian College and Mirboo North Secondary had a study score median of 29. Wonthaggi had six per cent of its students with study scores of 40 or more, the Christian school and Mirboo North Secondary each had two per cent.

Korumburra Secondary’s result was a median study score of 28, with fi ve per cent of students gain-ing study scores of 40 or over, while South Gippsland Secondary College had a median study score of 27 and three per cent of students with study scores 40 or above.

Wonthaggi Secondary had 186 students enrolled in at least one VCE unit during the year, the biggest group in the region.

Could improve


THE end of the 2009 school year signalled the end of a long term asso-ciation between many families and St Joseph’s Primary School at Ko-rumburra. The school community bid farewell to the Arestia, Auddino, Buttegieg, Condoluci, Donohue, Dunlevie, Fraser, Orchard and Provan families.

RIDING the rail trail between Leongatha and Foster is one of 34 aims for a Melbourne woman this year. Shan wrote on her blog that she wanted to do 34 things in the year she turns 34. As well as pedalling down the Great Southern Rail Trail, Shan wants to make a cheese-

cake, go on a hot air bal-loon ride and see a movie once a month. Best of luck with it.

Free food. That’s just what is available all over South Gippsland at the moment. Roadside fruit trees are in season, with apples, plums and other summer fruits ripening to perfection. Many of the trees seem to have grown from left over fruit being thrown out of car windows. People can be seen stopping their cars and fi lling up bags of the seasonal bounty.

THE art of Sue Jarvis will be on display at the Coal Creek Community Gallery until January

WONTHAGGI artist Jan-ice Orchard is running a series of workshops to introduce people to the art of outdoor or “on loca-tion” painting.

The series opens with a workshop on the beach at Inverloch on Saturday, January 9 to learn the art

of painting sea, cliffs and sky.

On Saturday, Janu-ary 16, the focus shifts to Rhyll on Phillip Island to paint boats, jetties, sea and sky.

The series fi nishes with a full day at Archies Creek and includes a deli-

cious lunch at the newly opened Archies on the Creek restaurant.

The workshops are suitable for beginners and intermediate painters us-ing oil or acrylics. For de-tails, call Janice 0419 301 363 after 6pm.

THE Opening at Moo’s restaurant in Meeniyan on Box-ing Day was a great affair, with lots of local residents and tourists lunching inside or on the verandah (pictured), said owner Marty Thomas. Marty said many patrons came from Venus Bay, where lots of Melburnians have holiday homes or stay for the Christmas break. Moo’s regional dinners begin on Friday, January 8, and then ev-ery Friday and Saturday night from 6pm. For bookings, call 5664 0010.

A SURPRISE 21st birthday party for Daniel (Duck) Hales was held recently at his family home ‘Glen Moidart’. Daniel is the youngest son of Paul and Carolyn. Family and friends celebrated this occasion - and did very well to keep the surprise.

Two workshops: Janice Orchard will hold two workshops to learn the art ofoutdoor painting.

31. Sue’s exhibition will show a variety of fi gure, landscape and contem-porary paintings as well as photographs. Many are based on Coal Creek where Sue has sketched and photographed for many years. For details, call 5655 1811.

DON’T forget the Friends of Leongatha Library book sale at the Leongatha Courthouse

on Thursday and Friday of this week. There’ll be great books at bargain prices and money raised will buy items for the library.

DON’T forget tonight’s CFA information ses-sion at the Venus Bay Surf Lifesaving Club at 6.30pm and at Jupi-ter Park in Venus Bay on Wednesday, 12-4pm. CFA Tarwin Lower cap-

tain John Classon can be contacted on 0408 058 158 for further informa-tion. Other meetings will

be held at Walkerville Hall, Thursday, January 7, 6.30pm; Waratah Bay, Rotunda Park, Wednes-

day, January 13, 12-4pm; and Sandy Point, opposite shops, Thursday, January 14, 12-4pm.

Marketing success

By Matt Dunn

NEW Year’s Eve rev-ellers have rebelled against type, with a very few being nabbed for misdemeanours during what is typi-cally a busy time for police.

There are always those who feel a need to misbe-have and maintain the sta-tus quo, however.

Korumburra Police were involved in a high speed chase of a stolen ve-hicle on that night.

“The car was stolen

from Foster and we located it at Korumburra getting petrol. We had a pursuit with them until about half way to Warragul,” Korum-burra Police’s Leading Se-nior Constable Fleur Bevis said.

Two males and a fe-male have been charged over the theft of the ve-hicle. The offenders were from Foster and Toora.

“They were inter-viewed at Warragul po-lice station and have been charged and bailed to ap-pear at the Korumburra Magistrates Court,” Lead-ing Snr Const. Bevis said.

“The driver is being

New year’s revellers rebelcharged with theft of the motor vehicle plus vari-ous other offences, and the other two occupants have been charged with theft of the motor vehicle.”

Despite the pursuit drama, Leading Snr Const. Bevis said that things were relatively quiet in the town.

“There were a few lit-tle fi reworks here, but we had no other issues. It was pretty good,” she said.

In Leongatha two men

were issued with pen-alty notices of $234 for drunkenness, after they were found wandering the streets of the town on New Year’s Eve.

“On the same night a 35-year-old Korumburra woman was intercepted by police in a vehicle bear-ing no registration plates. She’ll be summonsed to court for unlicensed driv-ing,” Leongatha Police’s Senior Constable Michael Thomas said.

LOCALS who spent their money in Leon-gatha before Christ-mas were the big winners of a Leon-gatha Chamber of Commerce and In-dustry promotion.

The fi ve winners of vouchers worth $1000 all

came from the area.They were Leongatha

residents Diane Haw, Elise Manning, Cheryl Pellicano and Margaret Hyde.

Koonwarra resident Kate Walsh also won a voucher.

Diane had already bought a six-seat outdoor setting from A. W. Smith

and Sons with some of her prize money.

Winners receive 20 vouchers valued at $50 to spend at businesses operated by chamber members.

Chamber president Darryl McGannon drew the winning entries on Christmas Eve.

Locals win ’Gatha vouchers

Shopping locally: chamber vice-president Tony Giles congratulates Leon-gatha resident Diane Haw on her voucher win. They are with A. W. Smith and Sons staff Jaimee McLeod, Jane Gardner and Sarah Riley

Ready to serve: Koonwarra CFA member and lo-cal farmer Fabio Dal Pozzo kept up with consumer demand as the brigade raised money at the South Gippsland Farmers market on Saturday. Organisers said there were more than 2000 people at the event, with crowds fl ocking to local wine producers Lyre-bird Hill, Windy Ridge and Waratah Hills.

Family affair: siblings Rachel, Tom and Will Barker prove you don’t have to fi ght just because it’s the school holidays.


Making Victoria FireReady:

For more information contact:

1800 240 667www.cfa.vic.gov.au

Offi cial emergency warnings will now be broadcast on ABC Local Radio, commercial radio stations across Victoria and SkyNews television. During emergencies, updates will be issued by authorised emergency services such as the CFA, and emergency warnings will interrupt normal programming when necessary.

If you live or travel through any bushfi re prone areas during the fi re season, make sure you are aware of the conditions and listen to warnings by tuning into one of these stations or SkyNews television or by visiting www.cfa.vic.gov.au

These media outlets are now offi cial emergency broadcasters.

Melbourne ABC Melbourne 774 AM, 3AW 693 AM, 3MP 1377 AM, FOX 101.9 FM, Gold 104.3 FM, Magic 1278 AM,Mix 101.1 FM, NOVA 100.3 FM, SEN 1116 AM,Sport 927 AM, Triple M 105.1 FM, Vega 91.5 FM

Albury ABC Local 675 AMAlbury ABC Local 106.5 FMAlbury - Wodonga 2AY 1494 AMAlbury - Wodonga The River 105.7 FMAlbury - Wodonga Star 104.9 FMAlexandra ABC Local 102.9 FMAnglesea ABC Melbourne 774 AMApollo Bay ABC Melbourne 774 AM Apollo Bay ABC Local 89.5 FMApollo Bay Mixx 95.9 FMArarat ABC Local 107.9 FMArarat Mixx 98.5 FMAvoca ABC Local 107.9 FMBacchus Marsh ABC Melbourne 774 AMBairnsdale ABC Local 828 FM Bairnsdale ABC Local 100.7 FMBairnsdale Sport 927 87.6 FMBairnsdale TRFM 99.9 FMBallarat ABC Local 107.9 FM Ballarat 3BA 102.3 FMBallarat Power 103.1 FMBallarat Sport 927 1314 AMBeaufort ABC Local 107.9 FMBeechworth ABC Local 106.5 FMBenalla ABC Local 97.7 FMBenalla ABC Local 106.5 FMBendigo ABC Local 91.1 FMBendigo 3BO 93.5 FM Bendigo Easymix Ten-71 AM Bendigo Easymix 98.3 FMBendigo Sport 927 945 AMBendigo Star 91.9 FMBright ABC Local 89.7 FM Camperdown ABC Local 107.9 FM Cann River ABC Local 106.1 FM Casterton ABC Local 94.1 FM Castlemaine ABC Local 91.1 FM Central Victoria ABC Local 91.1 FMCharlton ABC Local 594 AM Cobden ABC Local 107.9 FM Cobram ABC Local 97.7 FM Cohuna ABC Local 94.1 FM Colac ABC Local 594 AM Colac 3CS 1134 AMColac Mixx 106.3 FMColeraine ABC Local 94.1 FM Corryong ABC Local 99.7 FM Daylesford ABC Local 91.1 FM Deniliquin 2QN 1521 AMDeniliquin Classic Rock 102.5 FMDimboola ABC Local 594 AM Donald ABC Local 594 AM Echuca ABC Local 97.7 FMEchuca ABC Local 91.1 FMEchuca - Moama 2QN 1521 AMEchuca - Moama Classic Rock 102.5 FMEdenhope ABC Local 594 AMEildon ABC Local 97.3 FMEuroa ABC Local 97.7 FMFoster ABC Local 828 AMFoster ABC Local 100.7 FMGeelong ABC Melbourne 774 AM

Geelong Bay 93.9 FM Geelong K-Rock 95.5 FMGippsland ABC Local 828 AMGisborne ABC Melbourne 774 AMGoulburn Murray ABC Local 106.5 FMGoulburn Valley ABC Local 97.7 FM Hamilton ABC Local 94.1 FM Hamilton 3HA 981 AMHamilton Mixx 88.9 FMHastings ABC Melbourne 774 AMHealesville ABC Melbourne 774 AMHeyfi eld Sport 927 88 FMHeywood ABC Local 94.1 FM Hopetown ABC Local 594 AM Horsham ABC Local 594 AM Horsham 3WM 1089 AMHorsham Mixx 101.3 FMHorsham Sport 927 88 FMKerang ABC Local 102.1 FM Kerang Mixx 98.7 FMKilmore ABC Melbourne 774 AMKoo-wee-rup ABC Melbourne 774 AMKyabram ABC Local 97.7 FM Kyabram ABC Local 91.1 FM Kyneton ABC Local 91.1 FMLakes Entrance ABC Local 828 AMLakes Entrance ABC Local 100.7 FMLakes Entrance Sport 927 89.9 FMLatrobe Valley ABC Local 100.7 FM Leongatha ABC Local 100.7 FMLorne ABC Melbourne 774 AM Lorne Mixx 92.7 FMMaffra ABC Local 828 AMMaffra ABC Local 100.7 FMMallacoota ABC Local 104.9 FM Mansfi eld ABC Local 103.7 FM Maryborough ABC Local 91.1 FM Maryborough ABC Local 107.9 FMMelton ABC Melbourne 774 AM Mildura ABC Local 104.3 FMMildura 3MA 97.9 FM Mildura Easymix 1467 AMMildura Sport 927 1359 AM Mildura Star 99.5 FM Mildura – Swan Hill ABC Local 102.1 FMMoe ABC Local 828 AMMoe ABC Local 100.7 FM Moe Sport 927 88 FMMooroopna ABC Local 97.7 FMMooroopna 3SR 95.3 FMMooroopna Star 96.9 FM Mortlake ABC Local 594 AM Mortlake ABC Local 107.9 FM Morwell ABC Local 828 AMMorwell ABC Local 100.7 FM Morwell Sport 927 88 FMMurray Valley ABC Local 102.1 FM Myrtleford ABC Local 91.7 FM Nagambie ABC Local 97.7 FM Nagambie ABC Local 104.3 FM Nathalia ABC Local 97.7 FM Nhill ABC Local 594 AMNhill - Kaniva Mixx 94.5 FMOcean Grove ABC Melbourne 774 AMOmeo ABC Local 720 AM Orbost ABC Local 97.1 FMOrbost Sport 927 95.5 FMOuyen ABC Local 594 AM

Ouyen ABC Local 104.3 FMPhillip Island ABC Melbourne 774 AM Port Fairy ABC Local 1602 AM Portland ABC Local 96.9 FM Portland Mixx 93.7 FMQueenscliff ABC Melbourne 774 AMRobinvale ABC Local 594 AM Robinvale ABC Local 104.3 FMRosebud ABC Melbourne 774 AM Rushworth ABC Local 91.1 FMRutherglen ABC Local 106.5 FM Sale ABC Local 828 AMSale ABC Local 100.7 FMSale Sport 927 87.6 FMSale - Gippsland 3GV Gold 1242 AMSale - Gippsland TRFM 99.5 FMSeymour ABC Local 91.1 FMShepparton ABC Local 97.7 FMShepparton 3SR 95.3 FMShepparton Sport 927 1260 AMShepparton Star 96.9 FMSt. Arnaud ABC Local 594 AM St. Arnaud ABC Local 91.1 FMStanhope ABC Local 675 AM Stanhope ABC Local 91.1 FM Stawell ABC Local 107.9 FMSunbury ABC Melbourne 774 AM Swan Hill ABC Local 102.1 FM Swan Hill 3SH 1332 AMSwan Hill Mixx 107.7 FM Swan Hill Sport 927 106.9 FMSwifts Creek ABC Local 720 AM Tallangatta ABC Local 106.5 FMTorquay ABC Melbourne 774 AM Trafalgar ABC Local 828 AM Trafalgar ABC Local 100.7 FM Traralgon ABC Local 828 AMTraralgon ABC Local 100.7 FMTraralgon Sport 927 86.6 FMUpper Murray ABC Local 106.5 FMWangaratta ABC Local 106.5 FM Wangaratta Edge 102.1 FM Wangaratta 3NE 1566 AMWangaratta Sport 927 99.3 FMWarburton ABC Melbourne 774 AMWarracknabeal ABC Local 594 AM Warragul ABC Local 100.7 FM Warragul 3GG 531 AM Warragul STAR 94.3 FMWarrnambool ABC Local 1602 AM Warrnambool Coast 95.3 FM Warrnambool 3YB 882 AMWestern Victoria ABC Local 594 AMWestern Victoria ABC Local 94.1 FMWinchelsea ABC Melbourne 774 AM Wodonga ABC Local 675 AMWodonga ABC Local 106.5 FMWonthaggi ABC Melbourne 774 AM Woodend ABC Melbourne 774 AMWoodend ABC Local 91.1 FM Yallourn ABC Local 828 AM Yallourn ABC Local 100.7 FMYarram ABC Local 828 AM Yarram ABC Local 100.7 FM Yarram Sport 927 92.7 FMYarrawonga ABC Local 97.7 FM Yarrawonga ABC Local 106.5 FM Yea ABC Local 91.1 FM


Address:36 McCartin StLeongatha, 3953 Ph: (03) 5662 2294Fax: (03) 5662 4350Editor: Danny ButtlerEmail:[email protected]

Advertising Manager: Joy MorganEmail:[email protected] 006507580ABN 61 318 952 541Print Post 336735 10006

The Great Southern Star

Letters guidelinesALL letters should be kept to 400 words or less.The Star reserves the right to edit all letters for length and style. Writer’s details, including full name, address and phone number (not for publication), must be included.

VOXVOXPOP!

BRIAN Handley (Opinions, The Star, Dec 22) applauded Tony Ab-bott’s call for Bible studies in the schools system apparently on the premise that Christianity is essen-tial for moral and social order.

Of course, good social conduct that would generally be considered neces-sary for any civil community to exist in reasonable harmony simply requires the application of some basic, logical phi-losophies and behaviours that contribute to a co-operative, functional, respectful co-existence.

While Christians may promote good social ideals, they are not exclusive prac-titioners or the owners of them.

It is entirely possible to follow such principles whilst embracing atheism, although Mr. Handley may be loathe to admit it.

He seems to be implying that athe-ists are merely an “Evil Empire”, inca-pable of acceptable social interaction, a notion that is clearly and demonstrably incorrect.

Mr. Handley asserted that the “West rose to greatness on the back of Christianity”.

Perhaps it also rose on the backs of

adventure, discovery, science, industrial-isation, war, destruction, entrepreneurial-ism, fi nance, scepticism and so on.

The fact that some of those involved in the West’s evolution were Christians does not prove that faith was necessarily an essential ingredient of the outcome.

History is littered with Christians behaving badly, so there is no assurance that faith produces a good person.

If the West is “falling to its abyss on the back of amoral secular humanism” it is perhaps interesting to remember that some of that appalling amoral behaviour has been infamously perpetrated upon innocent children by some Christians of relative power and infl uence.

One must also wonder how non-Christian societies have been able to function for a very long time.

The teaching and promotion of good social behaviour in an effort to produce respectful and respectable individuals is to be applauded and encouraged in the home, at school and in the work place but does not require the inclusion of Chris-tianity or any other faith in order to be effective.

Stephen GreenLeongatha

It is quite fascinating.Up until about three weeks ago, your news-

paper was regularly swamped with photos and articles on Russell Broadbent, the local Liberal hero and darling of the Star, often alongside Pe-ter Ryan.

Suddenly, after the Abbott and National Party coup over throwing Turnbull on climate change issues - and Russell was a known sup-porter of Turnbull - no photos of Russell in your newspaper - except for that scandalous article about him being questioned about links to the mafi a.Your newspaper wouldn’t happen to be a front for the National Party now would it?

No....of course not. You are a balanced re-porter of the truth!

Andrew McFarlandVenus Bay.

What do you want to happen in 2010?

POLICE and emergency service crews were called to the intersec-tion of the Phillip Island Tourist Road and the Bass Highway at Anderson, after a two car colli-sion claimed the life of a man in his 20s.

The man, from Phillip Island, was killed when the car he was travelling in collided head on with another.

The collision occurred just after 12noon yesterday.

Four other passengers from the two vehicles were believed to have been air-lifted from the scene and transferred to hospital in Melbourne. They included three women - one of whom was thought to be pregnant - and a child between the age of six and nine.

Traffi c in and out of Phillip Island was blocked for more than four hours as police investigated the circumstances surrounding the crash.

Just for people to be nice to each other.

Tim DavisSandy Point

I want to get a car and get into university. I just fi nished Year 12 and I want to get into Arts (global) at Monash.

Erin SandersBerrys Creek

I’d like it to be very different from 2009 with less disasters and confl icts, and people trying to un-derstand themselves a bit more as sometimes there is a knee jerk re-action and people don’t step back and have a good look.

Pat Foster Meeniyan

It would be good if there was no war, but I can’t see it hap-pening. Peace would be good if everyone got along with each other.

Mark FryLeongatha

Broadbent broadside

ONE of South Gippsland’s best known and loved diggers has died.

Des Tuff’s life ended in the Monash Medical Centre on Sunday. He would have been 87 in April.

Des lived at Koorooman House aged care facility where, as he had done throughout his life, he was always ready to have a chat.

He served in the Army, was a past president of the Leongatha RSL and had been on its committee for years.

He and his late wife Bessie had four children, 12 grandchildren and 22 great grandchildren. They farmed near Meeni-yan before retiring in to town.

Des’s sister Dorothy Tuff died two days before Christmas.

His funeral will be held at 11am on Friday at the Meeniyan Uniting Church. He will be buried in the Meeniyan Cemetery.

Vale Des Tuff

Well remembered: this photograph of Des Tuff was taken in September last year, to mark the 70th anniversary of the start of World War II.

Anderson fatal

Not so evil

Russel Broadbent

Lost dollarsTHE lack of caravan park spaces must be looked at.

Thousands of people being turned away from local caravan parks is a situation that cannot be tolerated.

We need every tourism dollar that is available. We certainly cannot afford to be knocking back the chance for visitors to come to the region.

With three caravan parks in the region already going or gone, the situation would only appear to be getting worse.

A strategic investigation into the future of caravan parks is desperately needed. Private parks along the coast would seem to be under immense threat as real estate prices go through the roof.

But council and government-owned entities must be preserved at all costs.

Parks not only offer short term access for visitors, they are an affordable alternative to those who have been frozen out of the coastal property market or can’t access rental properties.

Caravan parks bring in thousands of people, many of whom spend a lot of money at local shops and on local services.

The family beachside holiday is a great tradition that is also a boon for the local economy.

Let’s hope it is not disappearing like so many other Australian traditions.

Thanking youTHE lifesavers are at it again, doing what they do best – saving lives.

These dedicated volunteers have already been busy across South Gippsland beaches.

Let’s do them all a favour and act responsibly around the water.

It might save your life and it might save them having to risk theirs.

THE State Govern-ment’s newly-released white paper, called Securing Our Natu-ral Future, is likely to have desalination protestors frothing at the mouth.

They are against the Wonthaggi desalination plant on the grounds of its cost – which varies between $4.6 and $6 bil-lion and their preference for alternatives such as recycling and storm water harvesting.

Under the heading “ecosystems and ecosys-tem services” fact sheet, one of the white papers

states the following:“Protecting ecosystems

so that nature continues providing these services is usually cheaper and more effective than engineering solutions.

“For example, New York City decided to spend $US1.5 billion to restore ecosystems around wa-ter rather than building a $US6 billion water fi ltra-tion facility.

“Investing in these natural assets provided the same water purifi -cation services but at a much lower cost and with positive outcomes for the environment.”

White paper on water


TO beat the fi re threat you need to be prepared.

Pumps, hoses, hose reels and sprinklers are some of the equipment that will help protect your home or business.

They are all available from Action Pumps and Irrigation in Leongatha.

The Black Saturday bushfi res in Feb-ruary last year helped people realise they need to prepare their properties with the best equipment available.

Already this fi re season people from across South Gippsland have been purchas-ing resources to deal with a nasty summer.

Manager at Action Pumps, Ken Wardle, said no one knew Black Saturday was go-ing to happen.

“You just don’t know whether that day will come again. Was it a one in 100 year event or will it be two in 100?” he said.

“No one can forecast that.

“People are more aware and trying to be more prepared because of that day.”

Davey has released new model pumps in the past couple of years, but depending on the fi re situation it may be diffi cult to get hold of one.

Fires in New South Wales and East Gippsland as well as CFA requirements may affect availability.

With the possible shortage if you need to buy a pump get in early.

Davey Firefi ghter pumps, which are engine driven and self priming, are easily Australia’s most popular in their category.

They have class leading performance, superior priming and suction lift perfor-mance and a choice of single or impeller models.

Action Pumps and Irrigation is at 26 Hughes Street in Leongatha.

They can be contacted on 5662 2692.

Pumped up and preparedFire preparedness: Action Pumps and Irrigation manager, Ken Wardle, with fi re ready equipment available from the Leongatha business.

the DHS is pleased with the uptake of funds, but is encouraging people who still have not applied to do so.

“To date we have paid 17,808 claims. We are working closely with the DHS case managers, local govern-ments and grant offi cers in commu-nity centres to make people aware of what’s available,” she said.

All of the funding was collected through Red Cross fundraising ef-forts. Immediately after the fi res the State Government, in partnership with

Australian Red Cross and the Federal Government, established the Victorian Bushfi re Appeal.

When the appeal offi cially closed in April, $379 million had been raised.

Money is available to help people whose home was destroyed or dam-aged, farmers, orphans, for psycho-logical help and for rent assistance.

More than $100 million has been given to people whose homes were destroyed and almost $25 million to

those whose homes were damaged. For more information about apply-

ing for gifts, visit the Department of Human Services website www.dhs.vic.gov.au/bushfi reappeal. All appli-cation forms are listed on the website.

People whose home was destroyed can receive $5000 plus $2000 for each person aged over 18 living there and $1500 for children aged under 18.

A lump sum of $3000 is available for household repairs sustained due to fi re, water or smoke damage.

Helping hand still available to fi re victimsBy Brad Lester

SOUTH Gippslanders affl icted by the February bushfi res are be-ing urged to ensure they receive all monetary assistance they are entitled to.

The Victorian Bushfi re Appeal Fund still has $65 million to give to fi re victims.

Just $3.15 million has been distributed through the Boolarra and Yinnar Commu-nity Recovery Centre, which also services Darlimurla fi re victims.

The outstanding money will eventually be distributed by the Department of Hu-man Services, which administers the fund, in conjunction with the Victorian Bushfi re Rebuilding and Reconstruction Authority.Fund spokesperson Elisabeth Tuckey said


KEEPING cool in and outdoors is as easy as going to Capeview Mitre 10 in Leongatha. There’s a wide range of shades to choose from at competitive prices.

Pink Batts have been a staple ceiling insulation method for many years now. The advantage is that they not only keep you cool in summer but also warm in win-ter.

Mitre 10 can help you turn your home into an insulation protected environment, which will become highly desirable as cli-mate change increases, but it’s the current outdoor specials that make the store such an attractive supplier post-Christmas.

Available are a quality range of Coola-roo exterior window shades, that will keep the heat out of the house as much as possible and offer an effective solution to temperature reduction, as well as a range of outdoor shade sails from the same manufacturer that are “made for life” and will make lunch on the verandas so much more comfortable. A range of umbrellas is also available.

The outdoor sails are suitable over patios, play equipment and courtyards. Easy to install, they are made with UV stabilised commercial grade fabric for greater strength and durability. They can block up to 90 per cent of ultra-violet rays and come with a 10-year fabric warranty

against UV breakdown. Leongatha Mitre 10 store manager,

Ben Davey, said the store provided a full range of fans as well. The Summit pedes-tal fan at $17.99 was a popular item, used throughout the house and suitable in the bedroom for a restful sleep.

With three-speed settings, a tilt adjust-able head, height adjustable stand and an oscillating function it is an ideal fan to give heat relief at minimum cost. Models are available in 40 and 45cm, with the Summit box fan comes as a 30cm model.

An ideal garden combination is the Illuka Womersley fi ve-piece table and chairs outdoor setting with cantilever cocktail umbrella. The outdoor setting is stainless steel and comes with cushions and comfortable chairs.

A major advantage of the umbrella is that there’s no need for a centre pole, leav-ing the table completely free. The cantile-ver is also a great sun screener compared with a traditional pole umbrella, because it can be moved around 360 degrees to provide shade as the sun moves.

The cantilever umbrellas come in dif-ferent sizes and are grounded with a solid base, made from cast iron, granite or con-crete.

For inquiries of any of the items or other outdoor needs, call Mitre 10 on 5662 5666, or visit the store on Cusack Rd.

Keeping cool in shade

Shade sails: The Coolaroo shade sails are ideal for blocking UV outdoors. They come in 3.6 x 3.6m sizes.

Cocktail hour: Sales assistant Michelle Armstrong and store manager Ben Davey relax at the Illuka Womersley fi ve-piece table and chairs outdoor setting with cantilever cocktail umbrella.


THE most effi cient and the cheapest way of keeping your home or offi ce cool is by keep-ing the heat out.

The best way to ensure hot summer rays stay away is by putting blinds and curtains on windows, according to Tri-na Anderson of Invisage interiors and quality window furnishings.

“Blinds and curtains save on energy costs and add to your comfort during hot weather,” she said.

The latest trend is to double up with a sheer blind for the day and an-other when the building is closed for the night.

Invisage knows what looks good and is functional too. The company of-

fers an extensive range of window fur-nishings: chain operated roller blinds, Roman blinds, timber venetian blinds, plantation shutters, curtains, aluminium venetian blinds, panel glide blinds and motorised blinds.

“I’ve been in the business for six-and-a-half years. We mainly do curtains and blinds, but we do all types of inte-rior design too,” Trina said.

“Looks, functionality and price are all very important to us – the whole service. We do a lot of new houses and people like to keep up with the latest trends.

“People like roller blinds and nice fabrics and drapes. People with estab-lished houses like to update and look for something new.”

Invisage staff specialise in suggest-ing types of coverings to suit windows.

“The secret is to fi nd out the most important factor, whether it be design, functionality or whatever else,” she said.

“Some people know what they want and that’s fi ne. But some people have no idea. We take a range of samples out to the home-owner and we can decide together what works best.”

Call for a no-obligation free mea-sure and quote, and advice with your decorating needs.

Invisage is located at 22a Cashin Street, Inverloch. Visit the showroom between 10am and 5pm, Monday to Friday, or after hours by appointment. Alternatively, phone 5674 6247.

SANDY Point was the venue for the start of the nippers program run by the Waratah Beach Surf Life Saving Club.

The program, similar to many other nippers events throughout Vic-toria, began on Monday, December 28 and will continue on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays through January.

A great way to cool off, the emphasis is on having fun and playing safe in the water.

What’s new: Invisage has recently become agents for Markilux and iShade, representing the ultimate in external sun shading systems.

Looking good too

Off you go: the youngest nippers are sent off by the instructor for their turn in the water.

Nippers away!

Final run: this nipper heads to shore after taking place in a board event.



KELVIN JOHNS Retravision has some sizzling hot summer bargains to help keep you cool this summer.

With an extensive range of Kelvinator and Fujitsu air conditioners in store at super low prices, now is the best time to get some respite from the summer heat.

Imagine sleeping through the night in air conditioned comfort, rather than tossing and turning and waking up tired and cranky to another insufferably hot day.

Air conditioning is more than just a way to beat the heat. It’s an investment.

Kelvin Johns doesn’t just sell air conditioning. With great back up service and attention to detail, you aren’t just walking out the door and wondering what to do next.

“We arrange professional installation by local qualifi ed installers,” manager Kelvin Smith said.

Mr Smith said many people were coming into the store now, desperate for a cool break. Wander around the store and you see

many shoppers standing around near air conditioners and fans.

The Dyson air multiplier fan is a little wonder. While it barrels out the cold air, it has no external fan blades. It’s perfect for people with children – perfect for little fi ngers.

Mr Smith said as far as the bigger units went, Kelvinator and Fujitsu were the brands people kept coming back for.

Unlike old-style air conditioners, these coolers are made with air quality in mind. People with asthma and other allergies need not fear.

With their hospital grade fi ltration systems, these modern marvels circulate nothing but cool air throughout your house.

And with a sleep timer and other modern attachments, you can set it and forget it.

Cool and proud: Kelvin Smith loves the range of Fujitsu air conditioners.

Right: Modern marvel:the Dyson air multiplier has no blades at all, so is perfectly safe for children as Kelvin demonstrated.


SOUTH Gippslanders love heading to the beach over summer - and why wouldn’t they?

With some of the most beautiful stretches of coastline in the world, our local beaches are the perfect place to keep

cool when the mercury rises.The photo above was taken on sunset at Waratah Bay,

with the upper left picture showing a young girl celebrat-ing life on the same stretch of sand.

At Inverloch, things were moving at a faster speed, with wind surfers and kite surfers adding a splash of colour to

Anderson Inlet.

AS the summer holiday season heats up, Acting Premier Rob Hulls has warned parents about the dangers of leaving young children unattended in cars.

Mr Hulls joined Kidsafe Victoria at Parlia-ment House to demonstrate how quickly the in-side temperature of a car can increase to danger-ous levels.

“All parents must be aware that in most states, including Victoria, it is against the law to leave a child unattended in a vehicle,” Mr Hulls said.

“In Victoria alone, the RACV was called out to rescue 1543 children locked in cars from No-vember 2008 to October 2009.

“Despite repeated warnings, yesterday, as the temperature reached almost 40 degrees in Mel-bourne and climbing higher in some regional centres, there were two ambulance call-outs to instances where children had been left in cars and needed medical attention.

“Leaving a child unsupervised in a car – even for a short amount of time – can cause injury and potentially death.”

On a typical summer’s day, the temperature inside a parked car can be as high as 20 to 30 degrees hotter than the outside temperature.

Tests conducted on a 29°C day, with the car’s air conditioning having cooled the interior to 19.2°C, it took just 1.5 minutes to reach the out-

side temperature (30.4°C). It took 6.5 minutes to reach 40.5°C, more than double the initial inte-rior temperature.

Mr Hulls said these dangerous temperatures could rapidly lead to heat distress, to which chil-dren were likely to succumb very quickly.

“Research has shown that leaving the win-dow down has little effect, so take your child with you after parking your car, even to run a quick errand,” Mr Hulls said.

President of Kidsafe Victoria, Dr Mark Stokes, said children in the past had died after being left in parked cars.

“Due to their smaller body size and underde-veloped nervous system, children have an inef-

fective cooling system,” Dr Stokes said. “Infor-mation for parents and carers about the impact of leaving a child in a hot car is available on the Kidsafe website.”

The fact sheet Kids in Hot Cars provides in-formation and advice for parents about summer safety issues including:

Providing plenty of cool fl uids to avoid dehy-dration during long trips; dressing children ap-propriately in hot weather; ensuring all children wear well fi tted, and age appropriate restraints; and plan travel in the cool hours of the day.

The Kidsafe website can be viewed at www.kidsafevic.com.au

Kids and hot cars a deadly mix

Water cooled


A BALLAD about a pio-neer of South Gippsland has earned a singer a nomination at the Tamworth Country Mu-sic Festival this month.

Bec Hance, who grew up at be-tween Nyora and Lang Lang, has been nominated for fi ve awards at the Tamworth Song Writers Associa-tion National Awards.

The Bullocky and his Bullock Team, nominated for bush ballad, is a tribute to her great-grandfather Walter Hance, a bullock driver who helped build one of the early routes in to the region, McDonald’s Track, through Lang Lang and Poowong.

Bec is also nominated for new song writer, best comedy song and best children’s song. She will take to the stage at the highest stage on the Australian music scene, as a gradu-ate of the CMAA College of Coun-try Music and grand fi nalist in the Toyota Star Maker quest.

“Bullockies are the people who helped to build the country to what it is today. I want to make people aware of people like Walter and to be thankful for all of the hard work they did,” she said.

The daughter of Frank and Mar-tess of Lang Lang East took singing lessons while at paramedic school and has not looked back. Her second album, The Tranquility, was released in June.

Self-describing her style as “tra-ditional Australian” with hints of Slim Dusty and John Williamson, she draws on her life events, particu-larly her 19 years on the family farm, a property in the Hance clan for four generations.

“I had a really great childhood. I grew up on a farm and did not have to rely on TV for fun. On Saturday nights we were not allowed to watch TV but had old vinyls playing coun-try,” she said.

“Eventually you go back to your roots and I met some great people growing up.”

Two of those, brothers Lou and Ray Clark, were friends of her grand-father and inspired the song, Lou and

Ray on her latest album.The Bushfi re was written in re-

sponse to the Black Saturday bush-fi res of February last year.

“There were times in my child-hood where I was threatened by bushfi re and the song remembers how I used to feel,” she said.

Bec’s works are now played by Gippsland country performer Truck’n with Tim, plus Gippsland radio stations, including 3MFM.

Now a paramedic working at Emerald in central Queensland, Bec will soon move back to Victoria to be based at Murchison near Shep-parton.

“I get a couple of patients recog-nising me but I don’t sing to them in the back,” she laughed.

While she concedes singing to patients is not part of offi cial treat-ment procedures, Bec’s songs have been infl uenced by her personal en-counters.

I’ll Cry explores the feelings en-countered by farmers along the Mur-ray River after losing their properties

to drought.“I saw them suffer from depres-

sion because of the fi nancial pres-sure. I’ll Cry comes from that be-cause a lot of them could not hold their emotions back anymore,” Bec said.

My Mother’s Words was penned after Bec moved to Queensland, to her mother’s distress. The song is a reminder to never forget the place she calls home and the people who make it so.

“It’s good to move away but it’s also good to stay in touch with your family as well,” she said.

Combining performing with chal-lenging work as a paramedic is not an easy but a challenge Bec relishes nonetheless.

“Everyone’s got to have a hobby and this is my hobby,” she said.

Beyond Tamworth, Bec will play at the Whittlesea Country Music Festival on February 12-14 and the Bunyip Country Music Festival on February 28.

WILSON’S Promontory contin-ues to remain a popular summer holiday destination for families, with up to 3000 people now stay-ing at Tidal River.

All 484 campsites and 300 accommo-dation beds are booked out until January 24, with families lured to the national park to camp, swim, surf, paddle, hike and relax.

Up to 500 cars – or about 1200 – people visited the park every day since Christmas.

Acting chief ranger, Graeme Bax-ter, said the summer bookings reflect the park’s popularity of previous holi-

day periods.“It’s so important for the region to

have people visiting the Prom as they will contribute fi nancially and hopefully come back again and again,” he said.

Vacancies for overnight hiking camp-ing permits and lighthouse accommo-dation still exist – usual for this time of year.

“The holiday-makers have been wak-ing up late, having long lazy breakfasts, heading down to the beach, riding bikes or just having a relaxing time,” Mr Bax-ter said.

“It’s really great to see people relax-ing, chilling out and having a good time.”

Developing new ways of meeting the needs of students far and wide has earned the Health and Community Stud-ies staff at Leongatha Campus of GippsTAFE an award for excellence.

The team - including Paul Banks, Bronwyn Beach, Debra Bray, Lynda Jobling, Lisa Kuhne, Martine Maur-izio, Sue Nelsun, Amber Richardson, Tania Ryan and Robin Stevens - won the Staff Award for Excellence be-cause of its innovation and best prac-tice efforts.

The team managed to develop

the fl exible learning capacity of the department to the extent that almost 100,000 student contact hours were delivered during 2009. The Health and Community Studies team at Leongatha consists of a number of specialised areas, including Alcohol and Other Drugs, Education Support, Outside School Hours Care, Disabil-ity, Aged Care, and Allied Health and Nursing.

Leongatha campus manager, Da-vid Bruce, said the team had success-fully used a range of new technolo-gies to engage and retain students.

“The teaching staff are very pas-sionate about their industry sectors,”

Mr Bruce said. “They recognised that they had

to provide more fl exible delivery modes, as traditional study options are not feasible for the majority of their learners.

“The staff have successfully adapted their delivery styles to con-tinue to engage their learners via innovative teaching methods, rang-ing from the use of voice journals, toolboxes, teaching online using the Elluminate synchronous online class-room, delivering Recognition of Prior Learning to a high standard and of-fering workshops at various locations across Gippsland.”

Through music, family emergesThe Bullocky And His Bullock Team

There was a man called the bullocky, and he drove a bullock teamIt was the likes of my great grandfather working back in the 1920’sWith a ginka and a yoke, he broke young steers inWith a team of 14, a stock whip, the bullocky ploughed the scenery And he cleared the land, the trees and shrubs where the homes lie todayThere was no such thing as a bulldozer, tipper trucks or cranesHe carted posts, cleared the tracks and made the railwayThe Australian legacy of the bullocky and his bullock teamHe ploughed paddocks for 50 years, so many miles on his feetAnd those bullocks never let him down, they could climb a mountain so steepHe drove them far and wide, to the crack of his whipIn the mud, the rain, the wind and the dust, Never once did he loose grip And he cleared the land, the trees, and shrubs where the cars drive todayThere was no such thing as an excavator, loaders or grader bladesHe crossed the rivers, dug the dams and made the fi re breaksThe Australian legacy of the bullocky and his bullock teamAnd he cleared the land, the trees and shrubs were the city lies todayHe carted wool, hauled the wood, with 100 tonnes of weightHe worked the land, carried the food, and aided every stateThe Australian legacy of the bullocky and his bullock teamHe carted posts, cleared the tracks and made the railwayHe crossed the rivers, dug the dams and made the fi re breaksHe carted wool, hauled the wood, with 100 tonnes of weightHe helped develop our country with an industry so greatIts all thanks to the bullocky, and his bullock teamSo thanks to the bullocky.

Bec Hance

Top award for TAFE Successful team: GippsTAFE Board Member Joanne Stringer, left, is pictured with members of the team, from left, Sue Nelsun, Bronwyn Beach, Lynda Jobling and Deb Bray.

Holiday time: a family relaxes at the Tidal River camp ground.

Prom lures thousands


THE night before this Saturday’s Bass Coast Agricultural Show, Carmel Lynch and Barbara Culph will gather with a handful of volunteers to make sandwich fi llings.

They need to do this ahead of the midday lunch that the show society puts on for its vol-unteers because there are 400 plates of sand-wiches to prepare.

From 7am on show day itself, teams of rostered sandwich makers will take two hour shifts in order to get the job done on time.

They are members of the Wonthaggi View Club, which has undertaken this aspect of the catering at the show for the past few years.

Carmel has been a member for six years. As a former Wonthaggi girl with strong links to the town’s mining heritage, she is looking for-ward to this year’s show because it is one more event that marks Wonthaggi’s centenary year.

Carmel was born in Wonthaggi. Her father Harry Sainsbury was a miner. His father before him was Robert Sainsbury, one of the fi rst men to mine the rich coal seams.

“His dog tag was number 28,” said Carmel, with a hint of pride.

She has enjoyed the range of celebrations that are marking the centenary of both Wont-haggi and the State Coal Mine. There’s more to come.

The View Club will have a fl oat in the Won-thaggi Hospital centenary garden party, to be held in March and Carmel is an integral part of that.

She and Barbara have mustered a team of 24 volunteers to help with their big catering job.

The two women do the shopping and or-ganise the food, but they need a lot of help to

THE Bass Coast Sum-mer Agricultural Show in Wonthaggi boasts heaps of things to do.

Fuel for fun

Eat well: there are plenty of catering options at the Bass Coast Agricultural Show. TheWonthaggi View Club caters for the lunch provided to show volunteers. The WonthaggiTennis Club does a Devonshire tea. At last year’s show Margaret Williamson and BurtBlackburne of Wattlebank enjoyed their scones.

make that number of sandwiches.The View Club also provides platters of fruit

and sweet treats which they buy from Connell’s Bakery in Murray Street, Wonthaggi.

As well as doing all of that, View Club members set up lunch tables in Wonthaggi Power’s Football Club rooms next to the recre-ation reserve where the show is staged.

Tea, coffee and cool drinks are the fi nishing touches to the volunteers’ repast.

The catering acts as a fund raiser for the

club but also helps meet its obligations as anactive member of the community.

View Clubs (the View stands for Voice In-terests and Education of Women) support TheSmith Family, an independent children’s chari-ty committed to helping disadvantaged Austra-lian children through education and learning.

View women sponsor more than 500 stu-dents on The Smith Family Learning for Lifeprogram.

Heaps to do at show And while some people

will go along just to see those brave people from FMX take their bikes to the air, there are many more things to recommend the show.

Here are just a few: • Woodchop carnival • Psycho Wombat band -

full band, live music • Model railway set up

and operating • Vintage cars and steam

engines• Free pony rides • Paul’s working kelpies

sorting out the ducks and sheep

• Wonthaggi Citizen’s Band

• Dog scramble and dog fl y ball arena

• Sand sculpturing and sandcastle playshop

• Medieval pageantry and tournaments, hands on archery

• Beef cattle, including a Murray Grey feature, dairy cattle

• Stilt walker, balloon clown, magician, juggler and some new surprises

• Australia Fair – largest outdoor pipe organ in Oz

* Full equestrian program including showjumping and harness

• Children’s farmyard - animal nursery, poultry show, chook washing, rabbit show

• Creative Arts Ex-hibition - fl owers, ve-gies, cookery, art, craft, photography-free food tasting, and photography exhibition.


By Jane Ross

THE remarkably success-ful Bass Coast Agricultural Show, to be held in Wonthag-gi this Saturday, January 9, is pitched at families.

And it’s organised by families too.

Margaret Eskildsen is the presi-dent of the Wonthaggi and District Agricultural Pastoral and Horticul-tural Society which runs the Bass Coast Show. Her sister Elsie Hope is on the committee too.

Then there’s Rosemary Lough-nan, whose name is synonymous with the show. She and her sisters Joan Munday and Brenda Asquith are part of the well oiled machine that helps make the event as popular as it is.

Joan’s husband Bill and their daughter Narelle are involved too, as are Rosemary’s husband Wayne and their sons Adrian and Chris.

“We’re trying to encourage oth-ers,” said Wayne. “We’re always looking for new people to come and help. It’s good to have new people and new ideas.”

Margaret and Elsie were glad to be able to pitch in.

They moved to Wonthaggi after

retiring from work around 16 years ago. So did their older sister Jean and her daughter Judith.

The three siblings live close to each other and fi nd nothing unusual in their habit of doing things togeth-er.

“We travel together too,” de-clared Elsie. “We’ve been half way round the world!”

Having lived in the eastern sub-urbs of Melbourne, the sisters had holidayed at Coronet Bay since the late 1960s and taken a liking to South Gippsland. When they moved to Wonthaggi, they looked around for activities and found plenty.

They love the A and P and H So-ciety.

“They’re an amazing group,” said their president. “They all work in to-gether and know what their positions are, with their designated jobs.”

Margaret and Elsie had no expe-rience with shows, other than attend-ing the Royal Melbourne.

The Bass Coast event, said Mar-garet, “is run so professionally. Rosemary and her sisters could run a business for me any day”!

They are also impressed with the generosity shown by business people in backing the show.

The sisters are pleased that this year, they won’t be catering for hot

meals for those showing cattle. They enjoy the interaction with cattle handlers, not to mention the cattle themselves. This year’s food will be picnic style, catered for by the Won-thaggi View Club.

“The animals are just amazing,” said Margaret, “they have shampoo and hair brushing, they’re beauti-ful!”

Staging an event as big as the show takes a lot of organising. Plan-ning for the next begins the day after the show is over. Putting it all togeth-er starts this afternoon.

“The men take the stuff over and we start setting up,” said Margaret.

On the day itself, volunteers are on deck from 6am.

“They’re all young like us!” laughed Margaret.

She and Elsie think they have con-tributed in their own way. Through their involvement with other groups in Wonthaggi such as the Mitchell House craft group, they believe they have increased the interest of local people in entering their craft work.

In Margaret’s view it’s more like art.

Which is probably a metaphor for the show itself.

The show will continue on Sun-day, January 10 with an equestrian only event.

Show goes on

Show organisers: Margaret Eskildsen (left) and her sister Elsie Hope help run the Bass Coast Agricultural Show. Margaret is the president of the organising committee. With them is their friend Kayla, who’ll be roped in for a 6am start on show day.

THE dairy cattle at this year’s Bass Coast Agricultural Show will be judged by Dave Orchard.

He lives at Drouin West but grew up on Wonthaggi.

He judged the show’s dairy cattle last year and is looking forward to do-ing so again.

Dave grew up on a dairy farm and has been a successful Holstein Frie-sian breeder, competing and winning champion-ships at both the Royal Melbourne and Sydney shows.

Dairy judge


LYN Skillern doesn’t live in the past, but she certainly enjoys visiting it. Leongatha’s num-ber one history buff is currently looking into the 2012 centenary of Leongatha Secondary Col-lege. But if she didn’t have that job, Lyn would still be poring over old photographs or fl ip-ping through the pages of musty books in her search for trea-sures of the past.

What do you love about history?What I love best is fi nding new

things that I didn’t know or the uncovering of interesting stories that no-one knows much about. The interesting thing is the fi nding of something new. There are so many interesting stories out there.

People tend to look at big events of history – wars, gold rushes etc – but you seem to like delving into school histories and the like.

I like things that are local or have a local interest. My fi rst delving into local history was the Tarwin River and the changes to the river system over time. That was my fi rst interest and that just led me onto local history and wanting to fi nd out more about other things. The Leongatha High School honour role always interested me. The name would be read out every year and I always thought it would be interesting to know what happened to those 22 people.

Eventually I researched the 22 to fi nd out what happened to them. That has led me on to other topics.

History in the making

Everything I research leads me onto something else.

Unlike other parts of the state, the history of Leongatha and surrounds is devoid of momentous events. Lyn believes that is why history is not as celebrated in the region as well as it should be.

There’s never been a really grand event.

This area was settled and the forest cleared. It took a long time, it was just a long hard slog. There are no major events.

Because of that do you think our history has been neglected?

I think Gippsland’s history as a whole is neglected. You always had Ballarat, Bendigo, Melbourne, Portland. Samuel Anderson settled the Corinella area at the same time as the Hentys went to Portland, but he is totally ignored by history. The history of Gippsland is very interesting and it is such a big area, but it is not at all well known except by history enthusiasts.

Do you ever refl ect on the importance of your work?

I think it is very important (laughs).

But it isn’t recognised as being important by that many people.

I think it is. I think preserving heritage is really important. If I’d had any role in preserving any heritage in the local area, I’m pleased that I was involved in it. I believe if the Historical Society hadn’t gone into the mechanics institute 26 years ago, I wonder what might of happened to it. Now I think the community values it. As far as writing history, I do it because I enjoy it. I love

researching, but I also hope that people gain something from it. If two children go home from the ANZAC Day school service and decide to look up their great-grandfather, then I am glad.

Do you think younger people have such a desire to know those stories these days?

Generally, I think not. But you go into Year 10 and say we are going to look at some local men who were killed in the First World War and they are interested in it.

How has the internet changed your job?

Enormously. When I fi rst researched the soldiers I wanted to research, I had to go to Canberra to the national archives and read them there. So at least for the First World War, you now have everything on line and for the Second World War, if they have been digitalised, then they are online as well. But some of the things I want to do are still just a hard slog. Going to the State Library to read The Star. Most of the things I have to do for the Leongatha High mean I go to the public records offi ce or the State Library.

Why do we need history?I really believe that a community

has to have a history just like people have to have a history. Just like people study their family history so they know where they come from, the community is the same thing. Every community has a really unique history of its own and if you don’t preserve that and those memories you have lost something of your soul.

GIPPSTAFE teacher Linda Austin has graduated from the 2009 Gippsland Com-munity Leadership Program.

The program identifi es emerging leaders and sup-ports the continuing de-velopment of future com-munity leaders by bringing together selected leaders from diverse backgrounds across Gippsland.

GippsTAFE Leon-gatha Campus Manager, David Bruce, said it was a great achievement by Ms Austin, who undertook the program on top of her heavy workload and a busy private life.

“It is great to see Lin-da earn her Fellowship, which is an important personal development ini-tiative,” Mr Bruce said.

“Linda has shown a lot of leadership within GippsTAFE and this for-mally recognises her ef-forts.”

Ms Austin has been in Gippsland most of her life and lives in Mirboo North.

She has worked at GippsTAFE for the past 18 years at both the Morwell and Leongatha campuses.

Ms Austin’s current role is in the hospitality de-partment at the Leongatha

POLICE are warning beachgo-ers not to leave valuables in their cars.

Foster Police’s Leading Senior Constable, Karen McDonald, said the holiday season was a peak time for thefts from vehicles.

“You get carloads up from Melbourne, Pakenham or Cranbourne, coming up to, say, Tidal River for the day, and they’ll hit every car park

between Tidal River and Wonthaggi on the way home,” she said.

“Or Tidal River to Cowes on the way home. If you get hit for one computer here, one GPS there, it soon adds up.” She said the simple message was “look, lock, leave”.

“If you’ve got valuables, leave them at home,” she said.

Favoured theft items include laptops, iPods, wallets and money.

Beach theft warning

One year ago, January 6, 2009Leongatha’s water situation is look-

ing good in the middle of summer, with the four reservoirs supplying the town-ship now 86 per cent full. The storages sank to an all time low of about 10 per cent in 2006.

****Leongatha Police have taken pos-

session of a state-of-the-art speed radar. Known as the Golden Eagles, the radar can detect speeding motorist in front or from the opposite direction as far away as 800m.

10 years ago, January 5, 2000Gippsland Southern Health Service’s

Gary Templeton welcomed in the new century by monitoring the health ser-vice’s computer system, just in case the Y2L bug struck. The health chief was required to lodge regular updates with the Department of Health, to ensure the Korumburra and Leongatha hospitals kept ticking along nicely. Areas of con-

cern were telecommunications and wa-ter, but fortunately, all went well.

****Tarwin Lower farmer John Arbuth-

not has won the Big Bunny Shoot with a 157 rabbits for December. The shoot was held by the South Gippsland Coast-al Rabbit Busters Program and John’s efforts prevented a potential 3000 rab-bits from being born.

30 years ago, January 8, 1980Darren Bone has typed a thank you

letter to the Ruby community with the new Braille machine they gave to him. The 10-year-old received the machine at a Christmas party for nearly 100 chil-dren, at which he was special guest.

****Ken Caithness of Koonwarra is the

running for a National Farm Inventors Award after creating an effective post saw. Driven by a tractor, the saw is ca-pable of cutting 80 logs an hour with two men.

From pages pastHistorical snippets from The Star

Teacher’s Fellowship

campus of GippsTAFE, with a major part of her job managing the student training restaurant.

Her work involves students from VCE levels through to the Diploma level and she also has a background in online learning, having complet-ed an Online Facilitation Course globally.

Ms Austin has been

involved in a number of community organisations including the Leongatha Children’s Centre Inc, where she has served as president for a number of years. She was also in-volved in the feasibility, funding and development of the St Andrews Child-care Centre in Mirboo North, is on the Walker Tuck Recreation Reserve

Committee and the Mir-boo North Kindergarten Committee.

She can now add her Fellowship of the Gippsland Community Leadership Program to her teaching qualifi cations, a Bachelor of Vocational Education and Training, a Diploma of Teaching (TAFE) and a Diploma of Hospitality.

Well done: Linda Austin (centre) is congratulated on completing the Gippsland Community Leadership Program by GippsTAFE Leongatha campus manager, David Bruce, and team leader, Leongatha programs, Vanessa Marsh.


ARIES - March 21 - April 20Expect to be called on to assume a family related obligation, but consider all the implications before committing yourself. This is not the week for shortcuts. Everything taking a bit longer is best.TAURUS - April 21 - May 22You can make important gains now, provided you resist impulsive moves. Your popularity dips before the weekend, but by Sunday you are the top name on the social roster.GEMINI - May 23 - June 21The trouble this week is that every problem has two good solutions. The best plan is to aim for long-range success. You are extremely popular Wednesday - Thursday, enjoy the company, but watch out for rich foods.CANCER - June 22 - July 22The beginning of this week is frantic. Plans are rearranged and it seems that cancellations are unavoidable - but dig for a solution and you will fi nd it. Children are in the picture on the weekend and you will enjoy their sense of humour immensely.LEO - July 23 - August 22Messages seem to be weighted with hidden meanings, but only because they really are so simple. This is the weekend for entering contests, attending sports events and taking on a new physical activity.VIRGO - August 23 - September 22A barter system could be the answer to decrease costs. A family deadlock is broken by the weekend. Simplicity is the key this week in everything you do, including your dress.LIBRA - September 23 - October 22Be more careful in choosing words and phrases. If you are not prepared with the facts, embarassment will follow. Friday favours fi nancial gains. The weekend features outstanding entertainment.SCORPIO - October 23 - November 21This is a great week for putting on those fi nishing touches. Money matters may improve after the weekend. Weekend plans may be can-celled - the reason is legitimate, though not completely understood.SAGITTARIUS - November 22 - December 22This week you seem unusually clever in fi nancial matters. Still major risks should be avoided as your intuition is weak. News from a distant corner could cheer you and your family.CAPRICORN - December 23 - January 20Don’t be secretive or coy with your worries. It’s easy to be accident prone in the work environment, so take a more relaxed approach. Some fi nancial gains after the weekend.AQUARIUS - January 21 - February 19For health’s sake, make balance your present keyword. Balance work with recreation and a balanced diet. An unexpected expense may be required on Thursday, meaning the delay of a longed-for luxury.PISCES - February 20 - March 20A phone call from a relative may answer an important question but open up a new area of concern. Don’t get carried away with recent success at the workplace. Your love life brightens by the end of the week.BIRTHDAY THIS WEEKThe fi rst impression you present is a lasting one. You are determined, supportive, reliable, ambitious and slightly aloof. In all realms - ro-mance, fi nance and friendship, there are a lot of options in the year ahead. It’s your choice.

QUICK PUZZLE NO. 8203

ACROSS7. Aggressiveness (12)8. Expedition (6)9. Fruit (6)

10. Widely spread (7)12. Condition (5)15. Bird (5)16. Problem (7)18. Alter (6)20. Searched (6)22. Bathrobe (8-4)

DOWN1. Tranquilliser (8)2. Insect (4)3. Versus (7)4. Ruse (5)5. Disturb (8)6. King (Shakespeare)

(4)11. Fish (8)13. Axe (8)14. Astray (7)17. Taut (5)19. Leather (4)21. Press (4)

CRYPTIC PUZZLE NO. 8203ACROSS

7. Is embezzling money one? (7,5). 8. View as a ricochet(6). 9. He’s right on the green (6). 10. Prepare the pie,make it better and he’ll enjoy it! (7). 12. Awful person,wicked, that came to a bad end (5). 15. Allow through andmake no secret of the fact (5). 16. Surrprise that’s arrangedat mid-term (7). 18. I hunt about for trasnport (6). 20.Shake, which does perturb one (6). 22. Dust on a specialtray (9,3).

DOWN1. After all the work we’d got through, beaten! (8). 2. Theanimal is first left standing (4). 3. Jobs in which one flies(7). 4. Dish out some fresh news (5). 5. I cover up with“The gentleman is hard-working” (8). 6. Used to come tothe point, before (4). 11. At the top limits, the ice’s melt-ing round the fish (8). 13. Table of suggestions producedby someone impractical (8). 14. Wary about it being ahandout (7). 17. Showing compassion and warmth rightthrough (5). 19. The kick of a horse (4). 21. Not now, inthat case (4).

ANGLICAN: Wednesday, Janu-ary 6: 9.30am Woorayl Lodge HC; 10.15am Koorooman House HC; 11am St Peter’s Mid-Week HC.Sunday, January 10: 8am St Peter’s HC; 10am St Peter’s Ex-ploring Worship; 10.30am Union Church, Tarwin Lower, HC.Tuesday, January 12: 7pm St Andrew’s, Dumbalk / St David’s, Meeniyan Fellowship.ST MARY’S ANGLICAN CHURCH: Mirboo North. Phone 5668 1346. Holy Communion 8.30am: Worship and Sunday School 10am.ST PAUL’S ANGLICAN CHURCH: Korumburra: Sunday 9.30am and Wednesday 11.30am. Poowong: Second and fourth Sundays, 11am.ST GEORGE’S ANGLICAN CHURCH: Wonthaggi. Sunday, 10.30am: Holy Communion & Sunday School; Monday, 7.30pm: Holy Communion; Wednesday, 8.45am: Christian prayer & medi-tation, 10am: Holy Communion.CHURCH OF ASCENSION: Inverloch, Sunday, 9am: Holy Communion & Sunday School; Tuesday, 9am: Christian prayer & meditation; 10am: Holy Com-munion; Thursday 7.30pm: Holy Communion. 5th Sunday ser-vices, alternating at Wonthaggi & Inverloch, contact Rev Bruce Charles for details, 5672 3984.THE CHURCH AT ARCHIES CREEK: Meeting every Sunday at Archies Creek. Morning Commu-nion Service 11 am: Evening Holy Spirit Revival 6pm: Phone: Ps. Chris Chetland 5674 3867 or 5672 4660.ASSEMBLIES OF GOD: Prom Coast Community Church Inc. - Foster Community House, Sta-tion Street, 10am: Sunday. Sunday School and Creche operates. Pastor Bill Watson 5686 2248.A.O.G. Inverloch - Cnr Bear and McIntosh Street, Inverloch. Sunday Service 10am; Imagine Christmas Day Service 9am. Contact: Jeff Rob-ertson, 0418 125 832 or Imagine Burwood 9888 7466.Korumburra Southern Hills A.O.G. - 4 Mine Rd, 10am and 6pm: Sunday. Also Children’s Church and Creche. Contact: Pastor Vic Butera 5655 2478. Youth: Neville Stuart ph. 0407 343 219.Leongatha South Gippsland Liberty Fellowship - 17 Michael Place, Leongatha.Sunday services: 11 am and 7pm. All enquiries contact Pastor David Stegmann 5662 2785. Office: 5662 3100.Wonthaggi A.O.G. - Billson Street, 10am: Sunday. Contact: Pastor Barry Smith 5672 3984.CHRISTIAN REVIVAL CRUSADE: 40 Hughes Street, Leongatha. Sunday, Morning Service 10.30

am: Inspirational Service, 6.30pm: Children’s Church 10.30am: Home cells weekly; Kids Club Thursdays 4pm Guide Hall. For all enquiries contact 5664 5455.SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST: Sat-urdays, Church service 10am., Leon-gatha Sabbath School - 11.30am. CATHOLIC: St Laurence’s Parish Leon-gatha: 5 pm Mass Saturday, 11am Mass Sunday.Tarwin Lower: In St Andrew’s Union Church, 5pm winter, 6pm summer Mass Saturday. Meeniyan: 9.30am Mass, 1st, 3rd, 5th Sundays and 11am, 2nd and 4th Sundays.Mirboo North: 11am Mass, 1st, 3rd, 5th Sundays and 9.30am Mass, 2nd and 4th Sundays.St. Joseph’s Parish Korumbur-ra: 9.30am Sunday Mass.Loch: 5pm/6pm Daylight saving Sunday Mass. Wonthaggi: Saturday evening 6.30pm: Evening Mass; Sunday, 10.30am: Mass. Inverloch: Sun-day 9 am: Mass.KORUMBURRA’S WOMEN’S AGLOW: First Monday every month at Korumburra Day Centre, Korumburra Hospital, Bridge St., Korumburra at 7.45pm. Inquiries phone 5657 2214.GIPPSLAND CHRISTIAN FEL-LOWSHIP: Strongly family ori-ented church meets at the Senior Citizens Centre, Mirboo North, Sundays: 4-5.10pm Communion, 5.15-6pm Bible Studies for Adults, Youth and Children. Friday eve-nings: Home Fellowships 7.30pm; Youth Activities. Enquiries: 5668 2226 Bob Stevens.SALVATION ARMY LEONGATHA COMMUNITY CHURCH meets at 52 Anderson Street (South Gippsland Highway) - Sunday: Family Worship at 10am: Kid’s Club - Tuesday, 4 - 5pm; mainly music, Thursday 10am. All wel-come. Please contact Captain Martyn and Heather Scrimshaw, ph. 5662 5122.SALVATION ARMY WONTHAGGI COMMUNITY CHURCH meets at 149 McKenzie Street every Sun-day at 11am for Family Worship. Kids' Club - every Tuesday at 4 pm, Women's Group - Wednes-day at 1.30pm, and Playgroup - Friday 9.30am. Evening Ladies' Fellowship - First Monday each month and Youth Groups held monthly. All welcome. Please con-tact Lt. Robyn and Max Lean. Ph. 5672 1228.PRESBYTERIAN: Weekly Wor-ship Service 10am Sunday, corner Bent and Turner Streets, Leongatha. Phone Rev. Dr D. Clarnette 0409 236 981 or elder Col Rump 5662-2107.

CHRISTIAN REFORMED CHURCH: Reformed Church meeting at the corner of Peart and Brown Streets. Sunday family service at 10.30am.(10am daylight saving time), creche and Sunday School avail-able. Teaching service at 7.30pm. Fortnightly youth activities. Home Bible Fellowship groups. Contact 5662 2762. Minister: Rev. Ron Nauta.UNITING CHURCH: Leongatha: Sunday, January 10, Combined 10am (HC). Mirboo North: 9.30am. Meeniyan: 10am. Won-thaggi: Sunday 9.30am, Family Service, all welcome. Inverloch: Sunday 11am: Korumburra: Sun-day, 9.30am: Rev. Geoff Smith and Rev. Jim Foley, 5655 1997. BAPTIST CHURCH KORUM-BURRA: 39 Mine Rd, Korum-burra. Service and Sunday School 10.30am. Pastor Ian Wilkinson. Phone 5658 1366.BAPTIST CHURCH WONT-HAGGI: Cnr McBride & Broome Crescent, Wonthaggi. Morning Service & Children’s Activities, Sunday 10am. Weekly activities see www.wonbaptist.org.au, Pas-tor Geoff Pegler 5672 4769.MEENIYAN CHRISTIAN FEL-LOWSHIP: Sunday, 10am: Meeni-yan Youth Club Hall. COMBINED CHURCHES WONT-HAGGI / INVERLOCH: 4th Sun-day each month at 7pm.SCOTS PIONEER CHURCH: Mardan South. Pleasant Sunday Afternoons on the last Sunday of each month at 2pm. See occasion-al ad in this paper for details. For enquiries phone 9853 6627.FISH CREEK UNION CHURCH: 1st & 3rd Sundays, 9am; 2nd & 4th Sundays, 7pm. Contacts: Fran Grimes 5683 2650, Sue Poletti 5663 6325.

Church Times

LANDCARE in South Gippsland is expected to receive an infl ux of dona-tions to help protect the environment.

The South Gippsland Land-care Network is one of just 11 organisations around Australia to be granted tax deductible status by the Federal Government.

The Assistant Treasurer, Senator Nick Sherry, and the Minister for the Environment, Peter Garrett, recently revealed the successful organisations, to help the fi ght against climate change and preserve and pro-tect the environment.

The Landcare network was added to the register of environ-mental organisations, meaning Australians can now claim a tax deduction for gifts.

Network co-ordinator Belin-da Brennan was delighted with the news.

“It is hoped that this will allow the network to attract a greater

range and more funds to protect and enhance the environment in South Gippsland,” she said.

The network helps to pre-serve, protect and enhance the environment of South Gippsland by working with government agencies and businesses to com-plete natural resource projects.

Senator Sherry said the gov-ernment was acting to help the organisations protect the envi-ronment and Australia from the impacts of climate change.

“At a time when the Aus-tralian community is watching international developments in climate change and the environ-ment very closely, these 11 envi-ronmental organisations can now step forward and make an even bigger contribution,” the Assis-tant Treasurer said.

Mr Garrett said volunteers play a crucial part in protecting the environment.

“These groups span a remark-able array of Australian envi-ronmental causes, from wildlife

rescue, waterway protection and rehabilitation and work to protect our sea country and coral reefs, refl ecting the wide range of envi-ronmental priorities that we have in this country,” he said.

The other organisations are:• The Climate Institute (Aus-

tralia) Ltd; • The Australian Coral Reef

Society Inc; • Little River Landcare Group

Inc; • Millennium Kids Inc; • Namoi Valley Environmen-

tal Protection Association Inc; • River, Lakes and Coorong

Action Group Inc; • RiverSmart Australia Ltd; • Save Our Waterways – Now

Inc; • Southern Ash Wildlife Shel-

ter Inc; and • The Peter Cullen Water and

Environment Trust. More details about projects

donations can be made towards are expected to be revealed this month.

Landcare donation boost

Hopes soar: changes to tax regulations will help Landcare rehabilitate more land.

THE challenge is out to all South Gippsland chefs and cooks to win the 2010 Gippsland Signature Dish Competition.

The winner will take home over $2000 of prizes, including a Kitchen Aid mixer (valued at $799), $1000 cash and $1000 of advertising with either Southern Cross Ten or Star FM Radio, not to men-tion great kudos for their kitchen and the shire.

“It’s not just for fi ne dining chefs,” Christian Stefani, South Gippsland Shire Council’s tourism co-ordinator, said. “Last year’s winner was the ca-

tering manager of the Maryvale Private Hospital in Morwell, so the fi eld is wide open to any cooks and chefs working in the local hospitality industry.”

Christian is keen to have local chefs represented in the competition.

“South Gippsland was a pioneer of Australia’s current burgeoning farmer’s market culture, and small producers have been encouraged and sup-ported to develop their products well,” he said.

“Succulent organic lamb and beef from Tarwin Lower, mouth watering seafood from Port Franklin,

internationally award winning cheeses from Poo-wong, fresh picked herbs from Koonwarra and great local wines and beer; half the work is done with this amazing produce - all it needs is the creativity and panache of a local chef to put us on the map.”

Chefs and cooks need to submit a recipe of their signature dish, which should showcase as much Gippsland produce as possible and be matched to a Gippsland wine or beer.

Written entries close on Friday, January 29, 2010, and should also include a photograph of the

dish and a list of all ingredients, in particular details of any local produce used. Entry is free and partici-pants can enter as many dishes as they like.

The 2010 Gippsland Signature Dish Competi-tion is supported by South Gippsland, Baw Baw, Cardinia, Latrobe, Bass Coast, and Wellington Shire Councils, Lardner Park Events, Tourism Victoria, Destination Gippsland, Southern Cross Television, Star FM, and KitchenAid.

Entry forms can be downloaded from www.southgippsland.vic.gov.au.

Becoming region’s own master chef


Meals roster

(Leongatha)Woorayl Lodge Aux-iliary, Lions Club and Catholic Women’s League will be respon-sible for the delivery of meals on wheels, the week beginning January 11, 2010.

A MASS of trees linking Wilsons Promontory with the Gippsland Lakes is the vision of the State Gov-ernment.

Environment and Climate Change Minis-ter, Gavin Jennings, wants a “biolink” stretch-ing between two of the state’s natural icons, as part of a $105 million land and biodiversity plan.

The biolink will be similar to others stretching from western Melbourne to the Grampians, from the Mallee to the Wimmera, and the Murray River to the Alps.

The route of the biolink and how it will be created are yet to be specifi ed.

The plans are listed in the Securing our Natural Future – a white paper for land and biodiversity at a time of climate change.

That paper sets out a blueprint for protect-ing habitat and ecosystems in the face of the looming threat of climate change.

“We know that creating habitat corridors is one of the best ways to ensure our environ-ment builds up resilience to climate change-

induced drought,” Mr Jennings said.“The Victorian Government will invest

$1.5 million in 2010 to improve the ecological connectivity within this important landscape.

“This funding will be used for threatened species protection and recovery, and securing permanent protection of high value ecosys-tems.

“Incentives will be offered to landholders along the link to protect and restore high-val-ue native vegetation in key locations.

“On-ground works, such as habitat im-provement, pest control and fencing to protect native vegetation along waterways, will be undertaken to improve the condition of threat-ened species, which will, in turn, improve the functioning of these ecosystems.”

Mr Jennings said the new funding includes $3 million over the next 3 years to improve the health of the Gippsland Lakes by reduc-ing the nutrient and sediment run-off into the lakes, to reduce the risk of algal blooms.

Under the changes fl agged in the strategy, catchment management authorities and re-

gional coastal boards will form the basis of new regionally-based natural resource and catchment authorities responsible for coor-dinated management across catchments, and coastal and marine ecosystems.

“The aim is to build on the best aspects of our regional community-based approach while improving decision making, clarify-ing roles and responsibilities and adopting a broader approach to catchment management,” Mr Jennings said.

A new peak body, the Victorian Natural Resource and Catchment Council will pro-vide coordinated land, water and biodiversity advice to government.

It will encompass the current Victorian Catchment Management Council, and in due course, the Victorian Coastal Council, and the Victorian Environmental Assessment Coun-cil.

For further information or to obtain a copy of Securing our Natural Future, please call 136 186 or visit www.dse.vic.gov.au/land-whitepaper.

Vision of trees everywhere

Gavin Jennings

TILLIRAH Joyce Eldred was born on December16, 2009. Tillirah is a gorgeous little girl for Brett Eldred and Kirstie Redpath of Leongatha.

ISLA Joan Edwards was born at Bass Coast Regional Health on December 7, 2009 to Danielle Skinner and David Edwards of Cape Woolamai. Isla is a new sister to Jack 3yrs and Ashleigh 14yrs.

COHEN Darcy Harrison was born on December 15, 2009. Cohen is a new baby boy for Ashley and Jane Harrison of Nerrena.

LUCIUS Benjamin Oakley was born on Decem-ber 21, 2009. Lucius is a gorgeous little boy for Alicia and Ben of Wonthaggi and a little brother for Kaitlin aged 7.

CHARLIE Thomas Potter was born on Decem-ber 13, 2009. Rhian and Matthew of Leongatha are the proud parents of their fi rst child.

KIAN Bailey Atyeo-Peters was born De-cember 15, 2009. Kian is the second child and a son for Stuart Peters and Kerri Atyeo of In-verloch. Kian is a little brother for Tayla.

Above: THOMAS William Landry was born on December 15, 2009. Thomas is anoth-er gorgeous little boy for Stuart and Susan of Leongatha South. Thomas has a big broth-er - Mitchell aged 19 months.


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THIS quality built brick home, with four bedrooms, is just perfect for the growing

or large family.Located in charming Callaway Crescent, and just

a short stroll to all local schools, the home offers four bedrooms with en suite to master, and a bathroom with both bath and shower.

This home is perfect as an entertainer offering two living areas, plus formal dining.

A servery is located in the wall between the dining and the kitchen and has doors to shut when it’s not needed.

A roomy kitchen features an electric wall oven and griller, gas hotplates, rangehood, dishwasher, and a downlight directly over the double bowl sink.

Vertical blinds, gas heating and a reverse cycle take care of heating and cooling needs.

Outside has loads of room for the active family. A timber deck runs along the side of the home with

steps down into the back yard, which is packed with shrubs, and trees.

This home projects an air of peace and tranquillity in the middle of mother nature’s bloom.

Contact Andrew or Peter for further details or to arrange an inspection.

IF you’re seeking an iconic beach location then don’t look any further than this Inver-

loch home.This rare gem is set on 548 square metres of land and

is only 100 metres to the beach.The home is on a gorgeous east-west running block

with a perfectly presented three bedroom.There is an open plan kitchen, living and dining area.All three bedrooms have built-in robes.Timber fl oors throughout are complemented by a

spacious bathroom and laundry.If you are looking for an investment property or

holiday home then look no further.For more information on 3 Grandview Grove in

Inverloch call Alex Scott & Staff on 5674 1111.

Idyllic Inverloch beach pad

At a glanceLocation: 3 Grandview Grove, Inverloch.Price: $528,000.Agent: Alex Scott & Staff, Inverloch.Contact: 5674 1111.

New Year special

At a glanceLocation: 37 Callaway Crescent, Leongatha.Price: $305,000.Agent: Alex Scott & Staff, Leongatha.Contact: 5662 0922.



THE hills are alive with the product of one’s imagina-tion.

“Brookleigh” is an idyllic hideaway situated on approximately 13 glorious acres of absolute heaven, plus river lease.

Ideal as a bed and breakfast, wedding receptions, host farm stay (subject to council approval) or retirement living.

Accommodation consists of four buildings, being a four bedroom tri-level Swiss Chalet with an inbuilt wood heater and two outdoor decks.

Then a three bedroom log cabin with slate fl ooring, pine lined walls and billiard/library room.

There’s also a small one bedroom cottage, and a separate building with a heated pool, large entertainment area and bedroom with en suite.

Scattered throughout the grounds are countless attractions and artistic pieces.

Walk around and you will fi nd a wooden sphere balanced at the edge of an ornamental dam, an aviary in the shape of a dice tipped on its point, and a French Dovecote.

Outbuildings include a large shearing shed with undercover stockyards, a Japanese tea house complete with mats to sit on, and a disused dairy.

A further inspection will fi nd a Turkish pavilion overlooking the ornamental dam, and numerous rustic sheds.

As you step out of your car, listen to the sounds of nature at its best with the calming water fl ow of the pristine Tarra River meandering along the edge of the property. Inspection is defi nitely a must; just allow yourself time to see everything that’s on offer.

Tarra Valley heaven

At a glanceLocation: 1649 Tarra Valley Road, Tarra Valley.Price: $895,000.Agent: Alex Scott & Staff, Leongatha.Contact: 5662 0922.

TO become a licensed real estate agent in Victoria

you must fulfi l certain require-ments outlined by the State Government.

The system of licensing was estab-lished by the government with an un-derstanding that most consumers are not experienced in buying and selling property.

Accordingly the licensing require-ments ensure that all people engaged in selling or buying property have a sound understanding of the legislation and regulatory requirements under-pinning real estate transactions.

There are two categories of licens-ing for real estate professionals in Victoria, a licensed estate agent and an agent’s representative.

A licensed estate agent has the capacity to own or manage an estate agency and may conduct themselves

as an auctioneer. An agent’s representative is a per-

son employed by a licensed estate agent and may work in sales or prop-erty management.

The estate agents license require-ment is much more extensive and re-quires the completion of 24 units of study encompassing trust accounting, business fi nance, leasing, sales, mar-keting and auctions.

In addition, people applying for this category of licence need to also demonstrate 12 months experience as an agent’s representative.

Before you engage or deal with an estate agent check that the agent you are dealing with is properly licensed.

You can do this easily by contact-ing the Business Licensing Authority on 1300 13 54 52 or accessing the estate agents register at www.bla.vic.gov.au.

Becoming a real estate agent



YOU have an opportunity to purchase a property in a very

exclusive coastal area. This Walkerville South home has

about 22 squares of easy living and will be auctioned by Alex Scott & Staff, Venus Bay on January 16.

The property boasts panoramic ocean views from a triple level home.

There are huge living areas with sepa-rate lounge and a library that could be a third bedroom.

Two large bedrooms lead on to an ex-tensive deck overlooking scenic gardens and ocean views.

The top level boasts a huge living area leading to extensive decking and brilliant views.

Other features include two bathrooms, hydrondic wall heaters throughout, a mix-ture of carpets and polished fl oors, and garage with automatic doors.

This property has many features that must be seen to be appreciated.

The home is situated just a few min-utes walk to the safe pristine beaches of Walkerville South.

This is an opportunity you cannot af-ford to miss. Prior offers considered.

Walkerville South auction

At a glanceLocation: 9 Casuarina Grove, Walkerville South.Auction: January 16 at 2pm on site. Agent: Alex Scott & Staff, Venus Bay.Contact: Robb Lawrie 5663 7111.


FISH Creek Memorial Hall has new toilets.

They have been constructed on the left hand side of the hall where the old women’s facilities were.

A wheelchair access toilet is new.

Hall secretary/treasurer, Doug Knez, said the ceilings are painted white, the walls cream and the fl oors are sealed with a dark epoxy fl oor solution.

“A sensor light greets you when you walk through the doorway and turns off after a couple minutes after vacating the rooms,” he said.

When the hall or op shop is open the new toilets will also be.

The old toilets were built in the 1930s with the mens only accessible from outside the hall.

The toilets needed replacing as they were diffi cult to keep clean and exposed to the weather conditions.

Glass windows were also being broken by vandals, making the area insecure.

Demolition of the old women’s toilets began on April 27 with the new toilets completed by December 11.

The offi cial opening included a showing of movie Kenny,

Getting the toilets built wasn’t easy.

Firstly the hall committee didn’t realise they needed a demolishing permit, which was an initial hold-up.

Mr Knez said when the concrete footings were waiting to be poured there was a hold-up and down came

the rain for two days delaying the concreting pour until it was safe to do so.

“Grant Flaver measures all his work nowadays on the problems, hold-ups and issues he experienced with the footings pour at the hall toi-lets,” Mr Knez said.

“Nothing, he says, ‘compares with the problems of the Fishy Hall.’”

Assistance was provided through the Federal Government stimulus package, South Gippsland Shire Council, Veteran’s Affairs Depart-ment, Bendigo Bank and locals through the Memorial Hall op shop.

Mr Knez said only local trades-men were used and they were excellent.

Holding on for toilets

Under construction: new toi-lets being built next to the Fish Creek Memorial Hall last year.

New restrooms: Pat Petersen (Fish Creek Memorial Hall vice president), Mar-garet Comrie (hall president), Doug Knez (hall secretary/treasurer) and South Gippsland Shire’s Cr Mimmie Jackson at the offi cial opening of the new hall toilets.

Before and After

YES, it’s cold here and it’s snowing.

I’m not really a fan of -2 degrees Celsius weather, but I can endure it. The city is covered in white. I’ve been grinning from ear to ear walk-ing around in the snow since I’ve never seen it before.

I always thought it would come straight down, like rain does, but it’s so light it actually swirls around in the air a lot - and I’ve discovered that under the lovely fl uffy white snow is ice – and under the ice there is still cement, which is quite painful when you slip, so I’ve learned.

The semester is over and the previously bustling city of Leeds has gone quiet over Christmas.

The English students have headed home to their towns and most international students have fl own home to their own countries. Of the people I know, there’s only a few of us left now.

I’d never thought about that, that international students can just pop home on a fl ight for the week-end. Pay fi ve pounds, spend an hour in the air and you’re home. Wish it was that easy for me.

Last weekend I spent Saturday performing with the Leeds Uni-versity Swing Dancing Society for

fi ve hours at a charity gig, doing a routine every hour and social danc-ing in the middle.

It was a fabulous day and we raised nearly 4000 pounds. I headed to London for a couple of days straight after and had to leave early. I was bombarded with hugs from everyone before I left as it was my last swing society event with them.

I’m so glad I joined the swing society, not only because I love swing dancing and it’s always such a laugh, but because otherwise I wouldn’t have made so many Brit-ish friends.

Most of my regular friends are also international students, but now I have friends not only elsewhere in the world but also all over Eng-land, with all the different accents.

I spent a couple of days with family friends in London and caught up with a friend I made on my last trip to Paris.

We went to the Sherlock Hol-mes premiere - not to actually see the movie, but watch people like Robert Downey Jr, Jude Law, Ra-chel McAdams and the cast of the Vampire Diaries. The Royal Princ-es William and Harry were there as well.

We were there to scream and

shout. I’ve got to say, as interest-ing an experience as it was, it’s not something I’d like to do all that often.

Back in Leeds, I’m determined to write my two essays that are due later this month, so that I have time to cram for my exams as well.

WINTER in England is cold and Inverloch woman Sarah Billington is happily surviving one of the most severe freezing spells on record in windy and white Leeds, where she studies at university. The Star’s regular correspondent writes she’s enjoying the wintery change.

A white Christmas

Cold snap: Star correspondent Sarah Billington is enjoying winter in Leeds.Left: Snow time: The Billington residence in Leeds is covered in snow.





ALBIE and Pat Rodwell have known each other for most of their lives.

They fi rst met when they were pupils together at the Leongatha North State School.

Albie was born in Leongatha but his father was a share farmer and moved “all over the place”, so Albie’s primary schooling also in-cluded Wooreen, Jeetho West, Lance Creek and Tarwin Lower.

As a result, Albie and Pat didn’t see that much of each other. That is, until they started going to dances as teenagers.

When she was 18 and he 19, the couple married in the old St Peter’s Church of England Leongatha.

Pat wore a dress in the delicate pale green called eau de nil.

That was 60 years ago and on the last day of 2009, the Rodwells celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary.

Some time after their marriage,

they lived opposite the Murray Goul-burn factory, which was handy for Albie because he worked there. He retired in 1994 after 45 years with the co-operative.

“I started on the cheese, I did ev-erything, worked on the casein and milk powder.”

Pat worked too. She had a job in the blouse factory downstairs near the corner of Bair and McCartin streets, sewed at home and was em-ployed by a motel.

The Rodwells raised four chil-dren, three daughters and a son and now have 15 grandchildren and 11 great grandchildren – with a 12th on the way.

Pat enjoys being the matriarch of her brood, the more so because her family had few relatives.

She and Albie decided that the best way to mark their 60 years of married life, was to gather with fam-ily for afternoon tea and have a good talk.

December 31is also their grand-

daughter Eliza Hoekstra’s birthday, so it was a double celebration.

The Rodwells moved to Koon-warra 34 years ago and enjoy a life that involves Probus and garden-ing – Albie deals with the vegetable patch and Pat the fl ower beds, which include roses.

They say they don’t have a par-ticular recipe for a long marriage.

“It’s just luck,” said Albie.“In our generation, you didn’t

throw in the towel,” mused Pat. “You argue, but you just think tomorrow’s a better day. You just get over it.”

Diamond day: Albie and Pat Rodwell in the garden of their Koonwarra home on their 60th wedding anniversary.

THE State Government has giv-en more than $134,000 to help Gippsland reduce its compostable waste.

A major study will be undertaken in the next 18 months into ways to reduce the vol-ume of green and food organics in kerbside collection as well as developing commercial composting opportunities.

The Gippsland Regional Waste Manage-ment Group has been allocated $134,200 from Sustainability Victoria’s Regional To-wards Zero Waste Support Program.

“It is a priority for the region that there is an ongoing focus on the responsibility ev-eryone has to minimise the volume of useful material sent to landfi ll,” executive offi cer Matthew Peake said.

“One aspect of that process is to encour-

age people to minimise the volume of food and garden organics to landfi ll, and instead use them as a resource.

“Judicious purchasing also has a role to play because that means there is less waste generated in the fi rst place, as well as sav-ings for householders.”

As well as encouraging more composting at home, the study will look at larger scale commercial composting activities that could develop from combined organic material pickup from the kerbside.

“Naturally, economics will be a major driver for short to medium term change to existing services,” Mr Peake said.

“If the fi nancial outcome of the trial in-dicates commercial gains can be achieved, changes could be implemented as soon as existing contracts and practicalities allow.”

DECEMBER saw the last meeting for 2009, with 25 members attending.

It was interesting to note the unit had raised $4188.90 for the year, including the bushfi re appeal.

Telecross is still running smoothly, with four clients telephoned each morning to see if they are okay.

Two team leaders attended the training day for emergency catering and registration.

The next big day is Australia Day on Tuesday, January 26 at Fisher’s Park, Tarwin Lower. The cer-emony starts at 8pm, followed by breakfast.

Glenda, president, closed the meeting by wishing everyone a merry Christmas and happy new year.

The unit walked over to the primary school where we were entertained with music and Christmas songs by the students. They were terrifi c.

The parents club then put on a traditional Christ-mas lunch with all the trimmings. We were so full we thought we should all walk home afterwards.

The unit had a special guest from Sale offi ce, Lau-ren Carey, who presented a 10 year service badge toIan Latham, and a 20 year service badge to EvelynIndian.

Heather Marshall thanked the parents club for thescrumptious lunch, Glenda thanked Lauren for attend-ing our Christmas function, and Val thanked Glendafor the effort she has shown throughout the year, aswell as all the members, as without the members therewould be no unit.

In December our members spent the mornings ofthe weekends selling Christmas hamper tickets at Ve-nus Bay, Tarwin Lower and Fish Creek. The raffl e waswon by Greg Mackey who holidays at Venus Bay, andthe second hamper was won by Kataline, Melbourne.The raffl e raised approximately $800 and we thankeveryone who supported it.

Our next meeting is on Tuesday, February 2 at1.30pm at Tarwin Lower Community Health Centre,all welcome to come and join us.

Tarwin Lower Red CrossLess waste haste

A lifetime together


WILBUR Wilde, and life-long friends Joe Camilleri and Lisa Edwards are join-ing together with their band that also includes one of Australia’s most recognised drummers, Skyhooks’ Fred-die Strauks.

They will play on Saturday, January 9 at the Foster Memorial Hall.

Wilbur, along with his family and many talented local musicians, has entertained the people of South Gippsland for the previous 10 years.

This year is a special event to mark that 10-year milestone, brought to you by the Foster Football club.

As the founding member of Jo Jo Zep and the Falcons, Joe Camilleri gained national prominence as the lead singer and songwriter.

The band also included Wilbur on saxophone.

Hit singles for the Falcons included The Shape I’m In and Hit and Run.

Joe went on to form the Black Sorrows as well as performing as a solo artist that continues to this day.

Earlier last year, Joe performed with his band to a packed house

that was acknowledged as one of the best nights in Foster.

Lisa Edwards began her career as a solo artist and was invited to join John Farnham’s band in 1988.

She has worked with, amongst others, Yoko Ono, Olivia Newton John, Billy Thorpe and The Black Sorrows.

She was also part of the “Tour Of

Duty” in appreciation of our peace keeping effort in East Timor.

She continues with her solo career and as a permanent member of the John Farnham band.

Wilbur Wilde has a special association with Foster and the South Gippsland community that goes back to the 70’s and has made a signifi cant contribution over the previous 10 years to this event.

He initially rose to prominence with the bands OL’ 55 and Jo Jo Zep and the Falcons and over a 35 year career has also performed with Skyhooks, Elvis Costello, Split Enz, Dire Straits, The Angels, Dragon, Cold Chisel and James Reyne.

He is most famous for his 15 year association with Hey, Hey it’s Saturday, which is back on the air again in 2010.

Tickets are $30 each or $15 for under 18s.

It’s a BYO event, so bring everything you need for a good night out.

The support band this year will be local Secondary College entities, Stereo Disfunction, who will commence at 8.30pm followed by Wilbur, Joe, Lisa and band at 9.30pm.

This will be a great night. Don’t miss it.

Wilde night

• Wilbur Wilde

LEONGATHA’S young perform-ers are well represented in Oliver, the British musical, which is this year’s production by the Wont-haggi Theatrical Group in May.

Based on the novel Oliver Twist by

Charles Dickens, the musical needs a young cast which is required to act, sing and dance.

Among the cast are Jackson Patterson, who shares the title role of Oliver Twist. Adam Turner will share the role of Artful Dodger.

Oliver’s right at home


AGNES artist Marilyn Ardley has a privileged view that has inspired her to create a new series of work; she can see Wilsons Promontory from where she lives.

Called the Waratah Series, it refers to seascapes around the area of Waratah Bay.

“I have holidayed at Waratah Bay and Sandy Point as our daughters (with hus-band Garry) were growing up,” Marilyn said. “So the mist, the waves and the changes in the seasons are an integral part of our lifestyle.”

The new series is also a profound change from previous subjects that have preoccupied Marilyn in the past.

“Although my work has always been about family and the environment, these works have been strongly infl uenced by the Corner Inlet area: Waratah Bay and Wilsons Promontory,” Marilyn said.

“So while past works have often relat-ed to the earth with strong tonal reds, this

show expresses my response to the subtle tones of the seascape and the sky, captur-ing both energy and serenity.”

The Waratah exhibition will show at the Stockyard Gallery in Foster for 10 days only, so come early, if you don’t want to miss out. The opening is on Fri-day, January 8, 6.30 to 8.30pm. The show will run until January 17.

Marilyn has been prolifi c recently. She has just fi nished a joint exhibition at the Meeniyan Art Gallery and is preparing for a Melbourne show later in 2010.

“The intention is that the combination of some of the art from both exhibitions (Meeniyan and Stockyard) will be exhib-ited in Melbourne later this year,” Mari-lyn said.

“However, all the art at Stockyard gal-lery ranging from small framed works on paper to larger paintings on canvas will be for sale.”

For inquiries or gallery details, call 5682 1125.

SILK and fi bres took centre stage in Meeni-yan recently.

The opening of the Shared Visions in Textile Art exhibition at the Meeniyan Art Gallery on December 27 attracted many admirers of this specifi c branch of creativity, which has a large following in the region.

People from all over Gippsland attended the opening and were not disappointed.

The exhibition displayed works by prominent artists Marion Dawson, Yvonne Renfree, Carol Monson and MAG curator Winsome Richards, who is also a well-

Point of view

Waratah series: Agnes artist Marilyn Ardley will show a series of Waratah Bay paintings at Stock-yard Gallery until January 17.

Smooth as silkknown artist, experienced in various mediums.

“A variety of works fea-turing natural fi bres, silks, exotic cottons and beading are on display until January 28,” Winsome said.

“These are recent art-works. They were inspired by the beautiful colours of our environment: sea and country. Also, the wall

hangings were inspired by ancient peoples’ artworks of ceremonial swans.”

The Meeniyan gallery will hold a variety of work-shops.

For gallery and exhibi-tion details call the gallery on 5664 0101. For work-shop details, call Educa-tion Centre Gippsland on 5662 6700.

Three of the artists: were at the opening, from left are Carol Monson, Yvonne Renfree and Winsome Richards (Marion Dawson was unable attend).

Classified advertising closes 12 noon Mondays






ClassifiedsPHONE 5662 5555 FAX 5662 4350�

Sell itin the"Star"

LOCAL NOTICE TO MARINERSGIPPSLAND PORTSThe following Notice to Mariners is published for

general information.

DATE DECEMBER 23, 2009

AUSTRALIA - VICTORIANo. 178 / 2009

OLD INVERLOCH BOAT RAMP

DATE: Effective immediately.

DETAILS: Due to sea bed scouring the old Inverloch boat ramp adjacent to the current ramp has been undermined and collapsed. It is now in a potentially dangerous state of repair.

Mariners and waterway users are advised to avoid this site.

An isolated Danger Buoy has been established at this site to alert the public to its condition.

CHARTS

AFFECTED: Nil.PUBLICATIONS

AFFECTED: Nil.FURTHER This notice is self cancelling and noNOTICE: further notice will be issued.

CAPT BRUCE GREEN

HARBOUR MASTER

CHIROPRACTORNORMAN G.

VRADENBURG“NON-FORCE

PRACTITIONER”28 Reilly Street,

INVERLOCHHOURS - Monday, Tuesday,

Friday and Saturday by appointment

Phone and fax 5674 3666 South Gippsland

Chiropratic Services & Adjunctive Therapies P/L

public notices

Wishes to advise the surgery will be

CLOSED FROM December 23 until February 2, 2010

Sorry for any inconvenience

Dr R.P. DelbridgeDENTIST

FALLS RD,FISH CREEKPhone 5683 2292

public notices

ART CLASSESPainting on location

INVERLOCHSaturday, January 9

10am to 2pm cost $60RHYLL, PHILLIP ISLAND

Saturday, January 1610am to 2pm cost $60

ARCHIES on the CREEKSaturday, January 23

10am to 4pmCost $85 includes

lunchBookings Janice Orchard

Phone 0419 301 363www.janiceorchard.com

public notices

THE ORGANIC HAIR & BEAUTY SALON: 150 Bald Hills Road, Tarwin Lower, Deanne Dakers. Ph. 5663-5439, website: www.theorganicbeautysalon.com

FREE CAR

REMOVALTrucks, tractors & farm machinery

ALL AREAS 5658 1577Complete vehicles

public notices

MEENIYAN REC RESERVE

TRI-ANNUAL MEETING

Thursday, January 147pm

MEENIYAN BOWLSCLUBROOMS

Enquiries: F. Sinclair 5664 4354

BOAT LICENCE COURSE

(incl. PWC end)INVERLOCH

Monday, January 116 - 10.15pm

LEONGATHATuesday, January 12

6pm - 10pmBookings essential

Phone Bob: 0417 524 005

Approved Marine Safety Vic. course

Australian Boating College. Provider No. 3399

public notices

public noticesKONGWAKMARKET

THIS SUNDAY 10AM &Special Twilight Market

Wednesday, January 204pm - 8pm

(a little bit of Sunday on a Wednesday)Collectables, vintage, retro,

this & that, bits & bobs, treasure, junk, books, plants, coffee,

curry, live music and more...It's fun - come!

For more info, please call 0417 142 478

Kongwak Market is a smoke free event

55 ACRE property with3 bdrm house at Foster North. Suitable for cattle. Ph: (07)4094-3182 a/h.

for lease

Classified advertising closes 12 noon Mondays

public notices

CHIROPRACTORGarry Harrison19 Moonah Street

Cape PatersonThis practice will be closed until further

notice due to family illness


BOATLICENCE3 HOUR COURSE

MSV approved$85

PWC availableINVERLOCH

Sunday, January 17

12.30pmContact Joan 0427 275 632Marine Training Services

public notices

VACUUMCLEANER

RepairsDUST BAGS

SalesFREE QUOTES

WONTHAGGI SEWING CENTRE167 Graham Street, Wonthaggi

(opp. Ritchies IGA)

5672 3127

for sale for sale

CLEARANCE SALE, Dollar - property sold. Various tools, welder, Stihl Farm Boss chainsaw, spray units, sundry equipment and items. Ph: 5664-6588.

FIREWOOD, redgum & local wood, Ph 0408-980-711, A/H 5662-5175

HAY - 800 square bales $8 each. Will separate. Tarwin. Ph: 0408-836885.

HAY - 5x4 round $50, small squares $7. Excellent quality. Outtrim. Ph: 0419-313483.

HEN HOUSES, fox proof, good quality, 6-8 chooks. Plus dog kennels. Ph: 5664-2443.

GREENFIELD ride-on lawn mower, 12.5hp Briggs & Stratton motor, 32” cut, good condition, reliable mower. $1,200 ONO. Tel: 5662-3510.

LOUNGE SUITE, fl oral, 1 2-seater couch and 2 chairs in ‘as new’ condition, $500. Ph: 5662-4232 or 0408-355866.

MARY MACKILLOP - 2 blazers size 10, jumper, sports top size 12, shorts M, dresses size 8, 1 kilt size 10. Ph: 5674-1512.

SLEEPERS, treated pine, 200x50x2.4 $12.10 each, 200x75x2.4 $16.75 each. Free delivery for pack lots. Phone Joe 0417-530662.

A vacancy exists at Rodwells in our Leongatha Branch for a Merchandise Sales Person.

The main responsibilities of the position are to:• Sell rural merchandise to clients specialising in,

animal health, pastures, snow peas, potatoes and a range of horticultural and farming activities;

• Assist with instore counter requirements including serving customers, ordering, maintaining merchandise displays, deliveries and inventory management;

• Provide professional, effi cient, safe and quality service to our clients.

• Assist at the Livestock market one day per week.

The following qualifi cations are desirable:• A minimum of Year 12 VCE qualifi cation.• An understanding of or experience in selling rural

merchandise, preferably with a basic knowledge of the products and requirements of rural producers within the Leongatha region.

• Competent computer skills.• Good organisational, customer service and

communication skills.• A current driver’s.

For further information contact Tim Sargant, Merchandise Manager on 0428 943 853.

This position offers a career opportunity with a progressive and growing company and a competitive remuneration package will be negotiated with the successful applicant. Only motivated and honest people need to apply.

Hand written applications close on January 15and should be sent to:

Tim SargantRodwells

10 - 12 Hughes St, Leongatha, VIC, 3953

MERCHANDISE SALES LEONGATHA

Kilmany UnitingCare is a quality accredited community service agency. Staff and volunteers provide a range of community services in Gippsland for children, young people, families and individuals. The agency has a vision of a healthy Gippsland, where disadvantage and inequity are challenged.

Youth Development Worker - South GippslandFull Time

The Youth Development Worker for South Gippsland will work with a team of Youth Workers in the Gippsland Region and will be responsible for developing and delivering youth related programs across the Shire of South Gippsland. This position is funded through the Offi ce for Youth, Youth Participation and Access Program, FReeZA and the Youth Bush Fire Response Gift.For further information on the above positions please

telephone Tracey Gibson on 5662 5150.Kilmany UnitingCare offers a family friendly workplace. You can negotiate to pick the kids up from school, or to have school holidays off, and we offer many other

forms of practical family friendly opportunities.Application forms and position descriptions are

available at www.kilmany.org.au or call 5662 5150 to have copies emailed/sent to you.

Applications close 5pm Monday, January 18, 2010 and are to be addressed to:

Kirstie PearceHR Coordinator

Kilmany Uniting CarePO Box 454

BAIRNSDALE VIC 3875Or email to [email protected]

Kilmany UnitingCare interviews in the interests of safety and well being of children and young people

POSITIONS VACANTStaff Educator

Registered Nurse - Division 1 Grade 4Gippsland Southern Health Service is seeking an enthu-siastic Staff Educator to join our organisation. The successful applicant should have the following:• Extensive clinical experience in acute and residential

care.• Certifi cate IV in Workplace Training & Assessment

or an undertaking to complete this is mandatory.• A post graduate education qualifi cation (or working

towards same) is desirable.• Ability to be able to communicate at all levels.• The ability to be able to plan, develop and evaluate

education programs to achieve best practice.GSHS offers a comprehensive orientation program on commencement of employment. All staff have access to excellent staff mentoring, education and support programs. Salary Packaging is available to all permanent staff.All applicants will be required to supply a current satisfactory police check.If you are interested in joining a supportive and progres-sive team, please contact the Executive Assistant, Dianna Mollica on 5667 5504 to obtain an application kit.Applicants are also encouraged to contact Neil Langstaff on 5667 5507 to discuss the employment opportunities at GSHS.

Completed application kits can be forwarded by Thursday January 22, 2010 to:-

Neil Langstaff Director of Nursing

Inpatient/Residential CareGippsland Southern Health Service

Private Bag 13LEONGATHA VIC 3953

FOOD TECHNOLOGY ASSISTANT

This is a full time, leave replacement position, from Wednesday 27 January

to Friday 12 March 2010.(Possibility of a two week extension

to 26 March 2010.) Forward application including names

of two referees to:Michael Brewin, Principal

Newhaven CollegeBoys Home Road, Newhaven 3925

Ph: 5956 7505 Fax: 5956 7131email: [email protected]

www.newhavencol.vic.edu.au

Applications close: Monday 18 January 2010

An Independent Co-Educational School on Phillip Island, Prep to Year 12

NEWHAVEN COLLEGEIn Quietness and Confi dence Shall Be Your Strength

Mary MacKillop Catholic Regional College, Leongatha

FRENCH TEACHERSee www.mackillopleongatha.catholic.edu.au

for details

FULL TIME DAIRY

FARM HANDPosition available on a progressive 450+ cow dairy farm at Waratah

Bay with modern rotary dairy.

Involves milkings and general farm duties.

Please phone Stuart or Jacqui on 5684 1425 or

0428 841 425

situations vacantCATALOGUE

DISTRIBUTORS AND

COLLECTORS REQUIRED

Earn $100 to $200 a week for 2 hours

max dailyNO OUTLAY

Call 1300 663 161

situations vacant

FREEPick-up and delivery in

Leongatha/Meeniyan areas

for MOTOR MOWERS,

CHAINSAWS AND

STATIONARY

ENGINES ETC.Repairs and services

Phone JOHN GOULD

5664 0012

free

TO good home, 2 kittens, 1 male, 1 female, ready to go now. Ph: 5664-8344.

FREE CAR REMOVALWill pay up to $300

for complete carBuyers of scrap metal

All machineryBins provided

Bass Coast Metal Recyclers5672 2946

0417 556 593

used vehicles

GIANT GARAGE SALE

January 23, 2010Furniture, Books, Manchester, Toys, Bric-a-Brac, & more...

LIONS SHEDInverloch Rec Reserve

8am to 2pmAll proceeds to local hospitals in Wonthaggi and LeongathaTo make donations of quality

goods call Geoff Cole on 5674 6030 or 0400 261 350

LIONS CLUB OF INVERLOCH & DISTRICT

garage sales

HUGE CLEARING

SALE70% off

all remaining stock

OPEN THE FOLLOWING DAYS

Thursday, January 7 to Sunday, January 10

andThursday, January 14 to

Sunday, January 1711AM - 5PM EACH DAY

ANTIQUE SHOP At Poowong roundabout

GARAGE SALESaturday, Jan 9 from 10am to 5pm & to 1pm Sunday

30 ALFRED CRES. VENUS BAYTake Lees Rd then turn right at

St Ives Cres, then left into Alfred Cres. Number 30 is on the right, the white house with the green roof. The house

has been sold and all is for sale.Pool table with dining table top, fridge,

lounge, 4 white metal single beds and mattresses, family size washing machine, 2 bdrm clothing drawers,

microwave oven, TV, parquetry coffee table, video player, Digital set top box,

kitchen ware, LPG gas heater etc.

We prepare simple, fresh food for young people engaged in strenuous activity throughout the day.

Morning, daytime and evening shifts available, plus weekends. Regular weekday and weekend hours

available until June 2010.Flexible hours, great working conditions on

casual hourly rate.Prefer level 1 or 2 Food Safety Certifi cate, but

experience not necessary.

Reply in person to The Manager 03 5952 2467.

COOK WANTEDYMCA Victoria - Phillip Island Coastal

Discovery Camp

situations vacant situations vacant

BOARD OF MANAGEMENT APPOINTMENTS

Gippsland Southern Health Service faces an excit-ing and challenging period of facility redevelopment. Due to routine retirements, the opportunity exists for committed local community members to join the Board of Management and make a positive contribu-tion to the provision of high quality health service in South Gippsland. These positions will be appointed from July 1, 2010.Applications are sought from people with a long-term commitment to and involvement in their local communities. Skills and expertise in business man-agement, legal issues, people management and/or organisation change will be highly regarded. Recommendations are made by the Minister and formal appointments are made by the Governor in Council, having regard for the need to ensure that the Board includes a balance of expertise in areas such as business and management, com-munity knowledge, health, fi nance, law, human resources, etc.

Be involved and make a difference!For further information on these honorary positions and to obtain an application form, please contact the Executive Assistant on 5667 5504 or the applica-tion form and relevant background information can be downloaded from http://www.health.vic.gov.au/ruralhealth/hservices/bom.htm.

Applications close on Friday, January 22, 2010 and should be addressed to Mrs Tracey Gibson, President, Gippsland Southern Health Service, Private Bag 13, Leongatha VIC 3953.


TIMBER - kiln dried blackwood, clear pine, silver wattle. Most sizes for furniture and craft. Also builder’s graded structural pine. Phone 5681-2261.

FURNITURE: Parker, Noblett, Tessa, Chiswell, Moran, or any quality brand name used furniture. Phone Wendy on 0409-234482.

OLD CARS, Holden, Ford, Valiant, Chevrolet, hot rods, also Mazda 1300 coupe. Abandoned projects, wrecks or parts. Not for scrap. 0488-294894.

OLD MOTORBIKES - road, trail, motocross, farm, scooters, 4WDs, minis, wrecks or just parts. Cash paid. 5664-8344.

wanted to buy

FULLY Qualifi ed Painter. No job too small. Good rates. Call Drew on 5662-4238 or 0418-517443.

work wanted


crossword solutions

CRYPTIC PUZZLE NO. 8203 - SOLUTIONSAcross - 7, Capital crime. 8, Glance. 9, Olive-r. 10, Epi-cure. 12, (ba)D-evil. 15, Admit. 16, Shatt-(t)er(m). 18,Cha-I-se. 20, Rattle. 22, Cigarette ashDown - 1, W-all-op-e’d. 2, L-I-on (rev.) 3, Careers. 4,Scoop. 5, Dil-I-gent. 6, W-ere. 11, Cei-ling-s. 13, Idea-list. 14, Char-it-y. 17, Hea-r-t. 19, Hack. 21, Then.

QUICK PUZZLE NO. 8203 - SOLUTIONSAcross - 7, Belligerence. 8, Safari. 9, Cherry. 10, Diffuse.12, State. 15, Heron. 16, Dilemma. 18, Change. 20, Sought.22, Dressing-gown.Down - 1, Sedative. 2, Flea. 3, Against. 4, Trick. 5,Unsettle. 6, Lear. 11, Flounder. 13, Tomahawk. 14, Miss-ing. 17, Tense. 19, Hide. 21, Urge.

Account Manager - Merchandise

At Landmark you can explore the many roles and activities of an industry leader in Australianagribusiness. Across our national network, our people have unrivalled expertise and the abilityto grow with the business as they work with the customers to grow theirs.

Our Foster branch are looking to appoint a Key Account Manager. As part of Landmark Fosters’team you will manage customers merchandise requirements and look for opportunities toprotect, maintain and grow the business.

You will be able to build long lasting partnerships with customers using your specialistknowledge of animal health and other agricultural products. You will have proven experiencein sales and local farming activities is favourable.

Landmark offer a competitive package including performance based incentives and access toa wide range of employee benefits. For further information please contact Chris Geisler on 03 5682 2623 or 0400 157 850. Please apply on-line at our website:

careers.landmark.com.au

Foster

Ref: JOO2429 Applications close January 22, 2010

57972

VISITINGINSTRUMENTAL

TEACHER of GUITAR1.5 days a week, to commence

in term one, 2010.Potential for increase in hours

(dependent on Music enrolments).Applicants need to be experienced, enthusiastic, and have the ability to teach both contemporary

and classical styles on acoustic and electric guitar.CV and names of three referees to:

Mrs Elaine Epifano, Director of MusicNewhaven College

Boys Home Road, Newhaven, 3925Ph: 5956 7505 Fax: 5956 7131

email: [email protected]

Applications close: Friday 22 January 2010

An Independent Co-Educational School on Phillip Island, Prep to Year 12

NEWHAVEN COLLEGEIn Quietness and Confi dence Shall Be Your Strength

Computer Specialist TechnicianCool Bananas Services is a provider of IT Specialist Technicians to the education sector in Victoria. The School Specialist Technician will be responsible for the support for all school technology including hardware, software, server and network related issues. Minimum working knowledge: Windows/Mac experience, server/workstation, install-confi gure computer hardware- software, excellent written and verbal communication skills. Minimum 12 months experience in IT sector.

For further information and full job description email us your details and we will be in contact with you shortly.

[email protected]


CALDER - Glenn and Sarah are pleased to announce the safe arrival of Harrison on 11/12/09, weighing 8lb 10oz. A beautiful baby brother for Anabelle and Lucinda. Special thanks to Drs Chisholm and Linton, and all the midwifery staff LMH.

birthsDUNLOP - RUSSELL

Steve and Joanne of Middle Tarwin are delighted to announce their engagement. All the families are thrilled to bits.

engagements

OLLE - Graham. Passed away 31/12/07. Miss you and think of you every day. Loved always. Elaine and family.

PATERSON - Leanne Sharon. 15/3/80 - 1/1/98.This day comes with deep regret, For a daughter and sister we will never forget. The tears in our eyes we can wipe away, The pain in our hearts is there to stay. Loving mother Daisy, father Norman, brothers Michael, Steven, Shane, Colin, sister Veronica. XO XO XO

in memoriam

YOU will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever. Psalm 16:11.

message of hope

Jenny MilkinsAll areas - 5672 3123

[email protected]

marriage celebrant

PAM HERRALD5662 2553

0438 097 181

CAM ABOODLeongatha5662 4191

MERLENE STRATTONLeongatha5662 2574

TUFF - The Funeral Service for the late Mr Desmond Tuff will be held at the Uniting Church, Meeniyan on Friday, January 8, commencing at 11am. The funeral will leave at the conclusion of the service for the Meeniyan Cemetery. All ex-service personnel and Masonic brethren are respectfully invited to attend. In lieu of fl owers donations may be made to Melbourne Legacy. Envelopes will be available at the church.

Paul & Margaret Beck Handley Funeral

Services Leongatha / Korumburra

5662-2717 AFDA

funerals

GORDON - Freda May. 05/05/1925 - 21/12/2009. Wife of Robert Edward Gordon (dec.), mother to John and Cheryl (dec.), mother-in-law to Olga. Grandmother to Michelle and Renee. Great grandmother of Kiara and friend of Alistair and Luke. You will always be in our hearts and will be sadly missed. Be at peace. Mum, a sweet, kind natured, sharing, loving woman. You were always there for me in my times of need, loving me unconditionally. I am blessed to have been your son and am proud of you, my mother. You will be forever in my thoughts and in my heart. - John. The things I will miss are many and varied: Watching Jane, Lizzy, Kitty, Lydia and Mary; learning about tapestry and ceramics and craft; and browsing through photos and having a laugh; all the time that we spent is now fond memories. To my Nana, I hope you now rest in peace. With all my love - your granddaughter Renee.

MEADOWS - Elza. Born February 8, 1927. Passed away peacefully December 30, 2009 at Alchera Nursing Home, Korumburra. Originally from Frankston. Loving wife of Joseph (dec.), loving mother to David, Joy, Fay and Lisa (dec.). Loved and cherished mum of Fay Sullivan, mother-in-law of Martin, and adored nan of Meg. Such a sweet and special mum.

PEARCE - David Henry. October 22, 1918 - December 23, 2009. Passed away peacefully at Leongatha Hospital, aged 91 years. Dearly loved husband of Daphne (dec.). Greatly loved father of Martin, Christine, Helen (U.K.), Isabelle and Charles. Respected father-in-law of Maggie, Col, Howard, Des and Ros. Much loved grandpa of all his grandchildren and great grandchildren. Reunited with Mum in God’s loving care. Special thanks to Leongatha Hospital for their loving care of Dad in the last short time in his life. Particular thanks to Woorayl Lodge, staff and residents, who made Dad’s last years so happy and comfortable through their warmth and kindness.

PRITCHARD - Alan Leslie. Late of Caboolture (Qld), formerly of Leongatha, passed away on December 26, 2009. Aged 74 years. Loved and cherished husband to Norma, loving father to Cheryl and Brian, father-in-law to Neil.

deathsDevoted pa to Travis, Beau, Cindy and Laurel, and great granddaughter Stevie-Grace. Loved brother, brother-in-law, uncle and good friend to many. A funeral service for Alan was held in Brisbane on Thursday, December 31, 2009.

TRADITIONAL FUNERALS Burpengary Qld. Ph: 07-3888-6633

PRITCHARD - Alan Leslie. My dear husband Alan, my best friend, my rock, my soul mate for 57 years. I loved you for your sense of humour, your caring for others. You called a spade a spade and couldn’t tolerate fools. You were called Grumps by many with fondness, I’ll miss you mate. Your loving wife Norma. Dear dad. Thanks for everything mate. I love you always. I cry with you. I laugh with you. I miss you. Your loving son Fred. My beautiful dad, my friend, my hero, will miss you so much, will miss your jokes, most of all will miss our chats. Your loving daughter Chick. Wonderful buddy and mate to Neil. Will miss our fun times together. Pa, rest well old mate. A hard nut from the back blocks of Collingwood, yet your cheeky smile underlined your soft side. Trav and Laurel. To our much loved pa and great grand pa. How sad it is that you are no longer with us, but such is the circle of life to make way for the new generation like the recent birth of your beautiful great granddaughter. You will be sadly missed.

Much love, Beau, Cindy and Stevie-Grace.

ROBERTS (Humphries) - Vera Alice. Passed away peacefully at Domain Seahaven, Inverloch on December 22, 2009. In her 90th year. Late of Meeniyan. Loving wife of Bernie for 72 wonderful years. Loved mum of Vincent, Dorothy and Shirley. Loved mother-in-law of Hilda, Merv and David. Wonderful grandmother of 10, great grandmother of 24 and great great grandmother of 1. Loving sister to Willie, Dulcie, Clive, Kevin (all dec.) and Val. Now at rest.

A private family funeral service will be held.

deaths deaths deathsTUFF - Desmond R.Son of the late “Bert” and Mable Tuff. Brother of Thelma, Dorothy (dec.), and Robert (Bob dec.).Loved husband of Bessie (dec.). Father of Graeme and Lorna, Brian, Marlene and Richard, Wendy and Noel, Sharyn and Calvin. Grandfather of Natalie, Stephen, Sherrie, Lisa, Douglas, Desleigh, Carrie, Luke, Heath, Troy, Michaela and Koh, and great grandfather of 22.

Full long life now with his beloved Bessie.

TUFF - Desmond R.Passed away peacefully at Monash Medical Centre on January 3, 2010. Late of Koorooman House.Dearly loved husband of Bessie (dec.). Father of Graeme and Lorna. Grandfather to Natalie and Brad, Stephen and Laura. Great grandfather to Kinesha and Mackenna.

A great man, a great father now together with Bessie forever.

TUFF - Desmond. We will miss you Des, just as we missed Tom. Our weekly visits were full of chatter, criticism and gossip. You’ve been a great man, husband and father, and a great friend. Enjoy your rest with Bess. Our sympathy to all your family. Norm and Mike.TUFF - Des. Our condolences to Calvin, Sharon, and family. He will be sorely missed. What a great man he was. Amy, Troy, Donna, Steve, and kids.

TUFF - Dorothy.Passed away December 23, 2009.Dearly loved daughter of the late “Bert” and Mable Tuff. Much loved sister and sister-in-law of Des and the late Bess Tuff, Meeniyan. Dear aunt of Graeme, Brian, Marlene, Wendy and Sharyn, and their families.A Special Lady. WORT - MaureenMargaret. Late of Wattlebank. Passed away on December 26, 2009, aged 75 years, at Korumburra Hospital, after a long battle with cancer. Loving wife of Charles (dec.). Sister of Eileen and Daphne. Now at peace with Charlie.

Classified advertising

closes 12 noon Mondays

Email your adverts to “The Star”[email protected]

Polly backs powers MEMBER for Eastern Victoria Johan Scheffer believes new police powers will keep Bass Coast residents safe this summer.

The new random search and move on powers will help prevent unruly behaviour and help keep Bass Coast resi-dents safe, Mr Scheffer said.

“These critical new reforms will strengthen our local police’s ability to deal with drunkenness and disorder in public places and particularly violence involving the use of weapons,” he said.

“Anti-social behaviour has no place on our streets and these new laws will help keep Bass Coast residents safe so that people can enjoy public spaces.”

The new police powers include:• Introducing tougher random search powers for weap-

ons in designated areas;• Giving police the power to direct people to move-on

from a certain area where there is a fear there will be a breach of the peace;

• Creating a new offence of disorderly conduct; and• Establishing on-the-spot penalties with a fi ne of $234

for the new offence of disorderly conduct and for existing offences of “drunk and disorderly” and “drunk”.


Home team Away Team Ground UmpireGrade A1 Inverloch v Imperials I/Turf Brendon ThomasNerrena v Won Workmens Nerr Alan Jordan / Michael HeenanSaturday, January 9OMK v Won Miners OMK Ken LesterGrade A2Poowong/Loch v Inverloch Loch Paddy CumminsKoonwarra/RSL v Fish Crk/Tarwin L/T Clive SalmonMDU v Town Meen Bernie McDonaldWon Miners v Phillip Island Tar Les White / Graham LairdGrade B Imperials v Foster EC Daryl SinclairKorumburra v Glen Alvie Kor Hank BoltongWon Workmens v Nerrena MR Richard PooleSaturday, January 9Phillip Island v OMK Cowes Alan RobertsGrade CTown v Poowong/Loch WC1 Ian ThomasFish Crk/Tarwin v Koonwarra/RSL FCT John LeaMDU v Won Workmens Dum Stephen LanyonSaturday, January 9OMK v Won Miners KSC Luke SullivanGrade D Inverloch v Imperials Inv Herb RobertsGlen Alvie v Korumburra GA Kevin SmithNerrena v Koonwarra/RSL LV Rod GryllsPhillip Island v Town New Bob AllanGrade EFoster v Poowong/Loch FGC TBAWon Miners v Town Tar Marian WishartPhillip Island v MDU RH Alan RobertsWon Workmens v OMK Tar TBAVictoria Premier Cricket - Saturday, January 9Richmond v Melbourne L/Turf Clive Salmon

Leongatha District Cricket Association

Umpire AppointmentsEVANS PETROLEUM

Round 10 - Sunday, January 10

Wonthaggi clay targetResults - January 1

100 T DB championship:AA and overall: Wayne Parks 99/100, 2nd Lynne Curtis

132/135.A: 1st Frank Ibbott 112/115, 2nd Laurie Mirabella

111/115.B: 1st Leigh Cross 100/106, 2nd Arthur Bird 99/106.C: 1st Rhyan Weatherald 96/100, 2nd Jim Maffett

88/100.20 pair double rise: 1st Tony Plum 37/40, 2nd Lynne

Curtis 36/40.

MEMBERS of the Bass Coast Boardriders Club have met with desalination plant consortium AquaSure with a view to acting as a conduit between the surfi ng community and the plant’s construction.

The aim is to encourage “a clear fl ow” of information said boardriders’ president Ron Anderson.

“Despite how we may all

feel about it as individuals, the desalination plant is coming.“We as a committee want to en-sure you all know what is hap-pening, how it affects us and most of all that we are all safe in the water.”

But most of all said Ron, mem-bers want to focus on fun.

“We want to encourage as many people in the Bass Coast region to surf and really enjoy a sense of community.”

Activities include a family fun day for juniors and beginners at

Inverloch Main Beach on Sunday January 18 from 9am to noon, and a similar event from 10am to 1pm at the same venue for juniors and beginners on Sunday February 7.

Anniversary celebrations are being planned for the club’s off-shoot, Swell Mamas and there will be intermediate and advanced coaching sessions on dates to be advised.

The club is a non profi t or-ganisation run by volunteers to promote a sense of community among surfers, provide positive

role models and a safe environ-ment for young surfers, a forum for the surfboard riding commu-nity and a means of passing on information about environmental and social issues.

It costs only $10 a year to be-long, or $20 for families.

To fi nd out more, ring Ron on 0407 903 853 or [email protected]

Contacts for Swell Mamas are Geraldine Archibald 0400 683 857 or Lucy Cousens 5674 1059.

Meeting clears the air

Invy market a roaring success

Home assault A 62-year-old man was attacked in his home in Billson Street, Wonthaggi, on Monday, December 28.

The attacker was a 46-year-old Wonthaggi man.

“The offender has attended the victim’s place at 9pm and has assaulted him – punched him, kicked him. He also broke a front window on the property,” Wonthaggi Police’s Sergeant

Dale McCahon said.“The man is going to be charged with

assault and criminal damage on summons. He’ll appear in court at a later date.”

Esky theft A MAN was interviewed and charged by police on Wednesday, December 30 in relation to a number of esky thefts.

The 22-year-old from Balwyn was staying at the Tidal River camp ground, where he was plundering other campers’ food and alcohol supplies.

Foster Police’s Leading Senior Constable Karen McDonald said fellow campers were incensed at the man’s behaviour.

A 30-year-old man from Golden Square near Bendigo was interviewed on New Year’s Day in relation to theft of alcohol in the Yanakie area.

Meeniyan crash A CRASH in the main strip of Meeniyan on January 1 at 3.30pm has been blamed on carelessness.

The collision occurred at the intersection of Whitelaw Street and Royston Street.

“A Leongatha man and a lady from Meeniyan were involved in the collision, which was caused when one driver looked away from the road for a moment,” Meeniyan Police’s Leading Senior Constable Paul McDonald said.

The result was a rear end collision, with extensive damage done to the vehicles.

Leading Snr Const. McDonald said that “even the slightest lapse in concentration can result in a serious collision.

“One driver suffered minor injuries and one of the vehicles was written off in the collision. This demonstrates that even at 60 km/h, substantial damage can occur,” he said.

POLICE BRIEFSPOLICE BRIEFS

Sharon Hoober: the versatile Leongatha woman can turn her hand to many things. On Saturday she was at the Inverloch Market, selling her unique range of shower caps.

THE air was thick with the smell of cooking sausages and onions and the delighted squeals of children, as market goers looked for that very special bargain.

The Inverloch Market is a Mecca for visiting tourists and those locals who just like to get out and about.

With the best handmade local art and bric-a-brac and the tastiest food on offer, it’s undoubtedly the place to be. No longer one of those ‘best kept secrets’ the mar-ket draws a massive crowd and this weekend’s was no exception.

Helping out: Inverloch Rotary Club members Paul Everett and Margaret Blackwell helped raise some money in a time-honoured tradition at Inverloch Market on Saturday.

Big crowds: the Inverloch Market drew heaps of people on Saturday.

Great day out: Emma Clarkson was having fun with daughters Cate and Ella at the Inverloch Market on Saturday.

Madame president: incoming Inverloch Rotary Club president Marilyn Warren was all smiles as she helped out at the Inverloch Market on Saturday.


PAULINE Porcaro is passionate about agritourism.

The Agritourism Aus-tralia guru sees great po-tential for farming areas to value add to their busi-nesses through tourism.

Pauline spoke to Star reporter Chris Brown late last year.

What is agritourism?Agritourism is any

form of hospitality or tour-ism on-farm organised by entrepreneurial farmers opening up their farms for visitors. That could be to buy goods at the cellar door or gate or to stay on the farm or have an event on the farm.

What kind of experi-ences would be attractive agritourism ventures?

It depends on where you are. Farmers have to look at what type of visi-tors come to the area and what type of experiences they should put on. If it’s a group of young visitors maybe trail bike rides or if it’s older women you

might do some craft. I did an agritourism

study in Italy…we saw a lot of agricampings es-pecially in seaside areas. One farmer had an adopt-a-sheep program where he would send wool or cheese once a year to the adopter. People driving through the country can drive into a farm and have a good food experience of local produce.

People aren’t only looking for organic pro-duce, but produce that is connected to a place. The trend is no longer buying something from Woolworths.

One of the properties we thought was fantastic in Western Australia had a beautiful converted barn and they created a bush bath area where you go in the four foot bath sur-rounded by candles.

People are looking for something a little bit dif-ferent; they are looking for pampering.

What sparked your interest in agritourism?

I am a tourism teacher

Tourism on the farm

Italian agritourism: Villa il Crocicchio in Reggello Tuscany was a deserted farmhouse converted in the 1980s. They have created a resort with a pool, its own restaurant and they host events as well.

THE Department of Primary Industries (DPI) is advising Gippsland producers to be vigi-lant for the signs and symptoms of fl ystrike in their fl ocks, par-ticularly after early summer rains.

DPI District Veterinary offi cer Dianne Phillips said fl ystrike was a common external parasitic disease of sheep in Australia, and many producers suffer economic losses each year due to reduced production and stock losses as a result of the toxic effects and painful injuries it causes.

The Australian sheep blowfl y, Lucilia cuprina, is the major pest species in Australia and responsible for initiating more than 90 per cent of all fl ystrikes.

“Lucilia cuprina is metallic green/bronze in colour and unlike the native blowfl y, it breeds mostly on living sheep. The females are attracted to the odour, moisture, rain affected wool, pizzle rot, daggy sheep and sheep with diarrhoea,” Dr Phillips said.

“It has the potential of laying about 250 eggs in clusters in damp fl eece and cost the Australian sheep industry well over $100 million per year in deaths, lost production and treatment costs.

“The other signifi cant cause of fl ystrike in Australia is the brown blowfl y. This is a bigger and slower

blowfl y, which is not as active, but can cause just as much damage as the Australian sheep blowfl y.”

Dr Phillips said the timely use of appropriate preventive treatments was essential to limit the severity of fl ies and fl ystrike.

“Sheep producers should observe weather conditions and carefully watch for the presence of and types of fl ies,” she said.

“There are a number of treatments, applications and remedies available and the proper application and choice of treatment will depend on the length of wool, time off shears and the future of the sheep. The use of an appropriate preparation is important for maximum effi cacy.

“Careful consideration of product choice is essential and producers should consider the relevant Withholding Periods (WHP) that may apply. These will vary for different chemicals and local Withholding Periods can also vary from the Export Slaughter Interval (ESI).”

For information on the different treatments and applications, contact your local veterinary adviser, DPI Animal Health offi cer or call the DPI Customer Service Centre on 136 186.

Strike out fl ystrike

in the TAFE system and I help my students develop business plans for new businesses. I kept seeing this idea of businesses on farms and started explor-ing it with my students and I found we were lack-ing enough exposure for agritourism.

I’ve been talking to farmers who were desper-ate for added income and that’s when I became pas-sionate about it.

Is there a big demand for agritourism?

I think there will be a bigger need as we make people more aware of what it is and we grow the amount of businesses. I go to Brunswick St for a coffee because I know there’s a whole line of coffee shops and bars. I don’t go to a little one in the back streets because I don’t know if I will get a seat, so the more there are in an area the more hope we have of drawing business.

With Agritourism Aus-tralia we are trying to cre-ate an interest in agritour-ism…15 or 20 years ago no one knew what eco tourism was and now ev-eryone wants to be an eco tourist.

We believe by growing more farm tourism busi-

Agritourism Australia: Pauline Porcaro.Farming future: the Villa il Crocicchio pool area overlooks the vineyard and olive grove with products sold to guests.

nesses we’ll grow more interest and draw more people into rural areas. At the moment it’s not a major focus but it’s start-ing to be. The state tour-ism bodies are starting to talk about agritourism as something that should be built up and then they will put more advertising in it.

Does South Gippsland offer agritourism opportunities?

Yeah, I think it’s a fabulous area. It’s so fer-tile and rich and has so much land and so many farmers who are really excited about agritour-ism ventures. It’s near the beach in a lot of areas. You’ve got some fabulous food and wines that are being produced. It’s also a reasonable distance from Melbourne.

Would an agrito-urism enterprise be profi table?

You have to really in-vest money in a business to help it make money. There are a couple of re-ally key things they need to get the word out about their business and they need to be customer fo-cused. It needs to be ac-cessible, perhaps with a pick up from the lo-cal public transport or car. They need to have a unique selling point; com-ing up with some little idea, whether that’s a bath in the middle of the bush.

Are there lots of legal requirements to meet?

Obviously, yes. If you are going to have accom-modation on a farm, there are a whole lot of plan-ning regulations. You have to go through the local council because you can only have so many people staying. If you are going to have any food or drink you need a food safety permit.


VLE LEONGATHAKOONWARRA

1. Rodwells 2. Elders 3. David Phelan & Co 4. Landmark 5. SEJ 6. Alex Scott

Sale DrawJanuary 6 & 7

IF you are serious about get-ting cows in calf and would like to improve results, then here are some questions to ask of your system and your plan.

Heifer Program• Are they grown enough, 355

kg at joining (HF)?• Are you mating your heifers

early? Remember this is the only group that you can bring forward – giving you a better chance of get-ting them in calf the next year. In some herds, this may be 20-30 per cent of your herd the next year.

• Will you synchronise and AI the heifers?

• How many Jersey bulls will you need? Three bulls per 100 heif-ers or four bulls per 100 heifers if you synchronise to start with.

• Are the bulls fertility tested, vaccinated for VIBRIO and tested negative for BVDV (Bovine Viral Diarrhoea Virus)?

• Are the bulls in good body condition? Skinny bulls have very poor sperm quality.

• How long will you leave the bulls in for?

• Do you really want late calv-ing heifers?

Improving submission rate• Are the cows still losing con-

dition? Do you have enough feed in front of the cows?

• Have you treated your cows for metritis (infected uterus)? They will have a lot less chance of get-ting in calf with metritis. Remem-ber, you can’t easily diagnose metritis in cows. Talk to your vet about which cows should be exam-ined.

• Have you got a plan to address non-cyclers? When will you do it?

• Who will be responsible for heat detection?

• What heat detection aids will you use? Do you have them or-dered or on farm? Do people know how to get the best from them?

• When will you do your pad-dock checks for heat detection?

• How are heats recorded – book, board, back of an envelope?

• Are the freeze brands clipped and have poorly visible ear tags been addressed? Being able to clearly identify cows is important.

• Do you think that synchronis-ing may improve submission rates? When will this be done, by whom and which program method?

• Have you organised your AI tech for once or twice a day?

• Have you informed the AI tech of any bigger synchronisation days?

Improving conception rates• Who is responsible for check-

ing the Liquid Nitrogen Tank regu-larly?

• Is the semen ordered? Have you taken time to select well prov-en bulls for your breeding goals? Have you checked information at www.adhis.com.au regarding bull fertility?

• When is the Mating Start Date (MSD)? How long will you AI for?

• Have you practiced AI on some cull cows before MSD?

• Do you need a refresher on handling semen straws, is your wa-ter bath accurate for 32-38 degrees Celsius? Have you got a good sys-tem for identifying the bulls quick-ly without lifting the goblet out of the neck of the LN2 tank?

• Do you use tweezers to get the straws out? Do you keep the goblet less than 5cm from the top of the neck of the tank?

Bull Management• InCalf Rules of Thumb: three

bulls per 100 cows or four bulls per 100 cows if you have used syn-chronisation

• How many cows to mate at the start of mating?

• Are the bulls fertility tested, VIBRIO vaccinated and tested negative for BVDV (Bovine Viral Diarrhoea Virus) and vaccinated for BVDV? So that the bulls don’t get infected from a positive BVDV cow in the herd.

• Are the bulls in good body

condition?• Will you train the bulls to stay

in the paddock or off the dairy yard?

• How often will you rotate them (between four-seven days is recommended)

• Are they virgin bulls?• If they are leased bulls are they

virgin bulls that are vaccinated and tested negative for BVDV, if not, forget about it!

• Will the bulls be on farm at Mating Start Date (AI that is)? For getting used to other bulls, the farm and improving their nutrition.

• Do all farm staff know how to identify lame bulls quickly and treat them? Remember, a bull with an abscess may end up being sterile for the rest of the season.

• How long will you leave the bulls in for? Less time means higher empty rates, longer mating leads to longer calving pattern.

For more information contact Mark Humphris, InCalf Advisor at the Maffra Vet Centre on 5147 1177.

Improve on-farmherd reproduction

Herd production: there’s plenty of questions farmers can ask themselves if they want to do it better.


THE eighth Kustom Nationals will be held at Phillip Island from January 8 to 10.

It’s hosted by Kustoms of Australia.

Many builders and owners debut their latest “kustomized” rides, cruise the fabled race track, and enjoy the huge Rockabilly Festival at the Kustoms of Australia hosted event.

The weekend begins on Friday, January 8 at San Remo, which will be invaded by the coolest cars you could ever hope to see.

Kustoms of Australia has exclusive use of the main drag and foreshore area.

Entrants will be cruising San Remo until the bands set up on the foreshore from 6pm.

The centre of town as well as part of the esplanade will be cool car heaven, as only entrant cars will be allowed to display there for the rest of the evening.

Saturday the party continues at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit where Chopper and the John’s Rod and Custom crew will demonstrate how to make the cool even cooler.

Famous and novice pinstripers will showcase their talent on Pinstriping Alley, where a large variety of lifestyle traders will display their wares on the weekend as well as the extensive Kustom Kulture exhibition

and the model car show. Saturday evening entertainment

begins with a cruise to San Remo where there’ll be preferential parking on the foreshore.

Rockabilly bands will set up for the annual Kustoms Rant N’ Rave Party at the local hotel where the party lasts until late at night.

Sunday get ready for a full day’s entertainment at the track, with the continuation of the Kustom Workshop, trade alley, cruising the track, lowrider bikes, minirods, Kustom Kulture exhibition, model car show, tattoo show, muffl er rap, fl amethrower exhibition, auction, Rockabilly Festival and much more.

The Rockabilly Festival will feature

the largest gathering of Rockabilly bands in the land, including the Flyin’ Saucers, Atomic Hi-Tones, Blackhill Ramblers, Wild Turkey, Detonators, Ignition, Infernos, Loan Sharks, Australian Kingswood Factory, Sin and Tonics, Firebird, Jump ‘N’ Jive, Headliners, Voodoo Kreepers, Bone Rattlers, Creepers and Vaudevillians with a few original compositions leaving you breathless.

This event is open to the public.Attendance on Friday at San Remo

is free, but there is a fee to enter the Grand Prix Circuit on Saturday and Sunday. Single day entry at the track is $15 per day, family entry $30 and children under 14 $5.

No dogs are allowed.

Kool Kustomised Kraziness

Cool cars: the eighth Kustom Nationals will bring plenty of vehicles to Phillip Island.

Great attraction: plenty of people enjoy everything the Kustom Na-tionals offers.

Badminton presentation THE senior grand fi nal saw Transformers defeat Matrix 165 to 154.

This was a close fought contest, with the game decid-ed in the last set of the night between Matt Peters and Les Swift. Les was up early but Matt steadied and came away in the end to give his side the win. Both teams won six sets on the night.

The junior grand fi nal saw Phoenix defeat Ravenous Do Dos 59 to 33. Phoenix was too strong on the night. All members of the team contrib-uted to a very good win.

Seniors individual winners: back, from left, David Creed (Best no 1), Matt Peters (Best no 2) and Gary Baumgartner (Best no 4). Front, from left, Don Creed (Best no 3), Jessica Allen (Best no 5) and Lauren Jacobson (Best no 6).

Web of intrigue: Matrix, back from left, Les Swift, Davis Loo and Josh Almond. Front, from left, Jessica Allen, Jacinta Hudson, Jeanette Fowkes (fi ll-in for Colleen Lockhart).

Changing tact: Transformers, back, from left, Don Creed, Matt Peters, Robin Provan; Front, from left, Jake Peters and Andrew Provan. Absent Dao Green.

Junior individual winners: Brae Byrne (Best No 2) and Philip Moon (Best no 1). Absent Darcy Goad (Best no 3).

Consistently good: Most Consistent and Most Improved senior Don Creed with Most Consis-tent and Most Improved Davis Loo.

Great mates: Lauren Browne and Val Dohl were at the Inverloch Tennis Classic to support Jackie Carr.

What a hit: young tennis champions Glenn Dawes, Kieren Watkins, Jen-nifer Dawes and Holly Monaghan take a few moments to pose for The Star. The doubles players were competing at the Inverloch Junior Tennis Classic on Saturday.

Net success: Inverloch Junior Tennis Classic competitors Jack Keating, Millie Thomas, Rebecca Woods and Scott Binder.


THIS competition commenced on Fri-day, January 1 and fi nished on Sunday, January 3.

What a great show of support for this competi-tion with 33 adult mem-bers, 12 junior members and eight non members entering.

Although the weather over the weekend wasn’t favorable every day, a lot of people still managed to land some great catches.

The winners for this competition were.

Senior members:1st Tom Aulsebrook,

Pinkie Snapper 1300g.2nd Phil Nebel, Perch

540g.3rd Tyrone Nebel, Perch

480g.Junior members:1st Madi Klevercamp,

Mullet 140g.Junior non-member:1st Finn McMahon,

Pinkie Snapper 1060g.The club held its an-

nual general meeting on Saturday, January 2, at the Venus Bay Community Centre.

Again what a great turn out of members who attended.

Trophies were award-ed in many categories and the winners were: Paul de Hamer, Michael de Ham-er, Lucy Aulsebrook, Jake Nebel and Leon Webb.

Congratulations to all winners of our annual awards. Lifetime mem-bership to the club was

ON Sunday 226 enthusiastic runners and walkers faced the starter’s gun in the annual In-verloch Surf Life Saving Club “Surf & Sand” Fun Run.

In 2010 runners faced overcast conditions, with the threat of show-ers, along with a very stiff south westerly wind.

Fun Run events manger George Misson, said the strong winds led to much slower times than last year.

Even though the number of en-trants was up by four, he believed that the inclement weather kept many people away.

Along with the Anderson Inlet 1.2 km Swim Classic on Australia Day, the Fun Run will be an ongoing annual event for the club.

Funds raised from these events will go towards the building of the new clubhouse, and if all goes as presently planned, next year’s run-ners will be able to use the new club-house before and after their run.

Mr Misson was pleased with the mix of local and holiday makers

participating. Along with the main aim of rais-

ing funds for the building of the clubhouse, the club also uses the event to promote itself in the com-munity, as more than just a lifesaving establishment.

Along with other community groups, they like to offer some form of summer holiday activities for the locals as well as the many holiday makers that come into the area.

Well known middle distant run-ner Suzie Michelson from Aspen-dale, came home in the fastest time for the 10 km run.

Box Hill North runner Andrew Nagle, was the fi rst runner over the line in the 5km event.

Ex-Leongatha, middle distant runner and mother, Robyn (Misson) Salisbury, is starting to fi nd her form once more by winning the over 35 women’s 5 km run.

Leongatha father and son pair, Andrew and Dylan Westaway showed everyone a clean pair of heels by winning their respective age

groups in the 5km run.Youngest entrant in the 5km run,

seven-year-old Will McDonell from Ashburton ran a great time of 38.41.

Sixty-fi ve-year-old Vicki Thom-son from Chelsea Heights, even though last over the line in the 10 km run in a time of one hour and 21 minutes, showed us all that she is still very young at heart with the ef-fort that she put in.

10 km results: Open Men Greg Semmler 42.56.

O/35 Men Shane Pettingel 42.10.O/50 men Roy Hamilton 48.14.Open Women Suzie Michelson

41.37. O/35 Women Sue Burt 46.04.O/50 Heather Crosbie 56.17.5km results: Open Men Andrew

Nagle 20.03.U/19 Men Dylan Westaway

22.26.U/16 Boy’s Patrick Roger 20.44.O/35 Men Mark Walton 22.25.O/50 Men Andrew Westaway

24.13.

Fun run fl ying start

Family affair: the Chisholms from Archies Creek. Linda took second place in the 10 km run.

Team Leongatha: Alice and Prue Tyson with cousin April Barlow, with their treasures from the day.

Team Traralgon Harries: Shane Pettingel, Susie Michelson and Greg Semmler.

Great day: ISLSC president Phillipe du Plessis with the youngest 5km runner, Will McDonell.

Venus Bay Angling Club

Lucy Aulsebrook: award winner.

THE Under 12 boys Leongatha Lightning basketball team re-cently travelled to Moe to compete in the Moe Basketball 2009 tournament.

With temperatures in the high 30s all weekend, it was always going to be a hard fought battle on the court.

The Lightning’s fi rst match against Warragul saw this young team fi nd-ing its feet, with new play-ers who hadn’t played together before battling bravely, despite losing the match.

The next game against Traralgon saw the team pull together to ensure a hard fought win, display-ing skills and determina-tion for all to see. In the fi nal game for the fi rst day the boys battled it out with Maffra, and were all feeling the heat after hard competition all day.

Despite only one win-ning match on Saturday, the team’s high percent-ages secured them a spot in the quarter final against

• JUNIOR BASKETBALL

Lightning strikes Moe

Traralgon. The young team was unable to win this match, but showed everyone a great effort and was able to score well.

Everyone should be proud of their achieve-ments. Thanks to coach Rick Coleman and a spe-cial thank you to Kate Norton for fi lling in for Michael Westaway as the team manager for the

weekend - great job Kate. Another special thanks to Tye McGannon for step-ping in to coach the team in the quarter fi nals - well done Tye.

Lightning training re-commences on Thursday, February 4. Any queries should be directed to Mi-chael Westaway on 0418 557 572.

Ready to strike: back from left, Lachlan Thomas,Nicholas Battersby, Vincent Monaghan, Joel Brook-er, Trent Westaway and Rick Coleman (coach); front from left, Cameron Olden, Sam McGannon, Joel Norton and Riley Coleman.

awarded to our outgoing president Alick Purchase, who we thank for his long time service to the club.

This honour was given to Elise Turnedge who was extremely humbled to re-ceive this award.

All positions were va-cated, and a new commit-tee was chosen.

For 2010 the new com-mittee is: Gary Young (president), Ian McIntyre (vice president), Doug Grigg (treasurer), Maria Kostakos (secretary), Anne McIntyre (assistant secre-tary), and John Blezard and Tony Swindon (general committee).

The next competition will be held on the Austra-lia Day weekend.

Commencing on Janu-ary 24, and fi nishing on January 26, as this is a three day competition, it will start at 6am and the fi nal weigh-in on the last day will be at 3pm.

For more information about the club visit www.venusbayanglingclub.org.au or email us at [email protected].

Above: Jake Neb-el: was recognised for his angling club success.

Tom Aulsebrook: won the senior category in the Venus Bay An-gling Club January competition.


A BIG crowd attended the break-up barbecue and presentation night held recently at the Wonthaggi Ta-ble Tennis Centre in Wonthaggi.

Trophies were presented to the pre-mier teams and runners-up in all three grades of the spring competition, and to the winners and runners-up in the junior tournament held in November.

Other trophies were presented as fol-lows: Leading player A Grade - Michael

Ede, leading player A Reserve - Beau Thompson, leading player B Grade - Brittney Taylor, most improved B Grade player - Georgia Filippi, most improved juniors (beginners winners) - Jesse Con-dron and Rory McRae.

Table tennis coaching for juniors re-commences on the fi rst Thursday in Feb-ruary 2010 at the table tennis centre, 6 to 7pm. Practice for other grades commenc-es shortly after, at a date to be advised.

Wonthaggi table tennis presentation night

A Grade: grand fi nal Dirkash (Dirk Holwerda,Ashley Hewlett) d J’n’T (Justin Licic, Trish Denier 3-1). Photo: Ashley Hewlett.

Brittney Taylor: U15 girls singles and leading BGrade player.

Rochelle Savrimoothoo: (Diamonds) B Grade premiers runner-up. Rochelle also won the junior handicap singles event.

Left: B Grade: grand fi nal premiers, from left,Jackson Pitts, Niki Neducic (Daly Boyz).

Jesse Condron: most improved junior player (Be-ginners Winners) with Micah Condron (right) run-ner-up handicap singles event.

Runner-up: A Grade Justin Licis.

Georgia Filippi: most improved B Grade player.

Rory McRae: equal most improved ju-nior player (Beginners Winners).

Above: Sam Watson: junior champion open singles.

A Reserve: grand fi nal winners Thin Culture, from left, Beau Thompson, Jayden Hallett and Michael Veal. Jayden was also runner-up in the junior open singles championship.

A Reserve: runners-up White Port, from left, Nancy Pattinson, Helen Wall and Kaye Craddock.

TIDESAt Port Phillip Heads

JANUARYTime height

(metres)

0352 1.640938 0.301602 1.482146 0.26

0432 1.621027 0.231700 1.472233 0.36

0511 1.571114 0.191800 1.442318 0.47

0551 1.511200 0.191901 1.41

0003 0.580632 1.441245 0.212001 1.37

0143 0.770811 1.281430 0.302202 1.34

6WED

7THUR

8FRI

9SAT

10SUN

11MON

12TUE

All times shown in24 hour clock

0001 - 1200..................AM1201 - 2400..................PM

Add one hour fordaylight saving

Here is an easy guide to tides in your area.To determine tides for a partic-ular area, add or subtract peri-ods of times as shown below.

Earlier MinutesApollo Bay ...........................25King Island (Grassy) ...........10King Island (Surprise Bay) ....40King Island (Franklin) ...........40Lakes Entrance .................... 170Lorne ...................................... 20Mallacoota Inlet .................... 158Rip Bank ................................ 15Snowy River Entrance ......... 170_______________________ Cape Schanck, Flinders, Morn-ington Ocean Beaches, Seal Rocks, Venus Bay, Waratah Bay, Woolamai ....... nil_________________________Later MinutesAltona ................................... 195Barwon Heads Bridge ........... 15Carrum ................................. 195Corinella ................................. 68Cowes Pier ............................. 50Dromana .............................. 195Frankston ............................. 195Geelong ............................... 210Hastings ................................. 66Hovell Pile ............................ 195Inverloch Pier ......................... 15Melbourne ............................ 200Mornington ........................... 195Newhaven Jetty ..................... 30No. 1 West Channel (Annulus) ........................... 50No. 2 South Channel Light .... 70No. 8 South Channel Light .. 150Port Albert Pier ...................... 90Portarlington Pier ................. 190Portsea Pier ........................... 80Port Welshpool (Rabbit Island .................... 10Queenscliffe Pier ................... 30Rhyll ....................................... 60Rosebud ............................... 195Rye Pier ............................... 170St. Leonards Pier ................. 190Sandringham ....................... 195Sorrento Pier ........................ 130Stony Point ............................. 40South Channel Pile Light ..... 190Swan Island Dock ................ 120Tooradin ............................... 105Warneet.................................. 84Williamstown ........................ 200Welshpool Pier ....................... 90

0050 0.681718 1.361334 0.262101 1.35


THE Waratah Beach SLSC Nipper Program for Season 2009/2010 has more than 120 participants.

The program runs every Monday, Wednesday and Friday until January 22 and features both beach and water events.

Emphasis at the nippers is focused on fun and playing it safe in the water as well as testing their sporting skills.

On Fridays, the nippers enjoy a barbe-cue while the last day features a nipper’s club championship.

The nippers doesn’t happen without the support of volunteers, with most regu-lars and a few new faces making sure the event can operate effectively.

The club held a family barbecue last Saturday night which was sold out, with more than 120 attending. It was a great social event to introduce new members.

The clubrooms are also available for hire to the community; the South Coast Boardriders are using the facility this Sat-urday night while weddings can be held there as well, with beautiful views across the surf beach.

“The aim of the program is to give kids an education about surf safety and fi rst aid, as well as identifying wave types

and rips,” club president Julian Meagher told The Star.

“Some of our nippers have gone on to do their surf rescue certifi cates, while others have participated in our bronze camps.

“It is great to see some of our former nippers return to help us out.”

THIS summer, the Victorian Government and Life Saving Victoria will again be holding their Play it safe by the Water campaign, which creates com-munity awareness and promotes safe and responsible behaviour around beaches, waterways and pools.

One of the most important rules to be aware of is to always swim between the fl ags on a patrolled beach.

Any beach can be dangerous. Beach-goers should be careful and always swim between the red and yellow fl ags, which indicate that the beach is patrolled.

When swimming between the red and yellow fl ags, always look back to the beach to check that you are still be-tween the fl ags. If you choose to swim outside these fl ags, you could be moving into a more dangerous location.

Patrolled beaches are identifi ed by the red and yellow fl ags. With 67 of Victoria’s most popular beaches having lifesaving patrols during the summer months, there’s no reason for you not to swim between the fl ags.

Because beaches are not patrolled every day of the year, please remem-ber to check if it is safe to swim. Never swim alone, and read and obey the water

safety signs.Be aware of rips. A rip is a strong

water current running out to sea from a beach. Rips can easily sweep swimmers out to sea from shallow water, some-times several hundred metres offshore.

Rips occur at all beach locations, in-cluding bays. Common signs of a rip are murky brown water caused by sand and seaweed being stirred up off the sea bed; foam on the surface extending beyond the break; waves breaking on both sides of the rip but not inside the rip (the rip may seem calm and inviting); water that appears dark, indicating deeper water; and debris fl oating out to sea.

If you are caught in a rip when at a beach patrolled by lifesavers, obey the Rs; relax, stay calm and fl oat with the current; swim across it, not against it. Raise an arm to signal for help, fl oat and wait for assistance.

Being aware of beach safety

Hard going: this nipper tires af-ter surfi ng in on his board at Sandy Point.

Flag time: these three boys lift their heads in readiness for their sprint on the sand to the fl ags.

New crop: the new Under 8 group of nippers are pictured with instructors and the water safety team at the opening day.

Wetsuits help: on cooler days the nippers fi nd that wetsuits keep them in the water longer.

Board event: nippers collect their boards in readi-ness for the surf.

Water important: having a well earned drink are Max Shuttleworth and Lochlan Brookes.


THE Wonthaggi Bowls Club hosted the South Gippsland Bowls Association ‘Champion of Cham-pions’ last weekend.

The Wonthaggi greens were in perfect condition given the importance of the event, and weather conditions could not have been better.

Saturday’s play saw the round of 16 followed by the quarter fi nals.

Following play there were no great surprises.

By Sunday morning there were four players left: Rod Beech (Wonthaggi) playing Brendan Ryan (San Remo), and Michael Coram (Inverloch) playing David Lenden (Phillip Island).

In a magnifi cent display of draw bowls in which it was expected that Rod Beech would prove too good for Brendan Ryan, it was the ‘underdog’ Brendan Ryan who made the fi nal, defeating Rod

Beech 25-15. In the second semi fi nal

Michael Coram got off to a fl yer, leading David Lenden 10-2 within a matter of seven ends.

From there David Lenden whittled the lead away to be ahead by one by the time the scores reached the 20s.

As scores drew toward 25 it was ‘nip and tuck’ and again after a magnifi cent display of draw bowls, it was Michael Coram who made the fi nal with a score of 25-22.

Following lunch, the fi nal was expected to have the large crowd on edge as both bowlers had played excellent games of draw bowls to win their semi-fi nals.

It turned out to be a very one-sided affair as Michael Coram simply won end after end to build up a mighty lead by the 10th end, leading 18-4.

Whilst Brendan Ryan picked up a few shots, it was Michael Coram who

did not let up and went on to win 25-8.

After bowling so well throughout the two days, it must have been a little disappointing for Brendan Ryan to be beaten so easily.

The results of all matches were: Saturday (round of 16) R. Anderson (Lang Lang) d A. Provis (Loch); B. Ryan (San Remo) d D. Galloway (Toora); P. Stimson (Mirboo North) d I. Park (Foster); R. Beech (Wonthaggi) d J. Turner (Leongatha); M. Coram (Inverloch) d C. Hair (Meeniyan); G. Crowley (Pt Welshpool) won on a walkover; R. McKenzie (Fish Creek) d B. Edwards (Corinella); D. Lenden (Phillip Island) d R. Besley (Korumburra).

Quarter fi nals: B. Ryan (San Remo) d R. Anderson (Lang Lang); R. Beech (Wonthaggi) d P. Stimson (Mirboo North); M. Coram (Inverloch) d G. Crowley (Pt Welshpool); D. Lenden

(Phillip Island) d R. McKenzie (Fish Creek).

Semi fi nals: B. Ryan (San Remo) d R. Beech 25-15; M. Coram (Inverloch) d D. Lenden (Phillip Island) 25-22.

Final: Michael Coram (Inverloch) d Brendan Ryan (San Remo) 25-8.

Michael Coram will now go on to play in the state fi nals at a date and venue yet to be decided.

Koram’s association champion

Bowls talent: Brendan Ryan, San Remo (runner-up), Jack Charlton (association president) and Mi-chael Coram (winner of champion of champions).

LeftWinning way: Michael Coram puts one down nearing the end of the fi nal.

Loch and District bowlsSINCE my last report the fi nal of the men’s championship has been played between Alan Provis and Col Cochrane.

A great match to watch and the result could have gone either way but Alan eventually came out the winner. He then went on to play in the district champion of champions where he enjoyed the experience.

Two days of the men’s annual tournament were played last weekend. On Saturday 14 teams enjoyed the triples which was beautifully catered for by our ladies.

Best last game went to the local team of G. Barber, J. Riddell and J. Tuckfi eld. The runners-up were M. Collett, W. Soulsby and P. van der Byl from Mordialloc, with the winners being R. Williams, R. Hutton and G. Field from Korumburra.

On Sunday the men’s pairs were played, with the best last game going to B. McNamara and P. Stebbings from Loch. The runners-up were P. Snedden and G. Prowd from Toora, and the winners were R. Trotman and I. Todd from Leon-gatha. Well done to all.

Social bowls starts again on Thursday, with twilight bowls commencing on the following Wednesday (13th).

Korumburra bowls WITH the festive season a memory, and the start of a new decade, bowlers are reminded that pennant will be starting very soon.

The ladies start on January 12 when Di-vision 2 go over the bridge to Phillip Island, while the Division 3 lasses are heading down the track to Foster, with the lads starting the following week.

The last week of pennant prior to Christmas saw the Burra having mixed results, with both ladies divisions having wins, and the Division 4 Gold lads keeping the fl ag fl ying with a win against Mirboo North.

Some of the winners over the last weeks of bowls have been Chas Blogg, Ross Lomagno, Ken Myors, John Elstub, John Myors, Emanual Sgarioto, Wilf O’Flaherty, Ken Cecil, Ross Lomagno and Maurie Rielly.

The club’s Christmas evening dinner was a very happy event, thanks to the members who organised the evening, with the ladies drawing their wonderful hamper, with Norma Rielly winning the fi rst prize, Brenda Eastman second draw and Marge Woolley third draw.

Dates to remember: Due to the ladies tournament this Friday there will be no counter tea this month. The men’s tournament will be held on January 21, men’s pairs, January 24 mixed fours, January 26 men’s fours. Entries are required for all these days, with twilight bowls recommencing January 14.

Presidents Bill and Mary wish all bowlers and friends a happy new year.

BOXING Day saw Retire and Wealth sponsor our stableford day.Thirty-seven players faced the starter and the CCR was 69 or 39

points. Each grade shared the best score of the day.The winner of A Grade was Ian Atcheson with 42 points, B Grade

went to Denis Lim, and C Grade was won by Kev Riseley.Balls went to G. Young beaten on a countback in B Grade, T.

Charlton, J. Howard, J. Hassett, M. Wallace, M. Livingstone, D. Burge on a countback from many others, all with 37 points.

The nearest the pins went to D. Lim and J. Lovie.The Thursday bar voucher was won by Tim Burgess with 41 points,

and balls went to M. Wood, G. Calder and R. Warren.Saturday, January 2

Our medal on Saturday was sponsored by Colin Watson Holden.A Grade went to Jared Lovie with a net 70, B Grade, on a countback,

went to Rod Goodwin, also with a net 70 whilst C Grade and the medal went to Vic Haasjes with a net 68.

Balls went to J. Hassett, G. Maisey, W. Turner, M. Herrald, K. Riseley, B. Fitzpatrick, G. Fixter and B. Wilson; the last three on a countback.

The hole-in-one for a new Holden was not won, but the men’s nearest the pins went to K. Riseley and D. Clemann.

The ladies event was won by Ann Grist with a net 69. Balls went to S. Wakefi eld and T. Scoble. Rumour has it that one of the ladies pulled on the handbrake going up the 18th hole.

The ladies nearest the pins went to Barb James and Sue Wakefi eld.A highlight of the week was the hole-in-one by Graeme Calder at

Warragul Golf Club. Well done Graeme, next time do it at your home club.

Thursday’s bar voucher went to Ben Fitzpatrick with 41 points, probably gives the vouchers to his father. A ball went to Roy Fisher.

Next Saturday our stableford event will be sponsored by the new owners of the Opal Motel. Thank you for continuing the sponsorship.

THERE were 19 starters for the stableford event onThursday, December 24. The CCR was 70.

A Grade winner was Darren McCafferty(20) 43.

Down the line: Max Fletcher (26) 42 and ChrisBracecamp (21) 42. Birdies: Mal Payne 4th, PhilStimson 4th and 6th.

Thursday, December 31A stableford event was played with 26 starters,

and the CCR was 69.A Grade winner was John Blunsden (22) 43

countback.Down the line: Tom Traill (10) 43, Tony Toma-

da (19) 40, Brian Godenzi (19) 39.Saturday, January 2

There were 40 starters for the stroke - monthlymedal played on Saturday. The CCR was 69. AGrade winner was Ray Matthews (8) 66 (medallist)countback, B Grade Ron Funnell (19) 66.

Down the line: Mal Payne (11) 67, John Mc-Farlane (13) 67, Ian Evison (11) 68 countback,Tom Whitelaw (6) 68 countback, Darryl Woodall(11) 68 countback.

Nearest the pin: 4th Max Fletcher, 6th BryanRandall (pro pin), 13th Ray Matthews, 16th ChrisBracecamp, 2nd shot 1st hole Graham Watson.

Birdies: John McFarlane 13th, Mal Payne 13th,Max Fletcher 4th, Chris Bracecamp 16th, RayMatthews 13th.

Eagle 1st Graham Watson.

THE holiday season swelled the fi eld to 101 players on Saturday, which enabled four grades.

Neville Wright plays a very solid game and he will always be a threat in A Grade. He won with 36 points. Paul Schultz scored a handy 37 to win B Grade.

Kevin Castwood had the day’s best score of 38 points in winning C Grade, while the extra grade gave Dave Bethune the chance to come up trumps with 36.

Andrew McFarlane won pro-pin on the 14th and Colin McKenzie took nearest the pin on the 16th.

Ball winners: S. Hansen 37, S. Chisholm, B. At-twood 36; I. Sutherland, B. Dicker, D. Hastings, N. Gillin, A. Macfarlane, M. Monaghan, G. Morrison, N. Cairns 35; A. Magpantay 34, M. Kavanagh, R. Brown, G. McRitchie, K. Wardle 33; C. McKenzie, J. Housey, P. Hartigan, M. Fraser 32.

Results from the previous Saturday saw Russell Williams the A Grade winner on 37 and P. Du Plessis successful in B Grade with 38. Max Kavanagh and Barry Hughes were the one-shot winners.

TuesdayAll grades required a score of 40 points or more

for success. T. Brown had 41 to win A Grade, Tim McCarthy had 41 to win B Grade, and Peter Horman took out C Grade with 40. Nearest the pin winners were P. Churchill (14th) and G. McRitchie (16th).

Ball winners: N. Gillin, P. Hobson, D. Hanna 39; A. Leadingham 38, R. McRobert, S. Chisholm, K. Gardner, J. Smith 37; J. Eabry, P. Hartigan, B.

Jamieson 36; J. Dalton, R. Jenkins, N. Cairns, T. Walker 35.

The previous Tuesday was a good day for father and son, Andrew and Nick Cairns. Andy made a hole-in-one on the 14th hole which obviously gave him nearest the pin. Congratulations Andrew, and also to Nick who won B Grade with an excellent 41 points.

Doug Clemann scored 41 points off a nine handi-cap which is excellent golf, while Noel Smith took C Grade with 37 points. Rod Brown won nearest the pin on the 16th hole.

ThursdayThe fi nal day of 2009 was very hot, but that didn’t

deter 77 golfers from having a go.A Grade went to Neville Wright (again) who made

a mockery of a nine handicap to snare 40 points.Colin Manley was successful in B Grade with

35 points, an indication that the B graders must have struggled with the heat. R. Rumian had a fi ne round of 41 points to win C Grade.

Frank Smedley (14th) and Jack Curtis (16th) were nearest the pin winners, while balls went to: K. Gardner 40, P. Smedley 39, P. Hobson, G. Kurrle 37; F. Smedley, J. Jordan 36; T. Walters 35, P. Horman, B. Jamieson, K. Scott, K. Briggs, B. Attwood, R. McRobert, K. Godridge, G. McDonald 34.

The previous Tuesday event was won by Trevor Steer in A Grade with 39 points. Ali Wright had 42 points plus nearest the pin to win B Grade.

Inverloch ladies bowlsTHIS morning is the fi nal of the ladies singles champion-ship, between Anne Tschiderer and Robyn Dennis starting at 9.30 am, it would be nice to see any who are free support-ing this match.

Wednesday, January 6, the ladies will be running a mixed day of bowls starting at 1pm, whites or mufti, your choice.

Wednesday, January 13 is back to ladies social bowls, whites, starting at 1pm.

Wednesday, January 20, is monthly triples again, spon-sored by Baradene Interiors.

Please put your names down for this special sponsored day, the more the merrier.

Keep watching the board at the club for the next Friday meal, which will be sometime in February.

The fi nal of the state pairs was won by Hazel Crews-don and Rebecca Allen from Phillip Island, with Robyn Dennis and Cynthia Hensley runners-up.

BASS COAST SERIES - RACE 1Sunday 17th January 2010 10am StartEntries/info: aquathon.cpslsc.org.au

400M SURFSWIM

3.5KM RUN

Woorayl golf

Leongatha golf Mirboo North golf


LEONGATHA North resi-dent, Sarah Ford, 17, is still working hard towards achieving her tennis goals, and recent successes have only spurred her on.

At the Schoolboys/Schoolgirls Championships in Moe she won the 18s girls singles and doubles for the second year running.

She played exceptionally well to have an impressive win in the singles fi nal, 8-0, against a strong competitor from Traralgon, Sheri-dan Kourtis. Sheridan, 18, then teamed up with Sarah to win the doubles fi nal 8-3, as they did the previous year.

This success follows an impres-sive performance at the Kilmore Tennis Classic, where Sarah won all three events she entered - the 18s girls doubles, the 18s mixed doubles and the women’s open singles. This came a week after she was runner-up in the 18s girls doubles at the Traralgon Open.

All this stands her in good stead as she heads into January’s hectic tournament schedule, and she also intends to play her fi rst money event in early February.

The next step for Sarah is at Bendigo from January 18-20 where she plays in qualifying matches for the Australian Open juniors.

Two thousand and nine was a hard year for Sarah, with many in-

juries and a major illness severely hampering her fi tness, but the recent wins have been encouraging, as was playing her fi rst junior ITF (Inter-national Tennis Federation) event in Darwin in July, where she played some of the world’s top juniors, and learned what she has to do better to be a winner at that level.

Sarah also managed to fi nd the balance between study and train-ing, proving her work ethic and dedication is paying off in both, as she did extremely well in her Year 11 studies at Mary MacKillop Col-lege, winning an academic award for excellence at the end of year as-sembly.

This year she will complete her VCE and also concentrate on build-ing her fi tness and getting as much match play as possible, so she is ready to launch herself full time into her tennis as soon as her exams are fi nished.

Sarah will work towards the best possible ENTER score to ensure a place at university, should some-thing prevent her from achieving her sporting goals.

On top of her daily training and study, tournaments and coaching, Sarah also plays night tennis at Le-ongatha and Traralgon, and plays pennant juniors and Section 1 se-niors, alongside her coach Graham Charlton, on Saturdays at Traral-gon.

Sarah knows that next year will

be a challenge, but she is up for it and hopes to do herself and her community proud.

Her favourite slogan is ‘impos-sible is nothing’, words she picked up on the back of a T-shirt.

Sarah is constantly motivated by words of advice from her unoffi -cial mentor, V8 supercar driver and 2006 driver champion, Rick Kelly, who is always inspiring her to never give in and keep fi ghting until she wins.

Hopefully 2010 will be a suc-cessful year for Sarah and the next step towards a successful sporting career.

EIGHTY-six shoot-ers started the New Year with a 75 target shoot at Hallston on Sunday.

The main topic of conversation wasn’t the weather or the great start to the year, but the fact that the government has announced a duck hunting season for 2010.

The season starts on March 20 and ends on

May 30, which is 23 days longer than last year.

Bag limits have been increased for 2010 and hunters will be allowed to take fi ve ducks per bag (with a maximum of one Australasian Shoveler), plus an additional three Wood Ducks.

With the great rains over the state in the last week, we can look forward to a great season with wild duck a large part of the

The Finance Consulting and Accounting 29th Annual In-verloch Junior Tennis Clas-sic and the 10th Annual South Gippsland Junior Tennis Clas-sic, held at the Leongatha Ten-nis Club, are about to kick off early in January.

The Inverloch tournament ran from January 2 to 4, and the Leongatha tournament starts today and runs until Thursday. The tournament features 10, 12, 14, 16 and 18 and under in boys and girls events.

All singles matches feature a con-solation event for fi rst round losers so there is no shortage of tennis, irre-

spective of the players’ ability levels. Doubles and mixed events are also featured.

The tournaments have grown in stature with entries coming from all over Gippsland, Melbourne and some from interstate. The tournament also attracts large local support, where the younger players of South Gippsland and surrounding areas can test their abilities against seasoned campaign-ers. The tournament is very friendly and of an excellent standard, with a fantastic canteen being run daily.

The Inverloch and Leongatha ten-nis clubs are very excited to be staging these tournaments and the involve-ment of so many people, particularly the sponsors, Finance Consulting and

Accounting and McDonalds, who help make events of this magnitude possible.

“Finance Consulting and Account-ing are proud to be associated and continue their long involvement with such a worthwhile event where the youth of the area will prosper,” Keryn Benetti from Finance Consulting and Accounting said.

The Inverloch Tennis Club also acknowledges the strong and ongoing support of its major sponsor the Ben-digo Bank, who have been generous supporters and backers of the Inver-loch Tennis Club. For further informa-tion or if you would like an entry form, please contact Mark Sheppard on 5674 1866 or 0418 591 101.

South Gippsland Field and Game Club

menu. Every year a South

Gippsland Field and Game Life member donates a trophy and a half case of cartridges to our junior member who shoots the highest aggregate score for the year.

This year’s winner was Arron Notman.

Other winners on the day were:

AA: S. Busana 64/75, K. Jacobs 62/75, G. Couper 60/75.

A: D. Knopp 59/75, R. Evans 59/75, J. Power 59/75.

B: R. Batten 62/75, T. Hardman 58/75, S. White 56/75.

C: J. White 53/75, I. Perry 51/75, M. Goulden 41/75.

Vets: R. Carmody 64/75, G. Hart 54/75, J. Burns 52/75.

Ladies: M. Hogan 49/75, B. Hart 54/75, S. Couper 41/75.

Juniors: C. Batten 52/75, E. Foster 50/75, R. Collins 43/75.

Well done: Leith Johnson presents the junior ag-gregate trophy to Arron Notman.

Junior tennis a hit

Ready for a hit: from left, Kahlia Truman, Bradley Perks, Kerryn Benetti (Finance Consulting and Ac-counting), Mark Sheppard (tournament organiser), Georgia du Plessis, Josh Truman and Caleb Pollard-Virtue are ready for the summer tennis.

Serving for success

Big win: Sarah Ford (left) won the Under 18 schoolgirls doubles with Sheridan Kourtis. Earlier Sarah won the singles fi nal.

COOLER conditions were experi-enced by 150 athletes who turned out for the last Leongatha Little Ath-letics competition for 2009 on De-cember 12.

There were 187 PBs achieved. Congratulations to the following athletes who

broke centre records: Julian Patterson U12 Boys High Jump (1.48m) and Eleanor Patterson U14 Girls Triple Jump (10.08m).

It was the fi nal week of the On Track program run by Paula O’Loughlin.

Paula does a wonderful job teaching new skills to our young athletes and preparing them for their fi rst season of athletics.

Each of the On Track athletes were presented with a medal and a certifi cate for completion of the program.

Well done to the following athletes who were presented with awards: Tara Funnell, Holly Proudlock, Tiffany-Blossom Matheson, Rhien Hall, Grace Patterson, Ariella Francis, Alex Ritchie, Erin Mantel, Harrison Herbert, Lachlan Smith, Jazmine Findlay, Jessica Zubcic, Tyson Bolam, Ethan Woodall, Max Hosie, Ruby Adkins, Alexander Battersby, Emma Trease, Sophie Close, Gemma VanDerRydt, William Lewis, Briella Tudor, Brianna McNaugton and David Phillips.

All On Track athletes are reminded that they may compete in the New Year in the Under 6 age group.

There is no additional charge.PB’s as follows:-Under 6 Boys: Mark Mancarella - 200m and

Shotput.Under 6 Girls: Taylah Cunningham - Long

Jump, Ashley Geary -Vortex and Long Jump and Chelsea Elliot - Vortex and Shotput.

Under 7 Boys: Ryan Knight - Shotput and Vortex, Ryan Giliam - Shotput, Vortex and 200m, Maverick Matheson – Shotput and 200m, Mathew Fowkes – 100m and 200m, Sullivan Herbert – Shotput and 200m, Lachlan Murrell – Shotput, 100m and 200m, Ethan Tudor – Shotput, Callum Buckland – Vortex and Shotput, Lian Waldron – Vortex and Shotput and Beau Fennell – 200m, Vortex and Shotput.

Under 7 Girls: Hayley Proudlock -Vortex, Long Jump and 200m, Merrin Giles – Long Jump and Vortex, Jessie Fowkes – Vortex, 200m and Long Jump, Mackenzie Findlay – Vortex and 200m, Chelsie Geary – Vortex, Long Jump and 200m, Laura Richmond – 100m and Vortex, and Georgia Spencer – Vortex, 100m, Long Jump and 200m.

Under 8 Boys: Angus Ritchie – Shotput, Daniel Sturtevant – Vortex, Alfred Herbert – 50m, 200m and Shotput, Royce Patterson – Vortex, Connor Murrell – 50m, Zachary Reid – Vortex, Ryan Frank – 200m, Riley de Geus – 200m, Patrick Lewis – Vortex and 200m, Oliver McLean – 200m, Shotput and 100m, Aaron Trease – Shotput

Under 8 Girls: Maddi Cruikshank – 200m, 100m, 50m, Discus and Long Jump, Ella Roberts

– 100m, 50m, 200m, Discus and Long Jump, Hannah Giliam – Discus and Long Jump, Bianca Proudlock – Discus, Tori Duckworth – 200m and 50m, Madeline Smith – Discus, Darcie Holmes – Long Jump and 200m, Kiara McJames-Court – 200m, Jessica Geary – Discus, 200m, Long Jump and 50m, and Alison Mancarella – 200m.

Under 9 Boys: Shannon Kennedy – Discus and High Jump, Nicholas Matheson – Discus and 199m, Kye Casbolt – 50m, High Jump, Discus, 200m and 100m, Mitchell Boasman – High Jump and 100m, Eugene Douglas – Discus, 100m, 50m and High Jump, Tim Boler – Discus, 200m and 50m, Joshuah Hill – 200m, Samuel Chadwick – 50m, Discus and 100m, Douglas Mancarella – Discus, 100m, 50m and High Jump, and Jake Waldron – 100m, Discus and High Jump.

Under 9 Girls: Amber Hansson – Javelin Turbo, Discus and 50m, Kasey Thorson – 200m, Amy Tudor – Javelin Turbo, Irene Thorson – Discus, Kate Marshman – Discus and Javelin Turbo, Casey Walker – Javelin Turbo, 200m and Discus, and Hannah Martin- 50m.

Under 10 Boys: Rohan Baudinette – 1500m and 100m, Jackson Patterson – Triple Jump, Brett Thorson – 200m and 50m, and Jack Stockdale – 50m.

Under 10 Girls: Amber Standfi eld – 100m and High Jump, Ellie Holmes – 1500m and High Jump, Shannon Mellings – High Jump, Katelyn Jackson – 50m Shotput and High Jump, Jasmine McJames- Court-1500m, 100m and High Jump and Hayley Phillips – Shotput, 1500m and 100m.

Under 11 Boys: Joel Norton – High Jump, Ben Phillips – High Jump, Harrison McLean – 100m, Shotput and High Jump, Nicholas Battersby – 50m and Jordi Geary – Shotput.

Under 11 Girl: Christine Byrne – Javelin, Lily Akers- 50m and Javelin, Nikki Stockdale – Javelin and 100m, and Emily Cashin – Long Jump.

Under 12 Boys: Julian Patterson – High Jump, Wesley Graeme – High Jump, Kaj Patterson – Discus, Dean Thorson – Triple Jump and Matthew Minogue – 1500m and Triple Jump.

Under 12 Girls: Gemma Martin – 100m, Shotput and Triple Jump.

Under 13 Boys: Leo Byrne – Triple Jump.Under 14 Girls: Mikaela Witherow – Triple

Jump and 100m, Eleanor Patterson – Triple Jump and Olivia Cope – 100m, Discus and Triple Jump.

Under 15 Boys: Michael Green – Triple Jump, 100m and High Jump.

Under 15 Girls: Erin Baudinette – Discus and 100m, Lauren Goldie – High Jump and 100m and Brydie McKenzie-Edwards – High Jump.

Well done to all athletes and parents for a great fi rst half of the Track and Field season. Special mention to the committee who have worked hard throughout the year and to those who help out to offi ciate each week. Thank you and we look forward to seeing you all next year.

Competition resumes on Saturday, January 30.

Leongatha Little Athletics


STONY Creek enjoyed another successful day, with over 2000 punters on track to enjoy Satur-day’s race meeting.

A similar size crowd fl ocked to the track on the previous Sunday, making it a great holiday period for the club.

The weekend event saw Kelvin John’s

Retravision sponsoring every race.The Retravision team enjoyed the day

in a marquee, which protected them from the sometimes rainy and often windy conditions.

But the enthusiasm for a good day out couldn’t be dampened or blown away, as the racegoers partied in true holiday spirit.

Magnifi cent six: Phil Western, Matt Holm, Anthony, Laurissa and Lucy Falls and Emma Smith enjoy the day.

Fine food: Dyson Hoggett from the Koonwarra Store’s stall was kept busy during the afternoon. All the gang: the Kelvin John’s Retravision team enjoyed a big day out.

Windy weather: Lynne Arnup, Trevor Smith and Marg Klingenberg get into the spirit of the day.

Fun times: Kelvin and Kathy Smith entertain Asko state manager, Tony Biggs.

One with the lot: Stony Creek Football Club operated the popular hamburgerstall. Kayla McIndoe, Simone Jans and Karli Brislin were ready to help.

Helping hand: Robert Beilby, Kevin Warren and Kelvin Smith man the MS raffl e stand.

Gate keeper: Meeniyan’s Aileen Hughes was keep-ing an eye on the comings and goings of horses.

Three’s company: Angie Corbett, Tish Hanksand Karyn Leicester were having a fun time at the races.

Relax: Enjoying the races were local girls Izzy Le Roy, Alex O’Sullivan, So-phie Landy and Imogen Whittaker.


STONY Creek Racing Club has staged two very success-ful meetings in the past six days and the big story to come out of Saturday’s fi xture was the emergence of apprentice jockey, Patrick Keane, who rode four winners in a terrifi c performance.

Keane had only 17 career wins coming into the meeting, after hav-ing his fi rst ride at Bairnsdale just on 12 months ago.

To ride a quartet of winners at this stage of his career is an incredible ef-fort and signals a bright future for the youngster, who has astute trainer, Doug Harrison, as his master.

Keane had never ridden a double prior to the meeting, and after riding his fi rst two winners (for Harrison) he was delighted to have notched his fi rst double.

“I’ve got a couple more good rides later in the day, so hopefully it is not over yet,” he quipped and was all smiles as he returned to scale after the fi nal event of the day with four under his belt.

The fi rst of the Harrison winners was Tarantalina, a mare that has a strong connection with Gippsland and in particular, Bairnsdale.

She is the daughter of Triantular, a mare formerly trained by the late Greg Counihan in Bairnsdale and Tarantalina was the fi nal horse Greg bred.

“Greg’s wife Robyn is a part owner as well as some other rela-tions and he asked me to train her

before he died, so to win this race is quite special,” Harrison said.

“To be honest she has been a real handful to train. She will kick you if she gets the chance and is very hard to handle. She even put a good dent in my car.

“It has taken some time to get her to settle and get her mind on the job, but she is as tough as anything.”

His second winner, Humiliton, is a mare Harrison said has had her share of problems.

“She showed us a fair bit early and then has just had little things go wrong, and we have sorted out the best way to ride her,” he said.

Trainer Bec Kelly and her hus-band Travis are heading off for a week’s holiday after the Stony Creek meeting, so the win of their galloper, Beautiful Light was very timely.

“He was trained at Quirindi and this was only his fi fth start for us. He’s been very consistent, but it was good to break through,” Kelly said.

“He won his last run for his pre-vious trainer on a quick back up and that was one of the reasons we backed him up today, after running here Monday.”

Travis pointed out the six-year-old is a metropolitan winner (at War-wick Farm) and that although he had been competitive over 2000m plus, they now believe his best distances were between a mile and a mile and a quarter.

Monday’s meeting saw two of the more promising horses in Gippsland salute, and the fi rst was Shaemist Mountain, prepared on the track by Jack Wilson.

“He came into this off a trial win at Moe and he has come back very well. He hadn’t raced for fi ve months and has grown an inch,” Wil-son said.

“The likely plan is to give him one more start in the country, possi-bly at Moe and then we might look at a race in town, perhaps a night meeting at Moonee Valley. After one more run in the bush he should be cherry ripe.

“It was a good effort today. He missed the start but the jockey (ap-prentice Jack Hill) never panicked and he settled midfi eld before fi nish-ing off nicely.”

Another Stony Creek galloper, Set Shot, trained by Earle Fischer, fi nished second and on Saturday Eri-ca Eldred produced Special Warning for a close second, indicating the lo-cal trainers are in form.

The second up and comer to greet the judge was Yasey San, which made it impressive victories at the past two Stony Creek meetings.

Moe trainer, John Pascoe will now target a midweek race at San-down on January 13.

“I had her in at Sandown last week, but she was second emer-gency and never got a run, which was a shame, because I thought she would have been very competitive,” he said.

“The race on January 13 is over 1800 metres, which will be ideal as she is very clean winded and will certainly stay. The further they went today the more she would have won by, so the 1800 metres will be no trouble.”

Keane’s hot meeting

Apprentice jockey: Patrick Keane returns to scale on Contrive in the fi nal event at Stony Creek - his fourth winner of the day!

GLEN Alvie defeated Korumburra in the only match decided in the LDCA, in A Grade Division One cricket.

All other matches in all grades will take place this Sunday, due to the Premier cricket match on Leongatha turf this Saturday.

Korumburra won the toss and sent Glen Alvie in.

Udara Weerasinghe was playing havoc with the ball and claimed 5/17, gutting Glen Alvie’s middle order.

Glen Alvie made 8/130 but perhaps thought this wouldn’t be enough. Paul Jordan top scored with 37 with M. Roberts mak-

ing 27. Extras was third best, with 25 including 16 wides!

In reply Korumburra was soon in big trouble with opener and number one bat, Weerasinghe, in the pavil-ion with a duck against his name. The ‘Burra quickly slumped to 5/21 and things looked hopeless.

P. Edwards 16 and K. Doman 50 not out set about a recovery but this was short lived as the tail failed to respond; the Cobras all out for just 108.

Alex Simpson 4/15 and P. Roberts 3/7 proved the difference. Glen Alvie has now secured two wins on the trot and has gained a lot in confi dence. They face

Miners next round full of confi dence.

A GRADEDIVISION 1KORUMBURRA v

GLEN ALVIE1st Innings Glen Alvie

M. Roberts c. A. Balfour b. D. Wyhoon ......................27A. Donohue c. A. Balfour b. M. Patching .....................11P. Jordan c&b. U. Weerasinghe ..........37A. Simpson c. A. Balfour b. D. Scott ...........................13S. Lowe b. U. Weerasinghe ........0C. Tait stp. A. Balfour b. U. Weerasinghe .................7P. Roberts stp. A. Balfour b. U. Weerasinghe .................8S. Edwards stp. A. Balfour b. U. Weerasinghe .................2R. Bolding n.o. ...........................0L. Gennicarro r.o. .......................0K. Simpson n.o. ..........................0Extras .......................................25Total .............................(cc) 8/130

Bowling: K. Dorman 0/38, M. Patching 1/19, D. Scott 1/24, D. Wyhoon 1/25, U. Weerasinghe 5/17.

1st Innings KorumburraU. Weerasinghe c. K. Simpson b. P. Roberts ..........................0I. Osman b. P. Roberts ................2J. Cook c. C. Tait b. A. Simpson ........................0D. Salmon lbw. A. Simpson .......1P. Edwards b. A. Donohue .......16B. Hayes c. R. Bolding b. P. Roberts ..........................3K. Dorman n.o. .........................50D. Wyhoon c. C. Tait b. K. Simpson ........................4D. Scott c. C. Tait b. A. Donohue .......................7A. Balfour c&b. A. Simpson ......3M. Patching c. M. Roberts b. A. Simpson ........................2Extras .......................................20Total .......................................108

Bowling: A. Simpson 4/15, P. Roberts 3/7, L. Gennicarro 0/13, K. Simpson 1/29, A. Donohue 2/29, M. Roberts 0/13.

ALL LDCA fi xtures will be played this Sun-day to make way for the Premier cricket match between Richmond and Dandenong this Saturday, January 9.

The fi xture will be played on the Leongatha turf with local umpire Clive Salmon offi ciating with the VCA’s John Ward.

Richmond has Bushrangers’ skipper, Cameron White, in its team but he is unlikely to feature as he is involved in the KFC Big Bash series during this period.

However there will still be plenty of talent for the Tigers, including medium pacer and middle order bat Will Sheridan and wicketkeeper and number three bat Ryan Carters.

The Dandenong side features Darren Dempsey as its captain. Dempsey has made more than 9000 Premier Cricket runs at an average of 46.

Victorian contracted rookie, Brett Forsyth is anoth-er Dandenong player to watch. He has scored centuries

for Victoria’s second XI. Kookaburra Premier Cricket’s Country Round

continues to be an annual feature of the Kookaburra Premier Cricket Program. Clubs, players, umpires and VCCL host associations all enjoy the sojourn to region-al Victoria. Country matches do not feature on the tour itineraries of international teams these days and, as a result, Cricket Victoria sees the Country Round con-cept as crucial in maintaining the excellent relationship that exists between Premier Clubs and country areas. Cricket Victoria hopes that, by delivering a high stan-dard of cricket to regional areas, this relationship will be maintained and enhanced.

Two thousand and nine-10 is the twelfth successive season that Cricket Victoria’s Premier Clubs have taken a round of matches to country Victoria. The Leongatha association is encouraging spectators to come along and watch the match; play starts at 11am and will be a 50 overs a side contest. Drinks available and activities for the family are planned.

Premier grade match this Saturday

• LDCA CRICKET

One match decidedFront runner: sometimes out in front is the best place to be at Stony Creek.

Air cooled: Sonia Gaire, ridden by Linda Meech, salutes in the Fujitsu F&MHandicap.


By Matt Dunn

ERIKA Eldred has been train-ing horses for “about 20 years,” and although she has enjoyed her share of winners in that time, the search for a genuinely great horse continues.

Like many others in this tough caper, she still dreams big dreams – though not quite as big as her husband Graham.

“He wants to win a Melbourne Cup, but I reckon a Stony Creek Cup would be good,” Erika said with a laugh.

“It’s very hard going. My husband keeps saying, ‘Just one more, just one more.’”

A dreamer Graham may be, but he knows the realities of the business.

“We do it together, but he works on oil rigs and I do the horses. We plan and do everything together, but I stay home and he works on the rigs,” Erika said.

“He makes the money, because you’ve got to make money to keep the horses going.”

As anyone in the training business will tell you, the track to glory has many bends and the infrequent prize purses rarely cover what is spent in upkeep.

Super horses are as rare as proverbial needles in haystacks. It’s a hit and miss affair.

“You have your wins and then you have your quiet times. It’s very hard to get a winner now,” Erika said.

The task was made that much more diffi cult for bush trainers, she said, because they were often up against better-resourced city trainers. Even at Stony Creek, where few locally trained horses were running on Saturday.

“You’ve got the top city trainers coming up. You look at the fi elds. You’ve got Tony Noonan, Robbie Lang, Wendy Kelly – big clientele. We just plod along on our own,” she said.

Finding that top horse is hard, but sometimes hidden gems are uncovered

– horses that need that little bit of tender loving care.

An old horse “from the back of the bush” in New South Wales was one that proved an unlikely winner.

“We had this one nutty horse off the internet called Taking Charge. He won one after the other, then had about eight seconds – he was just that sort of horse,” she said.

“We cleaned him up. I think he was ready to die up there. Anyway he won by 10-and-a-half lengths at Stony Creek. He was our only ever winner there.

“It’s funny that. He was very good. I think he ran on fear that day. He placed after that. Mind you he was nine years old when he won that race.”

She almost had another winner at Stony on Saturday, when Special Warning was pipped at the post after leading down the home straight.

Erika has had some good horses in the past two decades. The sometimes fractious Special Warning is a case in point.

“Beat a smart couple of city horses and he did it standing on

his ears. So we sort of had a lot of expectations of him,” she said.

After the race she was ecstatic and hopes the horse has now turned a corner in his racing career.

Erika started her training career after working as a lightweight rider, putting horses through their track work.

She quickly caught the bug though and moved into training.

“I couldn’t honestly tell you how many horses I’ve had over the years, but not every one wins you a race. When I started off we had Cool Hand Luke and Buckeye Blue. All the locals knew those two,” she said.

“They were really good country horses. Cool Hand Luke ran a second at Sandown, then he ran a very good race at Ballarat – it wasn’t a group race, but it was a sort of classic – and the prize money was good.

“He was our best classed runner

and the rest,

well - I’ve had six individual

winners. A lot of them have

placed.” While Cool Hand

Luke was good, he never came close to winning a Melbourne Cup.

But who knows what the next horse may bring? Graham’s mantra of “just one more, just one more” may yet pay a big dividend.

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