The response to The Henrys has been huge throughout the lead up to the event and the gala presentation night on 20th October at the Parkes Services Club has almost sold out! If you want to join in a fantastic night celebrating the business super stars of Parkes, head to parkesservicesclub.com.au/events to get your ticket for $85!

It will be a brilliant night of networking with drinks and platters on arrival followed by dinner and dessert. The presentation of the awards will kick off the celebrations, and local group Amitie will have everyone dance the night away!

Apart from the finalists who have been announced in various categories, there will also be awards handed out for Excellence in Small Business, Excellence in Business and Parkes Business of the Year. The finalists for these categories are being kept a surprise for the evening!

Thank you to all the sponsors who have made the event possible, and to all the businesses for putting in the hard work to nominate. The Parkes Chamber of Commerce is really looking forward to continuing the success into 2018.

The very first Australian National Field Days (ANFD) at Borenore were celebrated 66 years ago in 1952 – as a one-day event only. “We are committed to advancing Australian agriculture and we’re always looking for new and innovative ways to do that, whether that be through utilising new technology and social media, or simply moving part of our event to a weekend so people who work off-farm can attend,” said Administration Manager Jayne West.

A big key to this year’s event is ensuring that there is something on offer for the whole family. There will be entertainment for everyone with music playing throughout the day from Mickey Pye, Casey McFarlane and The
Hewitt’s. There will also be a jumping castle, camel rides and a high adrenaline action show from Flair Action Riders.

This year’s feature exhibit is one to be enjoyed by all, the Australian Stock Horse Society. They will be conducting talks throughout the three-day field day about their importance to agriculture and will inform the public about products and services they may not have known about.

“Livestock and grazing are very important here, and we are on the fringe of a very large cropping area. There’s a lot of horticulture in the region with apples and cherries and viticulture is another area rapidly growing,” said Jayne.

The Australian National Field Days will be held from Thursday, 26th to Saturday, 28th October 2017, at 563 Borenore Road, Borenore. Gates will open at 8:30am and close at 5pm over the three days. A full program is available online.

To all our Phoenix readers, don’t forget to enter our competition to go into the draw to win a double pass to the ANFD.

Twinkle Toes Dance Studio will present Cinderella – A Night to Remember at the Parkes Leagues Club on Sunday, 10th December at 1 pm. The one show only will showcase the students and their achievements in 2017.

The production is based around the rags to riches tale of Cinderella: from the industrious mice and bluebirds, the evil step mother and her two ridiculous daughters to the handsome prince, the beautiful fairies and the fabulous circus performers at the ball.

Come and share this wonderful story, and enjoy the achievements of the students. Tickets will be available at Parkes
Leagues Club or online from Monday, 13th November.

The Parkes Shire community is once again lending a helping hand to Timor Leste with donations packed in shipping containers last week. Parkes Shire Council donated over 200 hours of in-kind labour towards the Timor Leste shipment project as part of the Parkes-Weberek Village Friendship Agreement.

Council staff assisted members of Para Marcia, a not-for-profit charity, to pack donated furniture, fittings and building materials from the relocated Southern Cross Care unit into three shipping containers.

The containers are set to be delivered later this year to nine different destinations across Timor Leste, including Weberek Village. Parkes Shire Mayor, Cr Ken Keith said: “The Friendship Agreement continues to transform the lives of many East Timorese people.

“With the help of a number of wonderful individuals and local business operators, we have been able to deliver vital services and improved socio-economic outcomes to these communities.”

Two thirds of the equipment and materials will be delivered to 19 different health clinics in remote parts of Timor, with the remainder donated to orphanages, women’s refuges and schools. Parkes Shire Council signed the friendship
agreement with the village of Weberek in 2010.

In addition to donating goods and services, a delegation of community members travelled to Timor Leste to assist in the delivery of much needed projects each year.

The Craft Corner in Parkes is leading the way in the revival of the tea cosy! Last Friday more than 50 people attended
the grand opening of the Cosies at the Corner exhibition and competition with no less than 74 entries from as far as Coffs Harbour, Sydney and Condobolin.

“We are overjoyed with the results,” said organising committee member Alison Evans. “The community has really come together in entering and sponsoring prizes.” A Parkes family showed the way with Sharyn Preisig crowned the champion for her entry into the Floral Splendour category, while her daughter Eleanor won the People’s Choice award with her cactus garden creation.

Sharon also won the Festival category with her Elvis tea cosy, while Yvonne Smith from Toormina won the Weird and Wacky and Treasured Memories categories. President of the Craft Corner Rosemary Mitchell thanked Pat Hurley for judging the competition, and Cathy Littlewood from Wholesome Blend for providing a selection of teas to enjoy with scones from Mary McIntyre.

Rose Jones of the Parkes Historical Society organised a display of tea cosies from the past including a beautiful 90-year-old celluloid doll dressed in a Madam Weigel tea cosy pattern.

If you have not seen this impressive and very creative exhibition, it will still be on for another week or two. If you fall in love with one, you can buy it too.

By Maggi Barnard

With winter sports winding up and pre-season training for summer sports commencing, it is not surprising that today I saw my first case of shin splints (Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome), for this year.

Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome (MTSS) is the medical name for lower leg pain that occurs below the knee on either the front outside part of the leg (anterior shin splints) or the inside of the leg (medial shin splints). MTTS is a common injury seen in many running or jumping based sports for example, basketball, netball, football or hockey.

Shin splints most commonly occur when repetitive or prolonged activities place strain on where the muscles attach to the outside lining of the bone (tenoperiosteum).

Put simply, the cause of MTTS can be summed up in four words: too much too soon. Athletes often first experience shin pain early in the season due to deconditioning and when training surfaces are generally harder. Later in the season it can be caused by increased load or fatigue from over training and not allowing enough time for recovery between activities.

If you have shin splints stretch your calf muscles regularly through the day. Another good stretch is to kneel on a carpeted floor with your legs and feet together and toes pointed directly back then slowly sit back onto your heels, pushing your ankles onto the floor until you feel tension in the muscles in your shin. Hold for 15 seconds then relax and repeat. When you return to sport, increase your load slowly and avoid running on hills and hard surfaces until your pain goes completely.

“For the fitness of you”
Linda Reilly