Maggi Barnard

The Parkes Garden Club won the Community category for the best float.

A festive atmosphere spread over Parkes last Friday as more than 1,000 people attended the revamped Christmas Parade and Carnival in Cooke Park organised by the Action Club.

It was a fantastic night of enjoyment with 30 floats in the parade, more than 40 stalls in the park and non-stop entertainment on the stage.

Action Club President Bob Steel said that the support for the event with a focus on what was on offer locally was gratifying and exceeded expectations.

“We knew that showcasing what Parkes had to offer was what the people wanted and was shown by the support the Parade and Carnival received from the community,” he said.

Bob also thanked the sponsors of the event, Australian Mines Ltd and Inland Rail. The prizes for the floats went to Parkes East Public School, Parkes Garden Club and Parkes Toyota with each winning $300. Planning is already underway for next year’s event on 4th December.

Comes the calling of November
The thought of Christmas Eve,
And thirty days until December
Rise the Christmas Trees.

Decorations are in the homes
And all along the halls,
‘The tinsel’s out’, the mothers groan,
‘It’ll soon be on the floors!’

The relatives they come to stay
With presents all about them,
The kids are led astray
By the lollies that surround them.

Fairy lights twinkle like stars
All around the street.
My! Christmas comes so fast,
On speeding festive feet.

The big day comes for Christmas feasts
And family celebrations.
And in the snow, or in the heat,
We cheer with all the nations.

The day’s soon done
And visitors leave all in a puff.
We all sit down and mother says,
‘No more Christmas! I’ve had enough.’

Don’t miss the legendary Joe Camilleri at the Parkes Services Club on Wednesday, 8th January at 5:30pm.

Rock up to some brand-new entertainment at Parkes Elvis Festival that will have you dancing in your seats! The Soul Movers, Joe Camilleri and The Black Sorrows and a Comedy Hypnosis Show: Elvis Style, are just a few of the new and exciting performances the festival has in store for locals.

Don’t miss the opportunity to celebrate the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll’s birthday by watching one of Australia’s most iconic soul and blues band, Joe Camilleri and The Black Sorrows, at the Parkes Services Club on Wednesday, 8th January at 5:30pm. Joe is also the Wall of Fame inductee at the 2020 festival, which will take place at 2pm on the same day.

Tickets to this entertaining show performed by these Australian music legends would make the perfect Christmas gift.

The Soul Movers are a rockin’ pop and funky soul band fronted by Lizzie Mack and her brother in soul, guitarist and ex red Wiggle Murray Cooke, groove bass player Andy Newman (The Visitors), Marko Simec on keys (Waiting for Guinness) and drummer to the stars Lozz Benson.

This 60-minute show will be unforgettable as their sound is all about creating soul-moving music that will leave you bopping long after the last encore. The Soul Movers are performing at the Parkes Little Theatre on Friday, 10th January at 9pm.

Hypnotist Wayne Donnelly will be unleashing his hypnotic skills on willing volunteers and will make the world go away in a series of hysterical and hilarious Elvis Style hypnosis routines. It’s now or never, come and create memories that will last a lifetime at Parkes Little Theatre on Saturday, 11th January at 8pm.

For further information and tickets visit parkeselvisfestival.com.au.

• Special Elvis Issue: The next edition of The Parkes Phoenix will be a bumper Elvis edition on Thursday, 9th January filled with stories and information on the 2020 Parkes Elvis Festival.

The students and police officers who climbed Mount Kosciuszko were (L- R) Kevin Read (Police ACLO), Chief Inspector David Cooper, Brooke Kirby, Taieshia Capewell, Chloe Richards, Ben Harris, Lillyanna Fell, Shaylee Saun- ders, Nicayden Greenwood (Parkes), Ajay Goolagong (Parkes), Michael Riley (Parkes), Senior Constable Daniel Greef, Inspector Shane Jessep and Senior Constable Emma Dyball.

Three Parkes students were among a group of Indigenous students who recently took part in the final stage of a six-month leadership program hosted by the Central West Police District.

The Active Citizens Program commenced in July and involved Indigenous Year 10 students from Parkes, Condobolin and Lake Cargelligo. Participants were involved in various cultural activities aimed at developing their leadership skills and discover- ing career opportunities.

Last month the students attended a leadership camp at Jindabyne and Canberra for the final stage. They joined fellow participants from the Tweed/Byron Police District to hike to the summit of Mount Kosciuszko.

All participants made it to the top of Australia despite challenging conditions.

“We do this trip so the young people can realise they can push themselves physically and mentally further than they think they can,” said Central West Police District Crime Prevention Officer, Senior Constable Daniel Greef.

The group also toured the Royal Military Academy, Duntroon, in Canberra before being treated to a presentation by an Aboriginal soldier on the military history featuring Aboriginal soldiers.

The camp concluded with a visit to the Australian War Memorial where students took part in an Indigenous-specific tour, as well as laying a wreath during a Last Post Ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

It is possible to do your own divorce, property settlement, custody and maintenance matters. Remember that these areas are fraught with emotion and pit falls. Remember, too, the old axiom: “Any lawyer who acts for himself has a fool for a client.” This applies equally to lay people.

Lawyers can give you information and advice, prepare documents, assist in negotiations, counselling and mediations, and can represent you in court if your issues cannot be resolved beforehand.

The Family Law Act requires a lawyer to tell you about how you can settle your disputes by conciliation and the counselling services offered by the Family Court. You must also be given a copy of the information brochure “Marriage, Families and Separation”.

The reasons you should consider appointment of a legal representative are that you may want advice on multiple issues at the same time. A court will not grant final orders until it is satisfied that proper arrangements have been made for the children. There may also be tensions between the parties, which make it impossible for them to objectively deal with all issues.

Legal aid maybe available but you will need to complete and submit a legal aid application.

If we at Matthews Williams can assist you on this or any other legal matter, feel free to phone me or one of our solicitors or call into our office for an appointment.

By Mark Olson