Maggi Barnard

Maggi Barnard has been with the Parkes Phoenix since it was established in March 2016 and loves writing about her community.

3 Parkes Teams Compete At NSW Champs

July 5, 2018 By Maggi Barnard

Three Parkes teams will be competing at the NSW Netball State Age Championships in Sydney this weekend. Parkes Netball Association would like to wish all the players, coaches, umpires, parents and supporters good luck at the event.

For those staying home the girls’ results can be followed on the MyNetball app. There will be no junior netball until after the school holidays on Saturday 28th July.

Coach: Christine Watson Manager:Michelle McGregor Back L-R Keira Jelbart, Caity McGinnes, Heidi McPherson, Zoe Anderson, Danielle Goodrick Front L-R Emily McGinnes, Kendra Dunn, Matlida Grosvenor, Tegan Smede, Maely MacGregor Absent Lillie Fryer

Coach: Alana Ryan Back L-R Libby Pepper, Alice Billington, Ally Bush, Jorja Hazell, Lily Magill Front L-R: Julia Dunn, Holly MacGregor, Madison Hampton, Paris Neville

Coach: Calli Miller Manager: Melissa Norman Back L-R Ally Fryer, Alleyne Gaut, Tianna Simpson, Claire Simpson, Jorja Davis Front L-R Paris Curr, Jolie Norman, Kasey Macdonald, Alex Williams Absent: Angel Pearce

New Women’s Bowling Committee

July 5, 2018 By Maggi Barnard

At the AGM of the Parkes Women’s Bowling Club held this week Merilyn Rodgers (left) was elected president. The rest of the new committee for 2018-19 are (L-R) Minnie Riordan (vice-president), Maureen Miller, Isabel Svendsen (secretary), Di Howell, Kim Evans, Joan Simpson, Margaret Hawken and Audrey Jones.

What’s On @ The Library?

July 5, 2018 By Maggi Barnard

EXHIBITION – Local Australian Gothic 3 to 28 July
Alice Stokes returned to Parkes in late 2017 after a number of years honing her creative skills and process in Berlin and is sharing some of her work with Parkes Library for an exhibition during July. Due to Alice’s love of film noir and the colour black she primarily draws with graphite on black paper or charcoal, creating stark, evocative images that are only revealed as the light catches the graphite.

AUTHOR VISIT – Kim Kelly Thursday 26 July, 6pm, Parkes Library
‘Lady Bird & The Fox’ – It’s 1868 and the gold rush sprawls across the wild west of NSW, bringing with it a new breed of colonial rogue – bushrangers. It is a world far removed for hardworking farm girl, Annie Bird, and her sleepy village on the outskirts of Sydney. But when a cruel stroke of fortune sees Annie orphaned and outcast, she is forced to head for the goldfields in search of her grandfather, a legendary Wiradjuri tracker. Determined and dangerously naive, she sets off with only her swag – and is promptly robbed of it on the road. RSVP by 24 July on 6861 2309 or parkes.library@parkes.nsw.gov.au

AUTHOR VISIT – Kim Hodges Saturday 28 July, 10am, Parkes Library
Kim has lived with mental illness for the past five years: bipolar 2 disorder, severe depression, generalised anxiety disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder. ‘Girl Over the Edge’ follows from her incredibly successful debut memoir ‘Girl on the Edge’, and will take the reader into severe episodes of depression, on the road to recovery and everything else in between. RSVP by 26 July on 6861 2309 or parkes.library@parkes.nsw.gov.au

Our Gal – Louise O’Leary

July 5, 2018 By Maggi Barnard

Louise O’Leary

How long have you lived in Parkes and what do you like most about living here?
I was born (1963), schooled and worked in Parkes, then relocated up the road to Peak Hill and married local Danny O’Leary. The Parkes Shire is an amazing place to live, work and play and is a wonderful place to grow a family and grow old (Hi Mum!).

Where do you work or what do you do currently and what do you enjoy about it? I work full-time as an Enrolled Nurse in Primary and Community Health at Peak Hill Multipurpose Service (MPS). I do activities from wounds to palliative care, aqua aerobics, tai chi and other health related activities. My ‘other job’ as an elected Councillor is squeezed in between – both jobs allow me to work with the Peak Hill and Shire communities, promote healthy lifestyles and be an advocate and a voice for others.

What do you do in your spare time and on weekends? Spare time? Not sure what it means, but I love gardening and play hockey with Middleton Hockey Club.

What are you really good at? Talking, healing wounds, talking, jigsaw puzzles.. did I mention talking?

If you could have a superpower what would it be? To freeze time – then I would have more time to fit in gardening, hockey and spend more time with my grandson Milo.

What is your pet hate? People who have no respect for others by speeding, littering and those who think themselves above the law.

Tell us about your best holiday. My first overseas trip to attend a best friend’s wedding in Switzerland and spent three weeks touring and living as a local – a fantastic country, friendly people and amazing chocolate.

Spirituality In The Pub

July 5, 2018 By Maggi Barnard

If you would like to experience an event where two ideas not usually mentioned in the same sentence are combined, why not join the Holy Family Parish for its second Spirituality in the Pub (SIP) event?

It takes place on Monday, 9th July in the dining room of the Commercial Hotel at 6:30pm with a gold coin donation at the door. The SIP concept is one of the forums for conversion instituted by Catalyst for Renewal and has been happening for over 13 years in many pubs in Australia.

The guest speakers on Monday are Tom McKeown, a youth worker from Condobolin, and Melissa Kupkee, a teacher at Holy Family primary school. Tom and Melissa will talk on “What is the difference between religion and spirituality”. Come and share a drink and explore with Tom and Melissa how young people are seeking meaning in
today’s world. There will be time for questions and discussion. The dining room will be open for dinner afterwards.

Ostini Wool Weekly Market Update

July 5, 2018 By Maggi Barnard

With all three centres in operation for the last sale of the season 31,784 bales were on offer. Some of the heat left the market on the back of the larger offering (compared to recent sales) and the notable gains made in recent weeks. The correction left the NRI 22 cents cheaper, closing at 2056, however despite the reduction, the NRI rose 489 cents (31%) for the season, which is the largest seasonal increase since 2011.

The finer microns were the hardest hit, resulting in 18.5 micron and finer generally falling by 20-40 cents. 19.5 to 20 microns were less affected, closing 10-20 cents easier, while a limited offering of 21 micron and broader managed to post increases of 5-10 cents, pushing the 21 MPG further into record territory.

The crossbred sector lost 5-20 cents, with 30 micron and broader less affected, while the limited supply of oddments was also slightly easier.

43,232 bales are rostered for the first sale of the 2018/19 season (as sellers wanting to sell into the new financial year enter the market).
Source: AWEX

Greedy Steer Sets Record

July 5, 2018 By Maggi Barnard

A greedy Senepol/Angus cross steer from Canowindra has set a new record with its daily weight gain during the Callide Dawson Beef Carcase Competition in Queensland. The 24-month-old steer gained a whopping 4.6kg daily weight, the highest mid-term weight gain in the competition’s 30 year history. The steer, one of three entered by first time exhibitors Clayton and Sarah Maynard of Southern Star Rural near Canowindra, currently leads the pack of 143 competition steers at the 53-day mark of their feedlot preparation. Senepols are leading the way for breed results
too with the top four exhibits doing 3.41kg/day, ahead of the overall competition average of 2.87kg/day.

Clayton integrated Senepols alongside a composite breeder herd when he began his operation eight years ago, with this indulgent steer sired by 5 Star 130509. He credited genetic selection as the secret to the steer’s surprising success having been a middle of the range animal when he left for the competition.

“At the time I didn’t think this particular steer was a stand out, he wasn’t an overly big calf and was middle of the range for weight,” he said. “You need to benchmark yourself. We think we are doing a good job, but until you enter a competition like this and get that feedback, I think that’s vital for decision making down the track.”

A selection of quality Senepol and Senepol/Angus and Senepol/ Charolais bulls are available for sale from Southern Star Rural in Canowindra. Call Clayton Maynard on 0439 029 204 for more information.

Help David To Help Prostate Cancer Research

July 5, 2018 By Maggi Barnard

A Parkes resident is taking on a new adventure in September because he wants to make a difference and support the work of the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia. David Williams will be taking part in the inaugural Outback 4WD Adventure event starting in Cobar on 22nd September to raise funds for prostate cancer research.

“I have never been in any rallies or fundraising drives before, but have helped catering for many such events passing through at Lake Cargelligo,” said David. He was inspired to take on this adventure as he has quite a few close friends who have experienced serious issues with prostate cancer.

Up to 40 cars will be participating in the week-long rally visiting many iconic towns in the outback, and each one has to raise at least $1,500 to participate. David said his aim was to get as many donations as possible to the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia, and would be happy with any donation made on the page he has created on everydayhero. The link to the page is https://outback4wdadventure.everydayhero.com/au/prostate-cancer-fundraising-parkes

In Australia 3,300 men a year die from prostate cancer. That is nine a day.

Care For Farmers – Donate Small Items

July 5, 2018 By Maggi Barnard

As the current winter continues to be a mostly sunny one, the drought tends to pop up in many conversations. One Parkes woman has decided it is not good enough to just talk about it, but to do something for the farmers.

“We can all help to give the farmers a hand up,” said Karen White. She started last Thursday asking her friends on Facebook to put together a care package, and immediately had a wonderful response.

“Getting animal feed is priority for the farmers at the moment, which means there might not be much left for other daily necessities.”

Karen’s idea is to put together packages with anything from toothpaste to teabags, something for the kids or something to help mum and dad wind down. “A bottle of wine and a bag of nuts could give them some time to relax and not think about the drought for a while.”

Karen said the idea was not to spend a fortune and as little as $4 items would make a difference. She collects it all and will make up packages. Or people could make up their own, like putting together a pasta meal, or a movie night package with a DVD and some popcorn. She also suggested bags of dog biscuits to help keep the working dogs fed. Another idea was to get a voucher from IGA.

Karen will be collecting donations for the next two weeks, and a friend who works for NSW Farmers Association will help with the distribution.

Donations can be dropped off at 172 London Road or at Kadina B & B at 22 Mengarvie Street.

AstroFest Finalists

July 5, 2018 By Maggi Barnard

The Central West Astronomical Society (CWAS) has announced the shortlisted finalists in the 2018 CWAS
Astrophotography Awards – the David Malin Awards. The winners will be announced at the 2018 CWAS AstroFest, in Parkes from 14 to 15 July. This is one of the finalists, Paul Haese’s image called “Seeing is King”.

Maggi Barnard

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