Maggi Barnard

The St.George branch in Parkes will be closing its doors next month and its operations amalgamated with the St.George Forbes branch. The existing Parkes Branch Manager, Andrew Kerr, will be based at Forbes full time. It is not yet clear what the future will be for staff members. “We’re currently having discussions with our staff about redeployment opportunities,” said a spokesperson of St George.

The reason for the closure is that fewer customers are visiting the Parkes branch with a steady decline in over-the-counter transactions as more people choose to use digital banking channels. “Today only five per cent of customer
transactions take place over-the-counter at a branch,” said the spokesperson. “In many regional communities the number of transactions taking place is as low as three per cent.

“It’s for this reason that we are changing the way we provide banking services to our customers in Parkes, and why we have made the difficult decision to close our branch. We wish for the Parkes community, including local businesses and our customers, to know that the decision to close the branch was not made lightly.”

The spokesperson said locals who can’t get to Forbes, Bank@Post was a great face-to-face banking option in Parkes to make deposits and withdrawals, account balance queries and bill payments. “Customers can also access their banking 24/7 through our Internet, mobile and phone banking services, and withdraw cash free from the Westpac ATM at 270 Clarinda St, Parkes.”

The Parkes Public School Little Goanna Dancers won the Annette Sloane Indigenous Youth of the Year award at the NAIDOC celebrations on Saturday. Coach Lionel Lovett said the group of eight boys had become very enthusiastic
about performing and were always asking when the next event would be. The Annette Sloane award was established
to celebrate and acknowledge the contribution made by Annette Sloane to the Wiradjuri community, particularly the youth. Annette grew up in Condobolin and was the first Aboriginal student to receive her Year 10 Certificate. She moved to Parkes with her family and was concerned for the youth of the Wiradjuri community. She believed
in nurturing skills that would instil a sense of pride and confidence in them. She opened her home to them and taught them many useful skills, particularly sewing for the girls.

Another award presented on Saturday was the NAIDOC Indigenous Person of the Year for 2016 that went to the Parkes Wiradjuri Language Group. Other nominees were Karen Hawken, Karen Hartley, Robert Clegg, Amanda Corcoran and the Parkes Aboriginal Community Working Party. Neighbourhood Central and Parkes Shire
Council would like to thank Parkes High School for the colour run, Lachlan Reconciliation Group for the sausage sizzle, the Dusty Yellow Sunbeams for popping in for a jam session and the launch of their sound track My Elders Blood, Gail Smith Music School students, the Little Goanna Dancers and all the volunteers.

Lions Park went pink last Sunday as locals gathered for a free morning tea to show their support for women with breast cancer. Dianne Green, the McGrath Breast Care Nurse for the Parkes region, hosted the morning tea. This was the eighth Field of Women event that Dianne has organised to show her support for her clients, their families and the community. She catered for the morning tea with the generous help of her family, who also volunteered their time to help serve the dozens of people who stopped by to have a cuppa and a chat.

Dianne said people attended the morning tea for a variety of reasons. Some came to remember lost ones, others wanted to show their support, and others might have had personal experience with breast cancer. One hundred pink lady silhouettes stood on the lawn as a symbolic gesture to the women diagnosed with breast cancer and all those around her. Attendees were invited to write a message of support or remembrance, which were then placed around a
silhouette.

Dianne said at the end of the day she’d read every single message, before neatly packing them away for the next year. “They’re beautiful heart-felt messages, and some of them make me cry,” she said. The carefully collated messages from the previous seven years were also on display. According to the Cancer Council statistics 16,000 Australians will face a breast cancer diagnosis this year. While the vast majority are women, the disease can also affect men. It is important to see your doctor if you have any concerns.

The McGrath Breast Care Nurses provide free physical and emotional support for families who are affected by breast cancer from the time of diagnosis and throughout treatment. For more information visit www.mcgrathfoundation.com.au
By Raen Fraser