Vinnies is looking for locals wanting to give back to the Parkes community by volunteering at its Welcome Street shop.

Volunteering requires people to donate a few hours of their time each week to help with roles including customer service, sorting donations and maintaining the day-to-day running of the shop.

“We have a lovely group of volunteers who have been able to make a positive impact in the local community,” said Tanya Gooden, Vinnies NSW Regional Retail Manager.

“For a lot of people the events of the past year have highlighted the importance of community and looking out for people in need.

“There’s a great community of people within Vinnies shops, along with the knowledge that the sales are used to support people who fall on hard time.”

Vinnies operates 225 retail shops through-out NSW which offer a diverse range of pre-loved items for customers to purchase. Sales from Vinnies shops are used to fund support services offering food, clothing, financial aid, crisis accommodation and other assistance.

To learn more about volunteering with Vinnies Parkes, contact 6862 3383 or email Tanya.Godden@vinnies.org.au.

Explore the Parkes Shire this holiday and join the adventure campaign by collecting all 10 QR codes to stand a chance to win a prize.

A new tourism campaign over Easter and the school holidays is expected to drive visitation to the region and maximise patronage to local businesses in the Parkes Shire.

The ‘Start your adventure in Parkes’ campaign, launched by the Parkes Shire Council, builds on the appeal of the region’s key tourism attractions that offer safe, affordable and memorable holiday experiences within a 100 miles drive of Parkes.

“The Easter adventure campaign invites visitors on a scavenger hunt across our region to discover the many incredible local attractions we have to offer,” said Parkes Shire Mayor Cr Ken Keith OAM.

“The excitement of the challenge is further heightened with a prize of $1,000 in Parkes shopping dollars to be won. All you need to do is to collect all 10 QR codes from the identified locations on the map.

“From listening to the sounds of the universe at ‘The Dish’ to rocking back in time at the Henry Parkes Centre museums or wandering the awe-inspiring Peak Hill Gold Mine and public art trail, there is something to keep the whole family entertained this Easter.”

Other iconic experiences available within an hour’s drive from Parkes Shire include the Wellington Caves, Cowra’s Japanese Gardens and Dubbo’s Taronga Western Plains Zoo.

A community initiative that started in Denmark might make its way to Parkes in the near future offering free bike rides to the elderly and less abled residents.

Cycling Without Age was established in 2012 in Copenhagen as a volunteer organisation.

A community committee has been formed in Parkes to raise the finances to purchase a specialised bicycle, called a trishaw, which will be used to take residents of nursing and residential homes out to get some wind in their hair.

Bike East from Sydney, who have several trishaws which they take to the villages in the eastern suburbs, will be bringing one from 9th to 11th April to Parkes to introduce the trishaw to the community.

On the Friday it will be in the shopping centre and then at each of the three residential villages in Parkes taking some of the residents out for their first ride.

Friday evening there will be an information meeting at the Parkes Services Club, and Saturday morning future riders will receive some instruction in PAC Park. A facebook page has been created called Cycling Without Age Parkes.

Congratulations to the winners picked by Candy Jubb of Idler’s Den who sponsored four prize packs. The winners are Jed Sutton (0-4 years), Lockey Veigel (5 – 8 years) and Trinity Tanswell (9 – 13 years), as well as the lucky draw prize winner Angus Jones.

Life is slowly getting back to some form of normality as more restrictions are being lifted with many activities and events resuming. The downtime last year through COVID has reminded us just how important our connections are with friends and family, and brought a new sense of awareness to what we value in our lives.

Over recent weeks we’ve had several organisations calling for more volunteers in our community. And when we asked current volunteers what they enjoy about it, most of them answered how much joy the connection and interaction with others brought them.

Volunteering is not only an act of kindness, but can also be very rewarding in return. If you are keen to make a change in your life for the better, why not consider doing some voluntary work.

Happy Easter everyone and stay safe

Maggi