Middleton Public School Kindergarten students recently celebrated a major milestone celebrating 100 days of school.
The day consisted of 100th day of school activities. “We also incorporated reading, writing, language and mathematical activities focusing on this all important number,” said Stacey Jones.

From day one at school, each day was marked off, which initiated discussion around numeral identification. As the
school days grew, mathematical language was used to develop understanding of number arrays of 5, 10, 15 up to 100.

On the 100th day it was time to celebrate! The students experienced and explored different opportunities to see, touch and display 100 using materials, such as building a tower using 100 cups, counting 100 and what 100 looks like in a variety of objects.

Injuries to the lower back are one of the most common golf related problems. The incidence of lower back pain in the male golfer is between 25% to 36% and 22% to 27% in the female golfer. It has been reported to account for up to 52% of all injuries in recreational golfers and 24% of injuries in professional golfers. The injury mechanism of nearly half of all lower back injuries in golf is due to the swing.

The modern golf swing has been shown to produce large forces on the lower back which change directions rapidly during the swing. Because golf is played in a slightly forward flexed position, along with the asymmetrical, rotational nature of the swing the forces the joints in the lower back are subject to are quite high. The compression force on the spine during the swing has been shown to be up to 8 times body weight.

So, what can you do to prevent getting back pain when you play? Maintenance of good mobility in the hips and thoracic and lumbar spine is important. This may require a regular exercise programme at home along with a good warm up before you play whilst using proper technique when lifting your bag and bending through the knees when retrieving the ball.

If you already have lower back pain consider slowing your backswing down. Make sure your weight properly shifts to your back foot and your hips rotate during the backswing. Also, avoid placing your feet too far apart during the address phase as this limits hip rotation later in the swing and increases stresses on the lower back.

For the fitness of you.
Linda Reilly

Whether you consider yourself a foodie or just enjoy eating out, make sure to head to the Station Motel Restaurant in Parkes in September.

The new chef, Peter Wilkinson, and manager Ian Wade-Parker, have more than 80 years combined experience in hospitality, and they are busy creating a new spring menu. The theme is going to be rustic food, sourced locally as much as possible, with lots of flavour. “We have an ever-expanding herb and vegetable garden at the back,” said Peter.

He has just moved to Parkes, and enjoys his new working environment with such a beautiful view. “I just love the country as I grew up in country New Zealand.”

It was in New Zealand where Peter won a trip to London for eight weeks to work with Jamie Oliver. “I am a great fan of his style. What has stuck with me is his focus on rustic, spontaneous food. That is what we want to achieve with our new menu: fresh, local and different.” Peter is also a big fan of Cajun and creole cuisine.

Peter will be able to let his creativity flow as Ian plans to host special theme nights and fine dining events to make the Station Motel one of the must eat places in Parkes. Not that it is already.

The Parkes Phoenix team was treated to a meal recently and vowed to be back for the spring menu. With Peter’s focus on flavour, and Ian’s talent to match just the right wine with a meal, the Station Motel Restaurant definitely needs to be on your to do list.

By Maggi Barnard

Over 60 students from Parkes and Forbes celebrated Schools Tree Day at Eco Day 2017 last week. Through Eco Day, Central West Lachlan Landcare (CWLL) offers workshops and bus travel to year 5 and 6 students for a day of environmental and rural activities.

The workshops included creating Net- Waste worm farms, plant care and propagation with Bunnings, soils with Local Land Services, Parkes Shire Council weeds demonstration and talk, lantern making with recycled products with Ro Burns and a saleyards tour with Cooper Byrnes from Langlands Hanlon. The lanterns will be used at the Forbes River Arts Festival in September.

The day finished with workshops from Paul Kirk, The Snake Man, and an interactive workshop with Chris Dart from Netwaste on how to reduce waste to landfill. Paul Kirk allowed the kids to get up close with reptiles. He talked about snake safety and how to handle non-venomous snakes.

The students also learned what to do if they were bitten. “I loved how the Snake Man just gave us the snakes to hold,” said Ava Hayes from Parkes Public School. “We want the kids to go away thinking about what they can do in their own homes and schools that can make a difference and prevent needless wastage. We hope that students leave the day with a wider perspective of the connection between humans and the environment that we live in,” said Margot Jolly, CWLL Chairperson.

Following on from Eco Day, National Tree Day on Sunday saw more than 40 people in Parkes planting 350 trees in the picturesque setting just off Danilenko Street. The portion of land will provide screening for residents near the new Water Treatment Plant (WTP) and extend the wildlife corridor from existing bushland in the area,
with native eucalypts and wattles being planted on the day.

CWLL Co-ordinator, Marg Applebee said: “We are thrilled to have over 40 people volunteering for National Tree Day.” The Skillset Green Army Team will continue planting work on the site over the next few weeks.

Last week’s Parkes Chamber of Commerce meeting saw a great turnout for the consultation with RMS concerning the Parkes bypass. Consultants from WPS facilitated discussions that addressed business concerns and gathered information to look at all the potential impacts. An RMS survey has been posted on the Chamber website and we encourage everyone to complete it.

After the RMS meeting, the Chamber held its annual AGM. All positions were declared vacant. Geoff Rice was returned unopposed to the position of President and John Kennedy as Vice-President. James Haddin was elected as Secretary and Belinda McCorkell as Treasurer. Peter Martin is the Public Officer and Kasie Ferguson is the Publicity Officer.

The Chamber has been busy behind the scenes to relaunch bigger and better this financial year. Our facebook profile is growing with 437 likes, while our RMS bypass post reached over 4,000 people – our toprated post for the year!

The most exciting news is that The Henrys Business Awards will become an annual event. We are looking forward to our premiere event on Friday, 20th October. With the invaluable assistance of the NSW Business Chamber the nomination process will be completely online and judged, so there is no community voting.

Over 130 packages have been delivered to businesses in the past week and the response has been positive. If you have not received one yet, please contact us. It includes information on the awards, membership and subscription, as well as upcoming shire events.

Please feel free to come to any of our meetings. Contact us on email at chamber@parkeschamber.com.au or through
our facebook page.

By Belinda McCorkell

The Peak Hill history machine was set in motion in recently when the community recently welcomed back four restored historical photographs. This signalled the beginning of the Peak Hill history restoration project run by the Peak Hill Consultative Committee.

The original Peak Hill Municipal Council building, now the Peak Hill Leisure Centre, contains a collection of historical photographs depicting past Peak Hill community life. The aim of the Peak Hill Consultative Committee is to restore, conserve and digitise these photographs.

The first set of four framed photographs that have been restored are images of the Peak Hill Municipal Council of 1897, 1939, 1953 and 1968. Members of the Peak Hill Consultative Committee, Peak Hill Leisure Art and Craft Council and Councillor Louise O’Leary were very pleased to welcome back the photographs. “This is the beginning for Peak Hill. Our heritage and stories will be restored and shared, and be available for everyone long into the future,” said Louise.

“The restored photographs are wonderful,” said Dick Baxter. Before being re-installed in their original locations in the Peak Hill Leisure Centre, the photographs will be on display at the Peak Hill show on Wednesday, 23rd August 2017.

This project has been assisted by funds allocated to the Royal Australian Historical Society through the Heritage Branch of the NSW Office of the Environment and Heritage.

Roll up, roll up. This is the year to take your seats at the Parkes Show for an interactive animal stunt show that takes horse play to a new level. The Rooftop Express arena show features world first stunts, true blue Australian comedy and awe-inspiring horsemanship.

A must see for anyone who has ever wanted to put on a cowboy hat. With some highly refined and visually enchanting moments, the Parkes P.A. and H Society invites you to join the boys and girls from the bush as they show you what is possible with horses, cattle and working dogs.

The Parkes Showgirl competition is looking to find a vivacious young woman aged 18 to 24 to be an ambassador for Parkes and the wider community. The winner of the Parkes Showgirl competition will become the face of the Parkes
Show. The winner also has the opportunity to go on to compete to at the zone finals and may even go on to be the Land Sydney Royal Showgirl!

By participating in the Parkes Showgirl competition you will be amazed at the personal, professional and networking opportunities that can open up for you. You will also have the chance to win approximately $1,500 in prizes donated by local businesses, increase your exposure to the wider community, meet with community leaders and increase your awareness of the local show and community.

The 2017 Parkes Showgirl Dinner will be on 12th August at the Parkes Town Bowling Club at 6:30pm to meet the entrants. Entry forms are available from the show office in Welcome Street or on the Parkes show website at www.parkesshow.org.au