The people of Canowindra are hopeful the bulk of their famous fish fossils may be one step closer to moving out of storage and into a new $600,000 purpose built display building.

Branch Manager Life and Geosciences of the Australian Museum, Cameron Slatyer, was in Canowindra yesterday to discuss plans for the building, which will see the full collection of more than 200 fossil slabs brought out of the dark and into full public display.

It is expected the full collection on display will significantly increase visitation, especially within the scientific community with a complete examination room to be included in the development.

Cabonne Council and the Australian Mu- seum are currently in consultation to transfer the ownership of the fossils to the Australian Museum, which will provide the collection with heritage listing and registration.

More than 10,000 people visit the Age of Fishes Museum each year to view the re- markable story of the time when air breath- ing fishes with fins evolved into fishes with feet and our distant ancestors first stepped onto land.

Many thousands of complete fish speci- mens remain buried at the original site, awaiting excavation.

Are you happy with your current financial situation? Is your current financial situation so good there’s no room for improvement? If the answer to either question is ‘no’, then there are plans you can put into place that will provide a clear pathway to a better financial future.

Deep down, you probably already know you could be making better use of your money, but if you’re like most people the problem is knowing what to do. Everywhere you look there are people trying to sell you products that will magically make more money for you. Here’s the thing… the best person to trust is YOU!

DIY money management is the way to make sure that the decisions you make are in YOUR best interests. And the way to make better decisions is better information. As Benjamin Franklin once said: AN INVESTMENT IN KNOWLEDGE PAYS THE BEST INTEREST.

When it comes to your money and your financial future, the wiser you are about money, the better financial decisions you’ll make. The higher your financial IQ, the wealthier you’ll be. The more wealth you can create, the more options you and your family will have.

Therefore, make financial education your next investment.

In the words of motivational speaker Jim Rohn: “Formal education will make you a living. Self-education will make you a fortune.”

We know it’s hard to trust anyone when it comes to money, so find out how Wealth Train financial education is empowering people in regional NSW to make better fi- nancial decisions at our free information session:

DATE: Wednesday, 24th May 5.30pm to 6.30pm
VENUE: Parkes Services Club BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL: Please call 0411 484 464 to reserve your place.

What is most important for you and your loved ones as you age? Your health or wealth? The ability to uphold an active life- style or an active mind? Or to remain connected with family and friends.

With more than a century of aged care experience, providing care and support to over 1,700 Australians each year, The Sal- vation Army Aged Care Plus understands the importance of remaining independent within a loving home-like community.

The Rosedurnate Aged Care Plus Centre in Parkes provides a loving home and family environment through the provision of industry leading physical, spiritual and emotional care.

Dot Tye, a resident of more than six years, praises the efforts by staff saying she has never felt more at home. “This is a place where carers and fellow residents become family, and the centre becomes home.” said Dot.

Centre Manager, Leona Fisher says: “Ageing does not mean the end of happi- ness and richness of life, in fact, we pride ourselves on our inclusiveness and per- son-centred approach, which allows us to provide a home like no other.”

Many local residents proudly call Rose- durnate Aged Care Plus Centre home, with the latest addition to the family three-month old Elroy, a Maltese cross Shihtzu bringing smiles all around.

If you would like to learn more about the Rosedurnate Aged Care Plus Centre, con- tact Leona on 6862 2300 or at acp.enquiries@aue.salvationarmy.

The majority of drivers in the Parkes, Forbes and Lachlan Shire area are law abiding when it comes to wearing seatbelts and using mobile phones.

The latest observations results indicate a combined 99.1% seatbelt wearing rate and a 0.8% mobile phone usage rate.

The surveys are conducted bi-annually. Councils’ Road Safety and Injury Preven- tion Officer, Melanie Suitor, said survey staff conducted observations for an hour in the morning and an hour in the afternoon.

According to Melanie the seatbelt wearing rate is higher than the state average of 98%. The best location was the Parkes Highway recording 100% compliance in the afternoon. The worst location was the Forbes Urban location with a 96% wearing rate in the afternoon with 14 people observed un-restrained.

Although it has been compulsory to wear seatbelts in NSW since 1971, each year more than 30 people are killed and 270 in- jured who were not wearing seatbelts.

“While our seatbelt wearing rate is better than the state average, it is disappointing to report that 59 people were observed not wearing a seatbelt.” Melanie said.

The combined mobile phone usage rate was 0.8%, with three survey locations re- cording 0%: Condobolin Highway, Parkes Urban and Parkes Highway. Forbes Urban was the worst location with a 4.2% usage rate as 13 people used a phone whilst driving.

What does a farmer look like? Kim Storey and Cassie Gates are on a mission to answer that question. The Eugowra-based photographer and graphic designer are collaborating on a coffee-table book that will showcase a range of 21st century farmers.

The pair is travelling across the country to photograph primary producers for their project. “We’ve got about 25 so far, but we’ll have 100 by the time we’re finished,” photographer Kim Storey said.

They visit farms to capture beautiful por- traits of farmers and their produce, and will complement the images with their stories. “We give the farmers the opportunity to show what they do, why they do it, who they are, and where they are,” she said. “We’re opening the gate into their world and letting people in.”

“Anytime farming hits the media it’s for a negative reason. All of the newsworthy events, like floods or fires or droughts, only show the negatives. I wanted to show the positives.”

Kim said that the idea for the project sprouted from a twitter conversation dis- cussing the perception of women in agri- culture.

“When I googled what does a farmer look like all the images were old men in overalls holding pitchforks, and not rep- resentative of what farmers are and what they do.”

“I wanted to challenge the perception that people have of farming and show the real diversity in the industry; the range of backgrounds, industries, and technolo- gies.”

“I’d really wanted to do a photo book for a while, so we put the two together.”

The project has already received a lot of media attention, and they are currently working on the publishing strategy. They are tentatively hoping it will hit the shelves for Mothers’ Day next year.

For more information visit their facebook page: What Does A Farmer Look Like?

By Raen Fraser