General Interest Archives - Page 85 of 342

EMC Are Setting Up Shop In Parkes

May 19, 2023 By Roxane Manley

Mitch Westcott with wife Cailin and son Billy, showing off their business signage on the fence surrounding Spicer Oval.

Alectown local, Mitch Westcott and his wife Cailin are excited to announce they will be opening a new shop front in Parkes, in what will be next exciting step for EMC Electrical Maintenance & Construction.

They have recently secured the lease for the old plumbing hardware store, next to Super Cheap Auto in Parkes, on the Forbes Road.

Mitch has been an electrician for 10 years and has worked with other companies in Parkes on projects such as the Water Sewerage Treatment Plant and the Pet Food Factory.

While EMC previously focused on industrial and commercial electrical services, they will be looking to take on more residential work, and have also just taken on a new employee, Ellie Russell.

Mitch has quietly graduated from apprentice, to sole trader to partnership to Director of his own company. He is now looking to build and expand on the experience that he and his team share.

EMC boasts a level two certified electrician and an apprentice. Cailin is the administrator and brings a wealth of experience to the business.

“I’ve been lucky to have worked jobs in HR, safety, administration, accounts and procurement, which has really helped me be an asset to Mitch and EMC,” said Cailin.

EMC service the areas of Parkes, Peak Hill, Forbes, Condobolin, Dubbo, Yeoval, Wellington and beyond.

They provide a range of electrical services including industrial, commercial, rural, solar and residential. With the new shopfront, that range of services will now include electrical repairs for appliances and whitegoods including washing machines, pumps, dryers and basically any electrical fault. You just have to drop them off to the shop and they will repair them on-site.

Mitch and Cailin love to support local and are also heavily involved in the Parkes Rugby Union Club with Mitch playing first grade for the Boars and Cailin playing for the Boars women’s team.

PBAC Asthma Medicine Backflip Welcomed

May 19, 2023 By Roxane Manley

The decision by the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) to backflip on its restriction on the availability of an asthma medication highlights that its decisions are not set in stone.

Welcoming the reversal, National President of the Pharmacy Guild of Australia Trent Twomey said it was a pragmatic and common sense win for patients.

“Quite clearly the original decision to restrict availability of this important medicine was wrong,” Professor Twomey said.

“There was no logic to it, and the PBAC has now seen sense.”

Under the PBAC decision last month, the medicines for children aged six years and under had to be initially prescribed by a respiratory specialist, and then could only be prescribed with authority approval by Medicare.

Additionally, patients over the age of six could no longer access the medicine as a pharmaceutical benefit, forcing them to buy privately which imposed a significant cost burden, primarily for those with concessional status. Also, there were no equivalent alternatives available for patients over the age of six.

Northparkes Mines Family Day

May 12, 2023 By Roxane Manley

Fun was had by all at the Northparkes Mines Family Fun Day.

Over 400 Northparkes family and friends visited CMOC-Northparkes on Saturday, 29th April. Even the weather couldn’t dampen spirits, and everyone enjoyed the chance to see where their family members go to work every day.

People caught buses from Northparkes Oval and once off the bus they got to enjoy the heavy vehicle display made up of underground loaders, dump trucks, graders, trucks, cranes and more.

They then took a train tour ride around the ore processing area, and then checked out the underground mining display and SCADA control room. Kids loved the chance to do some cool experiments with our Lab team, learned about our Environment and Farming activities and even made a pet rock to take home with our Geologists!

Then people reached Kids’ Corner where the fun was only just beginning! This was a chance for parents to relax and grab a coffee and something to eat and listen to live music while the kids burned their last bit of energy on a rock climbing wall, a kids’ construction zone and getting their face painted.

A huge thank you to all of the local vendors who came out to site to support this special event for our families. Also to each and every one of our employee volunteers who helped in any way, events like this do not happen without the support of so many people. The smiles on the faces of all our special visitors definitely made it worth it!

Charitable Flowers For Mother’s Day

May 12, 2023 By Roxane Manley

Marion Unger in her amazing home garden that she has spent 20 years finessing.

Show your love and appreciation for your mother and support a local initiative to raise funds for a charity.

Parkes resident Marion Unger will be selling flowers from her garden on the front lawn of the Lutheran Church in Currajong Street (opposite Parkes Public School) from 8:30am tomorrow, Saturday 13th May. Her bunches start from $5 for the smallest size. The bunches of chrysanthemums, the traditional Mother’s Day flower, come mostly from Marion’s garden. She will be donating the money to a children’s ministry in Cambodia. She has attached a small card with information about the ministry to every bunch. Contact Marion on 0447 165 229 for more information.

Veterinary Peak Body Renews Calls For HECS Debt Relief

May 12, 2023 By Roxane Manley

The Australian Veterinary Association (AVA) has stepped up calls for vets to have their HECS debt wiped when they move to regional communities that urgently need their services.

AVA CEO Dr David Andrews expressed disappointment that the Australian Government failed to address the regional vet shortage in Tuesday’s 2023-24 Federal Budget and communities were at risk.

“Despite the important role of vets in animal agricultural industries, workforce shortages could see access to veterinary services in regional and rural areas collapse,” Dr Andrews said.

“Given that it would cost just $4.8 million per year to provide dozens of willing veterinarians to communities that so desperately need them, we are disappointed that the Government has overlooked this small but important investment.

“The Albanese Government has shown a commitment to remote communities by relieving their doctors, nurses and teachers of their HECS debt, and vets urgently need to be added to that list to prevent crucial services from being lost,” Dr Andrews said.

More information can be found at www.ava.com.au/siteassets/advocacy/protecting-australias-health.pdf

Parkes Shire Library 2023 Student Library Ambassadors Announced

May 12, 2023 By Roxane Manley

Standing are L to R are Isaiah Stokes and Lachlan Watt from Parkes Christian School, Ned Hewes from Holy Family school, Sam Hunt and Corban Cunningham from Middleton Public School, Jacob Swindle and Sophie Francis from Parkes East Public school. Sitting L to R are Mary Gray from Holy Family School, Isla McLeod and Beth Deland from Parkes Public School, Sarah Knowling from Home School Community.

Parkes Shire Library received a whopping 40 applications from eager year five students to become Library Ambassadors this year. All of the 40 applications received were extremely well written, making the decision very difficult.

This week, Parkes students attended a small presentation ceremony and afternoon tea at Parkes Library. Library staff also visited branch libraries and schools to present the 2023 Ambassadors with their official badges.

The role of a Library Ambassador is to inform their school community of upcoming events, programs, exhibitions and activities that are taking place at the Libraries in Parkes Shire and Marramarra Makerspace.

The Library Ambassador Program has successfully run in Parkes for several years, and this year, the smaller towns within Parkes Shire were invited to participate in the program. Interested students were asked to apply for the position of Library Ambassador for their town, and a total of 16 applications were received from four schools. As a result, Bogan Gate, Trundle and Peak Hill now also have their very own Library Ambassadors.

Parkes Shire Library Ambassadors for 2023

Marshall Roach from Bogan Gate Public School.

Jawarn Read, Jodi Sant (Peak Hill Library) Kyanna Dargin from St Josephs at Peak Hill.

Lili Stephenson and Harry Quade from St Patricks School Trundle.

Billy Zerafa and Tom Walter from Trundle Central School.

Helping Learner Drivers Become Safer Drivers

May 12, 2023 By Roxane Manley

Free two-hour workshop for parents and supervisors of learner drivers.

Parents and supervisors of local learner drivers are encouraged to attend a free workshop which will be held at the Cooke Park Pavilion in Parkes on Tuesday 23rd May. Commencing at 6pm, the two-hour Helping Learner Drivers Become Safer Drivers workshop will offer parents and supervisors practical advice on how to provide the most effective driving practice for learner drivers.

Parkes Shire Council’s Road Safety and Injury Prevention Officer, Melanie Suitor, says that after two years of COVID disruption, it will be great to return to face-to-face delivery.

Parents and supervisors of learner drivers have a crucial role to play in making our roads safer. That is why we have teamed up with Transport for NSW to hold this workshop.

The workshop covers the licencing system, how to use the Learner Driver Logbook (including the use of digital logbooks), licence conditions for learner and P-plate drivers, the benefits of on-road driving sessions, tips on supervising a learner driver and more.

Parents and supervisors who have attended this workshop have found that it boosted their confidence, helped them better plan driving sessions and allowed them to share their experiences with other parents and supervisors” Ms Suitor said.

We want our children to feel confident when they get behind the wheel of a car, and if you are a parent or supervisor in charge of helping a learner driver then this course help you guide them to be confident drivers. Bookings are essential and can be made by calling Ms Suitor on (02) 6861 2364. Refreshments will be available.

It’s Time To Care About Aged Care Workers

May 12, 2023 By Roxane Manley

Australia’s largest provider network, UnitingCare Australia has welcomed the Albanese Government’s announcement to give more than 250,000 aged care workers a much needed pay rise.

“Older people and their families, workers providing care, and the families who rely on those workers. This overdue pay rise will go a long way toward dealing with the cost-of-living crisis the lowest paid workers are currently facing,” said UnitingCare Australia National Director, Claerwen Little.

“We know that investing in our aged care workforce is essential for the well-being of older Australians. This increase will help attract and retain skilled workers and we reaffirm our pledge to pass on this additional funding to staff.

“UnitingCare Australia was the first national aged care body to publicly support a 25% pay rise for workers in March 2022. We boldly costed the ask and put our support behind our workforce.

“Millions of Australians depend on the care sector every day to provide vital services that support individuals and communities to thrive. As the largest and fastest growing employer in the country, the opportunity for the care sector to be transformational for Australia’s future is boldly evident. We have an historic opportunity to advance gender equality through a strengthened care workforce,” said Ms Little.

What’s On @ the Parkes Shire Library & Cultural Centre

May 5, 2023 By Roxane Manley

WHAT’S ON MONTHLY CALENDAR

With so much going on at the Library, Marramarra Makerspace & the Coventry Room come in and grab a copy of our new handy calendar to keep you up to date with all the events and activities. An online copy is also available on our Facebook page!

YOUTH BOOK CLUB NOW ONLINE!

Download the book we are reading The Theory of Hummingbirds, by Michelle Kadarusman on the indyreads app and join the online book club guided forum at www.parkeslibrary.freeforums.net. Open toall Parkes Shire Library members aged 12 – 25 years until 20 May 2023.

Parkes Library will also be hosting our Term 2 Youth Library Lock-in during Law Week for young people aged 12-18 with fun and games where you can learn something about the law and how it affects you. Tuesday 16 May from 5:30-8:00pm. Contact the library to book in.

STORYTIME AND RHYME TIME RETURN IN MAY!

Storytime resumes on Tuesday 2nd May at 10:30am for 3–5-year-olds and their parents/carer. Rhyme Time resumes on Thursday 4th May at 10:30am for babies to 2-year-olds and their parents/carer. Bookings are essential for these programs.

LEARN SOMETHING NEW IN MAY

Recycled Art Workshops (FREE). Join Ronda Sharpe in this 2 hour workshop and turn repurposed recycled materials into art that you can submit into the Waste to Art competition! Sunday 7th May 10am – 12pm or 2pm – 4pm. Age 6 – 12-year-olds. Contact the library to book in.

Milk Crate Theatre Workshop (FREE) Milk Crate Theatre is coming to Parkes to offer a free community creative workshop in embodiment and play for adults! Artistic Director Margot Politis will lead the group in a session of collaborative and creative play. This will include movement, games and improvisations, leading to the creation of small sequences or scenes to share with the group. Saturday 20 May 11am – 2pm in the Marramarra Makerspace. Contact Parkes Library to book in and for details.

Doing It For Dolly

May 5, 2023 By Roxane Manley

Do it for Dolly Day encourages parents to strike up the conversation with their kids.

One in four Australian school students between years 4 and 9 are being bullied. One in seven of them won’t tell anyone. That’s over 340,000 young people staying silent.

Dolly Everett was one of those students being bullied. Tragically, she was only 14 when she took her life in January 2018, following relentless and sustained bullying and cyber bullying.

Determined that no other family would suffer from the same devastation, Dolly’s parents, Tick and Kate Everett, established the anti-bullying organisation, Dolly’s Dream. They are committed to changing the culture of bullying by addressing the impact of bullying, anxiety, depression, and youth suicide, through awareness, education and direct support to young people and families.

This May on Do It For Dolly Day the Everett family are encouraging everyone to help break the silence around bullying.

Psychologist and Dolly’s Dream advisory board member, Dr Charlotte Keating agreed that “As parents, carers, educators or concerned family or friends, each one of us can choose to have the critical conversations that will help end the cycle of bullying.”

This is why resources such as the Dolly’s Dream Support Line are critical. This free, 24-hour telephone service provides a way for young people anywhere across Australia to connect with a trained counsellor who is ready to listen and help.

This invaluable support service was only made possible with the funds raised by our generous supporters and the wider community.

Every year in May we see thousands of wonderful communities come together to remember Dolly, participate in fundraising activities to help support the important anti-bullying work of Dolly’s Dream, and share the message to be kind and speak even if your voice shakes.

On Friday 12 May, Do It For Dolly and donate to help make Dolly’s own dream of a kinder and safer world for Australia’s kids and communities a reality.

For more information visit: www.doitfordollyday.org.au

Parkes Shire Library Ambassadors for 2023

WHAT’S ON MONTHLY CALENDAR

YOUTH BOOK CLUB NOW ONLINE!

STORYTIME AND RHYME TIME RETURN IN MAY!

LEARN SOMETHING NEW IN MAY

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