The kids had fun and the adults gained new knowledge at the first ever Community Health Open Day held at Parkes Hospital on Tuesday.

Just over 50 community members turned up for a day of fun activities in the sun with the focus on kids. Children could complete a treasure hunt, while doing various activities including an obstacle course with the physiotherapists dressed as Minions, craft activities, different games and some handouts.

About ten different services were represented including mental and oral health, occupational, speech and physiotherapy, dietician, social work, psychology, family health and community-based nursing.

“It went quite well,” said Community and Allied Health Manager Kath Gleeson. “The kids enjoyed the various activities, and some adults even received some impromptu consultations.”

She said from feedback received it was clear they could have done more to promote the day in the community. “It was a good start and definitely worthwhile. Our staff enjoyed it as much as the community members.”

Kath thanked Northparkes Mines for a grant that enabled them to print a calendar to further promote the services offered by Community Health.

If you think a day of grazing, tasting and meandering through vineyards to savour delectable organic food and wine sounds like an itinerary item for a trip around Tuscany, you are on the wrong continent!

Cowra Tourism will be running half day guided Wine & Forage Tours of the Cowra local wine region this spring giving you the opportunity to experience the very best of local organic food and wine.

Antonio D’Onise of Antonio’s Vineyard, formerly Gardener’s Ground, kicks off the tour with a wine ‘treasure’ wander through his vineyard to not only fill up on very interesting facts about organic and vegan wines, but also taste his latest imaginative shiraz and chardonnay releases.

Taking over from Antonio is Sam Statham who takes the group on a wander through Canowindra’s first organic vineyard and farm at Rosnay. Along the way there is a tasting table with a range of some delightful fig and olive products.

The last stop is at Wallington Wines, a family owned and operated organic and biodynamic farm producing grapes and olives just outside Canowindra, with its unique straw bale cellar door. Sitting under the pergola tasting the Bald Hill wines with breathtaking views over the valley, while lunch is being prepared in the wood fire pizza oven, it is easy to imagine yourself in Tuscany…

The 2019 Cowra Wine & Forage Tours will run from Saturday, 14th September and will be available throughout Spring.

Tickets are $80 per person. Contact the Cowra Visitor Information Centre on 6342 4333 or book online via www. visitcowra. com.au/wineandforage.

By Maggi Barnard

Rabbits and guinea pigs make excellent pets when you’ve got less space (but more love) to give. They’re notoriously clean animals and rabbits can even be litter trained just like cats.

Rabbits and guinea pigs are plant-eaters or herbivores and require an adequate intake of vegetables, fruits, pellets, and fibrous grass and hay, plus fresh water daily.

Fruits and vegetables provide high levels of vitamins and minerals. You can safely treat your rabbit or guinea pig to asparagus, basil, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower leaves and stalks, celery, cucumber, spinach, tomato and zucchini.

Avoid potato and potato tops, rhubarb (including the leaves), tomato leaves andtoo much fruit (as fruits are high in sugar).

Limit your rabbit or guinea pig’s vegetable intake to two to three different greens each day. If your rabbit or guinea pig does not have enough to gnaw on, dental problems can occur.

Make sure you regularly clean their food and water dishes, and that your pet is being fed a varied, nutritious diet.

Your pet will require a large hutch with adequate shelter and warm places to hide and sleep. Rabbits can actually be housetrained similarly to cats. Ensure you clean your rabbit or guinea pig’s hutch twice weekly, keeping it free from droppings and replacing straw bedding regularly. All pet’s need plenty of space to stretch and exercise.

Make sure you let your pet out to play every day, keeping a close eye on them.

This time of the year there are plenty of rabbits and guinea pig babies around so make sure to stock up before adopting one.

You can find a good selection of food and bedding for your rabbits and guinea pigs at the Parkes Pet Barn.

Middleton Public School’s Kindergarten students went on their first excursion recently and visited a farm, Parkes Airport and Memorial Hill. At the airport they saw the Prime Minister’s plane as Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack was visiting the town.

The pilot invited them on board, and the students were absolutely thrilled to go inside and were very impressed by the stylish interior, making it a memorable day.

PARKES LIBRARY HAS REOPENED FOR BUSINESS!

Parkes Library has now moved to our temporary location at 2/250 Clarinda Street and is open for business. Come in and take a look at all we have to offer including books, DVDs and CDs for loan, or sit down to read a wide selection of newspapers and magazines. If you need to access a computer we have six public computers available, as well as scanning and photocopying facilities.

All of your favourite Library programs will recommence during September including:
• Author-rised Writers Group and Book Club
• Once Upon A Storytime – Tuesday 10th@ 10:30am
• Storytime – Wednesday 11th @ 10:30am
• Rhymetime – Thursday 12th @ 10:30am
• Computer Classes will now be on Wednesday 9-10:30am

AN EVENING WITH THE TWO KELLYS – AUTHOR VISIT

Thursday, 19th September at 6pm Parkes Library

Move over Corbett and Barker, Kelly Rimmer and Kim Kelly are coming to town!

These two well-known Central West writers will be getting together to talk about taking their stories to the world and the triumphs and challenges of writing stories close to their hearts.

Kim Kelly is an acclaimed author of Australian historical fiction, stories of ordinary people enduring extraordinary times, told with lyrical charm. Kim hails from Millthorpe
and her new novella, Sunshine, is a tale of returned soldiers finding new lives out the back of Bourke – literally.

Kelly Rimmer is an internationally bestselling author of gripping women’s fiction.

Kelly hails from Orange and her new novel, The Things We Cannot Say, is a story of war, sacrifice, uncovering truths of the past, and the present – inspired by some very personal stories.

RSVP: 6861 2309, library@parkes.nsw.gov.au

The Parkes Musical & Dramatic Society is once again leading the way with its latest production featuring captions for patrons that are hearing impaired or who struggle to understand the sung word. Musical Director Neil Westcott saw a production at the Sydney Opera House which featured captions. After talking to Director Lyn Townsend they decided to research how this works and whether it was possible to offer this for their production of Les Miserables.

Captions will be available for patrons booking seats in rows A to J and will be monitored by the caption team of Graham MacRaild, Kate Townsend and Emily McHugh-Douglas. This involves cueing every single line in the show manually, which takes a lot of focus.

“We are proud to be at the forefront of bringing this technology to regional theatre,” said Lyn. “Being a hearing-impaired person who wears aids myself, I understand how important captions are to people with a hearing disability. I also believe the captions will be great for people who miss a line, or where there are multiple lines sung at the same time”.

Les Miserables opens on Saturday, 14th September. Tickets are on sale at www. parkesmandd.com.au or Parkes Regional Business Supplies.

From next month freight trains travelling from the east and west will be running on the first completed section of new track of the Inland Rail North-West Connection.

The North-West Connection will link Inland Rail to the interstate east-west line from Sydney to Perth providing a vital connection for the freight industry.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development Michael McCormack and Minister for Regional Services, Decentralisation and Local Government Mark Coulton were in Parkes last Friday to inspect the completed section.

“The North-West Connection is so important for our freight industry and we will see markedly improved travel times and enhanced capacity for multiple train movements up, down and along the intersecting network,” said Michael.

According to Inland Rail CEO Richard Wankmuller this is another important project milestone. “This historic link is a vital connection to the Inland Rail spine and the East-West network to Perth,” Richard said.

“What was a greenfield site now accommodates this significant rail connection that will be handed over in the coming weeks to become operational. In the second quarter of next year, we anticipate it will also link into the Parkes to Narromine line.

The North-West Connection is part of Inland Rail’s Parkes to Narromine project, and continues to provide opportunities and an economic boost for local communities.

“At the end of July, about $24.5 million had been spent with local businesses,” Richard said. “Around 72 local businesses have supplied to the project, about 700 people have worked on the project, of whom about 280 are local, and last month a peak daily workforce of 598 was recorded.

Motorists should note that there are two new level crossings as part of the North- West Connection, one at Coopers Road and one at Brolgan Road with boom gates and flashing lights.