Two members of the Parkes Fijians Association, Suliana and Ilaitia Naqau, visited Fiji on 5th April for a funeral and also had a meeting with the Nasautoka District School staff. Plans are to repair the main school block and get the students back to familiar surroundings as at the moment when the rain falls, students must move desks to find a dry place as the building leaks. A composite class is currently using a temporary tent donated by UNICEF.

The school carpenter presented a list a materials needed on the 12th April which were sourced from hardware suppliers. These materials were funded by the donations raised in Parkes. The Parkes Rotary Club also donated 10 laptops which will be installed once the IT room is rebuilt. It has been seven weeks since the cyclone hit Fiji and so far no government assistance has been received. The school staff are so grateful to the people of Parkes. Parkes Christian School previously visited on a mission trip in 2015 so the staff are aware of where the assistance is coming from.

Most of the school building and staff quarters were partly destroyed with three of the school buildings beyond repair. The funds raised in Parkes are being used to rebuild the main school block which once repaired will free up the church and tent that are currently being used as makeshift classrooms.

The Parkes Fijians Association would like to express their sincere thanks to all that have contributed to this worthy cause. “My church pastor always mentioned, ‘we cannot assist the whole of Fiji but we can change someone’s life’ by getting their school building back in operation” said Ilaitia; “We still have used clothes that have been donated to us to send to the village. We will do this in the near future.” If you would like to donate to Nasautoka village please drop off your donations at 176-180 Back Trundle Road or by calling Ilaitia on 0452 125395.

Situated in the centre of Parkes, The Astro Dish’s restaurant, is a hidden gem for fine dining. With modern grey and chrome décor, the futuristic restaurant can be cosy and intimate or be opened up to cater for functions of over 100 people. Chef Denise, who has been at The Aastro Dish since August, has been hard at work perfecting flavours to tantalise taste buds, “I try to create three or four new dishes a week for our specials board” she said; “We get fresh seafood delivered every Thursday direct from the Sydney fish markets so we have fresh oysters, barramundi, snapper and more on offer dependent on what’s in season.” The restaurant has a set menu including an excellent array of steaks, entrees, seafood and desserts.

When asked what Denise’s favourite dish was she said, “it would probably be the Kilpatrick steak which is stopped with bacon, cheese and Worcestershire sauce!” Recent creations include a duck with blackberry jus and a lamb rack with fig and rocket salad. The Aastro Dish specialise in fine dining, “there’s nothing on our menu you’d typically find in a pub” said Denise; “ Our restaurant is perfect for treating a loved one to a sit down, three course experience.

The other half of the catering team, Krista, is a jack of all trades with some of her job titles including waitress, front of house and kitchen porter, “I’ve always loved hospitality and Donald and Valerie are fantastic bosses, if you want to learn they will show you. I couldn’t really imagine working anywhere else.” Krista and Denise want to encourage the people of Parkes to come and enjoy the culinary delights, “Denise and I are keen for locals to come down, once they see what great service and delicious food we have, they’ll be hooked!

Heather Rome is a retired veterinary nurse who moved to Peak Hill six months ago. Heather started pet sitting in Western Australia and there began a life-long love affair with Maine Coon cats. Maine Coons come in 78 different colours and are native to America. “The story goes that Marie Antoinette fled to America to escape the revolution and her cats escaped into the Maine forest and bred with the natives” Heather said.

The laid back cats don’t reach maturity until four years old and some cats can grow to 10 kilos! Heather, who has been breeding for 21 years, currently has 3 Maine Coons, 3 domestic cats and 6 kittens but previously had 35 cats in WA, “I was a bit of a crazy cat lady!” she joked. Heather is keen is share her love of this type of cat and encourages any potential pet owners to consider adding one to their family.

“Maine Coons are the largest domestic breed of cats and are truly the ‘gentle giants’ of the cat world. They have rectangular bodies, a large head with lynx tipped ears and large tufted paws. Their coat is also slightly oily which makes them easy to groom and stay looking good” she said.

Parkes Shire Council has committed funding to develop the Parkes CBD Vibrancy Strategy. This strategy aims to engage with stakeholders to develop new ideas and urban renewal projects to make the centre of Parkes more attractive to customers. Parkes Shire Council Mayor Ken Keith OAM said, “The Parkes CBD is an energetic and enterprising business centre that serves a large regional catchment in Central NSW. As the main centre for the Shire,
Parkes must develop its own vision and sense of place that captures the past and present, its unique natural attributes, rural setting and lifestyle.”

“To sustain this reality into the future requires a healthy, vibrant commercial centre  that is robust enough to grow and accommodate the ever changing dynamics demanded of a modern country community,” Mayor Keith added.

The CBD Strategy will focus on six main areas including small wins, further designs, car parking, activation, incentives and maintenance. It will be available for public exhibition until 20th May and community members are encouraged to provide feedback by contacting the Council. Council staff will also be collecting feedback at the old CBA building between 11am and 2pm until 27th April and will host a public meeting on 2nd May at 6pm in the Council Chambers in Cecile Street.

This Saturday, 16th April, the Central West Astronomical Society will be holding its regular ‘Friends of The DISH’ event at the CSIRO Parkes Observatory Visitors Centre. Members and non-members are welcome to come along and learn about what’s hidden just behind our atmosphere. Telescopes will be set up on the grounds of the Centre and visitors will be invited to view the bright stars, sunspots, planets and moon through the telescopes in daylight.

Weather permitting, the event will run from around 9am until 4.30pm and is free of charge to all who wish to attend. Central West Astronomical Society meetings are held on the first Friday of every month except January from 7.30pm in the CSIRO Pares Observatory Visitors Centre. Everyone who has an interest in science, space or who would just like to socialise and make some new friends are welcome free of charge.

The famous CSIRO Parkes radio telescope has been in operation for more than 50 years and thanks to regular upgrades, it continues to be at the forefront of discovery. The telescope is one of three instruments that make up the Australia Telescope National Facility and it has now been announced that the telescope has been granted pathfinder status by the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) Organisation in Australia.

The announcement welcomes ‘The Dish’ into the group of other world-leading instruments and systems engaged in SKArelated technology development and science studies. Parkes Shire Council Mayor Ken Keith OAM says, “The granted SKA pathfinder status for The Dish is an exciting development and ensures it remains at the forefront of astronomical discovery.” Astronomers from across Australia and around the world utilise the Parkes radio telescope, which has a diameter of 64 metres, to undertake world-class astronomical science.

Built virtually in the shadow of The Dish, the Discovery Centre, where visitors are invited to explore the world of astronomy, is also open 7 days. If you would like to become a friend of the dish give them a call on 6861 1777.

On Wednesday Parkes Stationery and Office Furniture presented a donation to Parkes Hospital to mark the end of three years of working towards supplying whiteboards throughout the new Parkes Hospital. “We’re pleased to be a local business supporting another local business” said Gregor, owner of Parkes Stationery and Office Furniture; “We are huge supporters of the buy local campaign and have supported many businesses along with community events and groups.”

130 whiteboards were supplied to building contractors who then installed them into the hospital. Pelikan Artline also donated 60 units of whiteboard starter kits, which included whiteboard markers, erasers and cleaning solution and has a retail value of over $800. Whiteboards are used primarily for meetings with staff and patients, are a great way to illustrate treatment plans and patient care boards are also often placed on whiteboards.

Gregor and Marty Sammut-Paul took over the Parkes Stationery and Office Furniture business in July, 2013 after moving to Parkes from the Glasshouse Mountains in Queensland so their daughter could grow up closer to family. In the two and a half years since Gregor and Marty have worked hard to ensure the store image, branding and presentation is dynamic and consistent. The husband and wife team work full time and employ ten full time and part time staff, one of which, Dianne Orr, won the prestigious Parkes Business Awards in 2015 for customer service.

Gregor, who is also Treasurer of the Parkes Chamber of Commerce, is pleased that his business has been able to help and provide for other in the community; “Our small business grounding has enabled us to quickly meet the needs of our local customers while being large enough to source bulk products that our customers demand. We’d like to sincerely thank Parkes and the surrounding towns for the support we have been shown.”