Community

The time has come for the Ladies of Murrumbateman to take matters into their own hands. Starved of any semblance of local entertainment or recreation outside of the town's local pub, Jourdan Colvin and Kristin Butler are putting their organising abilities to the test to put on events for the women of Murrumbateman. Having formed Ladies of Murrumbateman, the group's next...

In 1999, Denzil Sturgiss put himself up for a council position on a whim and was voted in with 60 per cent of the primary vote for Mulwaree Council. "I thought it was a bloody good start," he said. That pre-merged Mulwaree Council represented less than 6000 people. Now exiting public office after 22 successive years in the role, he...

Michelle Apps never got to make her debut at a ball like most of her friends. Her family couldn't afford it at the time, and she just didn't have the financial support to buy the dress, the shoes, get her hair done or arrive in a fancy car. "When I was a little girl I always used to talk about...

There are people who talk of their grand aspirations to make the world a better place, and then there are those who quietly work on projects that become catalysts for significant change. Eurobodalla architect Stuart Whitelaw is the latter. Stuart's modesty hides the significance of his collaborative work that has resulted in a quiet food revolution, with the growth of...

Imagine your publication had a guaranteed circulation of 30,000 each issue, cost just a few pennies and had an annual subscription price of not much more. We're talking about a magazine called Farm Topics, the first issue of which was published on October 15, 1927, but could well offer marketing advice to some of today's media moguls. And, as far...

Forget decking the halls with holly and head to Young this week to see the town's beautiful old buildings adorned with vivid and bright glowing colours. Smack bang in the middle of harvest – be it stone fruit, wheat, canola, chickpeas or barley – Young is set to come alive for a festival which celebrates the cherry. Visitors to the...

Brigid Whitbread has no idea how a historic Queanbeyan document landed at Canberra's Green Shed - she's just immensely grateful it didn't end up as landfill. The document is a World War II certificate presented to Bert Sheedy, one of Queanbeyan's leading historians. His writings form the cornerstone of the city's local history collection, which ranges from books, Moneroo to...

Travis McGrath relied on a bit more than animal magnetism and good timing when he proposed to his girlfriend, Karlee Barton, during a meerkat encounter at Mogo Wildlife Park. Down on one knee in front of a family and complete strangers, the Amaroo plumber was reasonably optimistic he would get a "yes" from his girlfriend of three years. "I don't...

Large numbers of fed-up community members are expected to attend this weekend's 'Open the Doors with Level Four' public rally to show their support for an improved Eurobodalla Regional Hospital, and to march alongside outraged Mourya doctor Michael Holland. Dr Holland this week resigned from his position as VMO Obstetrician and Gynaecologist with the Southern NSW Local Health District following...

History is everything in a village like Gundaroo. It explains its past and, if you're lucky, helps direct its future. For a small village on Canberra's outskirts, Gundaroo has an impressive history. You can still see much of it in its 19th-century slab houses, long narrow blocks so the night carts had easy access down the back, the fact there...

A new social gathering in Bodalla is offering a safe space for mates to get together, share a meal and discuss the highs and lows of life. An initiative of national organisation The Men’s Table, the monthly get-togethers create a unique environment in which men can openly share thoughts about their lives and its challenges with others whom they can...

Carmel Brophy knows full well what it’s like for life to be thrown into chaos; she and her husband Michael lost their Malua Bay home in the Black Summer Bushfires. Now she’s ready to use her experience to help other impacted residents who may be feeling socially isolated following the fires. Carmel volunteers in Eurobodalla Council’s Volunteers for Bushfire Recovery...

In the late 1970s, critically ill babies from Goulburn Base Hospital were rushed to specialist neonatal units in Sydney. Police at every traffic light between Goulburn and Westmead Hospital waved the ambulance, with siren wailing, through because every second counted. Over time, Sydney’s specialists noticed babies from Goulburn arriving in better health than babies transferred shorter distances from suburban hospitals....