Community

Former speech pathologist Daphne Penalver makes a good investigator. So does Maxine Elder, a retired maths teacher who loves detective work. Their group in Goulburn uncovers surprises so close to home that sometimes they think twice about informing their own families. Using DNA, digging into old records and going online, their curiosity, patience and dogged persistence unravels long-hidden secrets. The...

It’s hard to imagine that the popular lifestyle television series, River Cottage Australia, stopped filming five years ago. However, its ethos of showcasing local, seasonal produce lives on in the show's former host Paul West’s current work and the cottage's new incarnation as an Airbnb. These days, the chef is living with his young family in Bermagui, on the NSW...

The view from Mount Selwyn is looking a whole lot better this year compared to last year when the ski resort was damaged beyond repair by bushfires, forcing its closure throughout the 2020 snow season. But behind the scenes, it’s the little things that are adding up to what looks like a promising future for Selwyn Snow Resort in the...

The ties between the capital and the coast have been further strengthened with Goodwin Aged Care Services expanding to the NSW South Coast for the first time in its 65-year history with the acquisition of The Manor retirement village in Batemans Bay. Founded in Canberra in 1954, Goodwin is a not-for-profit specialist in retirement living delivering in-home care, residential care...

A new market in the NSW regional town of Yass is helping southern producers connect with more buyers while raising funds for community groups. The first of the monthly Riverbank Markets ran between 10 am and 2 pm at Riverbank Park in Yass on Sunday, 31 January, 2021, and will return in February. Despite it being an extremely hot day,...

Horticulture students at TAFE NSW Moruya are propagating hundreds of plants which will be distributed to bushfire affected local residents in the Eurobodalla Shire. The students donated a range of hardy, native plants that were propagated at Moruya TAFE to Eurobodalla Shire Council, which acts as a collection point for donated plants. The Black Summer bushfires affected about 80 per...

Remember those $100 worth of vouchers to boost businesses affected by COVID-19 shutdowns? The program is set to be rolled out from March 2021, but registrations are now open to eligible businesses to take part in the NSW Government's economic stimulus program, Dine & Discover NSW. Under the program, every NSW resident aged 18 and above will receive four $25 vouchers...

An exhibition showcasing the work of Braidwood artist Jack Featherstone will open at Tuggeranong Arts Centre on Saturday, 6 February, 2021. Titled 'Jack, John and Kempsey', the exhibition features paintings from the artist’s private collection and the collections of family, friends and local collectors across a span of 62 years, between 1958 and 2020. Jack is a well known figure...

When my wife Franki and I spent three days in the Victorian regional city of Bendigo, memories of Goulburn, where we lived for almost 40 years, came flooding back. We met at the Rugby Club in Market Street and married in Goulburn a little over a year later. That little rowdy club has long gone. Our three children grew up...

National online charity GIVIT has donated more than 250 Sealy Australia mattresses to southeast NSW residents affected by the Black Summer bushfires. Local residents still recovering from the devastation of the fires have received single, queen and king-size mattresses during the past 12 months, from Narooma to Cooma and as far south as Kiah. Service NSW bushfire customer care specialist...

It will be a moment of immense pride and anticipation as Moruya triplets Emme, Kade and Jace Ramsay take part in the World's Greatest Shave for leukaemia on 11 March. Born at just 32 weeks, the triplets and their mum, Jedda Reeves, spent a lot of time in Sydney's Westmead Hospital's neonatal intensive care unit, where they met many families...

A new mosaic memorial to local ‘bird lady’ Laurel Rosin is now in Waniassa Park on the Queanbeyan River. Laurel was the bird coordinator of Wildcare Queanbeyan for many years before she died in January 2020. Local artist Alison Archbold was chosen by Wildcare to make the memorial. She is also a bird and animal lover and her Googong farm...

Two new synthetic bowling greens at the Queanbeyan Bowls Club are heralding a new era for the club which was on the brink of extinction. The Queanbeyan Bowls Club, whose greens were laid during the Great Depression in 1934, faced the same problems bedevilling dozens of bowls clubs across Australia - dwindling fees from a small and diminishing member base...

Radek Hruska is determined to provide a good life for his family on the NSW South Coast, and he's wasted no time in making that happen. Emigrating from the Czech Republic in 2018, Radek was determined to improve his written and spoken English, and enrolled in Bega TAFE's Certificate IV in Tertiary Preparation, and graduated with an ATAR equivalent of...

Eurobodalla Shire Council will host a free workshop to help parents and carers teach learner drivers. Council's road safety officer, Kate McDougall, said the practical workshop has tips for anyone who supervises L-platers. “They’ll leave with increased confidence, and a better understanding of the learner driver logbook, how to encourage safe driving, and be able to explain licensing provisions for...

For three months the Cobargo community took care of May Blacka and her five children while her husband was in a Sydney hospital. The love between the NSW South Coast town and May was mutual, and for years she supported and fundraised for its Rural Fire Service, golf club, swimming pool and rugby clubs. She has now been recognised for her...