March 2007: Green Corps

I had the opportunity along with my son Tristan to attend the launch of the Orange Green Corps project: Hinton Reserve Restoration. The launch was held at the beautiful Botanical Gardens in Orange where the young people had a display of some of the work they did. They are only 5 weeks into the porject just now and already it is clear that they have good team work skills and good work ethics.
It is always pleasing to see young people who enjoy the work that they do. Dont think for one moment that this would only be a male orientated job working in horticulture. There were several females in the team, one of which was the supervisor.
I wish this team well and thank them for taking such a interest in our environment and city of Orange.

Pet Expo- Fly Ball 25th March

What a great day out for the whole family, there were animals everywhere. There were horse rides, pet shows, artwork, reptile area, stall holders and even an education van plus plenty of places to sit and have a picnic. The days events were well organised and credit should be given to the Rotary clubs for this great family event.
My family and I brought along one of our Shar Pei's (rolly polly dog) to be a part of the fly ball contest. There was a celebrity event organised and because of being a Councillor I was asked to be involved. My dog and I had to run up a track with jumps along the way and then at the end pick up a tennis ball put it in the dogs mouth and run back. There was a catch if the dog didn't put the ball in his mouth then I had to put it in mine and run back to the start.
Well a big pat on the back and belly for Barney our dog because he tried really hard, he did become a little weary or stubborn in the end and had a bit of a rest. He was given a pack of wonderful goodies along with the other contenders. It provided an entertaining scene and to this day I still have people stop and ask me how Barney is.

State Election 24th March

Well this is the day to make an important decision. A decision that will effect your electorate and the State in which you live. Which party and which person to vote for thats the main information required. The day of the election is the day when I am very clear in my mind who I vote for and so it was on March the 24th.
I wish all the candidates well, obviously there will only be one winner in our electorate and whoever that may be I would like to think that the emergency services including the development of the new police station and hospital, education and the environment will all rate highly on their future agenda.

Harmony Day Celebrations- South Court 21st March

International Harmony Day was celebrated in Orange recently with lots of people enjoying entertainment and fine food in the Southern Court. The organisers put on a fine evening of events with the formal occasions at the beginning.
Several Migrant's were interviewed by Liz about their journey to Australia and how they have settled into their new town of Orange. It was interesting to hear why they left their home town and how Orange became their final place to live. Some shared with us how they managed to communicate initially using scraps of paper to write what they were trying to say.
We had a young family aboriginal family sing, High school bands playing, Community Choir sending out their music and the opportunity for the community to join in. We also had Ophir tones with African music, Tongan Dancers, the Philipino Choir, some Aussie songs and more.
The evening was filled with colour from national costumes, singing, the smell of fine food and families everywhere. It was a very pleasant atmosphere and such a relaxing finish to the day.

Relay for Life- Emu's Show groud March 17th

What a wonderful adventure. This is the first year we have as a family orgainsed a whole team ourself. We invited friends who helped us to make up a 12 person team to walk the 18 hour relay. Even our two year old was a part of the relay.

The event was very well organised with something being discussed or happening throughout the whole event. It didnt matter if you walked fast or slow or if you had enough stamina to run the track. There was a mix in ages and some real creativity with team names and dress. The event was held in a closed sporting field so there was the relief of knowing that it would be safe for the children.
We enjoyed the event so much that we ended up camping over night and were fortunate that some kind people loaned us their tent as well because they went home. I havent got an amount to tell you as yet with how much money was raised but there is a thought that it would be in the $65 thousand figure. It will be confirmed soon. This was an important event for a very worthy cause "The Cancer Council" with funds helping in research and resources.

Seniors Week 11th - 18th March

We all gathered to celebrate the commencement of Seniors Week 2007. Seniors week was our way of saying thankyou to seniors and a great opportunity for all the generations in Orange to join with older people and celebrate. The upcoming week was filled with exciting activities which were planned to encourage the whole community to unite and celebrate as one with our seniors.
At the launch I was able to MC so explained that NSW Seniors Week was now in its 49th year. It celebrates the valuable contribution seniors make to our community. We have the nations largest population of seniors and can pause and thank everyone for their contribution, strength and integrity or our community.
It was an ideal time to reaffirm Orange City Councils commitment to support our seniors to lead lives that are full, active and healthy.
The days opening ceromony concluded with music from the Orange Conservatorium and a luncheon provided and catered for by Council.

International Womens Day Dinner 8th March

This was an extrodinary evening in a glorious setting. The Regional Women's Advisory Council had invited myself and other people to a dinner celebrating the region for International Women's Day. The atmosphere was very relaxed and the people present were engaging in conversation. They were supportive in their quest to bring more recognition on the matter of low numbers for women in executive positions both in the work place and in Government. A group of influential women had been meeting that day to discuss this very issue.
The Hon Mark Vaile MP, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for transport and Regional Services made an address on the matter and discussed further funding that could be available depending to a degree on the State election coming very soon.

Woman of the Year Announcement 8th March 2007

An invite arrived in the post from "Twiggy" and it read you are invited to attend a luncheon in honour of Gail "Twiggy" Copping 2007 Orange Electorate Woman of the Year. A huge congratulations to Gail a tireless worker in our community who is always so giving. Gail has a list of community involvement that would stretch out to the length of a giraffe. I first initially met Gail when I was polling for the 2004 election. She was full of chatter and eagerness to become a Councillor. Unfortunately that wasnt to be the case that year but I believe in the future there will be change. I have a lot of time for Gail and much respect for the work that she does within our community, that I nominated Gail for this award. I hope she enjoys the year ahead and I look forward to hearing more about her journey through life.
Congratulations Gail!

International Womens Day @ Dubbo 7th March

What a lovely event this was, Council staff organised a meeting place for local women to meet and then were transported by bus to Dubbo. The trip through was full of chatter and and even some singing. We were all looking forward to hearing the guest speakers.
We had several speakers the first spoke about a book that was produced to help support drought areas. The lady explained her yard as a garden cemetary and thought of plants she could use that didnt require a lot of water. A group of ladies got together and produced a book and sold it as a fundraiser.
There were two other speakers, the last speaker is the voice for Blinky Bill, Robyn Moore. She was comical in her presentation but serious with some of the messages she was putting across. The days events passed by incredibly fast and the event was very full with over 700 women present. A luncheon provided the perfect opportunity to meet with other ladies who had travelled from other towns.
A huge credit to the organisers and of course the people that saw fit to fund this wonderful day out. As you can imagine the bus on the way home was again full of chatter about the inspirational ladies we met that day.