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MERRIWA RINGER 1 September 2011

The 60th Birthday of Merriwa Bowling Club will be held this Saturday, 3 September, at the Merriwa Sports Club from 9.30am

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Published by: MERRIWA CENTRAL SCHOOL

Bow Street, Merriwa 2329 Ph: 6548 2119 Fax: 6548 2534

Email: [email protected] Online: www.merriwa-c.schools.nsw.edu.au

Issue 26Issue 26: : Thursday 1 September 2011

MERRIWA RINGER Thursday 1 September 2011

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MERRIWA CENTRAL SCHOOL

Important Dates SEPTEMBER Thursday 1 - Yr 3-6 Cassilis Sports Day - K-2 Wetlands Excursion Friday 2 - Sydney Symphony Concert Excursion to Newcastle - Fife Assembly Tuesday 6 - MEGS Defence Force Excursion Wednesday 7 - P&C Meeting - 7pm Friday 9 - Yr 6 Vegwatch - 10.30am

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

Little Sprouts reading day proved to be a great success last Friday. We couldn’t have asked for better weather, the sun was shining and I’m sure the birds were singing nursery rhymes as I wandered the main street. Students looked great in costume as they moved from one activity to the other, and our Yr 9/10 students did a wonderful job dressed in character adding something special to the event. Congratulations to the organising committee for another successful Little Sprouts Day Merit selection A vacancy exists for the assistant principal position in primary due to the recent retirement of Lynda Marshall. The position will be advertised shortly, panel members include Katie Bell, relieving principal Cassilis Public School, Lucy Wong, P&C representative, and myself. A teacher representative is yet to be elected for the panel. Mrs Morgan remains on leave and her executive position is being filled by Mr Glen Kite in a temporary capacity. School visit Our school is committed to improving literacy and numeracy outcomes for all students. Substantial improvements have been made over the last few years in the teaching of literacy and numeracy across the school, and in student results. However improvement is an ongoing process. This week Mrs Hoye and I visited Dunedoo Central School to investigate a new program aimed at supporting students who struggle with numeracy called Quicksmart. We aim to introduce the program in primary and secondary next year once staff have completed the training. Proposed industrial action Next Thursday, September 8, remains the proposed date for a mass rally of NSW public servants in Sydney. I anticipate schools will be closed across the State, however I am awaiting further advice. A letter will be sent home to parents confirming arrangements for next week.

Community spirit Congratulations to Del Leggett and Jill Inder for organising a wonderful morning tea on Daffodil Day. It was great to see so many people supporting the event for the Cancer Council. In keeping with this great community spirit keep an eye out for our students selling badges for Legacy in the main street this Friday.

Little Sprouts

Darren Noonan

Principal


MERRIWA CENTRAL SCHOOL PRIMARY NEWS

100% KNIGHTS VISIT We were very fortunate in having a group from the 100% Knights group visit our campus on Tuesday. The group led the students in a dance workshop and indigenous games activities. At the end of the session we were entertained by the indigenous dancers. Our students were invited to participate in the dance presentation, displaying the dances which they had been taught.

W e l c o m e Dance

Our boys joined in the dances.

Our girls display the dances which they had learnt.

STUDENTS OF THE WEEK

Dressed in their Little Sprouts outfits are our Students of the Week for Week 6: Ruby Wong (Little Bo Peep), Logan Pike (Jack from Jack and Jill), Jack McAlister (Old McDonald) Cody Turner (one of the Little Ducks from Five Little ducks Went out One Day) and Corey Smith-Wildey.

Our students have certainly been busy with lots of activities over the past few weeks. Last week we enjoyed the visit from the 100% Knights group and Little Sprouts Day.

Our Kindergarten transition program commenced on Tuesday morning with Miss Temessl and 17 very excited students. Our second session is scheduled to be held on 15 September. The new kinder students met with their peer pals for next year and enjoyed a morning of activities. This week our students will travel to Cassilis for their sports workshop day, to Newcastle to visit the Wetlands and to Newcastle once more on the Friday to enjoy the Sydney Symphony Orchestra perform in a concert for primary students. These are all great activities and enhance the work being done in classrooms in PD/H/PE and in CAPA.

IT’S LITERACY AND NUMERACY WEEK THIS WEEK

Share the love of Literacy with your child by reading to, or with your child this week (and every week!) Research has shown that children



Attention Readers!

We would like to feature some new regular columns on the following topics:

Cooking Gardening Pets/Livestock Craft

If you would be interested in submitting columns on one of these topics on a

regular basis we would like to hear from you!

who have 1000 books read to them before they start school are more literate and enjoy greater success at school. Don’t forget to listen to your child read their home reader to you and return it to school for exchange on Friday.

MATHS GAMES When Mr Meeks visited our Primary Campus a fortnight ago, he left behind some great ideas for games which could be played at home using a deck of cards. We are including two of those games in this week’s Ringer so that you can enjoy playing them at home. Card Games: Fish - Suitable for: Kinder or Year 1 – 2 Why play this game? Helps with Recognising numbers Deal out seven cards to each player. Each player finds pairs of numbers from their hand and places them down in front of them. The game begins when player 1 asks the player sitting to their left if they have a card that matches one of theirs so that they can make a pair. If they do have the card, they give it to player 1. If they do not have the card they say “fish” and player 1 picks a card from the pack. Play continues in this way. After all the deck has been used, players count the number of pairs they made. The winner is the one with the most number of pairs. Variation - Players collect cards that add to 10 instead of pairs

Salute - Suitable for: Year 2-8 and adults can have fun with this. Why play this game? The game helps with Addition and subtraction Multiplication and division Directions - Short deck, cards 2-10 (3 players) Deal one card each, face down. When the dealer says “salute”, each player raises the card to his or her forehead. The dealer states the total of the cards. Each player has to determine the value of the card being held to his or her forehead by looking at the other person’s card and subtracting this amount from the total. This can also be played with multiplication Variation - The dealer looks at the colour of the cards. If the colours are the same the dealer adds and if the colours are different, the dealer multiplies. This time, the player has to state both the colour and the value of the card being held.

MCCAINS SCHOOL VEGGIE PATCHES We have been registered with the McCAIN School Veggie Patches program. All we have to do is to cut the barcodes off MCCAIN frozen vegetable packets and McCAIN Purely Potato packs and place them in the specially marked container which is on the desk of the Primary Administration Block. The more barcodes that we collect, the more prizes that we can win towards establishing a school vegetable garden.

Ruth Hoye

REMINDER

The deadline for all articles and advertisements is Monday Noon, for distribution on Thursday



LITTLE SPROUTS READING DAY

A n o t h e r s u c c e s s f u l Reading Day! - The Little Sprouts team could not have hoped for better weather! It

was a beautiful day: sunny and warm. We had a huge turn out of all our community schools: Merriwa Central School K -10, St Josephs Primary, Cassilis Public and Merriwa Preschool as well as all our little Seeds. The day involved over 300 children and more than 40 business houses. We are lucky to have such as supportive and enthusiastic community that happily get involved on this special day. It proves the community of Merriwa feel strongly about promoting reading to our children and acknowledge the importance of this life skill. It was wonderful to see all the children dressed up as their favourite nursery rhyme characters. The children loved to see our teachers and parents dressed up as well. This joining in by everyone makes the day even more enjoyable and entertaining.

Thanks to some Yr 9/10 students who happily played dress ups for us, we had a number o f r h y m e characters from Polly to Peter,

including: Peter Pumpkin Eater and the Butcher, the Baker and the Candlestick Maker. All these characters entertained the children and community members all day. Well done everyone!

The Seeds were able to enjoy the activities provided by Toybox and Family Insight from such things as play dough through to cutting and gluing. These are two community services available to families in our area.

The Seeds and Preschoolers enjoyed Mainly Music with Carol Bowman, where the children danced and sang to range of music. The children watched a performance by Aunty Peach of two fairy tales: Jack and the Beanstalk and Little Red Riding Hood. She invited the children to help act out some of the characters and performed magic tricks. Our Primary students enjoyed helping her to act out Roald Dahl’s Revolting Rhymes. Merriwa Activity Centre and Merriwa Youth Centre combined heads to come up with a range of activities around a number of Nursery Rhymes. Games like Egg and Spoon- Humpty Dumpty, Hurdles- Jack Be Nimble and Fill the Buckets- Jack and Jill. Some Yr 8 students helped out with setting up and running the activities at the park so, a huge thank you goes to these people as well. Each class group had a few Yr 7/8 students to help throughout the day. These children showed maturity and happily stepped up in this role of responsibility. Congratulations on your behaviour. The day was successful due to the help of all the teachers who supervised the class groups, the Merriwa Central P & C, who cooked the BBQ and provided a morning tea and all our volunteer readers, business houses and parents. Once again the Sprouts Team cannot thank enough our local CWA ladies who baked nearly 1000 biscuits with love, choc chips and care to provide all the children with their biscuits. This is something special from this small group of ladies. We would like to thank, also, MAC and the Youth Centre for their time and support each year. Without the help of these people our day would not be as successful. Thank you again.

Little Sprouts Team



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from the Merriwa Ringer, please contact us by telephone to follow it up, as we may not

have received the email. Thank you

SECONDARY NEWS

CAREER NEWS THIS WEEK

Working or Gap Experience in Canada - Looking for ways to spend your gap year? The governments of Australia and Canada have signed a bilateral agreement to allow 18-30 year old Australian passport holders to travel and work anywhere in Canada for up to two years at a time. No job offer is required. If you are planning a gap year or just spending a few months overseas on school/university break, participation in the International Exchange Canada (IEC) could be a great opportunity. For detailed information on the IEC (including Working Holiday Canada), refer to www.australia.gc.ca (click ‘Travel and Work in Canada’

W Minerals Summer School - Year 10 or Year 11 students interested in Science or Engineering can participate in the UNSW Minerals Summer School between Monday 9 and Thursday 12 January, 2012. Applications closing date: 30th September. Visit http://www.mining.unsw.edu.au/

The School for Excellence HSC Preparation Courses - These revision programs have been designed to provide students with a thorough preparation of the knowledge and skills required to obtain high marks in the final HSC examinations. Subjects offered: Ancient History, Biology, Business Studies, Chemistry, English Advanced, English Standard, Economics, General Maths, Legal Studies, Maths (2 Unit), Maths Extension 1, Maths Extension 2, Modern History, PDHPE and Physics. Sunday 25 September - Saturday 1 October, at the University of Sydney. Also "Mastering the Exams" is a unique lecture designed to provide students with the best opportunities to maximise examination scores. Saturday 11 September, the University of Sydney. Visit http://www.tsfx.com.au/nsw/default.htm

Important Information for Year 12 students UAC PIN - Year 12 students have been receiving their pins in the mail over the last week. This is a four-digit number which is used when a student goes online to apply to UAC for university courses, and later to access

their ATAR on 15 December. Students must keep this number safe.

Key dates for UAC course submissions Early August 2011 applications open Friday 30 September 2011 on-time

applications close Monday 31 October 2011 late applications

close with late fee $116* Wednesday 30 November 2011 late

applications close with late fee $133* Thursday 2 February 2012 final close of

applications with late fee $143* HSC and ATARs Wednesday 14 December 2011 NSW HSC

results released by Board of Studies Thursday 15 December 2011 ATARs released

by UAC at www.uac.edu.au Change of preferences Thursday 5 January 2012 for consideration in

Main Round 18 January – 25 January 2012 for

consideration in Late Round 1 February – 2 February 2012 for

consideration in Final Round

Early Entry Schemes/Scholarships - Charles Stuart University and New England University early entry application forms have been handed out to interested students. Please return these forms as early as possible so they can be completed in the required time frame.

If you require any further information about careers please contact me at school.

J E Hegarty Careers Advisor

http://www.mining.unsw.edu.au/




http://www.uac.edu.au


STUDENT OF THE WEEK

ROAR Athlete Profile


Name: Cody Towell Year Group: 6 Favourite Subject: Sport Favourite sport: Rugby League Favourite team: Broncos Favourite player: Jharal Yow Yeh Best personal sporting achievement: Champion in swimming Who inspires you: Dad Advice to young players: Just keep trying What has ROAR taught you: To have better sportsmanship

Name: Dylan Kiely Year Group: 9 Favourite Subject: English Favourite pastime: Reading Dream Career: Haematologist Best school experience: First Zone athletics Best personal achievement: First in five subjects Advice on how to get along: Treat others as you would treat yourself


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If you are sending in articles or advertisements by email and you do not receive an acknowledgement of receipt

from the Merriwa Ringer, please contact us by telephone to follow it up, as we may not

have received the email. Thank you

P & C

Meets the first Wednesday of each month at 7-00pm in the Merriwa RSL Club

Merriwa Central School Biennial Fete Saturday 29 October 3pm - Circus Theme Plans are going well for the fete, we have had some people come forward to help on the stalls which is really good, however we could still use a little more help. Maybe you have a friend you know of that could give you a hand on the day or if you don’t just give us a call and we can pair you up with one or two others – this is a great way for new parents to meet other parents in the school community. We are currently looking for some entertainment for the afternoon, so if anyone has any ideas please just let us know by phone either Carlita McConnell on 6548 2889 or Maxine Cronin on 6548 2628. We are also looking for any one who may have some free time on a Friday or a Saturday morning to sell tickets in our major fete raffle.

Little Sprouts Thankyou to all those people who helped the P&C with the running of the morning tea/canteen on the day at the School of Arts last Friday 26 August for Little Sprouts Day. Also to all the people who sent in lots of lovely cooking and made sandwiches on the day – again these proved to be a great hit. A special thankyou to our BBQ person, Percy Fairhall for cooking the sausages for the children at lunch time.

Pavers The first master sheet has been completed. As mentioned before we have set aside a number of pavers for current students so we will be sending home an order form with each child this week. These orders will need to be

returned with payment by Friday 16 September. We have already had some student hand in their forms and they have put much thought into the content of their paver - from the year that they will complete their schooling to major achievements as well as some lovely drawings. All these details will make for a very interesting area. So please give some thought to purchasing your child a paver or maybe you could purchase a family paver with multiple names if you have more than one child. Fathers Day Stall Fathers Days gifts will be able to be purchased on Friday 3 September at the Primary and on Wednesday 1st September at the Secondary with prices ranging from $3.00 to $6.00. Next P&C Meeting will be held on Wednesday 7 September in the Fletcher Room at the RSL Club at 7pm. Everyone welcome.

Carlita McConnell


P & C

Meets the first Wednesday of each month at 7-00pm in the Merriwa RSL Club

MONSTER TRAILER RAFFLE

Prize includes: Box Trailer (includes Rego) Retail Price $1160 PLUS Goods to the value of $3000. Drawn: 29 October 2011. Only $2.00 per ticket with all proceeds going to support Merriwa Central School P&C Association. Tickets available from Hunter Mutual and Merriwa Hardware. Many thanks to the following businesses for your support and for making this a success, we could not have done this without you: Hunter Mutual Merriwa - $500 towards

trailer, Cappuccino Machine plus a bag of goodies

Ryan’s Trailers & Caravans – discount on price of trailer

Wightmans Transport – Transport of trailer from Dubbo to Merriwa

Merriwa Hardware and McConnell’s This & That – BBQ valued at $300

Royal Hotel Merriwa – Dinner for 4, carton of beer and bottle of spirits

Merriwa Auto Electrical – Remote controlled 4wd buggy valued at $250

Muswellbrook Holden – Holden Racing Team Jacket valued at $250

Russell’s Earthmoving Merriwa – Outdoor Setting table and chairs

Max’s Country Cuts – Side of Lamb valued at $90

Merriwa Pharmacy – Boots, Watch, Masseur sandals total value at $120

Merriwa IGA & Liquor - $100 voucher Australian Reptile Park – Family pass to park

(2 Adults and 2 children) Elders Merriwa – Dog biscuits to the value of

$55 Pearce’s working dogs – Load of fire wood Good Looks Nail & beauty & Hair Indeed –

Face cream and hair products Merriwa Nursery – Garden consultation plus

discounted plants Repco Muswellbrook – Pressure washer

valued at $280 CJ & JM Vero & Sons – Microwave oven and

vacuum cleaner Merriwa Sports Club – 2 bottles red wine, 1

white wine, 1 port Merriwa Newsagent – Toddlers bike Cross Country Ford/NRMA – Picnic Blanket Lenore’s Quilting - $20 Voucher Merriwa Engineering – Car Oil, Whipper

Snipper Oil, 2 caps Spotlight - $20 Voucher Western Plains Zoo –Family pass to park (2

adults and 2 children) Merriwa Tyre & Services - Husqvarna Toy

Chainsaw, RRP $65.50 Upper Hunter Shire Council - $200 towards

Xbox 360 + 4 Games Merriwa RSL - $50 Bistro Voucher


CASSILIS PUBLIC SCHOOL

It is great to see our school back to its full numbers with students returning from illness. Hopefully, we will all be really healthy from here on. This week is our busiest for the year. A lot of fun events are planned and I am looking forward to spending some time doing different learning activities! Be Respectful, Be Safe, Do Your Best…steering you to success. This week’s ‘Caught You Being Respectful/Being Safe/Doing Your Best’ certificate recipients include: Corey N (4), Mat (4). Kyle (4), Tarnisha (2), Taine (3), Steph (2), Corey M (3), Thomas (4), Sarah (5), Summer (2), Brady (5), Bonny (5), Angus M (3), Stan (1), James (4), Priya (5), Jack N (5), Jack S.C (4), Rachel (4), Angus H (4), Heath (1) National Literacy and Numeracy Week This week is National Literacy and Numeracy Week and it provides a unique opportunity for us to recognise and celebrate the achievements of our students and the work of teachers, parents and members of the community who support young people to develop stronger literacy and numeracy skills. All this week we will be continuing to provide high quality education, including visiting literacy and numeracy stalls at Vibe Alive on Wednesday. Author Visit Last Thursday years 5 and 6 met Australian author, John Heffernan in Muswellbrook. He was an inspiring and enthusiastic speaker and all the students thoroughly enjoyed listening to him recount the writing process and read aloud from his narratives. We are excitedly awaiting the arrival of a couple more of his books!

Little Sprouts This was my first experience of Little S p r o u t s and it was fantast ic ! All children a n d t e a c h e r s h a d a lovely day d r e s s i n g u p ,

watching Aunty Peach, walking into shops and being read to by the owners, having a great morning tea and lunch and receiving a free book to take home and read. The message of ‘planting the seed of reading’ is very important. Many thanks to Merriwa Central School for organising the day and inviting us along, Merriwa CWA and the local businesses. There were many h a p p y s m i l i n g f a c e s throughout the day and as we left to drive home in the afternoon.

Father’s Day Stall Thank you to the P&C, especially Mrs Singh and Suzanne King, for organising the Father’s Day Stall that was held today. I hope everyone finds a safe hiding place for their presents until Sunday.


CASSILIS PUBLIC SCHOOL

CWA International Day Tomorrow, children from Cassilis will be walking down to the hall at 10am to participate in the CWA international Day. This year the country selected is Iceland. Students are looking forward to showing off their mini-projects and information learnt. Recess will be provided by the CWA. Students will return to school by 11:00. Vibe Alive Eight students from Cassilis will travel to Moree tomorrow lunchtime to experience their first Vibe Alive Festival. This festival offers activities for people of all ages and ability levels. The activities are built on community relationships and reconciliation and cover everything from health and fun physical exercise to education and the environment, to sport and the performing and visual arts. I am hoping to make this an annual event. Regional Athletics Fingers are tightly crossed for our Small Schools Relay Team who are running this Friday at Newcastle. Best of luck to Tarnisha, Taine, Brady, Kyle and Mat (reserve). We are all very proud of how far you have gotten! Merriwa Horse Sports Day

Thank you Mrs Nairne for this beautiful photo of Sarah and Trix.

Sports Workshop Thursday is the big day! Sandy Hollow, Merriwa Central, Sacred Heart and Wollar students will travel to Cassilis to have a brilliant day trying a variety of sports.

Students of the Week Stephane McLennan - Cassilis has been very lucky to have Steph enrol. She was very quiet to begin with but because of her caring and friendly personality she has quickly made a great group of friends and is highly respected by all students. Steph is great worker in the

classroom and has achieved high results. She is going to do amazing things when she gets older and I can’t wait to hear from her at the future Cassilis reunion. Congratulations, Steph!

Priya Singh - Priya has been awarded the student of the week a w a r d f o r h e r achievement in literacy activities. She has been on task and working really hard to improve her recognition of sounds and tricky words as well as to be a more fluent reader. Priya is also becoming

more confident in putting forward her ideas in classroom discussions. Congratulations Priya, you are very deserving of this award. Keep up the terrific work!


ST JOSEPH’S PRIMARY SCHOOL

3/4 Excursion Last Monday the children from 3/4 travelled to B u r n i n g Mountain in Wingen for t h e i r e x c u r s i o n .

Early explorers believed Burning Mountain was a volcano, although it is actually a natural ly b u r n i n g c o a l s e a m , one of a very few in the world. It is thought to have been smoking away for over 5500 years. We were met by Ranger Ree who took the children on their 3.5km walk. The children were able to explore the natural and cultural features of the park. They also listened to stories told by Ranger Ree about the history of the area and how people and their actions have impacted on the park.

The children w e r e imp r e s s ed with the D r e a m i n g Story of the W i n g e n Maid which they saw on

the walk. Our ranger to ld us about the story from t h e Wana ruah people who b e l i e v e d that the

Gumaroi tribe from over the Liverpool Range sent a raiding party south to Broke to steal Wanaruah women for wives. Forewarned by the W i r a d j u r i people the W a n a r u a h w a r r i o r s p r e p a r e d t h e m s e l v e s and headed off to meet them. One of the Wanaruah women sat at the edge of the cliff in question waiting for the return of her beloved. When he

failed to do so she asked the s k y g o d Biamie to kill her as she could not bear to live without him. Taking pity on her he turned

her to stone. As she was transfigured she cried tears of fire setting Burning Mountain alight. The Wingen Maid is the name given to the profile of a section of mountain to the south-



west of Wingen, at the southern rockface of Wingen Maid Nature Reserve. Viewed from certain angles it looks like the profile of a woman. With the beautiful trees and plants the children saw on their journey they were amazed to see that there was nothing like this once we reached the top. We crossed a bridge where the heat was emanating from the surface. We were told that that temperature was about 350°C. The temperature at the seam was about 1700°C. The reason for this is because the heat has difficulty escaping. Once we went back down the mountain the children learnt to play clapping sticks and got to smell bush tucker food. Thank you to Cherie Millgate and Julieanne Nairne who accompanied the class on the excursion. MacKenzie Lean has written about her experience of the excursion. Yesterday morning at 8.30 year 3/4 got on the bus to go to Burning Mountain. We got there at 9.45 and all of us were hungry and thirsty. Before we went on the walk we had our fruit break. Then we met Ranger Maree. She was kind, happy and good. She had brown hair and pretty eyes. After she told us the Burning Mountain rules we started to walk up the mountain. There were a lot of stairs to climb. At about 11.00 we stopped to have lunch. After lunch we started to walk again. We stopped to do the Cleansing Ceremony. After the ceremony we walked a little more and I took some photos of pretty trees and plants. Then we saw some red ochre. It was like dust. Then we got to the top of the mountain. The air smelt like rotten eggs.

This was because of the sulphur. Then we saw the smoke of the burning coal. I dropped a camera battery. Then the bus driver got it for me. Then we walked all the way back to the bus. After that we went to McDonalds to have afternoon tea. I got a small chips, a drink and a cake. Then we went back to school and went home. I had the best time on my excursion. Thanks Mr Lannen.

Mackenzie Lean Little Sprouts Reading Day Thank you to Merriwa Central School for a very successful day last Friday. The children enjoyed the fun and well run activities in the park, the Aunt Peach show at the School of Arts and being read to by different businesses around town. The children also enjoyed being able to come dressed as their favourite nursery rhyme character. Thank you also to the high school children who helped out with our children on the day. National Literacy and Numeracy Week (29

August – 4 September) - National Literacy and Numeracy Week represents a collaborative approach by the Australian Government and the school community to highlight the importance of effective literacy and numeracy skills for all children and young people. The week also gives schools the opportunity to get involved in a range of activities and to recognise locally the achievements of students and the work of teachers, parents and members of the community who support young people to develop stronger literacy and numeracy skills. In this week we particularly wish to recognise the parent helpers/community helpers who support us with our reading programs.



I thought I’d share a few more websites that might be useful at home if your child is interested in storytelling and writing stories. These websites allow them to present their work in a creative way. http://photopeach.com This website allows people to make a slideshow set to music with captions. Students can write a story, find pictures or take photographs to accompany the story and then enter their captions to make the story. http://blabberize.com On this website, students upload a photo of someone and then use their own voice to make the mouth move! It is lots of fun. There are some examples on the website. This week as part of National Literacy and Numeracy Week, our school held its annual Public Speaking Competition. Congratulations to all children who took part in this competition. The winner’s from each of our stages will go to Muswellbrook later in September to compete against other Upper Hunter Catholic Schools. The winners from our competition will be published in next week’s Ringer.

John Lannen and 3/4

Weekly Awards Congratulations to the following award winners.

Kindergarten Korey Halse – for great spelling results

Olivia Gill – for participating in SWELL lessons

1/2 Claudia Frampton - for a big improvement

when sounding out words in her ‘have a go book’

Jonathan Keegan for working hard during maths groups

3/4 Sam Nairne – for his good work in handwriting

Eliza Peebles – for her great work in English activities.

Clancy Martin – for always showing care and concern for others.

April Stanley – for her great attitude towards her school work.

5/6 Cameron Ninness – for an impressive project

on Iceland and his efforts to work hard in class.

Austin Constable – for displaying signs of leadership by helping others in need. James Hagley – for an incredible demonstration of leadership last week.

Brydie Moore – for her display of leadership through a reflection.

Special Awards April Stanley – for her wonderful participation

in maths activites. Adam Constable – for sharing his absolutely

amazing knowledge of cars. Playground Champion: Mackenzie Lean Principal’s Awards: Clancy Martin for being a caring and gentle

friend to others. Glynn Carter for working hard on problem

solving skills.

Helen Whale


ANGLICAN NEWS Greetings to the folk of Merriwa…….. New Church carpet The new carpet in the church looks wonderful. There is an amount of old carpet in quite good condition available for a donation. Please contact Ted Finnie on 6548 5171 Relay for Life There is to be a team in the relay for Life from Holy Trinity. If you would like to be a member, please contact Sue Shotter on 6548 2283 Anglican Women’s Spring Rally. The Anglican Women’s Spring rally will be held at Denman on Wednesday 7 September. If you would like to attend and require transport please contact Joan Morgan, 6548 2036 or Beatrice Voysey, 6548 2065 Blessing of the pets. A special service to bless our pets will be held on 16 October at Holy Trinity. We will commence with morning tea at 10.30am and the service will finish at 11.45am. Everyone is invited to come along with your pet or a photo and they will be blessed. A Question to Ponder You cannot take your money and possessions with you when you die. If you “lose your life” in love for others, does that give you something to take with you? Do you think it may be love in your heart that goes with you when you die?

Future dates October 16 Blessing of the Pets at Holy Trinity 10.30am for 11.am. November 6 Confirmation by Bishop Brian Farran November 11 Guild street stall. November 25 visit by the Archdeacon, Fr Stephen Pullin. December 10 Nine lessons and carols 6pm followed by the Parish Christmas party.

Events for this Week Friday 2Sep 10am morning prayer at Holy Trinity 11am Eucharist at Merriwa Hospital Sunday 4 Sep 9am Eucharist at Holy Trinity

Rosalie Drew

SCONE TO HOLD SECOND HAND SATURDAY

Do you have items of value at home that you no longer need? Are you hoarding things that you no longer use? Dispose of them responsibly and make some money at the Scone Visitor Information and Wine Centre’s Second Hand Saturday this October. Second Hand Saturday will be held at the back of Elizabeth Park on Saturday 15 October 2011. The event will run from 9am until 12 noon, everyone is welcome to come along and seek out a pre-loved bargain. The Second Hand Saturday car boot sale is an opportunity for local residents to sell, exchange or give away items that may otherwise end up as landfill. Participants are asked to register with the Scone Visitor Information & Wine Centre (6540 1300) before Friday 8 October 2011. The cost of a ‘space’ for the day is $20.00 per booking. Spaces will be limited, so register today! On the day participants are encouraged to have a ‘free’ section at their stall to help attract people. If stallholders haven’t sold all of their goods by about 11.30am, they should give items away for free or take the remaining items to a local charity store. It is better for the items to go to a new home at no cost, than go to landfill at a great environmental cost. Residents interested in participating can contact the Scone Visitor Information & Wine Centre by phon ing 6540 1300 or emai l i ng [email protected] .

Lee Watts Mayor


PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS AND TRICKS PRESET MODES

Many people don’t know that most cameras now come with selected modes for taking shots. Eg Landscape, Cloudy Day, Full Sun, Indoors, Night. It’s a good idea to use these modes because it gives your camera a little extra information about the scene. This helps it pick the right combination of shutter speed, flash, and other exposure choices for a perfect picture. Camera makers put a lot of thought into the settings for each of the different modes, and they tailor the settings to what will work well with their camera. So don’t be afraid to use the predefined scene modes of your camera. Here is a brief description of each mode and when to use it.

Landscape Mode This mode works really well when you’re photographing a large expanse of land. The camera automatically picks a smaller aperture, giving your image more

sharpness. It’s helpful to use a tripod or prop yourself up against something when you pick this mode. The added stability will help to ensure that the image turns out as sharp as possible

Cloudy Day Mode This mode was designed to combat the dull colours you tend to get when you’re shooting on cloudy days. Wherever you can find colour in your shots, it will be emphasized

when you pick this mode. I like to try and find greens and blues when I’m shooting in this mode. These colours truly stand out.

Full Sun Mode You’ll want to use this mode when you’re taking pictures in the middle of the day, particularly in the summer. The camera automatically picks a faster shutter speed,

allowing less light onto your image sensor. This results in a more evenly lit picture that isn’t too bright.

Incandescent Mode There are two kinds of indoor lighting situations. Incandescent mode is designed for pictures taken indoors under ordinary light bulbs. As you are probably aware, most of

these bulbs produce an orangish glow that can make your pictures look a little strange. When you pick incandescent mode, your camera removes the orange tinge, and your photos look much more natural.

Fluorescent Mode You’ll want to pick this mode when you’re shooting under fluorescent office lights. These lights tend to create a pinkish/bluish tinge when you aren’t shooting in the right

mode. Just like incandescent mode, your camera will compensate for this by creating an image that has no strange colour distortions

Night Mode You’ll need to hold your camera still for this one. The night mode (also known as the “night portrait mode”) uses the camera’s flash to take a portrait. It also keeps the

shutter open a little longer, allowing some of the light from the background to make its way into the shot.

Sports Mode This is a mode you’ll want to use when you’re taking action shots outdoors. Your camera will pick a very fast shutter speed so it can freeze action in an instant. Be aware that this mode doesn’t do

so well in poorly lit spaces. If you are photographing an indoor sport, the pictures are likely to turn out dark

Macro Mode This is the mode you’ll use to take pictures of flowers and bugs. Get up really close to your subject when you use this mode, and really do your best to fill the f r ame . The camera w i l l

automatically pick the best lighting settings for these up close shots. All you need to do is find something interesting to photograph.

Some cameras have even more modes than this. If you ever need more information, consult your camera manual.

Extract from “Digital Photo Secrets” By David Petersen


RECIPE OF THE WEEK LEMON AND HERB CHICKEN SCHNITZEL

Ingredients 4 chicken breasts fillets, trimmed 1/3 cup plain flour 2 eggs 2 cups fresh wholemeal breadcrumbs 1 lemon, rind finely grated 1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely

chopped 1/4 cup sage leaves, finely chopped 2 tablespoons butter extra-light olive oil, for frying 250g dried egg tagliatelle pasta steamed broccolini and lemon wedges, to

serve

Method Preheat oven to 130°C. Place chicken

between 2 sheets plastic wrap. Pound with a meat mallet or rolling pin until 4mm thick.

Combine flour and salt and pepper on a large plate. Lightly whisk eggs in a shallow dish. Combine breadcrumbs, lemon rind, parsley and sage in a separate shallow dish.

Lightly coat chicken in seasoned flour, shaking off excess. Dip in egg then coat in breadcrumb mixture, pressing crumbs on with fingertips to secure.

Place 1 tablespoon butter in a large frying pan. Pour oil into pan until 1cm deep. Heat over medium-high heat until hot. Cook schnitzels, in batches, for 2 to 3 minutes each side or until golden. Drain on paper towel. Place on a baking tray in oven to keep warm while cooking remaining schnitzels.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large saucepan of boiling, salted water until tender. Drain and return to saucepan. Add remaining 1 tablespoon butter and season with salt and pepper. Toss gently to coat. Serve schnitzel with pasta, broccolini and lemon wedges.

MERRIWA LAWN BOWL TURNS 60 Lawn Bowls in Merriwa be came established following a meeting of 6 bowlers of Merriwa in 1950. Prior to this time bowlers had to travel many kilometres to compete. The committee formed consisted of farmers and graziers, bank managers and local businessmen. 3000 pounds was raised by debentures and the Club opened for business in 1951 with 220 male members and 250 women members. Bar and catering services were provided by the use of hessian around a frame. The first part of the Club House was built by Hugh & Fred Archer with voluntary labour provided by members. The Club was later extended on two occasions by JT Ellis. The original timber was supplied by Elijah Hunt from his property "Rothbury" and transported to the sawmill and return by KH (Mick) Nutt who our green is named after. As with the Club House voluntary labour was used to transport the base and all materiel for the greens as was the actual building of the original green and additional green built in 1972. Women have played an integral part in the day to day affairs of the Club as can be seen by the number of original members which were in excess of men members.

Courtesy of http://www.merriwasportsclub.org/


REMINDERREMINDER

The last Ringer for Term 3 will be Thursday 29 September.

The Ringer will resume Thursday 13 October, the deadline will be 12 noon

Monday 10 October as per usual

UPPER HUNTER COAL AND COAL SEAM GAS COMMUNITY FORUM

Planning is well underway for the Community Forum, which will be held 5 and 6 September at the Upper Hunter Shire Council Chambers, in Scone. Mayor Lee Watts is seeking the community’s assistance to ensure that the two-day Community Forum is a thorough investigation of the critical issues, concerns and opportunities. “The Community Forum is an opportunity for Council to listen and ask the hard questions of business, industry groups, lobby groups and experts. Upper Hunter Shire is not alone in trying to determine its position in this area. The Community Forum is the opportunity to investigate what these very big questions mean for our communities, our landscape and our future”, said Mayor Watts. Mayor Watts is calling on community members to ensure the Community Forum makes the most of this opportunity. “Community members can make an important contribution to the forum by suggesting the questions they would like to see raised during the forum.

The questions may be about jobs, or roads, or water. There may be health concerns or questions about where the resources are located.” Community members are invited to submit their questions via email, post or fax before Thursday, 1 September. A summary of the questions will be used by Councillors to ensure that they are addressing community concerns throughout the Community Forum. Council is very aware of the many sensitivities around these issues, and the privacy of community members submitting questions will be respected at all times. For community members unable to attend the Community Forum, information will be publicly available via Upper Hunter Shire Council’s website, in the week following the forum. The website will feature copies of presentations made over the course of the Community Forum and summaries of the question and answer sessions. For more information contact Council’s Director Environmental Services, Murray James, on 02 6540 1136.

Contact details for submitting questions Email – [email protected] PO Box 208 Scone, NSW 2337

Lee Watts Mayor

mailto:[email protected]


Entries Close 12 Noon on Monday 19 September

This month the theme is:

The winning photo this month will receive a $50 cash from our sponsors Cope Station Office & Administration

Services.

The competition is open to amateur photographers of all ages. The winning photo will be published in the Ringer on 22

September and will receive a prize donated by our sponsor. All entries will be displayed at Merriwa Pharmacy after the winner

is announced.

Each month will be a new competition with a new theme and prize!

Email your entries to: [email protected] or drop them into the office to be scanned.


UPPER HUNTER ENTICES THE TREE CHANGE

Thousands of Sydney residents flocked to the Rosehill Racecourse on the 5/6/7 August, taking time out of their weekend to research an alternate lifestyle in regional NSW. The Country & Regional Living Expo, which has been running for more than 7 years, allows local councils from throughout NSW to show off their region and talk to Sydney residents about what their area has to offer in the way of real estate, work and lifestyle.

Upper Hunter Shire Council attended the Expo, representing the Hunter region along with Muswellbrook, Singleton, Cessnock and Great Lakes. With a variety of jobs, businesses for sale, real estate and information packs the Council’s economic development team headed to Rosehill for the weekend to discuss the benefits of moving to the Upper Hunter.

“Some people have an idea of the area they would like to move to, others have absolutely no idea with very little knowledge of NSW, they come along for much needed research” said Economic Development Project Coordinator Tess Hynes, also adding “The Hunter region is a popular location for people moving out of Sydney as it is within the 3 to 4 hour drive distance from Sydney. It has Newcastle at its doorstep and offers a diverse range of opportunities such as affordable housing,

beautiful landscapes, good education, rural & agricultural lands, mining & industrial employment and of course space and less traffic.”

Sean Constable, Acting Manager Economic Development & Tourism noted "the crowd was mixed in age group and backgrounds, but the one common theme was a need to find somewhere to create a lifestyle, raise their children in a more relaxed environment and become part of a community." Our region has much to offer people looking to relocate with great schools, plenty of sporting activities, water and clean air" he added.

Upper Hunter Shire Council distributed over 300 information packs over the weekend and received over 25 genuine enquiries, an increase on 2010. These enquiries will be followed up by Council and a tour of the region will be provided later this year for those interested in relocating to the Upper Hunter Shire.

“Attendance at the Expo, which was another successful event, will be measured over time, realising that people will not move overnight”, Sean Constable said.

Lee Watts Mayor


Thomas Cook & Wrangler Clothing

Now 50% Off

Other selected items in store reduced up to 70%

Limited stock so be quick!

Friday 26 August—Saturday 10 September

139 Bettington St Merriwa 6548 2889


WOOLBROOK RURAL INDUSTRIES Over the last ten thousand years or so many great civilisations have evolved, flourished and vanished, particularly in South and Central America, southern parts of North America, much of Asia, including China, Indo China, the Indian subcontinent, areas bordering the Persian Gulf, the Mediterranean and North Africa. The history of some of these, such as ancient Egypt, is well chronicled. In some cases we know why they ultimately fell, for instance Carthage did so after suffering final defeat in the hundred years Punic wars with Rome, and the Incas at the hands of a bloodthirsty, rapacious and supposedly Christian Spain. Some lay forgotten at inaccessible locations (e.g. “Petra, the Rose Red City, Half as Old as Time Itself” in present day Jordan), or were buried under desert sands or engulfed by jungles in the Americas or South East Asia, vanishing for thousands of years only to be rediscovered comparatively recently. The essential difference between these and our present day civilisation (if you can call it that) is that they were all comparatively localised whereas ours is, if not yet world wide, certainly heading that way, with a burgeoning Asia and an Africa which, believe it or not, is starting to move in the same direction. Is there any reason to believe that our present day civilisation will not suffer the same fate as all the ancient ones, and if so, what will be our downfall, and will it cause a world wide collapse rather than a localised one? The remains of many of these ancient civilisations have been studied and in some cases sufficient clues have been found to give us a good idea of what probably caused their downfall. These clues include not only the remains themselves but factors such as prevailing climate and rainfall at the time which can be deduced, for instance, from soil and ice core samples and tree rings which often provide important information on environmental and other conditions over thousands, even hundreds of thousands, of years. Many of these civilisations were very sophisticated, with advanced mathematical, astronomical and architectural knowledge and large well designed irrigation systems, though strangely some of them never used, or even discovered, the use of the wheel. Ominously, some appear to have failed due to climate change, over population, and over exploitation of their resources, or various combinations of these factors.

Obviously such arcane research is of interest and value not only in itself (“pure science”), but also as omens of what perils could lie ahead of our modern day civilisation (“applied science”), indeed some of this research already carries clear warnings which should be of great concern to us. Therefore there are at least three ancient and (it appears) already demonstrated possible scenarios (over population, climate change and over exploitation of resources) which could devastate the world quite soon in historical terms, perhaps within a hundred or a couple of hundred years, that is within the lifetime of our grandchildren or great grandchildren. Indeed, it seems that all three of these factors are already clearly evident in the world today, and showing up in climate change, our rapidly escalating consumption of natural resources in the widest sense, and an out of control increase in world population. Are we likely to do anything of consequence about these problems? I doubt it, in fact in spite of the warnings of such as Professor Sandiford, we do not even seem to be aware of, or care about, the second, and in the case of climate change we seem to be in the throes of a gigantic world wide bout of NIMBYism. T here are three factors which must be beyond argument. (1) We all want power, whether electricity or oil, we want it cheap and plenty of it, and the world is now in a position where both are so vital to us that even a small interruption causes chaos. (2) We need vast exports from Australia to pay for our imports, and there is no likely hood that many of us are prepared to go without our Toyotas, television sets and much else. Therefore if, for instance, our coal export industry and others, particularly iron ore, shut down, as many advocate, Australia would collapse. (3) We are a nation which wants everything and wants it now, which is reluctant to pay much in the way of taxes, but which is governed by politicians reluctant to impose taxes because they know it is a good way to lose the next election. Therefore our governments, and particularly our state governments, are hooked on taxes which not only rely on social evils, including gambling, alcohol and tobacco, and others derived from what many consider to be social evils, but are


Supporting Hunter Valley Producers for 37 years

THIS WEEK’S SPECIALS Buy a full T-Bone (7-8kg) for $13.50 or

T-Bones by the kg for $15.50/kg

PLEASE PLACE ORDERS BY 5PM MONDAYS FOR FRIDAY DELIVERY

For Order Forms Ph. 65485170 or 65485008 after 7pm

Fax. 65485181 [email protected]

Top Quality local beef and pork delivered to the Upper Hunter every Friday.

WOOLBROOK RURAL INDUSTRIES MERRIWA NURSERY AND

IRRIGATION Depot Road, Merriwa

MICRO IRRIGATION FOR WATERING GARDENS, TREES AND FOR OTHER

PURPOSES We carry a wide range of the above including ½”, ¾”, 1” and 1¼” low density pipe. Also compatible

joiners, elbows, tees, crosses filters, valves, nuts and tails, snap on fittings, capillary tube, adaptors, stand pipes, sprays, drippers, and a range of garden and

hose fittings and garden hose, and the price is Right!! If you use the above you will be surprised

how cheaply you can set yourself up, also how much you can reduce your water usage and thereby help both your pocket and the environment, a very good

combination.

WOOLBROOK RURAL INDUSTRIES: Please call Max Wurcker 6548-2150.

NURSERY: Please call Jenny Lee 6548-2472

also heavily dependant on income derived from mining exploration fees and royalties derived from the mining industries once they start mining. These three factors make it unlikely that, no matter how much Australians protest against the great cash cows of various forms of mining, we are never likely to do more than nibble at the edges of the partial or even total prohibition of many forms of mining that many seek. This is not helped by the fact that, generally speaking, such protest movements are negative and, while various combinations of protesters seek to protest against and ban almost everything, none are positive to the extent of making much effort to come up with positive rather than negative thinking and proposals.

Max Wurcker


The Merriwa Community News is available to charity groups or non-funded, not for profit organisations and anyone wishing to advise of a special event (birthday/anniversary/etc). If you would like to make use of this free service,

please contact us prior to 12pm Mondays.

LEGACY STREET STALL

This will be held on Friday, 2 September with badge sales as well as the stall. Legacy is appealing for saleable items for their stall - especially cakes, and all donations will be gratefully received. A 50 club and raffle will be available.

M O’Neill

MERRIWA JUNIOR RUGBY LEAGUE & NETBALL CLUB

Presentation - This year’s presentation will be held on Sunday 11 September at the Sports Club. The presentation will kick off at 3pm with food & entertainment to follow. We hope to see all the players & family attend.

Kellie

CRICKET AGM

Merriwa Cricket Club will be holding their AGM on Tuesday 13 September at 6.30pm at the Sports Club.

Kate Blackadder

OPERATION "CHRISTMAS CHILD" BOXES FOR SAMARITAN'S PURSE

Once again our very special thanks to all the very kind and generous members of Merriwa Community who filled "Shoe Box Size" boxes with toys and other presents, last year, and so gave an extraordinary gift, for "Samaritan Purse" to distribute to children in need of Joy and Hope. Also thanking you for your donations of $8 per Box towards the cost of shipping and other expenses. Our Special thanks also to some members of Merriwa Community who gave generous Cash Donations rather than packing Boxes. These Boxes are now available again to be packed. So if you feel sad about the plight of millions of children around the world, whether they are refugees of Civil War, survivors of a natural disaster or victims of extreme poverty, please contact Mrs. Carol Bowman on Phone 65482142 for a Box as she will be distributing and collecting the Boxes in future. If you are unable to contact Mrs. Bowman, you can still contact me on Phone 65482463 and I might be able to supply you with a Box. Just a reminder to get your Box as soon as possible as they have to be returned during October.

Susie Fitzpatrick

MERRIWA RUGBY LEAGUE

Presentation Night - Saturday 3 September Merriwa RSL Club starting at 6.30pm. Special guest is Royce Ayliffe who is a former Australian & NSW Origin Representative. Entertainment will be by Alotta Classix. Tickets $20, Players $15. Must be paid for at the RSL by the 31 August for catering. No tickets sold on the Night. Tickets include a two course meal.

The Magette

CWA EDUCATIONAL GRANTS The Hunter Group of the Country Women’s Association of NSW has two Educational Grants on offer for 2011. They are as follows: Hunter River Educational Grant to the value of

$400 tenable by a student entering Tertiary Education, whether TAFE College or university and resides within the bounds of the Hunter River Group. Mature Age students may apply and the Grant will be awarded on a needs basis.

Jean Latham Educational Grant to the value

of $250.00 tenable by a Year 11 student entering Year 12 and residing within the bounds of the Hunter River Group.

Applications forms can be collected from the school. It is an easy process and we encourage you to submit an application.

Robyn McAlister

Secretary CWA


MERRIWA DISTRICT PROGRESS ASSOCIATION INC

The Annual General Meeting of the Merriwa District Progress Association will be on Wednesday September 28 2011, at the Merriwa RSL, commencing at 6:00 pm. The AGM will be followed immediately by the regular monthly meeting. All Merriwa residents with an interest in their community are encouraged to attend.

Beron Arden-Wood 6548 2245

2011 NSW RURAL FIRE SERVICE OPEN DAY Saturday 24 September - 10am to 2pm at the corner Marquet & Bettington St. Come along and meet your local fire fighters and check out the fire trucks and equipment. Also in attendance will be NSW Police, NSW Ambulance, NSW Fire & Rescue & Merriwa Rescue squad. Lots of giveaways for the kids, colouring in competition & a free sausage sizzle. Come along and enjoy the day with your local emergency services Hope to see you all there!

Andrew & Megan Constable

MERRIWA RELAY FOR LIFE GREAT OFFERS

I would like to challenge all people and businesses to form teams for our Relay. We have two great offers, firstly, if you register before 20 October 2011. Our Early Bird Specials will only be $15p/p

(instead of the usual $20p/p) this includes a shirt.

Our second offer, all registrations for any Hunter Relays 2011/2012 inclusive, if you have a Woolworths Relay for Life Shopper Docket and forward it to the Cancer Council at the address on the docket, in an envelope bearing your name, address and registration receipt number, you will go into a draw for a chance to win one of three donated air balloon flights for two people. The draw will take place at the Merriwa Relay on 3 and 4 December 2011. Shopper dockets can be down loaded from shopperdocket.com or obtained when shopping at Woolworths.

So get registering at www.relayforlife.org.au, not to miss out on these great offers

Lorna Parnell Team Development

LITTLE SPROUTS Congratulations to all the members of the Little Sprouts team. You have all worked very hard to promote Literacy development in our town. Thank you for all your efforts! Also, well done to all the Merriwa Central secondary students who were dressed up as nursery rhyme characters. You were all so enthusiastic and it was great how you conversed with locals and visitors, telling them about Little Sprouts. All students were a credit to their school and their parents!

Sally Hagley

RECYCLE YOUR STAMPS!! Thanks to all those who take the time to carefully remove the stamps from their mail. The Post Office very kindly have a collection box where you can deposit them. Every few months, I gather them all up and send them off to either Caritas or the Red Cross. The stamps are sorted by volunteers, then sold to collectors. It's a really easy way to help out these charities. Both organisations do so much for the needy all around the world, for example, providing clean, safe drinking cups to children in Africa. So please keep saving your stamps, as this small act of kindness must mean so much to those who benefit. Thank You!

Sally Hagley


COOLAH & DISTRICT WORKING DOG ASSOCIATION PUP TRAINING DAY

The next pup training day is on Saturday 3 September at Wendy & John Gill’s property “Booyamurra” Coolah. Head north out of Coolah you will pass the Saleyards on the right opposite the Top Servo and their property is the next gateway on the right which is well signposted. As you drive down the driveway you can see the shearing shed and yards on the left of the main sheds. Anyone with pups or young working dogs are welcome to come along and work their dogs on the sheep. Cost is $5 for sheep and $5 for lunch. Special guest Bill Stopparm from Hypro dog food who will give a talk on their product range and dog nutrition during smoko.

Phil Laughton

HAVE'A'CHAT Merriwa cancer support group Haveachat get together the third Thursday night of the month at 6.30pm at the Merriwa RSL Club for private and confidential support and informa-tion in all cancer related areas.

Ray McConnell

MERRIWA TOUCH FOOTBALL AGM

Sunday 11 September 2011, commencing at 1.30pm at Merriwa Sports Club. Agenda Items: · All Positions vacant · Options of sports being played e.g. 1st week – Touch, 2nd week – Netball & 3rd week – Cricket - What is your thought – Does this inter-est you more – Perhaps you only would like touch???? Please come along and have you say or take on a position!!!!!

Everyone Welcome!! For more information, please contact Kate Blackadder on 0437 762 190.

Gaynor Blackadder

DAFFODIL DAY 2011 Thanks to all the wonderful people who supported the Daffodil morning tea, last Friday. We raised in excess of $1,200, which was a magnificent result. A big thank you to the people who cooked, helped on the day and donated prizes, without you all we would have not got the result that we did. Over the 15 years that we have been holding daffodil day we have raised in excess of $14,000 for the cancer Council. Hopefully we can raise much more in the future. Prize winners on the day were” Lucky Door - Alex Taylor Raffle - 1st - Mary Riley - 2nd - Barbara Rolfe - 3rd - Bindi Frampton 100 Club - 1st - Larna Parnell - 2nd - Cam Leggett - 3rd - Bob Telfer - 4th - Ella Mullholland

Del Leggett, Jill Inder & Helpers

MERRIWA TENNIS CLUB

Tennis coaching will be held during the school holidays, Monday 26 - Thursday 29 September from 1pm to 4pm each afternoon. Fees are $60 per child. Names to Loretta on 6548 2679 by 19 September, 2011. We require at least 20 children for coaching to go ahead. The coach will be Dean Trenbath, a highly respected coach with TNSW.

Loretta Cooper

MERRIWA SENIORS NEWS

Dates for September and October: Tuesday 13 September - Come and see the

lovely musical “My Fair Lady” starring Rex Harrison and Stanley Holloway showing in the Squatter’s Room at the RSL Club at 10.30am. Gold coin, lucky door prize and lunch special.

Tuesday 27 September - General meeting followed by Hoi after lunch

Tuesday 11 October - Movie “Breakfast at Tiffanys”, starring Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard. Showing in the RSL Clubs Squatter’s Room at 10.30am. Gold coin donation, lucky door prize and lunch special

Tuesday 18 October - Games Day at the Sports Club, from 10am. Lunch $6. Muswellbrook seniors visiting.

Tuesday 25 October - General meeting with Hoi after lunch.

Mary O’Neill


Band Live Saturday Night until Late!!

With energy to burn and an impressive track record to date, which includes support shows for expat Aussie Jedd Hughes and the mighty Flood, this is one young lady on a

mission. A gifted guitarist and vocalist, an evening with Kim MacKenzie is something you really do have to experience for yourself – Not your average country fare, but she’s not

your average country singer! With a talented full band that boasts her husband who plays with Catherine Britt, Troy Cassar-Daley and travelled with Keith Urban this is sure

to be a great night of live entertainment!!

SECTION E – DOGS, PETS SPONSORED BY MACORKNEY KENNELSSPONSORED BY MACORKNEY KENNELS

FRIDAY 4:30PM , CENTRE RING IN FRONT OF BAR SUB-COMMITTEE: J Roper, M Richards.

ENTRY FEES: $0.50 per class Pets to assemble 4pm for 4:30pm start

All dogs to have current vaccination certificate & over 3 months to compete. Any sheep, goats, calves should have Johne’s Disease declaration.

PRIZES: Society Ribbons and Prizes 1st, 2nd, 3rd

DOGS Best Presented Dog & Handler, Under 8

Best presented Dog & Handler, 12 & under Best presented Dog & Handler, 13 & over Special Prize for Overall Best Presented

Dog & Owner That Look Most Alike Fancy Dress Dog

Pedigree Dog (not entered in class 10 & 11 & 12) Crossbred Dog (not entered in class 9 & 11 & 12) Working Dog (not entered in classes 9 & 10 & 12)

Jack Russells & Mini Foxies ( not entered in classes 9, 10 & 11)

Champion & Reserve Champion Dog Consolation Dogs - for dogs that haven’t won any other prize

on the day

PETS Any caged bird (Budgie, Canary etc) Any farm bird (Duck, Chicken etc)

Any other pet (Rabbit, Guinea Pig, Fish, Reptile etc) All the above to be properly caged & restrained; if enough entries are received in any off the above classes they will be separated

DOG JUMPING COMPETITION Sponsored by LD Cambell P/L

Entry Fee: $2.00 Small Dogs, shoulder height under 50cm - 1ST - $50.00, 2ND

- $25.00, 3RD - 10.00 Large Dogs, shoulder height 50cm and over - 1ST - $100.00,

2ND - $50.00, 3RD - $25.00 When & Where: To follow pets section on Friday.


BUSH FIRE DANGER PERIOD BEGINS The NSW Rural fire Service has today declared the start of the statutory Bush Fire Danger Period. From 1 September any person wishing to light a fire in Gunnedah, Liverpool Plains and Upper Hunter Local Government Areas will require a permit. “With conditions becoming more conductive to the spread of fire, people now need to be extremely careful when using fire,” said Graham Brown, Acting Community Safety Officer. “With commencement of the Bush Fire Danger period, anybody wishing to light a fire on their property will require a permit from their local fire station or fire control centre. However, even with a permit you need to check whether

a Total Fire Ban is in a force before lighting any fires”. Inspector Brown said the RFS encourages all residents to continue with their hazard reduction activities and ensure their properties are properly prepared for the bush fire season.

“We have all recently seen the devastation that bush fires can bring to a community, so I strongly advise residents to contact their local brigades and use their expertise to assist in carrying out safe and successful hazard reductions,” said Inspector Brown.

Serious penalties including fines and/or imprisonment apply for allowing a fire to escape and damage property and the environment.

Liverpool Range RFS


RELAY FOR LIFE Interest is slowly growing for this years Relay For Life. Entering a team is easy. Just google relayforlife and go from there.

Relay For Life is a fun, outdoor overnight fundraising event that brings communities together to celebrate and remember the lives of those who have battled cancer. Teams take turns to walk or run around a track whilst enjoying entertainment, activities and moving ceremonies.

In NSW around 40 000 people each year take part in Relay For Life. The event is not just about the amazing experience of spending the weekend with people from your local community. It's also about the fun ways your team can raise money in the lead up to the day. Relays are truly amazing occasions where tears are shed, hopes are raised, fun is had and friendships are forged.

Everyone can get involved in Relay For Life. Some people do it in memory of a loved who has passed away from cancer. Some people do it to show how proud they are at having survived cancer. Some use it to show they are strong enough to beat cancer. And some just want to be involved and make a difference. Whatever your reasons, you'll never forgot your first, or your second Relay. There are no restrictions when it comes to Relay. It's about getting involved, regardless of your motivation and being part of something great. Teams are usually made up of 10 to 15 people and headed up by a team captain. You don't have to be over 18 to get involved and you don't have to be fit - anyone can do it! So get a team together, there are three so far, and book in Saturday December 3 and the following Sunday morning. Who will you relay for?

Ray McConnell

REVAMP FOR RESIDENCE Restoration work on the historic school residence in Mackenzie Street is now complete. The colonial sandstone cottage has been the “headmasters” residence since 1878. Badly needed maintenance work has been carried out on the building, inside and out, and the roof replaced. I am really pleased that such an iconic building in Merriwa has been restored to its former glory. As the current resident I am confident that the generation of principals to follow will find it in better condition than I found it.

Darren Noonan Principal


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MERRIWA HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT GROUP

Public Gas Session - Eastern Star Gas held a public information session at Merriwa School of Arts on Monday afternoon, detailing plans for the proposed Coolah to Newcastle gas pipeline and other coal seam gas activities. Local landholders and residents were happy to accept a suggested list of 59 questions put together by Merriwa Healthy Environment Group members, before they spoke to the gas representatives. Several people commented on how helpful the list had been. They said seeing all the different questions had made them more aware of how many aspects they had to consider, before making any firm personal decision on coal seam gas and the pipeline. Our MHEG question list covered: Landholder negotiations - did the company

offer a standard rate per hectare or was this subject to negotiation, and would landholders be asked to sign a secrecy clause as part of their agreement?

Pipeline Route & Placement - Had the exact route of the pipeline been determined; how big would it be and how deep underground, would there multiple pipes or branch junctions, and if so at what intervals?

Easement - How wide was it, would it change with time or because equipment was located near it?

Pump/ Booster Stations - Locations along the pipeline, times of operation, manual or automatic, source of power, would there be shut-off valves, if so at what intervals?

Water and Waste - Would pressure/ relief valves be incorporated, how would discharge be contained, how regularly would it be monitored and the discharge removed. How and where did the company plan to dispose of

discharge waste and any other noxious material produced by pipeline operations?

Monitoring and Testing - Would results be promptly and publicly available with full disclosure? Would tests be independently verified, affected landholders be contacted directly and all consequences to humans, crops or animals addressed?

Removal or On-Selling - What were the company’s plans for removal of the pipeline and equipment when obsolete; how would the land and infrastructure be restored to its original condition? If the company were on-sold, would landholders be guaranteed that all agreed conditions would be transferred to the new owner?

We appreciate our great little community. Fighting for clean air and water.

Ruth Wurcker from Merriwa Healthy Environment Group presents landholders Ray and Annie Inder with some questions to ask Eastern Star Gas, in Merriwa on Monday

“Merri-Warriors”


Shop 1/17 Bridge Street www.jtsrealty.com.au Muswellbrook NSW 2333 [email protected] Ph: 6541 5331 Fax: 6541 0330

30 Scott Street Cassilis $69,000 Located in the peaceful village of Cassilis and only 20 minutes drive to nearby mines this is an ideal property to renovate as an investment. It has 2 big bedrooms plus a sleep out. The kitchen and bathroom are original but are still in good condition. The lounge and dining are open plan leading to the kitchen. Outside is a big front verandah taking in the superb views. Situated on 1872sqm with dual street frontage this is a great investment property. 74 Bow Street Merriwa $35,000 This 889sqm vacant parcel of land is situated in a very convenient location in Merriwa, only a short walk to the local school and shops. With excellent views over the river flats to the mountains, it is a fantastic spot to build your dream home. There's a DA pending for 8 bedroom boarding style house with potential rent return is $800.00 per week. Priced for a quick sale, it is great value. 10 Collins Street Merriwa $285,000 Located in easy walking distance to the local shops and schools, this perfectly maintained home is ideal for someone after a new home without the hassle of building. There are 4 good size bedrooms 2 with built in robes and the main with an ensuite + walk in robe, 3 also feature ceiling fans. The living area's are big with a lounge at the front of the house with reverse cycle air conditioning, through to a good size dining area and at the rear a huge family room overlooking the yard. The kitchen is in excellent condition with plenty of cupboard space including large pantry and a dishwasher. Outside is a lovely covered rear deck ideal for alfresco dining. The flat yard is fully fenced and there is a two bay shed with power. You will not find a better maintained home than this one in Merriwa. So take a look, you will be impressed.

GRAND RE-OPENING Tuesday 6 September

Join Jodi & Louise for a glass of

Champagne to celebrate the BIGGER PRECIOUS PIECES

31 Ogilvie St, Denman

6547 2016

http://www.jtsrealty.com.au/



SUCCESSFUL SPRING FLING FAMILY DANCE!

St Joseph’s Primary School P&F held a successful Spring Fling Family Dance last Friday night at Merriwa Sports Club. A big thank you to all the families who attended the dance and helped to make it a resounding success. Special mention to the high school students who came and danced the night away! It was a great opportunity for the parents to get together for a social chat and the kids had a great time dancing to the music of Newcastle Party Kings. We are very lucky to have such a generous business community in Merriwa who regularly donate items for raffles. A big thankyou to the following businesses who donated items for our raffle: 1st Prize won by Kirston Bridge was a 26 piece BBQ set donated by Thrifty Link Hardware 2nd – 6th Prize: Zoe Jamieson- Lavender Bear donated by Lenore’s Quilting Sally Gilbey- Carlo Fellini Necklace donated by Di’s Clothing Patch Dianne Mitchell- Photo Frame and Candle Set donated by Merriwa Pharmacy The Cronin Family- Junior Master Chef Cookbook donated by Merriwa Newsagency The Hagley Family- A box of Chocolates donated by Merriwa IGA. Lucky Door prizes were bottles of wine donated by the Hagley Family and St Josephs P&F were won by Dianne Mitchell, Helen Whale, Heidi Grady, Sally Hagley, Wendy Thomas and Bronwyn Redgate. The Year 6 lolly guessing competition was won by Emily Ninness. Many thanks to community for all their support.

Tanya Ninness

ATTENTION ALL GARDENERS

W e a r e pleased to a n n o u n c e Sandra Ross will be judging t h e Hor t i cu l tu re section at the Merriwa Show this year.

All those interested in gardens or wanting to see a presentation of slides, “Gardens of the World”, Sandra Ross - Horticulturist, Garden Writer and Broadcaster will be giving a slide show on Friday afternoon in the Roach Pavilion at 2pm. Sandra and her husband Graham Ross are radio and TV personalities, and garden writers, Sandra being the editor of the Garden Clinic Journal. Their careers in Horticulture span more than thirty years. The Garden Clinic website attracts 70,000 enquiries each week. You can hear Sandra on radio 2GB, while the Garden Clinic can be heard on 40 radio stations Australia wide.

Ross Garden Tours International Pty Ltd takes tours to special interest gardens worldwide - the slides we will be seeing will be of these magnificent gardens.

This is a wonderful opportunity to hear from one of Australia’s most knowledgeable garden experts.

Who: Sandra Ross Where: Roach Pavilion, Merriwa Showground When: Friday 16 September, 2pm

Julia Hardy


WOOL SECTION - MERRIWA SPRING SHOW A reminder to everyone with one or many sheep! It is time to prepare the fleece(s) and put them aside in readiness to enter the Wool Section of the

Merriwa Spring Show. Entries will be received at the Roach Pavilion on Thursday 15 Sept 1pm-4.30pm. Shear the sheep, collect the fleece and help make the 2011 Wool Display and competition even more spectacular than

that of 2010! Thank you for your support.

OPEN CLASSES COLOUR 1. LIFE IS A STAGE 2. CLIMATE! ....CHANGE?! 3. WHERE I’VE BEEN 4. NATURE’S GIFT 5. THE SPIRIT OF RURAL LIFE – “LOCAL EVENTS” 6. DIGITALLY ENHANCED, “DIG IT!” BLACK AND WHITE 7. LIFE IS A STAGE 8. CLIMATE! ....CHANGE?! 9. WHERE I’VE BEEN 10. NATURE’S GIFT 11. THE SPIRIT OF RURAL LIFE – “LOCAL EVENTS” 12. DIGITALLY ENHANCED, “DIG IT!

18 YEARS & UNDER COLOUR 13. LIFE IS A STAGE 14. CLIMATE! ....CHANGE?! 15. WHERE I’VE BEEN 16. NATURE’S GIFT 17. THE SPIRIT OF RURAL LIFE – “LOCAL EVENTS” 18. DIGITALLY ENHANCED, “DIG IT!” BLACK AND WHITE 19. LIFE IS A STAGE 20. CLIMATE! ....CHANGE?! 21. WHERE I’VE BEEN 22. NATURE’S GIFT 23. THE SPIRIT OF RURAL LIFE – “LOCAL EVENTS” 24. DIGITALLY ENHANCED, “DIG IT!”

CHILDREN 16 YEARS & UNDER COLOUR 25. LIFE IS A STAGE 26. CLIMATE! ....CHANGE?! 27. WHERE I’VE BEEN 28. NATURE’S GIFT 29. THE SPIRIT OF RURAL LIFE – “LOCAL EVENTS” 30. DIGITALLY ENHANCED, “DIG IT!” BLACK AND WHITE 31. LIFE IS A STAGE 32. CLIMATE! ....CHANGE?! 33. WHERE I’VE BEEN 34. NATURE’S GIFT 35. THE SPIRIT OF RURAL LIFE – “LOCAL EVENTS” 36. DIGITALLY ENHANCED, “DIG IT!” 12 YEARS & UNDER COLOUR OR BLACK & WHITE 37. MY FAVORITE “MY MATE” PHOTO 38. MY FAVORITE “NATURE IS AMAZING” PHOTO 39.”IN THE CAMERA I SAW…” 8 YEARS & UNDER COLOUR OR BLACK & WHITE 40. MY FAVORITE “MY MATE” PHOTO 41. MY FAVORITE “NATURE IS AMAZING” PHOTO 42.”IN THE CAMERA I SAW…” 5 YEARS & UNDER 43. ANY SUBJECT, COLOUR OR BLACK & WHITE

Have you got your photos ready to enter in MERRIWA SPRINGTIME SHOW photography section? There is a section

for everyone Whether you are 1 or 101!! ALL NEW classes to inspire your creativity so it is time to get out the camera and start clicking!! Your interpretation of these sections will add to the excitement and variety of the photography exhibit! See the Show Schedule Rules & Conditions of Entry for Photography at http://www.merriwashow.com.au

WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING WHAT YOU SEE!


MERRIWA SHOW NEWS

Listed below are some of the categories available in this years Springtime Show. For a full listing please see the website.

Special trophies & prizes for sections H, I, J, K, L, N & P: The Binks Family Perpetual Trophy for Home

Handicrafts - To be competed for annually by Local Competitors. The Trophy will be engraved and will be held by the winner for the ensuing year. The competitor gaining the highest number of points in any or all of the Sections will be deemed the winner.

Prize donated by Mrs HD Fairfax will be awarded to the exhibitor, 18 years & under, gaining the highest point score.

Prize donated in memory of Mrs Mary Hickson will be awarded to the exhibitor, 12 years & under, gaining the highest point score. WINNERS 2002 - Katrina Constable, 2003 - Sarah Small, 2004 - Elly Hanckel, 2005 - Ashleigh Gibbons, 2006 – Philippa Sharpe, 2007 – Annabel Rodgers, 2008 – Courtney Gibbons, 2009 – Courtney Gibbons, 2010 – Victoria McLaren

Prize donated by Mrs A Kemp (Mrs F Purnell pre 2008) will be awarded to the exhibitor, 8 years & under, gaining the highest point score. WINNERS 2002 - Sophie Hanckel, 2003 - Ashley Gibbons, 2004 - Courtney Gibbons, 2005 - Courtney Gibbons, 2006 – Alexandra Alker, 2007 – Anastasia Martin, 2008 – Not awarded, 2009 – Lauren Redgate, 2010 – Lauren Redgate

Prize donated by Mrs P Kirkby (Mrs S Sharpe pre 2009) will be awarded to the exhibitor, 5 years & under, gaining the highest point score.

Teena Constable Perpetual Trophy for Home Handicrafts (Under 16 Years) - To be competed for annually by Local Competitors under 16 years, will be awarded to the competitor gaining the highest number of points in any or all of these sections. The trophy will be engraved and held by the winner for the ensuing year.

Merriwa IGA Perpetual Trophy for Best Cooked and Decorated Cake (Male Competitors) - To be competed for annually by Local Male Competitors, who do not cook professionally. The trophy will be engraved and held by the winner for the ensuing year.

Section H – Needle and Fancy Work - Entry Fee: Open classes $0.50 per entry, children 16 & under no entry fee. Prizes 1st $3.00, 2nd $2.00. Award cards for First & Second. Entries will be accepted in the Fairfax Pavilion on Thursday from 2.00pm to 4.00pm, and Friday morning before 9.00am. All entries to be new, clean and exhibitor’s own handwork, which has been completed in the last 12 months. Entries must be collected after but not before 4.00pm, Saturday. Presentations - 11.00am on Saturday in the Rodgers Pavilion. Special Prizes - Awards of $10.00 Champion piece of knitting – donated by Mrs

M Llewelyn Champion piece of crochet – donated by Mr G

Costigan Champion piece of sewing – donated in

memory of Mrs Joyce Henderson Champion piece of embroidery – donated by

Merriwa Embroiderers’ Guild Champion Novelty Item - donated by Mrs R

Munro Champion Novice Entry – donated by Mrs B

Frampton Prize for Most Successful Exhibitor, Open

Classes 1-38 - donated by Mrs J Keeping Prize for Most Successful Exhibitor, Junior

Classes 39-50 donated by Mrs R Dorney

Open Classes Knitting Adult’s hand knitted jumper, cardigan or vest,

any ply. Child’s hand knitted jumper or cardiagn, any

ply. Hand knitted booties Hand knitted garment or article for baby. Any knitted item not mentioned in schedule.

Crochet Any crocheted item in cotton Any crocheted item, including handkerchief

edgings in fine gauge Any crocheted item in wool, any ply Crocheted item for baby

Sewing Machine sewn garment, adult Machine sewn garment, child or babies

garment Any article on heirloom sewing, hand or

machine sewn


DAY TOURS 7 Sep 2011 Mystery Tour Come and join us on

another adventure! $65 P/P 17th Sep 2011 In association with the Aberdeen

Information Centre and the Singleton Cancer appeal a special trip to Woodville to see magnificent gardens and a small shopping trip to Morpeth. Cost $40.00 ($10.00 per head will be donated to the Singleton cancer appeal.)

To book please call 6543 8457 8th Oct 2011 In association with the Aberdeen

Information Centre. We present a trip to Quirindi markets and Bob’s Shed and a look at the shops. Cost $45.00 includes lunch.

To book please call 6543 8457 17 Dec 2011 HVG Christmas Lights travel to the

beautiful Hunter Valley Gardens with us for the Best display of Christmas lights. Cost $50 per adult. Variable rates for children.

4 Feb 2012 Annie The Musical Lyric Theatre Sydney Anthony Warlow as Daddy Warbucks and a great cost $155 P/P

EXTENDED TOURS 2 Oct 2011 11 Day Tasmanian Adventure –

Secrets of Tasmania Spirit of Tasmania, Salamanca Markets,

Historic Port Arthur, World Heritage Cruise 30 Oct 2011 15 Day Melbourne Cup - Great Ocean

Road - Murray Princess Tour Includes 4 day cruise on the Murray River!

5 Star luxury – 5 Star service. BOOKINGS & ENQUIRIES

PH: 6547 4416 or 1800 077 099 (free call) CBS TRAVEL PTY LTD

Travel Agents License No 2TA5587

Position Vacant Welderup Fabrication and Field services is currently seeking Secretary/Bookkeeper. Part time with the possibility leading to full time for the right person. Computer skills essential including Word and Excel. Experience with Myob desirable but not essential..

Flexible work hours. Applications to [email protected] or Fax on 65482500

Any inquires please contact Mark on 0407488560.

Wanted to Rent

Retired Caretaker Couple looking for 2/B Farm Cottage/Sleep-out.

Very skilled on farm, Grape Vine Experience, Drivers Lic, Handyman. Excellent

References. Skilled First Aid Contact

0437543315

Nightie, bed jacket, slip or any article similar, hand or machine sewn

Embroidery Any article in counted or pulled thread

embroidery. Any article in fine embroidery, including

smocking Any article in wool embroidery Embroidery picture, or wall hanging Any article in long stitch Piece of tapestry, mounted or unmounted Any article in surface embroidery, including

Crewel work Any article in cross stitch Any article in smocking Any embroidery article, not previously

mentioned

Novice - Open to those who have not won a prize in Open or Junior divisions of the Needle and Fancy Work section at any show. Any article, in embroidery Any hand knitted garment Any crocheted item Any machine sewn garment Patchwork or appliqué item Any item not previously mentioned, hand or

machine sewn Novelty suitable for a gift

Children - 16 years and under Any hand knitted item Any crocheted item Any machine sewn garment or article Any embroidered item Any article in patchwork or applique hand or

machine sewn Any item not previously mentioned, hand or

machine sewn

12 Years & under Machine sewn garment or article Piece of hand knitting or crochet Any embroidered item Any article in patchwork or applique, hand or

machine sewn Any item not previously mentioned, hand or

machine sewn

8 Years and Under Any article made by a child 8 years & under



MERRIWA HARDWARE Welcome back to my loyal quartet of readers. Well the Fathers Day catalogue is just about over, yes it finishes this weekend. We have run out of a few of the items available which can't be re ordered, so if you've left it too late,.... well, you've left it too late! Anyway there is still plenty of fantastic gift ideas here at Merriwa Hardware and also at McConnells This 'n' That. Apart from the catalogue specials, we also have a heap of other items that we are clearing out as well. Some of these are as follows; 5pce camping combo $75.00 Camping bed $45.00 Dulux mouldshield 10L $129.00 Moss irrigation starter kit $15.00

Arlec powerboard combo $13.00 Dulux weathershield gloss 2L $40.00 Dulux weathershield gloss 1L 50% off We have a trampoline mat down to $90.00 Kids rope ladder for a swingset $40.00 25% off all items in the top specials basket

and a heap of other stuff that I can't even think of at the moment. (I can see all the earlier stuff, so that was easy!)

Anyway, you know that there is a heap of bargains available at the moment. Most of these are "one only!" or "last one!" type of things, so come in and check them out. We have had a delivery of seedling come in, about half of these are gone at the moment and I will be receiving another delivery next week sometime. So keep an eye out for them. Well, that's about it for this week. As usual, I'm out of time. Did you know? Do you know what the difference between a python and a boa is? Pythons lay eggs, while boas give birth to live young.

Ray & the crew


MERRIWA NEWSAGENCY Your Local Newspower Store and Office Smart Agent Little Sprouts Day! We could not have asked for a better day on Little Sprouts Day. The weather was warm and sunny- perfect. The kids were all out in fantastic, colourful and imaginative costumes. Who knew there were so many Nursery Rhymes to draw inspiration from! The kids all seemed to enjoy themselves as they moved up and down the street, and there were even a few adults in fantastic costumes, indulging in being a child, even if only for a short time. Well done to all of those who had a hand in organizing the day, as it seemed to be a huge success! Father’s Day… This weekend is Father’s Day and it is not too late to get something great for your dad. Step 1: choose a card! The first thing to do is come into the Newsagency and choose a cute, funny, naughty or nice card for your dad. (We also have cards for grandfathers and husbands). Step 2: finding the perfect present! The next thing to do is find your dad the gift that will make him smile in appreciation. We have many different things in store that will be perfect. We have board games and card games for dads’ who love a bit of old-fashioned gaming. There is Monopoly, Pictionary, Poker sets, as well as card game versions of some of the family’s favourite board games.

There are some great fiction books in store that are great for those who like a bit of suspense, mystery, history or sci-fi. Victoria Books are a great range of books that are great for dad, including books about BBQ cooking, Pink Floyd, John Lennon, learning the guitar, combat aircraft, and super cars. These books are especially good as they are all hard-cover and affordable. Magazines are a great gift idea for your dad. If he lives in Merriwa we are able to arrange an in-store subscription of any magazine we stock. We have Outback, Horse Deals, Inside Sport, Men’s Health and a wide range of magazines on gardening, wood working, motorbikes, cars, fishing caravans, hunting, camp drafting, computers and more. If your dad needs a new mobile phone, or phone accessories, we also carry a range of both in store. Step 3: wrapping the present. We have a wide range of wrapping paper that is perfect for any present. We have rolls of wrap for large presents and we have wraps suitable for smaller presents. We also have sticky tape and scissors just in case you can’t find any at home. If the kids are a little bit crafty, why not grab a roll of brown paper, some paint and glitter and allow them to design their own wrapping paper! We hope all the dads and granddads enjoy their special day this weekend. On a final note, we would like to thank Helen Whale for her acknowledgement of local business in last week’s Ringer. It is nice to see people who recognize the importance of local business in a small community, especially when we are bombarded with promotions and ‘cheap deals’ by large companies.

Phone Cards; all cards are now available including Telstra, Optus & Vodaphone

Cash or Eftpos only

Neville & Leanne Hook


STOCK AND DOMESTIC WATER BORES

Fully Licensed & Insured Rotary Mud Drilling

Mineral Exploration Geothermal

Hard Rock Drilling All Workmanship Guaranteed

Contact: Chris Reynolds - 0408 464 956 Or

[email protected] Po Box 279 GILGANDRA NSW 2827

CENTRAL WEST WATER DRILLERS Pty Ltd IN ASSOCIATION WITH

ABN 57 144 755 500

CWA The town was bubbling with people last Friday when Daffodil Day was held and the “Little Sprouts” planting the seed to read coincided on the same day. The kids looked great parading the streets in their favourite nursery rhyme character attire. The CWA ladies, Margaret, Jean, Rose, Kay, Barbara, Rosalie, Chris and Robyn baked some 900 cookies to provide the kids with morning tea, as part of the CWA contribution towards such a worthy cause. Last Thursday Pat Hopkins and her small group of willing participants travelled to Muswellbrook to perform a small skit at the Group International & Cultural Day, although not bringing home any trophies the girls had an enjoyable day. Thanks Barbara for helping us out on the day.

A Date for your Diary: CWA Awareness Day - Wednesday 14 September is CWA Awareness Day. Bring a friend and join us for lunch. There is no charge for this luncheon. A gold coin donation will be given to the RSL to support one lucky Merriwa Central School student to be part of the 2015 Anzac Centenary Student Tour. Come along and show your support, there will be raffles, lucky door prizes and a guest speaker. Change of Meeting Date: A note for your diary the September meeting will be held on Monday 5 September 10am.

Robyn McAlister Publicity/Secretary



CHILDBIRTH STUDY FOCUSES ON REGIONAL AUSTRALIA

A new University of Queensland study is seeking the input of Australians living in rural and regional areas to discuss the challenges of childbirth. Shari Bonnette, a PhD student from the School of Social Science, is drawing on her own experiences growing up in the Hunter Valley in New South Wales to pinpoint the problems regional families may face due to their location. Ms Bonnette said it's not unusual for some families to travel thousands of kilometres to access maternity care during pregnancy. “The study seeks to explore families' information seeking, decision making, options of maternity care and expectations regarding childbirth – as well as whether their experiences met these expectations,” she said. Ms Bonnette said it was important to tease out specific issues raised in the 2009 Australian Government Maternity Services Review. The review revealed maternity care is often not consistent with consumer expectation, and the ability for families to make informed decisions was inadequate. “We'd like to hear a range of experiences from families – those who access GP care, midwifery care, homebirth or have chosen an unassisted birth,” Ms Bonnette said. “Partners are also an integral part of the

pregnancy and birth experience, so it's really important to hear from not only women, but their partners too.” The study also seeks to explore maternity care provider perspectives. “Midwives, GP's, GP obstetricians, obstetricians and doulas are key care providers for families during pregnancy and childbirth,” Ms Bonnette said. “These care providers may face barriers to living and providing care in rural and regional towns including access to skills, models of care, significant time restrictions for consultations and a shortage of professionals.” Families in the last trimester of pregnancy and those with recent experiences of childbirth (six weeks post birth) are invited to discuss their experiences in the form of a one-hour, face-to-face interview.Ms Bonnette is supported by supervisors Associate Professor Alex Broom from the University of Queensland and Professor Caroline Homer from The University of Technology, Sydney. Interested families can contact Ms Bonnette on 0467 596 597 or [email protected]

Shari Bonnette 0467 596 597

https://staffowa.det.nsw.edu.au/owa/redir.aspx?C=3ec65dacc8264c77ac0f47ca19c81226&URL=http%3a%2f%2fwww.socialscience.uq.edu.au%2f

https://staffowa.det.nsw.edu.au/owa/redir.aspx?C=3ec65dacc8264c77ac0f47ca19c81226&URL=mailto%3ashari.bonnette%40uqconnect.edu.au


MERRIWA ROTARY CLUB

Our Orbit Challenge Low Ropes Course play equipment is up and running. I hope everyone in the community has been up to have a look. Let's hope we'll see some girls as well as the boys out in the fresh air enjoying a bit of exercise and hanging out together up at the new equipment. Don't forget the Rotary Club is trying to provide play infrastructure for the out-of-school leisure hours for all of our youth so if there is anything in particular you want come and talk to us. When we are finished with the complex it will be a great place to congregate with your friends. Already we have seen travellers stop and enjoy the facilities while taking a break in their journey. The photo shows the working bee with our two main adversaries for this project, Matthew Orton and Corey Clare helping cement in the posts also Rotarians at the end of the job very satisfied with the finished product.

Rotary Club of Merriwa

CASSILIS BOWLING CLUB Friday nights: Darts Names to the club by 6.45pm for 7pm start Friday night Snack Bar – The Two Ds Good food great company at excellent prices Friday night raffles Meat trays, Vege trays, Schooner Draw, Joker Draw, Members Draw. Come along and join the fun Zumba Zumba sessions have been postponed until daylight saving resumes. However if a small group would like to call in for a session they are more than welcome - the DVDs will be at the club Sunday Bowls 1st and 3rd Sundays Next 4 September @ 2pm for 2.45 start BBQ tea afterwards Last week’s results Darts Winners (Chooks): Linny and Cecilia Runner’s Up (Chocolate) : Shaylee and Kyle Draws Members Draw: $80 Melva Cornish – unclaimed - $85 next week Joker Draw: $595 Linny Lacy – unsuccessful – $637 next week

Hilary Parker


MERRIWA RSL CLUB The Members Lucky Badge for $300.00 was not won on Friday at 8.30pm the number was 671, this week it jackpots to $350.00. The 7pm draw for $240.00 was not won the number was 551, this week it jackpots to $260.00. The 9pm lucky ticket draw for $420.00 was not won the number was 21831, this week it jackpots to $440.00. LTPS/11/04452 The Sunday Morning Badge Draw was not won last week the number was 867, this week it jackpots to $400.00 and will be drawn between 11.30am and 1.30pm and you must be present to win the money. LTPS/11/04452 Sunday Raffle change: the Sunday raffles will now consist of a choice of IGA vouchers, Thrifty Link vouchers and Max’s Country Cuts vouchers.

Members are reminded that your renewals are now overdue. Coming Events On Saturday 3 September the RSL Club will hold the Merriwa Magpies presentation. Special guest for the night will Royce Ayliffe former Australian and NSW Representative. Music will be by Allota Classix. Cost of the night is $20.00 which includes a 2 course meal. Tickets available at the RSL Club until the 31 August, no tickets will be sold after this date.

MJ Morgan Secretary/Manager


MERRIWA SPORTS CLUB Saturday 27 August Saturday Members Draw 251 Not Won Next

week $370 Winners Jackpot 33185 Not Won Next week

$260 Free Tickets Mark Pryor Dinner Trish Sormaz Monthly Prize Nerida Bailey Bowls Raffle Bruce Smith Sunday 28 August Sunday Members draw No 175 Not Won Next

week $1650 $20 one off prizes No 174 Not Won & No 176

Not Won Transport Service is available Friday and Saturday. Don’t take the risk and drive when for $3 per person you can be chauffeured home. To access the transport service you must book through the Sports Club to check availability of the service.

Members and Associations Looking for a venue to hold your meetings etc. The Sports Club may be able to assist. Please contact the Club for further details

Bingo Every Thursday Night commences 7:00pm

Win Sporties Vouchers $5, $20, $50 + Fruit, Veg and meat trays + SUPER 39 $100 IGA Gift Voucher Saturday 24 September “Heartland” - Free Show Saturday 15 October - “Ash Mountain” The Sporties - Chinese/Australian Restaurant Our new Chef Shan Zhu has a new menu. Shan includes some Thai dishes and authentic Chinese as well as additional Australian Meals. Open for Lunch Wednesday to Sunday 12noon to 2:00pm Dinner Tuesday to Sunday 5:30pm to 9:00pm. Lunch Specials. Closed Mondays. Reopens 5:00pm Tuesday. For Bookings and take away ring 6548 3228

LADY BOWLERS NEWS After a foggy trip to Muswellbrook on Wednesday 24 August our team of Shirley, Loretta, Beatrice and Merle had an enjoyable game of bowls against Scone RSL. We did not handle the green very well. Mufti Bowls Saturday 10 September (A after Fathers Day celebration). Names by 12:30pm All welcome. Coming Up Wednesday 7 - September Mufti Day. Wednesday 7 - September Scone

Association Day. Saturday 10 -September Mufti – Fathers

Day celebration. Wednesday 14 - September Mufti Day

B & JR


LADIES GOLF NEWS It was a foggy start to the round last week but the sun soon emerged and we enjoyed a perfect day for golf. Encouraged by recent good scores all the players were keen to get out on the fairways Shortly into the round however everyone realised that the course was a little bit heavier to play on and the easy yards from the previous weeks were going to be hard to find. Some players managed to score well on the first nine but then couldn’t take the good form into the second nine and others just struggled for every elusive point in the stableford round. Congratulations to Robyn who surprised herself with her best result for the year and hopes to get rid of the three putts that got in the way of a really good score. Well done to De who once again took home the winners voucher with 35 points and to Lyn who was runner up with 34 points on a count back from Captain Di. De’s handicap has plummeted to 14 and she has been playing some wonderfully skilful golf of late. Her success is well deserved. Captain Di was nearest the pin on the 18th and Gay won the ball draw. Thanks to Merrie, Sue, Libby and Tania who played in the Grape Escape event at the lovely Crowne Plaza this week. The girls represented our club admirably and enjoyed the challenge of the course. I have heard that they are quite keen to return soon.

A few of our missing players should be back this week and that along with some warmer weather should make for some good competitions in the upcoming weeks.

The Black Widow

UPPER HUNTER VETERANS GOLF The usual good turn out of 24 Vets played in the stroke with putting event on Tuesday, 23 August at Aberdeen. The course is very damp under foot but ready for a glorious spring. Happy 60th to Max Holz, get well soon Col Hunter and Graham Guest, and welcome back from caravanning Bernie Behringer. Paul Gorman did best with a fine nett 62 from Rod Auld 65.

In the ball comp the nett 70 rule came into play and so balls only went to Reg Davidson & Graham Turvey 67 and Jim Elder 70. Nearest the Pins: 4th/13th Doug Dowell 7th/16th Les Brown 9th/18th Phil Ledgerwood The putting wine went to Reg Davidson with 29 putts on a count-back from 3 others due to Reg chipping in on the 18th.

NB: Change in Program in September: On Tuesday, 6 September we play at Scone due to the Black Coal Cup. The Keith Bluford Shield event will be played at Muswellbrook on Tuesday, 13 September. On Tuesday, 30 August we play a stableford event at Murrurundi with hit-off from 8.30 till 9.00 am.

Graham Turvey


MERRIWA PONY CLUB Merriwa Pony Club ribbon day is on this Sunday September 4. Members are required to provide a plate for morning tea and to help in the canteen and to set up and run the sporting events in the afternoon. A working bee will be held on Friday 2 September to set up for the day. Remember all hands mean light work for all of us! Zone 7 Jamboree is at Aberdeen on 10 and 11 September and all entries should already be in with Katie. Merriwa show is fast approaching - September 15 and 16. All the local classes and sporting events will be on the Friday. Show programs are now available around town or checkout the website! Gulgong Pony Club is hosting a Sports Day on the 24 September and One Day Event (ODE) on the 25 September 2011 at the Gulgong Pony Club grounds. Camping is available and a canteen will be operating both days. A very busy month ahead of us! Happy riding

Tanya

MERRIWA TENNIS CLUB Names are now being taken for a mixed night competition. Enter as a team of 4 players (2 men & 2 ladies), as a pair (1 man & 1 lady) or as a single to be placed into a team of 4. Closing date for names is 12 September, 2011, and can be left at Merriwa Pharmacy or with Loretta Cooper on 6548 2679. Junior players must be in secondary school to play in the competition. The competition will commence on Monday, 19 September and if enough teams register, the competition will also run on Thursday evening as well. A working bee will be held next Saturday and Sunday to do maintenance on the Club House and surrounds, from 10am. All tennis members and friends are welcome to come and assist.

Loretta

MEN’S BOWLS NEWS

Saturday 3 September Presidents Day plus 60th Birthday of Merriwa Bowling Club. Anyone wishing to play, $10.00 per player. Please enter on sheets on the notice board.

Eva Towler


NAME PHONE

Andy Carrigan 6548 2646

Boardman Peasley Pty Ltd 6543 3600

Bricklayer Block layer 6548 2591

Cannock Pastoral Company

6548 2195

Cassilis Bowling Club 6376 1002

Cassilis Public School 6376 1009

Colles Manufactured Homes Pty Ltd

4353 3606

Cowan’s Buses 6547 4416

Craig McPherson Haulage 6548 2663

Curls & Swirls 6548 2499

Custom Made Kitchens 6548 2025

Di’s Clothing Patch 6548 3023

Equine Dentistry 0427 153 446

Festival of the Fleeces 6548 2109

Good looks Nail & Beauty 0408 175 028

Gummun Place Hostel 6548 2111

Hidden Valley Homestead 6548 8588

Hunter-Central Rivers Catchment Management Authority

6542 4444

Hunter Mutual 6548 2651

Judy Lee - Massage Therapist

0407 476 500

MA Macdonald & Co 6548 2226

McConnell’s This ‘n’ That 6548 2889

Merriwa Activity Centre 6548 2082

Merriwa Amateur Swim Club

6548 8510

Merriwa Anglican Parish 6548 2218

Curtis, Irving & Gant 6543 2433

Hanckel Hay Sales 6548 5168

Dean Hancock Master Farrier

0488 591 723

CJ & JM Vero 6548 2303

B & B on Bettington 6548 2777

NAME PHONE Merriwa Auto Electrics 6548 2114

Merriwa Caravan Park 0418 668 402

Merriwa Catholic Parish St Vincent de Paul

6548 2086 6548 3092

Merriwa Central School Primary office Secondary office

6548 2101 6548 2119

Merriwa Central School P&C Association

6548 2119

Merriwa Cricket Club 0428 485 110

Merriwa Darts Competition

0428 899 749

Merriwa District Health Non-Emergency Medical Transport

6548 2653

Merriwa District Progress Association

6548 3060 6548 2653

Merriwa District Education Foundation

6376 1052

Merriwa Hardware 6548 2077

Merriwa Junior League & Netball

0437 482 375

Merriwa Magpies Rugby League Football Club

0411 800255

Merriwa Newsagents 6548 2031

Merriwa Petroleum & Ag Supplies

6548 2071

Merriwa Pharmacy 6548 2213

Merriwa Post Office 6548 2042

Merriwa Pre-School & Kindergarten Association

6548 2083

Merriwa RSL Club Restaurant

6548 2157 6548 2295

Merriwa Rotary Club 6548 2025

Merriwa Show 6548 2276

Merriwa Sports Club Restaurant

6548 2028 6548 3228

Merriwa Surgery After Hours

6548 2305 6548 2305

Merriwa Tennis Club 6548 2679

Merriwa Traders - IGA 6548 2315

Merriwa Tourist Welcoming Centre

6548 7201

Merriwa Engineering 0427 476085

Merriwa Healthy Environment Group

6547 6048

NAME PHONE

Merriwa Tyre & Service Centre

6548 2078

Merriwa Youth Centre 6548 2109

Panorama Motor Inn 4943 3144

Pitt Son & Keene Elders 6548 2307

PT Pest Control 6548 2444

R & M Moore 6548 2992

Rockwell Livestock 6548 5100

Russell’s Earthmoving 6548 2246

Sporting Shooters Assoc 6548 7226

St David’s Uniting Church 6548 5131

St Joseph’s Primary School 6548 2035

Stokes Dr Bronwyn After Hours

6532 5013 6532 5000

Tash Holden Communications

6548 5002

Trinity Markets 6548 2323

Upper Hunter Landscape Guardians

6545 1996

Upper Hunter Shire Council - Merriwa Branch

6521 7000

Welderup 6548 2500

Whale, Mark 6548 2389

Woolbrook Rural Industries

6548 2150

Rosto Olives 9327 5635

TransCare 6545 3113

Merriwa View Club 0429 197 397

NSW Farmers Association 6548 5150

Scott Witton Building 0427 761 169

Will Osmond Electrical 0447 726 996

Mick Hay’s Concrete Pump Hire

0417 006 640

Roger Greentree 0417 448 169


Thursday $11 chicken schnitzel

night.

Friday Happy hours 5-7pm ,

Pick the joker $2600 not won by Stephanie Hook-

Jackpots to $2700 Meat, beer, and spirit

raffles for the social club.

Saturday Publicans Punt no good last week, on again this

week.

Happy Hour 3pm - 4pm $2.70 Middies

$3.70 Schooners

Social Club draw $100 not won by no 42 Jill

Cooper, Jackpots to $150

Sunday Happy Hour 2-4pm,

$12 roast, baked veg and gravy

Free ticket in a lucky door prize for every dad who

purchases a meal.

Tuesday $10 rump night

Wednesday $10 pasta night

Dining room open for lunch 7 days a week

With 10 meals for $10 each

Dinner 7 nights with main menu and daily specials

Bar snacks every day 4.30pm

Coming soon Saturday the 10 September Mexican

night.

Main menu also available

SEPTEMBER

Thursday 1 Bush Fire Danger Period Starts

Friday 2 AGOG in Dungog - Short Film Festival Legacy Street Stall Champagne & Classics in Coolah - 6.30pm

Saturday 3 Mudgee Wine Tour - Leadville Hall Fundraiser AGOG in Dungog Short Film Festival Merriwa Bowls Club - 60th Birthday Celebrations Merriwa Magpies Presentation Dinner - 6.30pm Coolah Working Dog Association Pup training Day -

“Booyamurra” Coolah

Sunday 4 Merriwa Pony Club Ribbon Day

Monday 5 Community Forum - Coal Mining & Gas in the Upper Hunter - Day 1

Tuesday 6 Community Forum - Coal Mining & Gas in the Upper Hunter - Day 2

Wednesday 7 National Threatened Species Day Anglican Women’s Spring Rally - Denman

Tuesday 13 “My Fair Lady” Merriwa RSL Club

Wednesday 14 CWA Awareness Day

Sunday 11 Merriwa Junior League & Netball Presentation

Friday 16 Merriwa Springtime Show “Gardens of the World” Slide show with Sandra Ross

Saturday 17 Merriwa Springtime Show

Monday 19 Three Choices Parenting Program Seminar Entries close for “Sunrise & Sunsets” Photo Competition

Thursday 22 MCS Year 12 Farewell Last Merriwa Ringer for Term 3 Entries open for “Landscapes” Photo Competition

Friday 23 Last Day of Term 3

Saturday 24 “Heartland” - Merriwa Sports Club Fantastic Fairy Family Fun Day - Elizabeth Park - Scone NSW Rural Fire Service Open Day - 10am -2pm

Thursday 29 Last Merriwa Ringer for Term 3

Friday 30 The Future Beef Breeders’ Youth Camp Starts End of Term 3

OCTOBER

Saturday 15 Second Hand Saturday - Scone - 9am

Saturday 29 Merriwa Central School Biennial Fete - 3pm

BAR BISTRO

ACCOMMODATION PH 6548 2235

merriwa central school ph email: merriwa2 …€¦ · tuesday 6 - megs defence force excursion...

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