Tag / Community

by brandsa2018

Championing rural communities for a better future

When Sarah Powell drove into Darke Peak, a small agricultural town in central Eyre Peninsula, after more than a decade working interstate, she was stunned by the deterioration of her home town.

The school, general store and post office were long gone, but it was the loss of the local sporting teams which hit hardest, for they were the district’s heartbeat; a place where people not only socialised and exercised, but learned how to be a positive role model and communicator.

Sarah wondered how such community spirit could be passed on to the next generation when there was nowhere to bring people together.

“Our sporting clubs are not about sport alone; they are one of the last remaining regional incubators for leadership, and a learning ground for a well-rounded human,” she explains.

Sarah Powell encourages greater social cohesion in regional towns to help keep them thriving. Photo by Amy Rowsell.

The prospect of the next generation missing out on such vital life skills spurred now Wharminda-based Sarah to draw upon her corporate background and develop Champions Academy, a leadership program harnessing these value systems for future generations by creating a culture of mentoring.

“The idea is to engage the next generation of leaders and give them the confidence and motivation to step up in their club and community, carry responsibility and demonstrate commitment,” Sarah says. “I called it Champions Academy because anyone can be a champion of change; it’s not about winning individual accolades, it’s about representing a cause greater than yourself and acting in a way that inspires and motivates others.”

Sarah Powell, third from left, at the 2018 Women and Leadership Australia symposium in Adelaide.

Being named Australia’s Rural Woman of the Year in 2015 enabled Sarah to expand the Champions Academy focus from standalone clubs to associations, and close to 700 people have now participated in programs across the Eyre Peninsula.

“It’s building relationships between clubs which are often fierce competitors, and showing them that it’s in their best interests to keep all clubs strong,” Sarah says. “Social cohesion is the critical factor as to whether or not a community prospers or collapses.”

Sarah initially planned to roll the program out across the state, but she’s now thinking big after being recognised by the Westpac Scholars Trust as one of 10 outstanding social innovators around the nation driving positive change.

Her fellowship allowed her to travel to Boston in April to undertake a series of intensive courses surrounding innovation and solutions-based thinking at Harvard University, connecting her to an even broader network of ‘enablers’.

Sarah Powell is on a mission to educate rural people that they have the power to influence positive change and better their community’s future. Photo by Amy Rowsell.

“My thinking was challenged in such amazing and uplifting ways; I’ve come home with a giant world of possibility inspired by bright minds who know the power of shared knowledge and collaboration,” Sarah says.

There is a growing global community of interest around rural contraction, decline and exodus and if Sarah Powell has her way, South Australia could very well become its epicentre.

“I’m on a mission to show rural people that they not only have the ability to influence significant positive change, they have an obligation to snap out of autopilot and become part of the solution if they want their community to move toward a brighter future,” she adds.

Feature image Amy Rowsell.

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by brandsa2018

After 40 years, Koonibba community finally has general store

Residents of the Koonibba Aboriginal Community at South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula now have access to fresh groceries locally for the first time in 42 years with the commenced trading of the Koonibba General Store.

Previously, the closest shops were located in Ceduna, over 40km away, and were not easily accessible due to lack of public transport and travel costs.

Koonibba Community Aboriginal Corporation CEO Corey McLennan says that a store within the community has been long sought after by residents as a crucial addition to its infrastructure.

“Having an onsite community store was a key priority,” Corey says. “Community demand for products and services was constant due to the lack of accessible shops and facilities. The absence of local shopping options was a clear disadvantage to the local community, economy and functioning.”

Koonibba Community Aboriginal Corporation CEO Corey McLennan, left, with Mai Wiru CEO Dennis Bate at the store’s official opening. Photo courtesy of Luca Cetta, West Coast Sentinel. 

“Very few community members have vehicles and the cost of regular travel back and forwards is significant. In previous consultations community members reiterated the need for a local store that will provide foodstuffs and healthy food options.”

Corey says the store will positively impact the communities employment opportunities, provide access to fresh, healthy foods, increase the potential for future growth and reduce travel for the elderly and other community members.

“The community has identified a clear commercial opportunity that will lead to real job outcomes and career pathway for community members,” he says. “Profits from the store will be distributed back into the community to grow its economy even further, particularly in the tourism sector.

“Developments into tourism will be a focus especially on the history of Koonibba and regaining artefacts that are being stored at the SA Museum to put on show for the community to be proud of and the tourists to learn from.”

The general store will provide locals with fresh produce and groceries locally for the first time in more than four decades. Photo courtesy of Luca Cetta, West Coast Sentinel.

The $850,000 project has been five years in the making and was funded by numerous sources including the Indigenous Entrepreneur’s Fund, Indigenous Business Australia, the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet and the fundraising efforts of Koonibba residents.

The venture was also supported by the Mai Wiru Regional Stores Council Aboriginal Corporation, which currently manages five supermarkets on the APY Lands and other remote indigenous communities with the intent of ensuring “continuous access to nutritious and affordable food and essential items”.

The store officially commenced trading on February 11, 2019 with plans to work with Mai Wiru to train a store manager and additional staff members once more positions become available.

Feature image courtesy of Luca Cetta, West Coast Sentinel. 

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by brandsa2018

From slab of stone to work of art – Maccy sculptures take shape

Talented artists are cutting, splitting, drilling and polishing tonnes of stone for the third instalment of Sculptors @ Crystal Lake in the Adelaide Hills.

The popular festival at Macclesfield’s Crystal Lake has seen nine sculptors start to transform massive slabs of SA granite and marble into sculptural works of art across nine days.

The large stone slabs were craned into position ready for the strenuous creative process, beginning last weekend and continuing until April 14.

Thousands of people will make their way to Crystal Lake Park to witness the action, as sculptors use hammers, picks, angle grinders and other tools to craft the slabs into stunning pieces, some of which will be placed in public locations across the region.

Sculptors hard at work during the early stages of a past Sculptors @ Crystal Lake.

Sculptors @ Crystal Lake is a biennial event which began in 2015 and has since become Macclesfield’s largest event, attracting a significant amount of visitors throughout the town. The main street is about one minute’s drive from Crystal Lake and also swells with visitors throughout the duration of the festival, particularly on the dedicated family day. The final stretch of the festival is spent with sculptors polishing and refining their designs.

Over the years, many of the sculptures have been installed at various public places throughout the Hills region, including at nearby Longview Vineyard, the Stirling Organic Market and Café, at Prospect Hill and in the nearby regional centre of Mt Barker.

The festival, run by the Macclesfield Community Association in conjunction with the Sculptors @ Crystal Lake committee, is fuelled mostly by volunteer effort and the passion of those in the local arts and sculpture scene.

Event co-ordinator Keryn Korr says the event has grown since its first instalment four years ago and that the 2019 festival will include some new additions.

These include sculpture workshops for school groups and the general public with skilled sculptor Evan Maker who will guide participants (aged 12 and over) through a four-hour session. A geological exhibit will showcase stone used to make the sculptures, including signature rare pink Paris Creek/Macclessfield marble, Sellicks Hill marble, Wudinna granite, Padthaway green, and Harlequin granitic gneiss.

Many of the sculptures involve intricate designs and details, creating unique pieces, some of which are to be admired in public settings.

“Geology plays an important role in providing the dimensional stone required to create the sculptures, combined with skilled sculptors who expose the stone’s hidden beauty,” says geological consultant Peter Hough, who prepared the exhibit with support from the Department for Energy and Mining.

“We want people to come to this sculpture fest and go away with a real understanding about the whole process of stone sculpting including the opportunity to attend a workshop and carve their own piece to take home”.

Keryn says Sculptors @ Crystal Lake has a positive impact on local businesses across the nine days.

“This is our third Sculptors @ Crystal Lake and it has a huge following. Macclesfield businesses get really excited and put special (discount) offers into our visitor guide,” she says. “Thousands of people attend, it’s the biggest thing for businesses and it really rocks the village of Maccy.”

The 2.7m black granite ‘Soaring Prospect’ by Ben Tolhurst from the 2017 event can be spotted at the entrance to the historic township of Prospect Hill.

Highly acclaimed sculptor and artistic director Silvio Apponyi is one of the nine sculptors taking on the huge slabs of stone alongside Barry Lincoln, Peter Syndicas, John Nelson, Timothy Spooner, Jina Lee, Quentin Gore, Robert Wuldi and Sally Wickes.

“People who come and visit the park  can watch the transition from rough stone block through to finished work,” he says. “We (sculptors) all stay down here together so we are working together, looking at what each other are making. Most of us would work in our studios, so to get together and work as friends is a really lovely experience.”

Attending symposiums around the world, Silvio has also directed the Adelaide Hills International Sculpture Symposium, while his recent stone creation of former Australian cricket captain Clem Hill stands at the entrance to Adelaide Oval.

His Spriggina floundersi from the 2017 Sculptors @ Crystal Lake is expected to be installed at the University of Adelaide in the near future.

A much-anticipated event at the 2019 Sculptors @ Crystal Lake is the carving of a giant slab of Melba’s chocolate on April 13. At the 2017 event, Silvio carved a giant chocolate bilby from a 120kg chocolate block, using a chainsaw and axe to carve the shapes, sending chocolate shards flying into the air – much to the delight of children. The chocolate carving will unfold again on the Family Day, Saturday April 13, from 3pm.

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by brandsa2018

‘Chook’ Letton an egg-cellent example of community generosity

Riverland poultry farmer, Darren ‘Chook’ Letton’s passion for eggs began at an early age.

“From around the age of one or two, I was carted around in an egg basket and stopped the chooks from walking out of their chook pens,” he says.

Upon reaching school age, his mates started calling him ‘Chook’, and the nickname stuck as he became more active in the poultry farm and the Riverland community.

Darren’s parents, John and Kaylene, started the egg producing business, which is now known as Glenview Poultry Farm at Pike River, south east of Renmark, 53 years ago.

Darren became the farm’s manager in 2007 and decided to market their eggs under their own brand, Glenview Poultry Farm, and focus mainly on servicing the Riverland.

Darren ‘Chook’ Letton on the farm at Pike River. Photo by Grant Schwartzkopff.

They now have 28,000 laying hens, 16,000 of them are caged and 12,000 are free range. Each day the hens lay about 2000 dozen eggs, which are distributed to the Riverland and Mallee and over the Victorian border into the Sunraysia region.

The eggs are especially popular among caterers in Sunraysia and more than half of the Letton’s eggs are sent there and served in cafés and restaurants.

It is not unusual to see the Glenview Poultry Farm van in Mildura, where many treat Riverlanders as local. Supermarkets in the Riverland, Mallee and Sunraysia also sell the eggs, which are usually on the shelves just one to three days after being laid.

Eggs sourced from wholesalers in Mildura can also be found in Broken Hill and Balranald in NSW and the Wimmera in Victoria.

Darren Letton has been involved in the poultry industry all his life. Photo by Grant Schwartzkopff.

The Letton’s egg cartons over the years have featured River Murray and gum tree scenes with photos of Darren’s children taking part in activities such as umpiring football or playing sport.

“My two youngest kids became my main marketing tools, when it first began Gemma was six and Cody was about two, ” Darren says. “Now he is 13 and she is 17.”

The egg producer donates about 15,000 eggs a year to community organisations for fundraisers such as supporting children with cancer, and sporting clubs.

“If they ask me for money, most of the times I will donate eggs,” he says. “I’m still paying off debt, but I can always donate eggs.”

The donated freshly laid eggs are also a tradition of Australia Day and Easter breakfasts in Berri, Loxton and Renmark.

Glenview Poultry Farm since 2003, has also participated in the Renmark Christmas Pageant and is well known for its Humpty Dumpty float. Its floats have also featured in the Barmera Christmas pageant and the Loxton Mardi Gras.

Glenview Poultry Farm regularly participates in local Christmas pageants.

The egg farms’ 15 employees and their family including children often take part in these events.

Over the years, Darren who is also fondly known as ‘the egg man’, has had regular commercial radio spots. This included ‘The Crack Up’, a joke competition on Magic 93.1FM and an egg recipe competition on Radio 5RM resulting in a recipe book titled, Chook’s Book.

Deregulation of SA’s egg industry in 1992 has caused some headaches for the Lettons. It has meant interstate eggs sometimes flood the market and supermarkets at times also increase the price of farmers’ brands without passing it on to them and then sell generic eggs at a cheaper price.

“If I wasn’t who I was, I think I would struggle,” Chook says. “I think all the hard work I have done over the last ten years has kept us going.”

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by brandsa2018

Limestone Coast’s Lifeboat program a lifesaver for community mental health

On a Tuesday evening at Mt Gambier’s City Hall, men and women are chatting on couches as sunlight streams through the windows.

At mental health support group Lifeboat SE, formality is noticeably absent. There are more than a few laughs. You can speak if you want to or just listen.

Here, everyone’s story is different. Some have lost a family member, others have been through divorces, dealt with failing businesses or struggled with post-natal depression.

For Matthew Brookes, the public face of the Lifeboat SE group, these meetings are a way for people to break the ice about a deeply private subject.

Lifeboat SE meets every Tuesday at Mt Gambier’s City Hall. Photo by Kate Hill.

From personal experience, Matthew understands how difficult it is to ask for help when you’re in the grip of anxiety or depression.

“It’s a fact that one in five people will experience mental health issues at some stage but a lot of people just don’t want to talk about it,” Matthew says.

With a relaxed mantra of ‘come and chew the fat with a mate’, the group is taking a community approach to a serious issue affecting regional communities – mental health.

A couple of years ago, life crept up on Matthew Brookes. A change of management at work left him uncertain and mulling over his future.

Then having to deal with being first on the scene of a fatal car accident was closely followed by a scary incident close to home – he rolled the car with his wife and three children inside.

Mt Gambier man Matthew Brookes is a founding member of Lifeboat SE. Photo by Kate Hill.

Although no one was injured, it was a shock for the 52-year-old, who confesses he ‘shut up shop’ and stopped talking to his family and friends, instead just wanting to sleep away the day. Stress and worry developed into anxiety and depression.

“I thought I was big enough and ugly enough to handle anything that was thrown at me, but it just got on top of me,” he says.

For a bloke who freely admitted he ‘wouldn’t walk into a meeting’, he knew he needed something else to keep him on track following more traditional forms of treatment.

A group of people began to meet up regularly and the concept of Lifeboat SE began to take shape. The group takes an early intervention approach by helping people manage stressful situations before they become a breeding ground for bigger problems.

The support group is open to all … no matter occupation, gender or circumstances. Photo by Kate Hill.

They talk about the importance of sleep, exercise, socialising, having hobbies and taking care of yourself.

As Matthew says, “there’s no captain on a lifeboat, it’s just a crew of people surviving together”.

“We want to give understanding to the community that it’s okay to talk and give them some tools to understand what’s going on and how to support each other,” he says.

Recovery is different for everyone and Matthew knows he’ll be managing his condition for years to come. When he feels low, he’ll head out camping with his family, take a long walk or catch up with another Lifeboat member for a beer and yarn.

“Everyone’s ride is different,” he says. “It takes a whole community to look out for each other.”

To find out more, visit The Junction or Lifeboat SE’s website.

If you or someone you know is going through a tough time call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

It’s all about the talk: Lifeboat’s meetings are a place for conversation. Photo by Kate Hill.

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A saint among Ceduna seniors

There are few things more rewarding for Leeanne ‘Twig’ Holmes than helping senior residents explore the country outside of their home on the Eyre Peninsula.

Originally part of her job as activities co-ordinator at the Ceduna District Health Service, these seniors trips were sadly no longer viable for the hospital. So in 2012 Leeanne decided to volunteer her time outside of work to ensure they would continue.

“Every time I went down the street one of the group would stop me to ask when they could go again because they were so wonderful. In the end I thought ‘oh what’s a week out of my time to take them?’” she says.

Leeanne has organised transport, accommodation and care for groups of up to 35 seniors at a time, allowing them to travel from Ceduna, Streaky Bay, Wudinna and Kyancutta (over 800km west of Adelaide) to enjoy activities that are not always accessible to them.

The group has journeyed as far as Kangaroo Island, Adelaide, and Swan Hill in Victoria to enjoy music concerts, restaurant dinners and even helicopter rides over the Flinders Ranges. For many seniors, these excursions would not have been possible without Leeanne, who also ensures all of their medical care needs are met.

Leeanne ‘Twig’ Holmes with rescue greyhound Zeppo who visits seniors at the Ceduna hospital and village. Leeanne is Ceduna’s 2019 Citizen of the Year. Photo by Kaitlin Kavanagh.

Leeanne says she believes these trips are really important for older people in regional communities, because bus tours and assisted holidays are usually only available from Adelaide, the closest major city.

“Either family have to drive them 800km or they catch a coach or plane on their own, then they have to figure out how to catch a taxi or public transport which they are not used to. Some of these people are 80-90 years old and it’s just a nightmare for them,” Leanne says.

She says the only reward she needs is to see the joy on the faces of seniors while they are travelling.

“The best thing I think is sitting around the campfire, listening to them tell stories. It’s just beautiful seeing them laughing and crying because they are so overwhelmed by it all,” Leanne says.

Despite her humility, the Smoky Bay resident has been named the 2019 Citizen of the Year in her community. The award was nominated by one of the seniors who regularly travels with Leeanne. She was awarded not only for her volunteer work with seniors, but for contributions to the local sports club, her responsibility as an emergency foster carer and her work welcoming student doctors into Ceduna.

Leeanne has volunteered countless hours for her beloved Smoky Bay Community Club, where she was first exposed to the overwhelming mateship and generosity in the community, values that have been central in every facet of her life.

Most recently, she has organised for a rescue greyhound “Zeppo” to regularly visit the seniors at the Ceduna hospital and village.

“I get back to work on Monday and the first thing I hear when I walk through the door isn’t ‘Hello Twig, did you have a good weekend?’, it’s ‘Where’s the dog?’” she says.

Leeanne continues to find new ways to bring joy to her seniors both in and outside of work and says that she cannot see herself stopping.

“I ask them all if they want to do it again they always say ‘yes of course, we’ll leave it up to you to plan.’ As long as the numbers are there I will continue. It’s just gorgeous I love it.”

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Andamooka locals: we need a pool to escape the sweltering heat!

About 600km north of Adelaide in the South Australian outback, locals in the remote town of Andamooka have spent the past year fundraising for a new public pool.

It gets hot in the old opal mining town, really hot.

So hot that the local publican, John Smirnios, reckons he sets bags of ice on his bar fridges to keep them from overheating in the peak of summer.

“The last couple of weeks here have been over 40C every day,” says John, owner of Andamooka’s Tuckabox Hotel.

“The poor kids sit under the air-conditioning with nothing to do. It’s too hot for the playground or skate park. If we had a pool it would be very nice.”

John is a member of the Andamooka Progress and Opal Miners Association and is driving efforts to raise $100,000 to build a new public swimming pool for the town.

About $20,000 has been raised over the past 12 months or so through a number of community events, raffles and auctions. John has a donation tin sitting on his front bar while miners have also donated opals to the cause.

The new swimming pool is proposed to be built near the Andamooka camp ground.

Andamooka once had a swimming pool at the local school but it closed down due to cost issues. A small splash pad was made for children, but John says a proper swimming pool would be good for tourism and would provide a public place to escape the heat. He would also like to see an information centre established in the town to benefit tourists and short-stay visitors.

“The nearest pool is at Roxby Downs which is a 60km round trip,” John says.

There is a good chance that Andamooka, which lies 40km east of the Olympic Dam copper mine and Roxby Downs, is one of the hottest places on earth during summer heatwaves.

So far this month Andamooka has endured 13 days of 40C-plus weather, while tomorrow (January 23) could see the record broken for its hottest day since records began in 1969, although this 47.8C record was matched over a week ago on January 15. Tomorrow’s temperature is forecast to reach 47C.

Tuckabox Hotel owner John Smirnios. Photo by Travis Hague.

Andamooka has no local council to provide basic infrastructure and services, instead falling under the Outback Communities Authority. The town relies on the dedication of the Andamooka Progress and Opal Miners Association to carry out community projects and improvements.

The association’s vice chair Ian Thompson says the new swimming pool is one of the association’s major projects, alongside plans for a new community centre, kitchen and men’s shed facilities.

He commends the efforts of locals who put in their time generously to raise money and see projects through.

The association is made up of volunteers and a small number of paid members. It has delivered many community infrastructure projects over the years, including the upgrade of the local caravan and camping site, and playground.

It also implements a successful Work for the Dole scheme which has lead to many improvements including the refurbishment of Andamooka’s historic mining cottages.

“We have a population of about 500 … we do not have one public servant in this town apart from at the school,” Ian says. “That’s a good indication of a community looking after itself.”

Header image: Tuckabox Hotel owner John Smirnios with Andamooka children who would like to see a new swimming pool established in the town. Photo by Travis Hague.

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Eyes on the sky for spectacular Jamestown air event

All eyes will be on the sky above Jamestown’s Sir Hubert Wilkins Aerodrome on Sunday, October 21, as the local flying group presents its triennial Air Spectacular.

The Jamestown Flying Group’s 11th air show promises to live up to its spectacular name, and World War II and vintage aircraft buffs and adrenaline seekers alike will be in their element.

A rare World War II Hawker Hurricane XII fighter aircraft never before seen in South Australia will be drawcard for the 2018 event.

Used during the Battle of Britain, the Hurricane aircraft is largely ‘under-rated’, having shot down more enemy aircraft than the better-known Spitfire.

The restored Hurricane now based in Scone, New South Wales, is the only plane of its type in existence in the southern hemisphere.

The Hawker Hurricane XII fighter aircraft will visit SA for the first time this October.

Aircraft co-ordinator for the event, Jim Best, says it was a major coup to secure the Hurricane and the air spectacular event will give spectators the opportunity to see it in action for the first time in SA.

“The plane will fly in for the event, it will do aerobatic manoeuvres similar to what they would have done in a dog fight (aerial combat within close range),” he says.

Hurricane pilot Paul Bennet will be in control and says spectators can expect to see him perform loops, rolls and wing-overs in the $4 million aircraft.

“It’s massive really for the event to get this aircraft,” he says.

“There’s every chance it will probably be the first and last time it goes to SA, the furthest it’s travelled so far has been the Illawarra Airshow in NSW.”

Just 2.5 hours drive from Adelaide in the Mid North of SA, Jamestown will be abuzz all weekend, with spectators on Sunday treated to some skilful flying by some of Australia’s best pilots and a fleet of rare aircraft.

A past pyrotechnics display and re-enactment at the Jamestown Air Spectacular. Photo by N Daw.

Among the other features will be an Australian-built Wirraway, Jim Whalley with his rare, historic Boomerang aircraft and Gazelle helicopter, a Grumman Avenger and other antique aircraft.

A heart-stopping aerobatics display by legendary pilots Chris Sperou and Paul Bennet, a dog fight re-enactment, a locally-owned General Grant tank and pyrotechnics display will all feature.

Behind the spectacular event is a small but dedicated group of flying and aircraft enthusiasts and community volunteers.

The Jamestown Flying Group (JFG) has just 28 financial members in a small community, but president Danny Keller says local support, the Friends of the Jamestown Flying Group, and sponsorship made the event possible.

Started more than 30 years ago, the JFG has worked tirelessly over the years, with fundraising and pure hard work to get the Sir Hubert Wilkins Aerodrome established to now include an all-weather bitumen strip, lighting, clubrooms and hangars.

It is a vital local asset, providing a safe landing spot for the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) and other emergency services.

A bird’s eye view of the Sir Hubert Wilkins Aerodrome at Jamestown, which will host the 11th triennial Air Spectacular this October. Photo by N Daw.

The flying group was borne from an incident which saw a retrieval plane clip trees at the end of a short, dirt air strip as it flew out with a patient, local doctor John Shepherd and ambulance officer and founding club member Tony Leesong all on board.

The close-call led to a handful of locals starting the group to develop a more adequate facility. The airstrip was lengthened, lights installed, surfaced with rubble and then eventually bitumen to make it the all-weather landing site it is today.

Club members also made many night-time dashes to the airstrip to turn the landing lights on in preparation for the RFDS to land safely for retrievals in what signifies a true, community effort.

The Australian-built Wirraway will be among the vintage aircraft flying in to Jamestown on October 21. Photo by Darren Mottram.

Last financial year, the RFDS landed 71 times at the Sir Hubert Wilkins Aerodrome for emergency retrievals and medical transfers.

“It’s used by the RFDS, for fire water bombers and general aviation access to the community,” Danny Keller says.

“It’s a very important facility and asset to the community and over the years the JFG has supported the RFDS through our Air Spectacular event.

“This year however, any proceeds from the event have been committed to the Jamestown Hospital auxiliary to support its refurbishment project.”

The air show beings on Sunday, October 21, at 10.45am (gates open at 7am) through until 4pm.

For bookings and information visit the website or Facebook page.

Header photo: A Jamestown Flying Group archive photo by Clive Palmer.

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Community group revitalises famous opal town

A Coober Pedy community group is on a mission to boost tourism in the famous outback opal town by overhauling its marketing materials and revitalising one of the town’s major events.

The Coober Pedy Retail, Business and Tourism Association (CPRBTA) has updated and revised the town’s main tourism website with a new look, logo and slogan ‘Get Outback, Get Underground!’

The volunteer group also pushed for a revitalisation of the town’s major event, the Coober Pedy Opal Festival, which was a “resounding success” with dates shifted from the usual Easter weekend to June.

The festival’s duration was also extended to three days and coincided with other events in the town.

This year’s Coober Pedy Opal Festival attracted about 2000 people, up from its usual 1000. A street parade was a highlight of the event.

Coober Pedy, which mines 70% of the world’s opals, also recently welcomed its own version of the Hollywood sign, made from 3m-high corrugated iron letters crafted by Wayne Borrett.

The improvements to the town’s existing branding came about through a Strategic Marketing Plan funded by a $46,000 grant from the Federal Government’s Building Better Regions Fund (BBRF).

Motel owner Deb Clee, who is also CPRBTA treasurer, says the new website, which has also been adopted by the district council as the premier tourism site, is receiving up to 3500 page views a week.

She says website hits were not recorded previously with the old site but she estimated they only reached 1000 per week.

The new logo and slogan reflect’s Coober Pedy’s famous sunsets and opals.

By the end of 2018, Coober Pedy is expected to be celebrating an addition to the Big Winch Scenic Lookout precinct – a 360-degree drop down cinema screening the town’s history and opal mining.

The CPRBTA was more recently awarded $21,500 from round two of the BBRF towards costs of upgrading and installing ‘Welcome to Coober Pedy’ signage at the town entrances.

The rebranding of the town comes as underground Comfort Inn Coober Pedy Experience Motel reports its most successful July in almost a decade.

Deb says the last time business was this good was in 2010, when Lake Eyre was flooded.

“Everybody in town is saying the same thing … it could have something to do with the luring closure of Uluru to climbers in 2020,” she says.

Inside the Soft Rock Café at the Comfort Inn Coober Pedy Experience Motel.

Coober Pedy has a population of more than 1700 people.

In four years to 2016, about 103,000 international and domestic overnight visitors came to Coober Pedy, according to Tourism Research Australia’s latest Local Government Area profile.

Together, the two groups poured about $31m into the local economy.

While Coober Pedy is mainly fuelled on the tourism industry and opal mining, Deb says the town is sometimes seen as a stopover destination.

However, things are changing, she says.

Photo by Kezia Manning.

“It used to be a stopover town, but we are changing that,” says Deb, whose family has lived in Coober Pedy since 1985.

“We’re seeing the (overnight) stays are getting longer and all these advantages that we’re creating in the town are giving people a reason to stay longer.”

Deb says business confidence in Coober Pedy is at a high but the CPRBTA still wants visitors to extend their stay and “experience everything we have to offer”.

“We have history tours, noodling areas, underground churches, underground mine museum, The Breakaways, and the Dingo fence – the world’s longest fence,” she says.

“There is so much to do.”

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by brandsa2018

Port Augusta’s desert botanic garden flourishes with volunteer spirit

The Australian Arid Lands Botanic Garden attracted more than 100,000 visitors last financial year and is helping to reinvent Port Augusta as the “arid garden city”.

The desert botanic garden, which opened in 1996, is regarded as Port Augusta’s top tourism destination and earlier this year was ranked the country’s best regional botanic garden by Australian Geographic magazine.

The 250ha space is owned by the Port Augusta Council, which recorded almost 107,000 visitors to the garden in 2017/18.

The council says the garden’s success is down to the efforts the Friends of the Australian Arid Lands Botanic Garden, a volunteer group which helps maintain the plants, assists in the running of the onsite nursery, lead guided tours and raise funds.

The volunteer group has raised more than $1m for the garden, while voluntary labour over the past four years is valued at more than $4m.

The group says visitors to the garden contribute $18m to the Port Augusta community, a figure based on research carried out by Tourism Research Australia.

Friends of the Australian Arid Lands Botanic Garden president John Zwar OAM says the garden is a place for research, serenity and exploration. Photo: ABC Port Pirie.

Friends president John Zwar OAM came up with the concept for an arid botanic garden for Port Augusta in 1981, forming the Friends group in 1994 before the garden was finally opened in 1996.

Located on the shores of the Upper Spencer Gulf and offering stunning views of the Flinders Ranges, the garden features significant areas of natural arid zone vegetation as well as coastal vegetation.

Many of the plant collections feature rare plant species in sections dedicated to particular regions of Australia including the Flinders Ranges, Eyre Peninsula, Central Ranges, Gawler region, and Great Victoria Desert.

John says the garden’s popularity has helped raise the image of Port Augusta, which has faced recent struggles with the closure of the Alinta power plant.

Volunteers put in hours every day to maintain the garden and many of its operations, including the nursery.

“It’s really helped raise the image of the town and people are calling Port Augusta the arid garden city now, whereas it didn’t have this image before,” John says.

“The place, which has gone from being flat for a year or so, has really started to pick up again and I’m hopeful that the garden is safe.

“We now have the world’s largest solar thermal power station going in north of Port Augusta and I think there are another five wind, solar and pumped hydro (projects) going in.

“Port Augusta is a great place to live and there are a lot of positive things about it; it’s a great location near the Flinders, near the sea, and right on the doorstep of the outback.

“Loads of tourists and travellers are passing through and the garden has a captive audience because a national highway – the Stuart Highway – passes right through.

“It’s a really great place to showcase arid zone vegetation and I think tourists really appreciate it.”

Friends of AALBG plant the first tree in 1989. Friends president Dr Gordon Paine, left, Dr Reg Sprigg of Arkaroola, Ian Gilfillan MP, and Brian Powell AM (standing). Photo courtesy of John Zwar.

John says the Friends group has about 400 members including locals and people from around the country and overseas.

About 30 people regularly volunteer on site, he says.

“Without the support of the volunteers, I’m sure the garden wouldn’t have eventuated in the first place and it wouldn’t keep running like it is at present,” John says.

About 160 species of birds, including rare species, can be spotted in the garden and two birdhides provide the perfect place for birdwatchers to observe quietly.

The garden is also home to an award-winning AridSmart section which shows visitors how to use water wise gardening techniques at home.

The Arid Explorers Garden offers a children’s nature play area with a shelter shed, logs, rocks, a dry creek bed and red sand pit.

The Blue Bush Café overlooks stunning scenery. Photo courtesy of AALBG.

Travel and restaurant company TripAdvisor rates the garden’s Blue Bush Café as the second-best restaurant in Port Augusta. Dishes use native produce including lemon myrtle and quandongs.

The garden is also an important place for research with students and researchers conducting studies into the heat tolerance of various arid zone plants.

The Port Augusta Council’s director of corporate and community services, Anne O’Reilly, says the garden is a significant benefit for the regional centre.

She says the Friends group members are valued and passionate ambassadors in the community.

“The garden would not be the success that it is today without the support of the Friends,” Anne says.

The Australian Arid Lands Botanic Garden is at 144 Stuart Highway, Port Augusta, and is open daily from 7.30am to sunset.

Children explore the Arid Explorers Garden. Photo courtesy of AALBG.

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