A father of two ran 52 kilometres in support of autism, arguably Kyabram’s greatest all-round sportsman added to his legend status by scoring his fourth double century for Fire Brigade and Kyabram Parkland Golf Club called in a favour to have its new extension opened by Golf Australia Boss James Sutherland.
A Warramunda Village resident turned 100, the long wait for Tongala’s Harley Reid to be named the AFL Number One Draft pick ended when he was chosen by West Coast Eagles at Marvel Stadium and the annual RV Festival returned to the showgrounds after a three-year hiatus forced by the COVID-19 pandemic and the October 2022 floods.
Father runs for autism
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Stanhope footballer and father of two, Stuart Trevena, ran 52 kilometres from Kyabram to Shepparton to raise awareness for autism, a cause close to his heart as his son Bailey is on the spectrum.
His parents, Glen and Maureen Trevena, followed him in their car throughout the journey.
Stuart began his ambitious run at about 8.50am, reaching his destination around 1pm.
“My eldest child, Bailey’s, got autism,” Stuart said.
“We found out he has autism about three years ago, and this is my third year doing the run for autism.
“They usually just do it for a week, but this year, they’re doing it for a full month of October, so I thought I’d do a big run for it.
“This is the biggest run I’ve ever done.”
Stuart set a goal to running 200km during October. He raised $1600 during the run and more than $3000 raised during the football and netball season by selling various items.
Hilda’s 100th birthday
Warramunda Village resident Hilda Tottenham notched up a century and took some time to reflect on all the changes she had seen throughout her 100 years of life.
“I’ve seen so many changes over the years,” she said.
“There was no electricity. Washing was done by boiling sheets in a wood-fired copper.
“Plastic was unheard of, lunch was wrapped in newspaper and kept in your school bag. Most toys were made of wood. We had skipping ropes, marbles and dolls, no LEGO or computer games.”
Hilda went through primary school and, unlike many in those days, went to secondary school in Shepparton, boarding with an elderly aunt.
When Japan bombed Darwin in 1942, she was sent to finish her training at Yooralla Hospital, which had been evacuated from Mt Eliza to Macedon.
She moved back to the region and eventually married Bob Tottenham on May 8, 1948, at Undera Presbyterian Church. They lived on a small orchard at Merrigum, growing pears, peaches and apricots, and raised two children, David and Wendy.
“After 50 happy years of marriage, Bob sadly passed away in the year 1998,” she said.
Members of her family, David and Jan, Wendy and Vicki, Emma and Glenn and their children Harry and Audrey, Jeremy and Kara and their children Ralph and Daphne were among the well wishers
Hair helps with heartbreak
Family heartbreak provided the inspiration for a Kyabram mother to shave her head, cheered on by a large contingent of family and friends as she lost her locks at the Kyabram Club.
Jaclyn Wickham, a mum of four, shaved her head in honour of friends and family affected by cancer.
“My nan’s birthday was November 4 and she passed away from bowel cancer.”
Funds raised went to The Gift, a Kyabram-based organisation that helps support people with cancer.
Mrs Wickham also donated her plaited hair to the Variety Club program Hair with Heart, which creates wigs for children who have lost their hair due to a medical condition.
“I wish to give others the gift of a wig to give them confidence and remember they are not on this journey alone,” she said.
“My aim was to raise $1500 to donate to the Kyabram Gift, and thanks to the overwhelming support of our community I can confirm I raised just over $5000.”
RV returns after hiatus
Kyabram RV Country Music Festival made a triumphant return, with more than 180 RVs attending the event, which had been cancelled in the previous three years.
It featured a stellar line-up of artists, including Joe Musico, Vanessa Sanger, Brian Letton, Owen Bludell, Don Costa, George Farnham, Lance Birrell and Kiara Rodrigues.
They all graced the stage at the Kyabram Showgrounds after COVID-19 and floods had forced the festival into a hiatus.
Organiser Allan Weeks said the festival did unearth some new gems on the performer front.
“A couple of the singers from the walk-ups will be on the main stage next year,” he said.
“A lot of first-timers are amazed on how well it was all set up and said that they will be coming back next year.”
Harley becomes an Eagle
Harley Reid became the second footballer, behind Kyabram’s Brett Delidio, to be the number one AFL draft pick when he became a West Coast Eagle at the national draft.
With pick number one in the 2023 AFL Draft, West Coast selected the 18-year-old from Tongala, ending almost two years of speculation on where the future of the prodigious country footy talent lay.
AFL CEO Andrew Dillon read Reid’s name as 2023’s number-one selection in Melbourne before the Murray Football League talent accepted his new number nine Eagles jumper from Nic Naitanui.
Speaking to Fox Footy after being announced as the Allen Aylett medallist, a new award for the number one draft pick, Reid admitted to being nervous as the selection was read out.
“The butterflies set a bit when it started there, but it’s a big relief, and good luck to the other boys tonight,” he said.
Reid paid tribute to those closest to him that have supported him throughout what has been a whirlwind year for the talented teenager.
Reid became the first player out of Tongala and NAB League club Bendigo Pioneers to be the first selection of the AFL Draft, as well as the first Blue since Brad Campbell to leap into the top echelon of football, joining a raft of local talents in the process.
West Coast finds itself in the middle of a rebuild following a three-win season, and the Eagles will be hoping the powerful utility that is Reid will help propel them back up the ladder.
Parkland extension opened
Golf Australia CEO James Sutherland was the special guest at the official opening of Kyabram Parkland Golf Club’s clubhouse upgrade.
Former Kyabram cricketing great Jim Higgs was responsible for making the call to land the former Australian cricket boss to open the par-three golf club’s $750,000 extension.
Mr Sutherland, who had an 18-year stint in Cricket Australia’s number one role and retains a board seat with Geelong Football Club, agreed to open the clubhouse upgrade after his “old friend” had reached out to him to ask a favour.
Don McKenzie, who was the key player in coordinating the project, was recognised by club president Geoff Berry — as were the countless volunteers and businesses that contributed in kind support to the project.
In-kind contributions by building professionals and business associates of the club were a recurring theme of the project. In fact, Mr McKenzie estimated that $200,000 of the $750,000 price tag that came with the upgrade was made up of voluntary contributions.
Second year of free pools
Campaspe Shire Council threw open the doors of the six outdoor pools for a second straight season with no charge for users of the swim facilities.
They announced they would be using a free digital membership to record attendance at the outdoor pools.
After an emotional debate between pool users and Campaspe Shire Council at the start of 2022, the council decided to make use of the Tongala, Rochester, Kyabram, Lockington, Colbinabbin, Rushworth and Stanhope pools free for the 2022-23 season.
All but Rochester, which had its infrastructure destroyed during the October floods, doubled — and in some instances tripled — as a result of the council making the facilities available at no charge from late November to early March.
Using the pools is now as simple as logging on to the Campaspe Shire Council aquatics page, clicking the outdoor pools icon, creating a login and password, selecting which free membership you would like (Tongala, Kyabram, Colbinabbin, Rushworth, Stanhope or Lockington) and then saying a quick hello every time you walk through the gates.
Newman double century
Master batsman Paul Newman christened his new bat in style in Goulburn Murray Cricket on Saturday, plundering an unbeaten double century for Kyabram Fire Brigade against Nondies Cohuna in their one-day Goulburn Murray Cricket A-grade clash.
Newman combined with opener Brett Andison, who made 115, in a 229-run second wicket partnership.
The stand proved the cornerstone for a mammoth total of 4/402, one of the highest scores ever in a John McMahon Shield one-day clash.
Batting first drop and brandishing a fresh blade, Newman slammed a staggering 22 fours and 15 sixes in racing to an unbeaten 214 off just 123 deliveries in the clash at Kyabram’s Northern Oval.
Newman said his new bat ‘‘felt a bit heavy early’’ and he took some time to find his batting rhythm but ‘‘got to see them a bit better as his innings progressed.’’
He gave a couple of chances, dropped when around 160 and 190, but was generally happy with his effort, which he believes is the fourth time he has scored a double century in club cricket for the Brigade.
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