1971
Kyabram show
Jenny Quinn was among the contestants who had entered the Miss Sun Showgirl at Kyabram Show.
Veteran Kyabram horseman George Ruler and 10-year-old equestrian competitor Bronwyn Jones were evidence of how the show catered for the young and old, both having contestants in the horse section of the annual show.
Jenny, a Stanhope girl who worked at the National Bank in Kyabram, posed with Kashim and Nipper to promote the event.
The title was eventually won by 17-year-old Rhonda Hazelman, a shop assistant at King’s Supermarket who beat Jenny and two other contestants to win the title.
Boy drowned
Two-and-a-half-year-old Christopher Sleeth was drowned in an irrigation channel on a property at Undera.
Christopher was the son of Jack Sleeth and was found at a drop bar by his uncle after relatives and the police conducted an extensive search.
It was the second drowning tragedy in the district in a three-week period after an 18-month-old child drowned in a channel at Merrigum.
Gaming conviction
A Kyabram cafe proprietor whose premises included a room containing billiard tables and pinball machines was convicted by Kyabram court of a change of “being the keep of a common gaming house”.
Anthony Hardi pleaded not guilty to the charge after an undercover Gaming and Licencing Branch policeman had spent two nights at the venue playing billiards for money and pinball at the Allen St venue.
The billiards games each carried a $2 prize for the winner.
1981
Norma retires
One of Morrison and Sawers longest serving employees, Norma Hooper, retired after a 42-year association with the company.
She was farewelled at the Tijuana in a ceremony led by chairman Tom Tehan and with Stuart Lowe representing the junior partners.
Leo Slattery, Marj Lancaster and Brian Turnbull, who all had long working relationships with Norma, also spoke briefly before Norma’s replacement ― Debbie Binion ― made a presentation on behalf of the staff.
Norma had started as a junior office girl with Morrison and Sawyers in 1939 and worked intermittently for the following 20 years while she raised her family.
Car park rate
A proposed rate to offset the construction cost of a car park in Bradley St attracted a number of objections from the owners of premises in Bradley, Allan, Church and Unwin Sts.
All but five of the landowners objected to the special rate, several pointing to a 1977 meeting where a verbal agreement was made to absolve the ratepayers of responsibility for the car park.
Councillor King, who was at that meeting, said he had no recollection of the undertaking, but Cr Isaac backed the ratepayers by saying if an agreement had been made then it should be honoured.
TV quest win
Seventeen-year-old Kyvalley singer-songwriter Michelle Williams won the Showbiz 81 television talent quest.
After leaving school at the end of Year 11 she entered the quest which was run by Ballarat TV Studios for country artists.
2001
Party concerns
Underage drinking, drinking to excess, gate crashers and vandalism were key topics at a meeting held to discuss problem parties in the Kyabram region.
Almost 100 people attended the meeting, including local government representatives, police, students and parents, and Australian Drug Foundation researcher Terry Palmer.
It was revealed that parties involving students from years nine to 12 were quite often starting at 10pm and continuing for seven hours.
Store of the year
Kyabram’s Kings Foodworks supermarket was voted the organisation’s store of the year, store manager Shirley Minchin accepting the award with her team to recongise their outstanding service.
Darren Watson, Foodworks field councillor, made the presentation to the supermarket which had received outstanding customer service reports.
Show future certain
Kyabram Agriculture Horticulture and Pastoral Society president Kerry Wiltshire was glowing in his praise of the response to the 2001 show, predicting the event would go well into the 21st century on the back of the event’s success.
A $10,000 gate was significantly up on the previous year and several new innovations had met with a great response from the community.
The sheepdog trials, sheaf tossing and a four-wheel motorcycle competition all contributed to the success of the show, with Rochester farmer Alan Wilson winning the sheaf tossing.
He cleared the bar of 8.5m to win from Kyabram’s Tom Haig.
Jay Hunter won the Honda Motorcycle competition from Graeme Doolan and Craig Bassett, while Jade Johnstone was Miss Teenage, Stephanie Sutton Miss Teenage Showgirl, Kate Quinsee Miss Tiny Tot and Aaron Hatch Master Tiny Tot.
2011
Poetry prize
St Augustine’s P-12 College student Claire Mawley became the junior Victorian Open Bush Poetry champion after picking up the top prize at the state championships in Benalla.
Claire chose to perform Andy’s Return by Henry Lawson for both the competitions, having earlier won the Kyabram Around the Campfire event.
KCLC award
Kyabram Community and Learning Centre was a major award winner at the Campaspe Murray Business Awards ― earning the gong as Professional Service ― Community Business of the Year.
KCLC chief executive Sue Solly accepted the award, where Kyabram charity Girls Night Out was also an award winner. Vic Johnson, Sue Coulstock, Janet Watt, Anthea White, Cheryl Sweeney, Helen Walsh, Shauna Picard and Heather Barber were all there to accept the award.
Koala enclosure
A new interactive koala enclosure was announced as the next addition to the Kyabram Fauna Park, making the park the only wildlife facility between Melbourne and Sydney to offer a hands on koala experience.
Member for Rodney Paul Weller announced a grant to support the project, enabling the park to triple its koala population to six, including a breeding group of four.
The fauna park first had koalas in 1989 and park manager Ron Pope said he expected the enclosure to be a major attraction.
Fauna park committee of management chair Jo Lamond was also on hand for the announcement.
Souvenir honour
Former Tongala horse breeder Howard Clark was filled with pride after his horse Souvenir, was inducted into the Furlong Equine Hall of Fame.
The grey thoroughbred stallion died 32 years ago, but his bloodline has stood the test of time. Souvenir joined Phar Lap, Strawberry Road, Gunsynd and Carbine as equine winners in the Hall of Fame, which recognises outstanding contributions by both horses and humans in the industry.
Souvenir’s bloodline, to 2011, had been represented at every Olympic Games since 1976 and Howard Clark’s son Darren was continuing the tradition of the family’s Koyuna Stud property.