Day: October 10, 2016

MT ELIZA resident Bob Greaves received a Council of the Ageing Senior Achiever Award at a ceremony at Government House last week. He was one of eight recipients of the award presented as during the 2016 Victorian Seniors Festival. It offers more than 1300 free and low-cost events all over Victoria, including a great array of social, cultural, educational and body-and-soul activities. Other local award recipients were Vishnu Prasad, of Skye: Promotion of Multiculturalism Award, and Verna Phillips, of Carrum Downs: Veteran Community Award. An Age-Friendly Victoria Award went to Peninsula Transport Assist which provides transport for older people in…

AT 90, Sidney Cartlidge deserves a well-earned rest and could be forgiven for hanging up his harmonica. But the music has not stopped for the sprightly nonagenarian, who still enjoys entertaining others and can be found regularly delivering “music therapy” and playing tunes at aged care homes around Mornington. A harmonica player since he was 10 in Staffordshire, England, Mr Cartlidge’s love of music and enthusiasm for performing have not waned over the years, despite a forced hiatus in 2014 when he and his musician mates had to seek a new venue. At the time, the self-funded concerts he performed…

PARENTS double and triple parking at Mt Eliza Primary School pick up and drop off times are still risking lives and creating traffic chaos, despite years of campaigning for safe parking practises. A resident, who did not want to be identified, told The News pick up and drop off times outside the school were “a nightmare” as parents tried to squeeze their cars in wherever they could to wait for their children. He said he had complained to police, the Mornington Peninsula Shire council and the school for two years about the “dangerous” double parking that occurs every school day.…

PEOPLE living in Frankston and the Mornington Peninsula have higher levels of mental health disorders than the Victorian average, with health services struggling to cope with demand. Figures from the state’s mental health intake service, Neami, put the two areas ahead of some of its biggest neighbours, including Bayside, when it comes to mental health. Peninsula Health, the peninsula’s main providers of health services, is stretched to capacity, with waiting lists in many cases for people needing assistance. Peninsula Health operations director Sharon Sherwood says demand for mental health care on the peninsula had been steadily  rising for the past…

James was a member of Australian Crawl for seven years, releasing four studio albums in five frenetic years in the ’80s. He’s been a solo artist for the past 28 years, releasing eight studio albums, plus two acoustic collections, a covers album and two live albums… He has been a part of our lives since making an unforgettable debut on Countdown in 1979. “I just feel that I’m getting better,” James Reyne says. “I’m a better singer and a better songwriter.” It’s a simple statement, but also remarkable – considering that this is an artist who has sold more than…

MORNINGTON Peninsula and Frankston foster carers may soon have the opportunity to transform the way vulnerable children and young people are supported under a new model of foster care. Under the internationally-recognised model, professionalised foster carers will be trained to provide intensive support for children and young people who experience significant emotional or behavioural problems. The state government is investing $5.6 million to trial a ‘Treatment Foster Care Oregon’ program, which supports the state’s child protection and family services system and aims to keep young people out of residential care. Professionalised foster carers will work with at least 28 children…

A WAVE of night-time burglaries at small sporting and leisure clubs across the Mornington Peninsula has members on high alert. Detective Senior Sergeant Peter Drake, of Mornington Peninsula CIU, said more than a dozen robberies had occurred at club houses at Rosebud, Dromana, Balnarring, Mt Martha, Merricks, Crib Point, Mornington, Flinders, Red Hill and Hastings. “They may be connected but we are not certain at this stage,” he said. “They are a warning that club officers should check their security and make sure windows and doors are locked, and that CCTV is installed where possible.” Flinders Cricket Club was hit…

A FLYING mammal that lives on the Mornington Peninsula but is listed as “vulnerable” by the Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) could be the last hope of saving the former South East Water reservoir in Mt Eliza from development. Since South East Water announced plans last year to rezone the 2.8 ha Kunyung Rd site, it has largely been untouched and remains one of Mt Eliza’s last wildlife habitats. A variety of frogs, flying foxes and possibly the almost extinct southern brown bandicoot and the nationally significant white-footed dunnart live there. Environmentalists are concerned their protests over redevelopment plans…

WHEN more than 2000 people gather at the foot of Arthurs Seat on Sunday 6 November, one group will stand out from the rest. They will be wearing the black and blue running shirts of the Nicholas Lynch Real Estate team, which has sponsored the annual challenge for the past eight years. Proprietor Nicholas has run the 6.7 kilometre course six times, while son Brodie won his category over the past two years, and Abbey Brady, daughter of the company’s client services manager Jo Brady, won in her category last year. “This is something we’re very passionate about,” Mr Lynch…

A STEERING group formed to help Frankston Football Club negotiate choppy financial waters says community support for the Dolphins’ continued existence is rising. Club record games holder Peter Geddes says the group is urging members and supporters to “keep your feet” and not stumble in backing the beleaguered club after AFL Victoria stripped its VFL licence for next season. “We have been inundated with a tide of support for the Dolphins over the last week and are confident that we can put together an effective business plan to guide us through the next few years,” Mr Geddes said in a…

IT wasn’t as dramatic as a fire, but Mornington fire station officer Simon Mildren was only too happy to respond to a call out of an unusual nature last week. A swarm of bees had made themselves at home on the front doorstep of a Mt Martha home and the owners – with young children – were a little nervous about them staying. Unsure who to contact, they alerted the brigade who arrived with a camera to make an educational documentary for similar occasions. Mr Mildren said swarms at this time of year were normal and, if left undisturbed, were…

A MORNINGTON man is hoping to take the world by storm with his new deal-based app, ifloc. Anthony Cincotta’s ultra-local app will send people notifications of deals available within a one kilometre radius of their location. “It is aimed to help businesses capture the market of people currently nearby, and to create a more instantaneous result,” said Mr Cincotta. That differs significantly from other deal applications, that offer deals with a much larger geographical location. “The idea is that somebody might be walking down Main Street Mornington, and deals will pop up on their screen as they walk. “They can…

By John Renowden THE Mornington Art Show has established itself as the biggest and best quality art show on the Mornington Peninsula and one of the best in Victoria, judging by the comments of various show judges and submitting artists. The 45th show will run for six days: Thursday 19 January to Thursday 26 January at the Mornington Peninsula Community Theatre, corner Nepean Hwy and Wilsons Rd. The annual art show attracts a wide range of valued sponsors and a great number of quality artists. The Mornington Peninsula News Group remains a major supporter and sponsor of the art show.…

PROVINCIAL PEARCEDALE has started its 2016-17 Provincial cricket season in fine fashion after knocking over last year’s minor premier, Crib Point, in Saturday’s season opener. The Panthers have moved from Sub District to Provincial in the past two seasons after winning the past two premierships. There was no bigger test than coming up against Crib Point in Round 1 in a one-day match on Saturday. The Magpies won the toss and elected to bat on their home deck, scoring a defendable 5/162 against the new kids on the block. The Panthers started well with Brad Trotter (26) and Matt Cousland…

DISTRICT RED Hill started its 2016-17 District season in fine fashion, making light work of Boneo. The Hillmen batted first after winning the toss and scored 4/205, thanks largely to Matthew Merifield, who blasted the only ton of the round – 114. Recruit Carl Robinson scored 23 on debut, as did Simon Dart. Robinson also took 1/31 from seven overs. In reply, the Pandas could put together only 7/136 from its 40 overs. Dart was superb opening the bowling, claiming 3/14 from five overs, while Glenn Collett was superb also with 1/20 from 10 overs with the new pill. Flinders…

SUB-DISTRICT NEW Hastings coach Rob Hearn has had an immediate impact on his new club, helping the Blues to a round one Sub District win against Ballam Park. The former Mornington and Crib Point opening bat scored 57 at the top of the innings as the Blues reeled in the Knights’ modest total of 130 off 39.3 overs. Jake Hewitt didn’t have an issue swapping a footy premiership medallion for the whites, hitting 39. Isuru Dias (3/20) and Mitch Floyd (2/16) opened the bowling and picked up five wickets between them in their 10 overs each. David Cross top scored…

FOR almost a year, the ‘Currawong Crafties’ have been diligently sewing, knitting and crocheting for the great U3A Mornington Art & Craft Show on Friday 28 October. Crocheting member Stella Hamilton is pretty proud of her beautiful rug, and is hoping a grand-child in the not-too-distant future will be able to pass it on through the family. Her rug is made up of ‘lots and lots’ of wool – some new, some self-spun and some unravelled from garments owned by other family members, including her mother-in-law. It is an instant family heirloom, filled with memories and connections to the past.…

THE war is revolutionising the position of women in the world. In the excellent current number of “ Everylady’s Journal “ Spencer Brodney puts the case for the mothers. His proposal—and it is not his alone, but that of many leading statesmen— is that motherhood should be endowed. In other words, the State should pay every mother, not a trivial £5 Baby Bonus to cover preliminary expenses, but a regular weekly sum of, say, 10s. or 12s., to enable her to feed, clothe, and educate the child properly. She should be paid for every child up to a certain age.…

VICROADS will be undertaking a range of maintenance activities all over the Mornington Peninsula from now as it prepares for the coming bushfire season. More than $550,000 will be spent on removing dead and dangerous trees, cutting low branches over roads and reducing fuel until the end of the year. This work will include fence-to-fence grass mowing on all rural arterial roads to cut the large amounts of fuel generated by a wet winter, and to ease the risk of a fire spreading from road reserves to adjacent land. Maintenance work along Balnarring Rd will begin this week. VicRoads regional…

FIREFIGHTERS will be assisting paramedics at Frankston, Rosebud and Patterson River after the launch of an initiative to boost emergency responses to heart attack calls. The three stations are among five to receive the new Emergency Medical Response (EMR) program, which will also operate at Pakenham and Traralgon. Data from Ambulance Victoria shows the number of Victorians suffering heart attacks increased to a ten-year high last year. Firefighters at the five fire stations will now be dispatched to respond to triple zero calls for heart attack and non-breathing patients at the same time as paramedics. CFA and Ambulance Victoria trialled…

By Barry Irving IT was a sensational finish to a stellar season for Rosebud Heart. With 18 wins from 18 home-and-away games the team had reason to believe that they could go all the way and win the state championship. But, in their way were RMIT FC – the champions of State North 5. In a sensational final, Heart’s Daniel Hodge scored the opening goal before RMIT equalised, making the scores one-all at full time. This was the closest to losing a game the Heart’s had been all season. The players regrouped and, in the penalty shootout, both teams went…

By Barry Irving FORMER SAS Warrant Officer, 68-year-old Laurie “Truck” Sams, holder of the Star of Courage medal, has embarked on an epic cycling journey called The Long Ride Home. And one of his stops will be the Southern Peninsula. Mr Sams is cycling through six countries to support Australian Army, Navy, Air Force and Special Operations veterans of wars in Vietnam, Timor, Iraq and Afghanistan. He started at the Australian Embassy in Hanoi at 11am, Thursday 12 May, and plans to complete the 10,000km ride on the 51st anniversary of the 10,000-day Vietnam War. Crossing the bay by Sea…

TOURISM officials are optimistic a lavish golf, residential, conference centre and hotel development surrounding Moonah Links golf course will become a reality. The Chinese-backed project, valued at several hundred million dollars, is designed around its two 18-hole golf courses at Fingal. It will include a 450-room, five-star hotel, a conference centre with seven restaurants, and three grand recreation centres: hot springs resort, water theme park and spa therapy resort. A golf institute built on the courses will be linked to 12 golf schools in China. The Chinese-led Peninsula International Group is making a bold pitch for the project, with an…