I was the official photographer at the opening of our new Community Centre. (I am no photographer got the job because I understand how to squash and send 5 meg pics through the copper )
my wife and a few other women formed an action group a few years back and they set themselves a few tasks that the community needed.
Centrepoint for the community since we had lost casual use of lots of buildings because of new found liability worries etc.
The new age left us with little casual use of places ...insurance insurance insurance.

So bugger that, we needed an open all the time centre point
and the idea of community internet came along as a carrot for state and federal govts as we needed $17,000 as we had secured the old police sation for an internet cafe and meeting place.
Just needed the cash......mind you this was 5 years ago.

anyway, the women went to work (as they do) and found the right buttons to push and playing state against fed the whole thing got out of control and we ended up wiith 500,000 dollars .....shit happens!
http://www.bendigoadvertiser.com.au/news/local/news/general/535k-for-tarnagulla/1721187...
Some may not see it that way but of course every pollie in the neighbourhood wants to get on board and the action group lost it's mind for a minute.
anyway, all good now....just spent far too much time editing up film and photos for our fearless Maree Edwards MLA
and I'll guess but thsi will be the pic you'll see in some news somewhere tonite.

John Curnow Shire Pres. Jan Sharman Tarnagulla Action Group Maree Edwards MLA E.Bendigo and Allen Brownbill Local Shire Cr.
I took a million but that's the one i'm guessing she'll use.
The NBN is the crowbar for the next round of funding ...this lots for training 8 local bods as trainers themselves .....to get that internet out there
Picking 4 adults and 4 kids from the 4 crns of this Tarnagulla district (just sth of us) to be manage the community network (they get free internet and a lappy) and help their charges/4x familys connected to our server.(ideal is to reach 25 families that haven;'t had internet before ...and hopefully reaching farms in telstras blind spots)
many many here that have no access and so have no idea ...their kids come home from school, and are at a disadvantage (crowbar2)
We have the lappys x4 (thank you ASUS) and mother puta in the office and I've set up a router at the Community Centre and a temp Wii jamcan for the locals. (needs some money thrown at it)
and I'm teaching one or two how to use WindowsServer2003
(I know it's not the best but the local TAFE offers a course in it and frees me)
I know a signwriter who has a race car so getting A boards made with Stop For A Cuppa / Community WiFi / Internet Cafe etc ......aimed at stopping greys as we are on the Wimmera Hwy

come back to this over three phone calls so will post and edit before I get trapped again.

sorry I sound so cynical but these days we have a brainstorm session and just write all the key words and shake them all about and send 'em in to the right grants list
they just want it done for them is all ....lazy pollies

I give all the credit for this community centre funding to Maree Edwards ....she gave a wonderful speech about the area and how she travelled here often with her grandfather panning for gold ....she recalled plesant memories of stopping in the very same park so many years ago and how good it was to see it developed and used again.
Good speech it was and not never heard a whisper about what she or the state had done ..nor about the money.
Maree just praised the locals for all their work.

I was impressed ...I quite honestly hadn't met her other than about the other before the opening.
She's an asset to the community and I do think women make better pollies.

sounds like me beating our drum
and so I took it down.

>

Roy, if you still have a copy of that post or are willing to rewrite it, could you please re-post it? I didn't think you sounded like you were beating your own drum at all. In fact, it was the sort of thing I most value on Catholica: posts about what members are up to in their own lives, and posts about the GOOD things that are happening in our communities, especially when Catholica members and/or their families are making them happen!

I had meant to reply at the time to say how much I enjoyed reading about the community centre but I didn't manage to do so at the time. So I hope you will give us another chance to read about it!

......for that inspiring story about your wife getting grants to get that community centre going and how you are teaching farmers to use computers then to train others. I wanted to read that again, but can't find it. Actually, thanks for all your stories about life in the country - just love them. A grounded reminder of what life is about.

Sue

sounds like me beating our drum
and so I took it down.

Is me trying hard to get some credibility that we/I aren't just about knocking things down.

A grounded reminder of what life is about.

is why I drive with my window open ...regardless of the weather

......for that inspiring story about your wife getting grants to get that community centre going and how you are teaching farmers to use computers then to train others. I wanted to read that again, but can't find it. Actually, thanks for all your stories about life in the country - just love them. A grounded reminder of what life is about.

Sue