The Northern Rivers Echo Main News

A step closer to 40 new jobs

Story & photo: Julian Ryan

Summerland House With No Steps general manager Brett Lacey (centre) with employees Annmarie Higgins (left) and Jeffrey Chawner. The organisation is planning a $1.25 million redevelopment, which will provide jobs for around 40 local people with disabilities.

The Summerland House With No Steps has announced an ambitious $1.25 million plan to redevelop and expand its site near Alstonville to provide 40 more jobs for people with disabilities.

The plan includes a 300 square metre macadamia de-husking facility, as well as a 500 square metre vintage car museum with space for an extensive vehicle collection and other automotive memorabilia. The organisation also plans to expand the seating capacity of its restaurant from 90 to 150 places and build a modern function centre equipped with state-of-the-art conference facilities. Plans are also underway for an outdoor chapel and botanical gardens.

Summerland House With No Steps general manager Brett Lacey said the redevelopment would provide additional employment for local people with disabilities and as a result have a positive impact in the Northern Rivers community.

"We already provide full-time employment to 58 people with disabilities and once we expand and redevelop we will be able to employ the other 40 people who are currently on our ever-growing waiting list," he said. "We see our role as being more than just an employer because when people with disabilities get full-time jobs it eases the burden on many other community facilities and family members who often act as carers. Once these people get into the workforce their self esteem levels grow and they also learn other life skills like social interaction, budgeting and teamwork."

Mr Lacey said it is hoped work will begin next month on the first stage of the redevelopment - the de-husking facility - with other work to begin as funding becomes available.

"We are exploring all possible avenues to raise the necessary funding including establishing partnerships and sponsorships as well as seeking funding from both the federal and state governments," he said. "We are also encouraging the general public to utilise our existing services such as the restaurant, nursery and gift shop, and remember that all donations are tax deductible. As a not-for-profit organisation we are committed to providing employment and training opportunities for local people as opposed to simply accruing money in the bank."

The Summerland House With No Steps has 3000 avocado trees and more than 600 macadamia trees at the 69-hectare property on Wardell Road, which provide a major source of income. The organisation also has a processing and packaging service for avocados, custard apples, citrus fruit, lychees, mangoes and stone fruit.

• The Summerland House With No Steps is having a special Road to Morocco dinner at their restaurant next Friday, June 17, with all proceeds going towards the new redevelopment. The evening will feature a gourmet three-course meal for just $30 and begins at 6.30pm. To book phone 6628 0610.

New leads in Strobel case

Police investigating the death of German tourist Simone Strobel have uncovered new forensic leads that they believe will lead to the people who killed the 25-year-old and disposed of her body.

Simone's remains were found near Lismore's Oakes Oval in February, six days after she disappeared near the Lismore Tourist Caravan Park. Since then police have been unable to determine the cause of death.

However, yesterday police revealed that samples of human hair recovered from the crime scene, as well as interviews with witnesses in Australia and the UK, have shed new light on the case.

"Strike Force Howea has a dedicated team of investigators working on the case and we are confident about the direction the investigation has taken," said detective inspector Wayne Hayes from the NSW Homicide Squad. "The forensic results and crime reconstruction have given us a clear picture of what happened that night. The investigation will uncover those who killed and disposed of Simone's body."

Having a ball for charity

More than 26 local girls made their debut recently at the annual Blue and White Auxiliary Debutante Ball at the Lismore Workers Club, which raises money for the Palliative Care Unit at St Vincent's Hospital.

This year's event was attended by more than 300 people and raised over $2000 for new equipment at the Palliative Care Unit.

"We'd like to thank all the local businesses who contributed to making our ball such a huge success," said Blue and White Auxiliary president, Joyce Cleaver. "We couldn't have done it without them."

Spreading a little lantern magic

Lismore Guides Teagan Brownrigg and Nikayla Stoker show off one of the beautiful lanterns that will be featured in next weekend's Lismore Lantern Parade to Lismore Base Hospital patient Braydan Davis and his mum Jodie Phillips.

Patients at Lismore Base Hospital were given a taste of the colour and magic of the Lismore Lantern Parade on Tuesday night, when the Lismore Guides and volunteers held a special 'parade' in the wards featuring a cross-section of the beautiful paper lanterns.

This is the second year the Lismore Guides have taken lanterns to the hospital, giving patients who can't attend next weekend's event a close-up look at the magnificent creations and inspiring them to get involved next year.

"When we took the lanterns to the hospital last year we thought we would just go to the children's ward, but then we popped into the ward next door, and the patients there were so thrilled that the staff asked us to go and visit the wards on the next floor and the next," said Lismore Guides leader, Sue Lloyd. "I wonder if perhaps some of the older patients were more delighted by the magic of the lanterns than the little ones... it brought out the child in them all and fond memories of their own childhood."

As well as helping with the hospital parade, Lismore Guides have made more than 30 new lanterns for this year's parade with the help of a young man named Toby Gerrish.

"Toby is blind, but he did not allow this to get in the way of his obvious talent for lantern making," said parade coordinator Jyllie Jackson. "His design is called a 'Toby Podling' and is just a really beautiful and simple lantern. We'll now be using his prototype in our workshops every year."

The Lismore Lantern Parade is being held in Lismore next Saturday, June 18. See next week's Echo for full details or visit the website at www.lismorelanternparade.com.au.

Shadow Ministry in Lismore

Federal Opposition leader Kim Beazley and 10 members of the Labor Shadow Cabinet - including Jenny Macklin, Julia Gillard and Martin Ferguson - will be in Lismore tonight (Thursday, June 9) for an ALP fundraising dinner.

The Labor front benchers are holding a Shadow Ministry meeting at the Banora Point Multi-Purpose Centre before heading to the Northern Rivers for a series of public engagements today and tomorrow. While advisors are remaining tight-lipped on details, Shadow Minister for Education, Jenny Macklin, will attend a forum with staff and students at Southern Cross University this afternoon to discuss the university's recent 25 per cent fee hike and industrial relation reforms proposed by the Federal Government.

Tickets to the fundraising dinner have sold out. All proceeds will be used for the ALP's next federal election campaign in the Page electorate.

New helicopter comes to the rescue

Story & photos: Julian Ryan

Launching the Life Saver Rescue Helicopter's new $5.3 million replacement helicopter in Lismore last week were (l-r) Life Saver Rescue Helicopter general manager Perry Wells and board members Kevin Gosling, Greg Nance, chairman Warren Tozer, Ron Lawrence and Noel Doyle.

After nearly a decade of fundraising and planning, the Life Saver Rescue Helicopter in Lismore unveiled its $5.3 million replacement helicopter last week, which is bigger, faster and more efficient than the old C1 aircraft.

Before coming to Lismore the French built Eurocopter Dauphin N2 was used to transport business executives around Malaysia, but will now be used to save local lives.

According to Rescue Helicopter board chairman, Warren Tozer, the introduction of the N2 represents a major milestone in the proud 23-year history of the service.

"It represents a boost for the whole organisation and it couldn't have happened without the enormous response from the community," Mr Tozer said. "The community can be justly proud of this latest step in the strategic development of the service."

Chief pilot Lynton Beggs said the main advantage of the N2 is that it holds more fuel, which means huge savings in time during long missions.

"The N2 can fly from Lismore to Brisbane and return without having to refuel and this cuts the round trip time by more than an hour," he said. "When you consider that mere seconds can mean the difference between life and death in emergency situations, the N2 represents a giant leap forward in the business of saving lives."

Last year the Life Saver Rescue Helicopter was involved in 290 emergency missions from Nambucca in the south to Tweed Heads in the north and west to Tenterfield.

People can support the service in by through wage contributions, one-off donations or by hosting a fundraising event. For more information or to lend your support, phone 6627 4444 or visit www.helirescue.com.au.

The N2 helicopter is bigger, faster and has a larger fuel capacity than the C1 model it replaced.

Watching the world of whales

Photo courtesy of SCU Whale Research Centre.

As the humpback whale migration season begins along the east coast, the Southern Cross University Whale Research Centre is embarking on a five-month survey to develop detailed information on the size of the Australian humpback whale population, migration patterns, genetics, birth rates and behaviour.

Whale Research Centre director, Associate Professor Peter Harrison, said with the Japanese making the controversial push to resume whaling, it was absolutely essential to know the current humpback population.

"We also need to know what the rate of increase is in the population and the survival rate of the juvenile calves," Professor Harrison said. "If whaling resumes it's likely that the adult breeding whales will be targeted because of their size and this could have a serious impact on the recovery of the humpback population, which was close to extinction due to unregulated whaling last century."

More than 7400 humpback whales were killed off Moreton Bay and Byron Bay over a 10-year period in the mid 20th century as they migrated north from the Antarctic to breed and birth in the warmer waters. Whaling ended in 1962 and since then numbers have increased from 1000 to 4000.

The initial phase of SCU's research project will be done as part of the 10-week Cape Byron Whale Research Project, which began last Sunday. The Cape Byron Whale Research Project will involve a team of volunteers working on land at the Cape Byron Lighthouse using sophisticated surveying equipment, as well as water-based photo identification and genetic skin sampling.

"Cape Byron is one of the best places in the world for this type of land and water-based survey, because the whales travel so close to the coast," Professor Harrison said. "We will be combining the information we gather from the Cape Byron project with research conducted in Hervey Bay and information collected during the southern migration from August to October. Genetic samples of skin will also be collected and analysed."

People can see the amazing annual migration of these ancient creatures in Byron Bay and Ballina from now until the end of August.

Neighbours save house from fire

Frank Street residents Melanie Dius and Faye Johnson with their dog Toby in front of the burnt shed which almost set their house alight on Sunday night.

Despite their rented Frank Street house nearly being destroyed by fire on Sunday night, Melanie Dius and Faye Johnson reckon they live in the best street in Lismore.

Melanie, Faye and their dog Toby only narrowly escaped the fire, which started in the shed adjoining their house around 8pm. The Lismore students believe the only thing that saved the house was their quick-thinking neighbours.

"I went into the house to save Toby and when I came out I discovered the neighbours had already called the fire brigade and were in action with buckets and hoses," Melanie said. "The whole street came to help us. They were absolutely wonderful and if wasn't for them we would have lost everything - we reckon they're the best neighbours in Lismore. I know it sounds ironic, but we want to hold a street barbecue to say thank you."

The fire also caused an acetylene cylinder to catch alight in an abandoned factory next door, which took the Lismore Fire Brigade three hours to contain.

"We were all pretty lucky... we were told if the cylinder had exploded while full, it would have wiped out the neighbourhood," Melanie said.

The fire destroyed the shed adjoining Melanie and Faye's home as well as breaking windows and scorching the outside wall of the house. The damage bill is expected to be several thousand dollars. Police are still investigating how the fire began.

Have your say on Woodburn to Ballina upgrade

Ballina and Clarence MPs Don Page and Steve Cansdell are encouraging people wanting an extension of time for submissions on the Woodburn to Ballina Pacific Highway upgrade to attend RTA information sessions this week and make their feelings known.

Both Mr Page and Mr Cansdell have asked the Roads Minister, Michael Costa, to extend the June 20 deadline for submissions by at least one month to give residents ample time to respond.

"Four weeks is simply not enough time for local residents to research and prepare submissions," Mr Page said. "If enough people express their request for an extension of time we are hopeful the Minister and the RTA will listen to the community's concerns."

RTA information sessions will be held at Broadwater Community Hall this Friday, June 10, from 10am to 6pm, and at the Community Information Centre in Woodburn this Saturday June 11, from 9am to 1pm.

Meanwhile, the Blackwall Highway Action Group (BHAG) is holding a series of workshops to help people write letters and submissions on the RTA's proposed upgrade.

Both workshops will be held at the Meerschaum Vale Hall - the first this Saturday, June 11, from 2 to 5pm and the second next Wednesday, June 15, from 6 to 8pm.

For more information about the upgrade route visit BHAG's website at www.blackwallhwyactiongroup.org.au or the RTA's website at rta.nsw.gov.au/pacific.

A job well done

Lismore's Anthony Hudson (pictured) has been named the NSW Group Training Disability New Apprentice of the Year at a special awards presentation in Sydney last Friday.

Anthony was nominated for the award by On-Q Human Resources, who helped Anthony into his present job with the Disability and Aged Information Service Inc (DAISI) and oversaw his completion of a traineeship in Certificate III Community Services Disability Work.

Anthony was left with a brain injury after a serious car accident in 1995, and while it may have affected him physically, it didn't diminish his desire to work hard and achieve in life. The 26-year-old is now employed full-time with DAISI and is responsible for all aspects of administration within the organisation.

"I was ecstatic - when they called my name I was quite surprised," Anthony said. "I really enjoy the work here, it's a really friendly work environment and I love helping other people. Everyone who works here deserves recognition for what they do, but it's lovely to be singled out."

Bringing life to Lismore's CBD

Gearing up for the second annual Lismore Lantern Fair is (front l-r) local artist Kurt Hamilton-Foster, fair coordinator Sara Tinning, Ironpot Food Company owner Lea Hine and artist Anna Mackney with parents and students from Vistara Primary School who have helped organise the event.

Lismore's CBD will be filled with colour and activity next Saturday, June 18, when parents and students from Vistara Primary School present the second annual Lismore Lantern Fair, in the lead up to the Lismore Lantern Parade.

The festival-style event will be happening in Spinks Park and Magellan Street and includes local art and craft stalls, delicious regional cuisine, and a main stage featuring the Goonellabah Children's Choir, colourful dance numbers and live music. People can also join in free dance, circus and yoga workshops or relax at the Chill-out Space with a soothing massage, while for kids there's lantern decorating, candle making, face painting and even a jumping castle.

The Lantern Fair is a fundraiser for Vistara Primary School, and gives students and parents an opportunity to work and learn together while creating a unique event the whole community can enjoy.

"We want to bring the community together to celebrate and because most of the events are free, it's accessible to everyone no matter how many dollars they have in their wallet," said coordinator Sara Tinning. "The Lismore Lantern Parade's theme is tolerance and diversity, and this is a space where people of all ages and backgrounds can express themselves and share with one another. We get so caught up in our busy lifestyles and sometimes forget to stop, have fun and celebrate the beauty of community."

The Lismore Lantern Fair will run from 10am to 4pm, giving people enough time to go home and rug up before the parade begins at 5.30pm. For full details of the parade see next week's Echo.

For information or to get involved in the fair phone Sara on 6622 3471.

Ozanam Villa 30 years young

Long term Ozanam Villa residents (l-r) Ruby Myers, Anne Rowan and Jean Mitchell celebrated the aged care facility's 30th birthday yesterday with the help of Trinity Catholic College students Rebecca Mills (left) and Natascha Weil.

Residents, staff and friends of Ozanam Villa celebrated the aged care facility's 30th birthday with a special mass yesterday, followed by a morning tea with all the trimmings including cakes, scones and endless cups of tea.

Ozanam Villa resident Ruby Myers, who has lived at the facility since 1989, said she loved life at the villa and praised the staff for their caring attitude.

"You wouldn't get a better party anywhere - the celebrations have been fantastic and you couldn't go anywhere that would equal it," Ruby said. "I love to play carpet bowls here with all my friends and it's just a very nice place to be. The friendships I've made here are wonderful."

Help for HSC now available

The English Teachers Association has organised a study day at Lismore High School next Saturday, June 18, for students sitting this year's HSC.

The day features a variety of lectures, forums and workshops that will be presented by gifted local teachers to help students prepare for their HSC English exams. There will also be time for students to ask individual questions about the marking process at the end of the day, and the Young Leo's group from Lismore High will provide a sausage sizzle for lunch.

The study day will run from 9am to 3.20pm. For more information or to book a place phone Lismore High on 6621 5185.

Rex donates $500,000 to drought relief

Regional Express (Rex) Airlines will provide $500,000 for drought relief assistance in the new financial year, through a fund of air tickets that relief agencies and community organisations can tap into.

Rex managing director Geoff Breust said that the management felt compelled to provide the funds as a large number of the regional communities the airline serves were being dramatically affected by one of the longest droughts in Australia's history.

"The bush has given Rex its unwavering support in the last three years, which has brought us to where we are today," Mr Breust said. "It is only right that we give back to the community in these times of dire need."

Community and charitable organisations can now apply for travel that will enable them to provide more services and assistance to those directly affected by drought.

"Services could include stress counselling, financial management advice and family assistance services," Mr Breust said. "It could also include travel to bring experts to regional communities to conduct workshops on relevant issues or simply enable farm sitters or other helpers to travel to country areas to assist those in need."

To access the pool of tickets, download an application form from the Rex website at www.rex.com.au.

Breast surgeon now visiting Lismore

By Eve Sinton

Breast plastic surgeon Dr Guy Hingston (pictured) of Port Macquarie is now making regular visits to St Vincent's Hospital in Lismore to perform breast reconstruction surgery that patients previously had to travel long distances to access.

Mr Hingston's decision to provide surgery in Lismore also means local breast cancer patients can have a mastectomy and breast reconstruction in one operation.

"I'm really excited about working in Lismore, and it's great for women up here not to have to travel to Brisbane or Sydney for their operations," Dr Hingston said. "I'm expecting to do 10 to 15 reconstructions and 30 to 40 reductions in Lismore each year. I couldn't do the work without the willingness of local surgeons to assist, so I really feel like I'm joining the team up here."

Dr Hingston stays in Lismore for a night or two after surgery to check patients' progress, and then local surgeons take over their care as healing progresses.

For more information about the service, visit www.breastreduction.com.au or phone freecall 1800 273 278.

Birthday wishes for children's ward

Lismore Base Hospital children's ward nurse unit manager Kerry Byrne (centre) cuts the ward's 21st birthday cake last week with members of the original fundraising team (l-r) Billy Negus, Beth Trevan, Brian Mahaffey and Anne Miles.

For the original members of the fundraising team that made the Lismore Base Hospital children's ward a reality, their 21st birthday afternoon tea party last week was not only a chance to celebrate their achievements, but also rekindle old friendships.

Last Thursday the original fundraising team of Billy Negus, Beth Trevan, Brian Mahaffey and Anne Miles were praised for their hard work and foresight two decades ago, when they raised $584,000 through community fundraising to build a new children's ward. Speaking at the afternoon tea, Beth said it was wonderful to see her old cohorts and be back in the ward that they worked so hard to establish.

"It's just gorgeous to see everyone - we had a really strong bond as a group and it was only because of the courage of Brian, Billy and Anne that we were able to achieve our goal," Beth said. "It's exciting for us to see that the colours and the atmosphere of the ward is still as lovely as the day it opened. It's just hard to believe 21 years has gone by already!"

Celebrations marking the children's ward's 21st birthday concluded on Saturday night with the Black and White Ball at Lismore City Hall, which raised more than $35,000 for the Our Kids charity.

Organisers had hoped the night would raise enough money to purchase a $20,000 humidicrib for the hospital, however, the overwhelming community support coupled with a $10,000 donation from the AMP Foundation means they can now buy two.

"It was an incredible night and we just had the most fantastic support from our sponsors and local businesses," said Our Kids fundraising officer Rebekka Battista. "It exceeded all our expectations."

Need a computer?

Ballina Shire Council has 45 free computers to giveaway to community groups following a recent upgrade of their computing systems.

Instead of sending the computers back to the company they were leased from, Council decided they could be put to better use in Ballina-based community groups, who often do outstanding work with very little support.

Information kits containing an application form an eligibility criteria are now available from the website at www.ballinacouncil.com.au or from the Council Chambers on the corner of Cherry and Tamar streets.

Applications close at 4pm on Friday, June 24.

Double demerits

Four days of double demerits will be in force over the June long weekend from midnight tonight (Thursday, June 9) to midnight on Monday, June 13.

Double demerits will apply to all speeding, seatbelt and helmet offences, while other demerit point offences will attract one additional point.

Studying for a healthy future

By Eve Sinton

Murti Utami of Jakarta (pictured) is one of the first class of overseas students to complete a Masters of Public Health Leadership at Southern Cross University.

Murti and nine other Indonesian students graduated at Invercauld House recently after spending a year studying in both Indonesia and Lismore.

"Lismore is very nice, very quiet and very good for study," said Murti. "The course was very good... Now I am better at solving problems, and look at things more critically. I will be able to help develop better health systems at home in Indonesia."

Murti is the chief of evaluation in Indonesia's health policy division and a doctor of dentistry. As part of the Masters degree students studied disease control and prevention through better food and water standards, promotion of healthy diets, quit smoking programs and safe sex messages. The course included research projects in Indonesia and has given the graduates practical skills so they can travel home and help improve the health of their local community.

A family of high fliers

Lismore aviation stalwart Habie Habib presents his son John with his solo flying licence watched by Northern Rivers Aero Club flying instructor Nicki Schwebel.

At 56 years of age most people are thinking about winding down, but Lismore's John Habib was determined to continue a long family tradition before age got the better of him.

Last week John gained his solo flying licence and in doing so became the third family member to get wings after training with the Northern Rivers Aero Club. John's father, 91-year-old Habie Habib, was a driving force in the construction of the first commercial air strip in Lismore nearly 40 years ago.

As an alderman with Lismore City Council for 38 years, Habie campaigned passionately to bring commercial aviation to Lismore. He is also a life member of the Northern Rivers Aero Club and worked for many years as a volunteer at Lismore's first airport, which was named in his honour.

John said getting his solo license at 56 was largely due to his father and gave him a real sense of achievement.

"I did have doubts at times during my training, but dad encouraged me all the way and now I feel very proud," he said. "If it wasn't for dad we wouldn't have an airport in Lismore and I feel so proud to be carrying on our family's local association with flying."

Lismore Council takes action on climate change

Thanks to the foresight of the late Brian Slapp, Lismore City Council is now taking action to reduce the effects of climate change by participating in the Cities for Climate Protection (CCP) Australia Program.

Council's membership to CCP was made possible through a $2000 bequest from Brian Slapp, who had a passion for the Northern Rivers Area and a strong commitment to the environment.

As part of the CCP program Lismore Council will work through a series of five milestones to assess their greenhouse impact, set goals to reduce this and implement local projects that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Lismore Council has successfully completed milestone one - creating an inventory of the emissions produced by Council's activities and that of local residents and businesses. Council will use this data to identify areas where greenhouse gas reductions can be made and design a program of action to reduce emissions. These will complement Council's current greenhouse gas reduction projects such as the organic waste service.

"Council is looking forward to working through the stages of the CCP program and developing further local actions, which have been proven to result in multiple environmental, financial and social benefits for the community," said Council's group manager Michael Bismire.

Engage your senses with Seed Savers

Jude and Michel Fanton are opening their 'Seed Savers Garden' in Byron Bay to the public this weekend.

Creators of the Seed Savers Network, Jude and Michel Fanton, are opening their Byron Bay garden to the public this Saturday and Sunday, January 11-12, as part of Australia's Open Garden Scheme.

A sign in the garden reads 'Why Mow Where Food Can Grow?' - aptly summarising one of the aims of the garden, which is to encourage gardeners and farmers alike to produce pesticide-free food in an environmentally friendly way.

Jude and Michel Fanton have created a garden overflowing with edible plants whose seeds are collected to form an ever-increasing seed bank. They created the Seed Savers' Network in 1986, not only to collect seeds of diminishing traditional food sources, but also to educate others around the world in seed saving practices.

Designed with low maintenance permaculture methods in 1998, the garden's terraces host a diverse array of vegetables, herbs, edible shrubs and fruits, arranged into Mediterranean, Asian, Pacific and American sections to illustrate the origins of the plants.

There is also an education centre where you can learn how to collect seed and harvest herbs, as well as learn their medicinal uses.

Michel and Jude have recently created a new garden called the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, which features plants with textural qualities, scents and unusual flower heads and spikes, making it both colourful and engaging.

The garden will be open from 9am until 3.30pm daily and entry is $5, with children under 18 free. Morning and afternoon teas will be available.

Local ABC radio will also be broadcasting its garden program from 8.30am to 10am on both days with Gardening Australia presenter Jeremy Coleby-Williams.

For directions phone 1902 261 026 and select 2.

And the winner is...

Winner of the Life Saver Rescue Helicopter shed raffle, Craig Thurgate from Goonellabah (centre), with B&T Shed and Garages owners Brad (left) and Troy Cramp.

Craig Thurgate from Goonellabah will have a little less lawn space in his backyard after winning a B&T Colourbond shed in the Life Saver Rescue Helicopter's shed raffle.

The raffle raised more than $11,500 for the Life Saver Rescue Helicopter, and was made possible by B&T Garages and Sheds and their associated contractors and suppliers.

"We'd like to thank B&T Garages and Sheds for putting together this wonderful prize package, and the public who supported it," said Howard Atkinson from the Rescue Helicopter. "The combined efforts of everyone who supported this raffle added up to a fantastic result, ensuring our helicopters can stay in the air saving lives."

Dirty weekend in Barker's Vale

The Permaforest Trust, a not-for-profit sustainability education centre and demonstration farm located at Barker's Vale, is opening to the public for a special weekend getaway next Friday to Sunday, June 17-19.

Participants will be guided through several gardening sessions throughout the weekend, where they are introduced to the methods and principals of permaculture. The rest of the time is spent going on walks on the stunning property, preparing food, reading in the extensive library, heading to the swimming holes or making music with the resident musicians.

"It's a great way to get a taste of life at the Trust, put your hands in the earth and have a good time in a beautiful location," said founder Tim Winton. "Everyone is welcome and activities suit all levels of skill and experience. Arrive on Friday night to join us for dinner and stay for as much of the weekend as you like."

The weekend getaway costs $15 a day, which includes food and dorm room accommodation. Bookings are essential by next Tuesday, June 14. Phone 6689 7579 or email info@permaforesttrust.org.au.

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