HASTINGS not-for-profit Kindred Clubhouse has launched a new project to increase mental health awareness and care in the community, while raising money for peer support and homelessness.Kindred Clubhouse offers a free peer support model in the Frankston and Mornington Peninsula areas for people wanting to improve or maintain their mental health through friendships and purpose.Its new project, the Welcome Project, is giving the community a chance to get involved by decorating a sign and entering it in the clubhouse competition.Signs can be collected from Wednesdays to Fridays at 29 Marine Parade, Hastings between 10am and 3pm for donations of $5…
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FLINDERS CFA is recruiting new members. The brigade, which started in 1945 as the South East Bushfire Brigade in an old shed in Flinders Park, was incorporated in the Country Fire Authority in 1945, moving to Barker Street in 1981, where a new fire station was built in 2017.Flinders is one of the CFA’s 1222 brigades and has 23 members including five women. The brigade trains or meets three times a month and responds to about 30 calls a year, mostly during the December to March bushfire season. It also attends major fires throughout Victoria and interstate.For more details about…
THE camping area with a difference is being expanded at Point Nepean National Park. The campground, with its pre-pitched “discovery tents” has been popular since opening early last year, with more than 2000 people staying overnight. Thirteen more tent platforms are now being built within the historic Quarantine Station precinct, creating a “woodland” camping area among the park’s moonah trees.Parks Victoria says it worked with Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation, Heritage Victoria and Mornington Peninsula Shire Council to pass the relevant cultural heritage and environmental assessments for approvals to complete the works. The project is part of a $6.4 million…
SOMERS landscape designer Ellen Freeman has won two awards at this year’s Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show with Eclipse, her entry in the Challenger Achievable Gardens section.Eclipse won a gold medal and the specialist award, Best Use of Plant Life. One side of Freeman’s creation comprises silver and blue toned plants while the other side has purple, red, and black plants. The two sides are separated by a white limestone path and circle. Textures also add contrast between the two halves of the garden, with more matte plants on the lighter half and shiny leaves opposite. Plants chosen by…
A MEMORIAL garden space at the former Bembridge Golf Course, Somerville is having a “sunflower spectacle” to promote its green credentials and honour a friend.The concept of paying for a plant or tree to be planted in honour of a loved one, with ashes treated and made environmentally safe, is relatively new to Australia. But the owners of Mornington Green, Luke Roberts and Rob Amro, say the uptake has been great since opening in 2022.The green wedge zoned land was a market garden before becoming a golf course in 1995. Roberts said the idea for memorial gardens came to him…
THE creative director of the Share Sustainability Agency has won third place in the Melbourne international flowering garden show border garden design competition.Josie Jones, of Rye, said that stepping into the realm of the competition was “a complete leap of love”.The Mornington Peninsula clean-up hero, who daily picks up litter from the beach and heads rubbish awareness programs, drew on her love of the rare weedy seadragon and gardening to create a garden bed that impressed judges.“As someone who has quietly nurtured a passion for gardening my entire life, the joy and humility I feel in securing a place on…
MOUNT Martha resident Peter Scott has always kept himself in reasonably good shape with regular physical exertion, so when he suffered a stroke at 62 it forced him to reevaluate what “healthy’ really is.“I was in a pretty high pressure corporate job and led a busy life, but I was a good weight and was fit. In fact, I had just a week or so earlier completed a half marathon, but that’s what tricked me,” he said. What Scott didn’t know was that he had high blood pressure, which is one of the risk factors of stroke regardless of how…
TWO young men from the Mornington Peninsula have made a spectacular entrance into the electric vehicle market, armed with nothing but a bright idea, a modest amount of savings and a lot of faith.Twenty-four-year olds Toby Batters-Holding and Daniel Henry, who became friends while students at Western Port Secondary College, have launched a mobile EV charging business that has attracted interest from media around the country.Before taking their idea to the market, Henry, an electrician, and Batters-Holding, a boiler maker, spent 12 months learning about the EV industry. Although they did not own EVs themselves, they knew enough to see…
THE Dolphin Research Institute last week celebrated 33 years of its achievements and efforts to “improve outcomes for dolphins, whales, and our precious marine environment”.Executive director Jeff Weir said the picture chosen to mark the institute’s one third of a century “shows something you don’t see every day — a dolphin riding on the head of a humpback whale”. The picture was taken in 2020 when the same humpback had spent a week feeding off Phillip Island, the first time such an event had been recorded.“Our role in capturing knowledge and filling these knowledge gaps is integral to our work…
RSPCA Victoria is inviting exhibitors to connect with hundreds of passionate pet owners at this year’s Million Paws Walk at Hastings. The Mornington Peninsula is home to one of the RSPCA’s main dog walking events, which provides the opportunity for businesses to make contact with dog and pet lovers, while raising money to end cruelty to animals.Event and community fundraising manager Kate Kasby said this year’s event was a special milestone. “We’re very excited for this year because it marks the 30th anniversary of Million Paws Walk and we are planning an amazing day out for all pet lovers,” Kasby…
WHEN Mount Eliza mother Rachel Miller received the diagnosis six years ago that her then four-year-old son had Tourette Syndrome, she set about finding out as much as she could. Now, with her son, a 10-year-old at primary school, she is on a mission to ensure that all young people and adults with TS, and their families, are also aware of the support and help there is within the community.“It made such a difference to our family when we found out there was help and other families to talk to,” she said.Miller is currently raising money to help families attend…
DELIVERING a baby by caesarean section isn’t usually a hands-on experience for mothers, but that’s exactly what happened to one young mum in Mornington.Obstetrician Dr Natalie Elphinstone, who recently moved her private practice to The Bays in Mornington, completed the hospital’s first official maternal-assisted caesarean birth on Tuesday 12 March.In a maternal-assisted caesarean, the obstetrician partially lifts up the baby, allowing the mother to then lift the baby out of her own womb and onto her chest. “Many mothers feel somewhat removed from their birth experience with traditional caesarean sections. This new procedure enables mothers who want or need a…
POWERLINES in high fire danger areas on the Mornington Peninsula could be placed underground as part of a package of new “resilience measures” being tested and considered by electricity distributor United Energy. The distributor is looking at how it can make its network in Melbourne’s south-east and the peninsula stronger and more resilient in the face of increasingly frequent severe weather events.United Energy representatives last week met with community members in Red Hill to hear their views on the proposals and road test a range of scenarios as part of a five-year business plan, with a draft to be submitted…
THE Tiny Home Expo is coming to Mornington Peninsula, and Expo Organisers say the event is gathering more and more interest as people seek alternative solutions to a multitude of pressures from rental stress, the housing crisis, and also aged care alternatives, and options for young people wanting to save rental money.“Whilst initially the Tiny House Movement was in the realm of a alternative lifestyles, a greener solution and coming from the aspect of having less ’stuff’, in more recent years it has attracted a much wider audience in search of solutions to an array of issues, the most obvious…
THE Afghan Women’s Organisation Victoria held a retreat with a water safety message for a group of newly arrived Afghan women and girls at Saltbush, Balnarring Beach.The resilient women, having fled their homeland under challenging circumstances, found solace, connection and peace in the bushland and coastal environment at the retreat. For many, Saltbush marked their first encounter with a beach, offering an opportunity to explore the beauty of the coast and discover the tidal movement in Western Port that exposes rock pools on low tide.Group organiser and co-founder of the Afghan Women’s Organisation Victoria, Gulghotai Bezhan, said the retreat was…
A FREE legal information session covering two of the most common legal issues affecting older people – wills and power of attorney – will be held at Safety Beach on Wednesday 20 March.Co-hosted by the Respecting Seniors Network, Peninsula Community Legal Centre and the Mornington Peninsula Shire Council, the session will include guest speakers talking about the tips and traps of planning for decision making as people age. They will also talk about how to protect older people’s rights and assets, as well as how to ensure that a person’s wishes are respected at a time when they are at…
By Jane ByrneSANDY beaches, rugged cliffs and the twisting, somewhat haunting Moonah trees are natural features many imagine when they visualise the southern Mornington Peninsula, an area loved by holidaymakers and residents.Not only are coastal moonah woodland areas visually stunning, but they perform an important function. They help stabilise dune systems and prevent erosion caused by climate and sea level changes that threaten our coastal communities. Many of the moonah trees and adjacent vegetation communities are extremely old.With less than eight per cent of its original distribution remaining, coastal moonah woodlands are listed as a threatened community under the Flora…
SOUTH East Water’s annual community grants program is now open for groups to apply for up to $10,000 available for community projects.Now in its fifth year, the program has granted more than $320,000 to 66 community groups across Melbourne’s south-east. “Last year we were thrilled to support 16 community groups with a range of community and environmental projects, from emergency food relief and crisis essentials for children entering out-of-home care, to rainwater tanks and recycled water systems, and a cultural meeting place for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students,” South East Water managing director Lara Olsen said.Applications are now open…
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire staff are likely to be exchanged with their counterparts from Roper Gulf Regional Shire in the Northern Territory under a partnership agreement being drawn up by the two municipalities.Arrangements for the Friendly Council Partnership date back to early 2023 and involved a visit to the remote shire by then mayor Cr Anthony Marsh and CEO John Baker.The partnership was formally agreed to by peninsula councillors on 31 October last year, some weeks after plans for a formal announcement were dropped following the “last minute” cancellation of a visit to the peninsula by the mayor and CEO of…
GRADE 5 students at Moorooduc Primary School are getting the opportunity to write, illustrate and publish their own book with the help of a published author. The students’ brief is to create and publish a children’s story that inspires others to make the world a better place. Mornington-based writer Jane Ting, author of the Zac’s Happy Planet children’s picture books, will help guide students through the creative writing process. “I want to give students an insight into the whole publishing process, so they have a real insight into children’s picture book publishing,” she said. “Their goal is to create a…
EARLY voting has begun in the Dunkley by-election. Polling day for the by-election is on 2 March with eight candidates on the ballot – in ballot order they are Nathan Conroy (Liberal), Bronwyn Currie (Animal Justice), Chrysten Abraham (Libertarian), Reem Yunis (Victorian Socialists), Darren Bergwerf (Independent), Alex Breskin (Greens), Heath McKenzie (Australian Democrats), and Jodie Belyea (Labor). Early voting centres have been set up at Lyrebird Community Centre in Carrum Downs, Functions by the Bay in Frankston, and 1st Ranelagh Scout Group in Mount Eliza. They are open from 8.30am to 5.30pm on weekdays (6pm on 1 March), and from…
SOMETHING almost magical is happening every month at Bentons Square Community Centre, and it’s transforming the lives of people who are grieving. A support group called Projex J and its three-word transformative and inspirational motto Get busy living, is giving people trapped in a cycle of sadness and despair a way to move forward. The trailblazing support group that welcomes people of all ages and backgrounds to come together to share their stories or simply listen, is the brainchild of Chantelle Ross, whose 23-year-old son Jamerson was killed in a road incident in Hastings in 2022. It’s that lived experience…
A CONTROVERIAL Harry Potter-themed sound and light show will be relocated to a fenced dog park within the Briars community forest, in a move described as “democracy at work”. At an unscheduled meeting on Tuesday 13 February councillors voted unanimously – Cr Steve Holland was absent and Cr Lisa Dixon was overseas – for the Warner Bros show to be relocated out of the Briars wildlife sanctuary. Cr Despi O’Connor, who moved the officer’s recommendation that the event be relocated, said it was “democracy at work”. Community group Save Briars Sanctuary spokesperson Louise Page said the committee was “ecstatic” with…
IT hadn’t been driven for more than 40 years, but that did not deter the car restoring team at Mornington Men’s Shed from trying to get it back on the road. Three years after acquiring this 1967 MGB, the team has delivered on the task and rebuilt the car and its engine almost from the ground up. President Mark Parritt said about 10 shed members shared their skills and talents to get the car back in shape, with some outside help when special machinery was required. “There are a few of us who have restored cars before, but it’s also…
A NEW breast imaging suite at Frankston Hospital has been named after the former MP for Dunkley, the late Peta Murphy, who died from cancer last December. The Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan today joined Murphy’s family at the opening of the Peta Murphy Breast Imaging Suite on Saturday 3 February. “Peta took great pride in the Labor Party’s role in the story of Australia’s public health system. It is so fitting that this wonderful addition bears her name,” Albanese said. “Thanks to Peta’s advocacy, the women of Dunkley have a new quality service close to…
THE Disabled Surfers Association Mornington Peninsula’s first beach day of the year saw 156 surfers and more than 300 volunteers at Pt Leo on 20 January. Since 2012, DSAMP has been fulfilling its mission to put “smiles on dials” by offering safe, accessible and fun surfing experiences to surfers of all disabilities. Established by Gary Blaschke in 1986, the Disabled Surfers Association of Australia now has more than 19 chapters in Australia and one in New Zealand. “In the 12 years since we started, we have watched our events continue to grow,” DSAMP president Pea Saunders said. “There’s a fantastic…
PENINSULA Health’s call for the community to participate in its FEB 50 Challenge to raise money for Rosebud Hospital was answered loud and clear when it kicked off last Thursday (1 February). The FEB 50 Challenge encourages participants to walk, run, ride or choose the activity they prefer to complete 50 kilometres in February. The campaign started last week with a Peninsula Health-coordinated five kilometre walk from Rosebud Hospital to Rosebud pier and back. Rosebud Hospital is part of Peninsula Health, the major public health service providing healthcare for Frankston and the Mornington Peninsula. The hospital has one acute and…
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire Council has recognised some of its most outstanding citizens and groups at the 2024 Australia Day local awards ceremony. Nancy-Joy Gardner was chosen as Citizen of the Year for her commitment to road safety over the past 25 years. Her nominator says, “Auntie Nance”, as she is often referred to, was someone who “shakes up her community and is a force to be reckoned with”, someone who “knows how to make events happen and get people involved”. Gardner has run road safety programs on the peninsula and south east Melbourne for 30 years with Wiser Driver Programs.…
RSPCA Victoria’s first Healthy Pet Day event on the Mornington Peninsula is on Wednesday 31 January in Crib Point, with RSPCA experts providing free check-ups, dog vaccines, pet food, and advice on pet behaviours. RSPCA Victoria community outreach manager Dr Lauren Roberts said Healthy Pet Days were a great way to provide pets with health checks. “Our expert animal care team provides pet check-ups, dog vaccines, microchipping, flea and worm prevention treatment, behavioural advice, resources and pet food,” she said. “We want to keep our pets happy and healthy for years to come, and local pet owners will have access…
TEN years ago, Australian Academy of Cinema and Televised Arts-nominated cinematographer Anthony Littlechild met filmmaking students, Liam Kelly and Riley Sugars, at the Peninsula Film Festival workshop. Today, between them they have been nominated for two ARIA awards, two AACTAs and multiple international awards. Kelly is an awarded director known best as one of the creatives behind Tones and I’s music videos, including Dance Monkey and Fly Away. “The Peninsula Film Festival is the perfect bridge between a local festival and one that’s also internationally recognised,” Kelly said. “It fosters up-and-coming talent and highlights the best of Australia’s filmmaking community.…