THE Probus Club of Port Stephens celebrated Australia Day in perfect weather with a late afternoon picnic in the park at Soldiers Point.
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Vice president Leon Lindsay welcomed 37 members and friends who got into the spirit of the day dressing appropriately and flying the flags for this great country.
There was lots of fun and friendship as always, not to mention the lovely food. Nobody was going home to cook dinner that day.
The Probus club would like to congratulate Bev Lee from the friendship group on being a recipient of the Port Stephens Medal in the Australia Day Awards.
She was nominated by Meryl Miller, the secretary of Port Stephens Probus and a member of Bev’s group as well. Also to Rotarian Bart Richardson; Rotary is responsible for sponsoring the establishment of Probus clubs around the country.
Community honours
A LONG-serving Port Stephens volunteer has been bestowed two honours so far this year recognising his unshakable commitment to surf lifesaving.
Eddy Bergsma, who received the Order of Australia Medial (OAM) in the 2016 Australia Day Honours for his service to surf lifesaving, has been named as Rotary’s third Tomaree Hero.
Mr Bergsma received the Rotary honour on January 28.
The Rotary clubs of Nelson Bay and Salamander Bay run the Tomaree Hero program, which recognise people from the Tomaree Peninsula who go above and beyond for others.
Mr Bergsma, who has lived in Port Stephens since he was 5 years old, has dedicated his time and expertise to surf lifesaving for 50 years.
“He has devoted his time to life saving and the training of others, with 100 per cent season patrol attendance for the past 50 years,” Rotarian John de Ridder said of Mr Bergsma.
In 1964 Mr Bergsma and a few of his mates got together to form the Fingal Beach Surf Life Saving Club with about 30 members.
Today it has around 700 members.
In more recent years Mr Bergsma has taken on the role of master sweep for the 26ft life boats, training generations of oarsmen and women in the process.
In June 2015 he was recognised for his 50 years of exceptional service to the Fingal club.
He has also received the Australian Medal and Australian Sportsman's Medal.
Buddy bench
FERN Bay Public School children feeling down or in need of a chat now have a space to retreat to.
The team from Bunnings Warehouse Kotara installed a buddy bench at the school on February 2.
Many Port Stephens schools have a buddy bench, which is a seat located somewhere in the school – usually in a peaceful location – that children know they can go to when they are feeling down.
If a anyone is seen at the buddy bench, older students or teachers will strike up conversation to find out and try resolve any issue the child is having.
Thermomix for awareness
A RAYMOND Terrace pharmacy is running a raffle with a difference this month.
Rachel Mulley's Chemmart Pharmacy is raffling off a Thermomix – a kitchen appliance worth $2000.
There are just 250 tickets, which cost $20 each.
“The odds are pretty good to win it,” said Ms Mulley.
The aim of the raffle is to raise awareness about ovarian cancer.
“We want to get as much awareness out there about the signs of ovarian cancer as the survival rate is very low,” Ms Mulley said.
“The raffle is a way for us to open up the conversation about what the signs are and what you should be looking out for.”
Rachel Mulley's Chemmart Pharmacy is located in William Street, Raymond Terrace.
The raffle will run until the end of February or when all 250 tickets are sold.
