MOUNT MORGAN BRANCH UPDATE

Submitted by Arlene Roberts - President

This year is passing so quickly but we are happy to announce we have had some amazing feedback from ladies who have attended our craft/social days on the fourth Monday of each month. We have incorporated cooking and gardening into these days. At the last branch craft day, which was held on Monday, 4 May members, and two visitors took part in a small Country Kitchens Workshop.

The ladies made Quesadillas which are widely consumed in Trinidad and Tobago which is the Q.C.W.A. Country of Study for 2023.

The ladies are happy to show their skills in the crafts they do which includes knitting, crochet and rug making using strips of material, so as you can see, we have a lot to offer any lady who would like to come along. We have several ladies asking about joining our branch and we are happy to welcome any new members no matter how many.

Friendship, understanding, commitment, common interest, passion, to meet new people, to learn new skills are just a few reasons why ladies join Q.C.W.A.If you do not like crowds or you can’t cook it does not matter. Our branch will welcome any lady as we have done over many generations. Yes, we donate to many areas such as our local hospital and the schools, but we are there willing to help when needed.

We have provided many items such as nappies and toiletry packs to the hospital and we give bursaries to the state school. We are very proud to do all of these things that benefit many people including residents in our community.

Our branch is now working on our 6th cookbook. This book will be a Bush Tucker cookbook and will showcase indigenous ingredients and how they can be used.

Our cookbooks are very popular, and we thank Mount Morgan Promotion and Development Inc. for selling our cookbooks at the Mount Morgan Explore Centre. This allows a lot more people, especially visitors to see our books and purchase them if they would like to.

Recently our branch put together Domestic Violence packs for our local police station. The packs were full of items for adults and separate packs for the kids. It is a worthwhile cause to help those in need and especially when they are seeking a safe place to be. In the past 11 months we have put together 36 Domestic Violence packs.

We will continue to do these as required knowing that we have been able to help. We are very grateful to the people and businesses who donated to these. Each year we look forward to taking part in our towns N.A.I.D.O.C Celebrations and this year is no different.

Bringing people together is the best thing we can do. On Sunday, 30 July our branch will take part in National Tree Day. We will be donating a tree to the Mount Morgan Central State School to be incorporated into the school grounds for the benefit of the students.

This year we will once again hold stalls at the Mount Morgan Show and at the Mount Morgan Wattle Day Festival at the Mount Morgan Railway Museum. We are holding our main fundraiser for the year being a giant cent sale on Saturday, 18 November at the Mount Morgan School of Arts.

There are many projects that we have planned and with the help of donations and hard work from the members. these projects will be completed and hopefully will be enjoyed by others.

If you would like to come along and find out more about our branch please feel free to do so. We meet on the third Monday of each month at the green shed beside the Mount Morgan Skate Park.

We have a cuppa and then commence the meeting at 10 am. If you would like to find out more please contact the branch president Mrs Arlene Roberts on 0428 457 461.

Recently, I was pleased to present a speech in the Federal Parliament acknowledging the invaluable contribution Small’s Trading Company has made to the Mount Morgan community.

The speech said, “According to Egg Farmers of Australia, Egg farmers produce 17 million eggs every single day of the year to feed Australian families. Queensland supplies about 25% of eggs in Australia with egg farming generating more than $244 million at the farm gate in Queensland annually.

In my electorate of Flynn, Small’s Trading Company, a poultry farm in Mount Morgan has been operating since 1959.

The poultry farm began with Kevin and Doreen Small when Kevin bought some hens to combat nut grass. In 1976, Nadine Goody with her brother Gary Small and their other siblings Robert and Leanne Hinchcliffe entered into a business partnership with their parents. After more than 60 years of producing eggs loved by customers across Central Queensland and beyond including Rockhampton, Yeppoon, Gladstone, Biloela, Moura and as far as Mackay, Nadine Goody and Gary Small have made the decision to sell their family business.

I’m pleased to see the local business has been purchased by Peacefield Egg Farms and business should run as normal.

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Colin Boyce’s

I met with Nadine and Gary in 2021 and I saw firsthand the fantastic operation that they run.

I would like to wish Nadine and Gary all the best for their well-deserved retirement and thank them for their commitment to feeding our region and beyond with delicious eggs.”

While in Parliament, I used my voice as your Federal Member to speak on a number of issues including the cost-of-living crisis.

I have been inundated by emails and calls from retirees, families and working people that are hurting every time they go to the supermarket, every time they open their electricity bill, every time they get a letter from their bank announcing an interest rate rise, every time they receive an email from their real estate stating that their rent is going up and every time they fill up at the bowser.

The facts are that it’s been reported power prices in regional Queensland are expected to increase by 28 percent - the highest in Australia. That amounts to around $430 a year in regional Queensland.

I’ll keep fighting to ensure that the Labor Government focuses on the issues that matter to Australians and deliver a real and comprehensive plan to ease inflation and cost-of-living pressures that are hurting Australian families and businesses.

As always, if you have any matters relating to Federal issues, you are welcome to visit us, call, or email Colin.Boyce.MP@aph.gov.au.

Colin Boyce

Mount Morgan’s representative in the Federal Parliament.