Yarroweyah station sign returns home
After a hiatus of 43 years, the wooden sign formerly displayed at the Yarroweyah station has been returned and is now proudly displayed in the Yarroweyah Hall.
Owned by former Yarroweyah resident Mal Patchett over this period, Mal became the proud owner after the closure of the station in 1979 when it was deemed to be a station ‘with nobody in charge’ and put to tender for salvage and removal.
Brothers Jim and Don Sutton, owners of the Yarroweyah Garage and engineering works from the 1959s until their retirement, successfully tendered to remove the station.
During 1979 Mal returned from a semester break in Melbourne to learn from his father that the station had been pulled down while he was away. “What’s happened to the sign?” he asked. “My dad said to call Jimmy (Sutton) to find out.”
Speaking to Jim, Mal told him that when he journeyed to Melbourne by train with his mum, he always looked out for the Yarroweyah sign, knowing he was almost home.
The station sign meant something to him and while keen to buy it, Jim was more than happy to give it to him.
“They say it takes a village to raise a child and the village of Yarroweyah helped raise me and I am really pleased that I can bring the sign back to where it belongs,” said Mal to the small group of residents who attended to see the sign erected on a special wall in the Yarroweyah Hall.
Mural officially unveiled at Strathmerton
A spectacular mural was officially dedicated to the Strathmerton community by Moira Shire councillor Ed Cox during the Strathmerton Lions Community Christmas event last weekend.
An eye-catching, colourful work of art depicting the Murray River and surrounds including local wildlife, was designed and painted by recognised Wiradjuri artist Tiarne Hall with ceramic work completed by the community under the leadership of talented Cobram mosaic artist Kerrie Murrell.
A local artist, Ms Hall looked at the outline of the river on a map and designed the mural to showcase and feature the flow of the nearby river. It has been completed at the park which boasts a modern skate park and barbecue facility.
Attending the official dedication were Strathmerton Lions president Geoff Coates, Dr Laura Cornwell McKean, Cr Ed Cox and Strathmerton Community Steering Committee chair Kerry Murray.
A project such as this does not just happen and after 12 months of discussion by the steering committee the project was agreed upon, yet depended on funding to facilitate it. A $5000 donation from Mac Inc, significant funding from Moira Shire together with local sponsorship enabled them to go ahead. The group spoke to several local artists with the result that Tiarne was asked to provide a design for the mural, resulting in her commission to begin the project.
It was thought that adding mosaic work would give Tiarne’s unique design a point of difference and the steering committee approached Kerrie Murrell about getting the community involved in this aspect of the mural.
While initially there was some controversy over the mural design, it is a colourful standout from other murals in the region and showcases how far we have come as people and a nation.