May 1st, 2024Just sayin’…

By Donna Kelly

What an extraordinary thing Ros Pyers has done. Generously donated to not just one but four organisations.

And that is after a lifetime of already donating her time as a volunteer to even more groups – and working as an educator, surely one of the most important roles in our community.

So it is no wonder the beneficiaries of her generosity are Hepburn Primary School and Daylesford Primary School along with the Daylesford Community Brass Band (pictured above) – her love of music shining through, and Daylesford and District Historical Society – another love, history.

As Hepburn Shire Mayor Cr Brian Hood, who attended a small celebration of the donations last week said, the impact of Ros’s generosity and compassion will be felt for many years to come.

“This is such a wonderful gesture and one that will make an incredible difference to our children and the wider community.”

Now I don’t know the Pyers couple very well – although in recent times I have spent a bit of time, in his role with the Daylesford Highland Gathering, with Ros’s husband of 67 years Keith.

I also know Keith as the go-to Justice of the Peace, who during those dark days of Covid, continued to offer his services with a desk and a couple of chairs on the verandah of the couple’s home. That is commitment and kindness, which is what Keith and Ros seem to be all about.

Keith was also a teacher and involved as a volunteer in many organisations – and has spent a lot of time and effort ensuring Ros’s donations came to fruition.

Congratulations to you both, and thank you from myself and your community. It would be wonderful if your actions encourage others to do something similar. It certainly has me thinking. Oh, and a very happy 90th to you both!

I would also like to thank our journo Narelle Groenhout for writing the story, on page 3 if you skipped past, with such love and kindness. I would have loved to have gone along myself but was away – and just knew this had Narelle’s name all over it.

You might remember Narelle writing about the terrible accident in Daylesford last year – she was there when it happened and felt compelled to share her feelings, again, all about love and compassion. And just between us, she and her husband Pat, did amazing, although they would never tell you that.

Finally, I really have enjoyed putting this edition together. Sometimes, to be honest, it’s work but this time it was just fantastic to see so many stories, and advertising, coming through. Like we are really back.

We started off with 28 pages and then more stories arrived, so I bumped it up to 32 pages and then more stories arrived so I made the decision on Friday to go up to 36 pages. Hopefully it will stay there, because I am running out of steam now.

But it’s a great edition and nice to get back into after our break in Japan. We had a great time, and our grand-nephew loved it too. He really “got” Japan which not every one does.

And here is a final Japan pic I just had to share. We found ourselves in a bar, strange that, and as I chatted to the manager in Japanese, he said he had a surprise for us. He disappeared and returned with a geisha. True story.

But Kyle was just a little too enamoured. Just sayin’…