The Macedon Ranges Shire Council is hosting a special event for World Elder Abuse Awareness Day on Sunday June 15.

The council says it’ll be bringing the community together to raise awareness about the challenges faced by older people.  

In collaboration with the local Kindness to Elders initiative, the Kyneton Mechanics Institute will play host to the annual event that will commence at 12pm with a flag-raising ceremony, followed by a  sausage sizzle run by local scout groups; food and coffee vans; and feature a range of relevant information about support services for seniors including financial help and fraud prevention.  

At 2pm, the movie Thelma will be shown, telling the story of 93-year-old Thelma Post who sets off  across Los Angeles to retrieve $10,000 she lost in a phone scam – a reminder of the financial risks faced by older people.

Mayor Dom Bonanno said the event is an important chance for the community to come together and  support our growing older population.  

“World Elder Abuse Awareness Day is all about protecting the rights, dignity, and independence of our elderly,” he said.  

“It’s not a day just for seniors though – it’s for everyone. By having important conversations in a relaxed and friendly setting, we can raise awareness and help prevent elder abuse before it happens.”  

Elder abuse can take many forms, including financial, emotional, physical, sexual, and social. It can happen once or happen many times, and it is often carried out by someone the older person knows and trusts, like a family member or friend.  

Nearly 15% of Australians aged 65 years and over, have experienced elder abuse in some form, over the past year and this number is expected to rise as our population ages.

The council is encouraging everyone to bring along their parents, grandparents and loved ones to the event  to show their support for our older members of the community.    

What a fantastic start to the 2025 season for the Mount Players. 

Our production of The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde was a sellout a week before opening night on Feburary 21.

So ……. an extra performance has been scheduled for Saturday, March 8 at 2pm. This too is selling fast. 

Our next production, The Girl on The Train, opens on May 9 so lots about that next month.

Words: Karen Hunt. Image: Karlana Santamaria 

NGV Kids on Tour 2025 has partnered with more than 150 community venues across Victoria this January to offer free art-making activities – and that includes Daylesford, Clunes, Creswick, Trentham and Kyneton. 

Activities include making a playful cat and dog ear headband, illustrating a Kusama-inspired pumpkin and creating fashion designs for paper dolls. Coinciding with the NGV’s summer exhibitions Yayoi Kusama and Cats & Dogs, NGV Kids on Tour celebrates the work of local and international artists and designers, as they draw inspiration from the colour and vibrancy of nature and the world around them. 

In celebration of the Cats & Dogs exhibition, children can design a Furry Friend Headband, a set of cat or dog ears inspired by their own beloved pets or furry animals in their lives that they can take home and wear. 

Kids will also be able to enjoy the work of iconic Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama in the Lots of Dots with Yayoi Kusama activity and children’s book.

Pumpkins have appeared in Kusama’s artworks since a young age growing up on a seed and plant farm, and this drawing activity invites children to add their favourite colours and designs to dots on a pumpkin and write a short poem about the humble fruit. 

Younger children will be able to spot big dots, little dots and shiny dots in Lots of Dots story time sessions. 

Melbourne-based fashion designers and sisters Fatuma and Laurinda Ndenzako from slow fashion label Collective Closets celebrate the beauty and history of the African continent through their designs.

The designers have developed the Fashion, Culture & Creativity with Collective Closets activity where kids and families will create paper dolls and design their own vibrant clothing for the dolls to wear. 

Children will learn about bogong moths in the drawing activity developed by Dr Deanne Gilson, a proud Wadawurrung woman living on her ancestral country at Ballarat.

And the tour invites teenagers to learn about the creative practices of emerging artists and build skills for their own art portfolios through an activity developed with Gamilaroi Yinarr weaver and textile artist Sophie Honess. Link: www.ngv.vic.gov.au/kids-on-tour 

The Macedon Ranges Shire Council is hosting a range of fun activities for children and young people throughout the summer school holidays including an intensive learn to swim program.

The aquatic centres in both Kyneton and Gisborne have both begun running a series of week-long summer intensive swimming programs during the holidays.

Dates ahead for the program include: 

• Gisborne Aquatic Centre (GAC): Monday 13 to Friday 17 January, Monday 20 to Friday 24 January 
• Kyneton Toyota Sports and Aquatic Centre (KTSAC): Monday 13 to Friday 17 January 

Those keen to enrol children in lessons can call 5421 1452 (GAC) or 5421 1477 (KTSAC). 

The Macedon Ranges Shire Council is hosting a range of fun activities for children and young people throughout the summer school holidays, including Inflatable Fun @ aquatic centres.

Both Kyneton Toyota Sports and Aquatic Centre (KTSAC) and Gisborne Aquatic Centre (GAC) will host the pool inflatable – featuring obstacles, climbing hills and slides – on the following days (all 1pm to 3pm): 

• GAC: Monday 13, Wednesday 15, Friday 17, Tuesday 21, Thursday 23 January
• KTSAC: Tuesday 14, Thursday 16, Monday 20, Wednesday 22, Friday 24 January 

Use of the inflatable is included in pool entry fees and with more details available by following the centres’ respective Facebook pages for updates. 

The axing of service kills for smaller numbers of stock at a central Victorian abattoir has  left many local farmers struggling to find alternative abattoirs.

Kyneton’s Hardwicks Meatworks late last month told producers of its revised kill arrangements in 2025, announcing a new minimum number of 15 for beef service kills and 50 for lamb and other small stock.

The changes are earmarked to come into effect from early in the new year.

The announcement is understood to have left multiple local producers of high quality meats, including some at Kingston, Woodend, and Eganstown, concerned about the impacts.

Hardwick’s decision comes as the state’s Legislative Assembly Environment and Planning Committee report, Securing the Victorian food supply tabled in recent days, makes wide-ranging

recommendations to protect the state’s productive land.

These include measures for long-term reform to reduce smaller producer reliance on larger commercial  abattoirs.

Spirit of the Highlands is an exhibition by local artists Nadia Kliendanze, (pictured above right) and Pam Gleeson (above left).

The exhibition opened recently at The Old Auction House in Kyneton and presents two starkly contrasting perspectives of the diverse landscapes of Victoria’s Central Highlands.

From the rugged majesty of the Macedon Ranges to sprawling, tranquil farmlands, through cloud-shrouded winters and dry, sun scorched summers, the artists take people on a visual journey that transcends the canvas they work with.

Nadia’s surreal interpretations and Pam’s moody realism embrace qualities of time and place which resonate with all those who know and love this unique region.

Both Nadia and Pam feel a deep responsibility to raise awareness of the fragility of this beautiful place and its need for preservation.

The Central Highlands faces numerous challenges including habitat loss and the wider effects of climate change. Through their art, the artists hope to inspire a sense of stewardship and appreciation for this region.

The Sprit of the Highlands exhibition runs until November 11 and is open daily from 10am to 4pm at The Old Auction House, 52-56 Mollison Street, Kyneton.

There will be a Meet the Artists afternoon on November 2 from 2pm to 4pm. Entry is free with refreshments provided.

Armed Crime Squad detectives have charged a 42-year-old man after two licensed venues were allegedly robbed at gunpoint earlier this month.

It’s alleged the man threatened a female staff member with a firearm at a Hicks Street licensed venue in Lara about 5.40pm on 15 August.

During the second incident it’s alleged the man threatened a female staff member with a firearm at a Mollison Street licensed venue in Kyneton about 9.20am last Friday.

The man had escaped with cash during both incidents, and neither staff member had been physically injured.

Detectives arrested the Woori Yallock man at a Clarendon Street hotel in Melbourne’s CBD on Saturday morning, August 26.

He was charged with two counts of armed robbery, three counts of possess/carry/use handgun, possess testosterone and possess cocaine.

He had been required to face Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Saturday.

The Kyneton Fire Brigade has celebrated its long 140-year history with members and dignitaries attending a commemorative dinner and awards presentation event.

The brigade marked the important milestone alongside Chief Officer Jason Heffernan and Minister for Health Mary-Anne Thomas MP on Saturday 27 July, at a dinner that featured significant service awards.

Macedon Ranges Shire Deputy Mayor Janet Pearce proposed a toast to CFA and the brigade, commending and thanking the members for being ordinary people doing extraordinary things for the community.

Kyneton Captain Greg McIntyre said the brigade has been operating continuously since 1884 – when it had 30 members and was located at the former bluestone police stables.

“Eventually, it was moved to a timber building next door to the current fire station,” Greg said.

In 1998, the brigade moved into its current location in town, maintaining a strong presence in the community.

“The brigade has always been a very active brigade in the community and in CFA competitions as well as operations,” Greg said.

“We have about 70 members at the moment and over half of them are active firefighters. We also have close to 30 per cent female firefighters.

“We provide urban support to brigades in the group and beyond; we respond to the recently closed Malmsbury Youth Justice Centre, which used to have lots of alarms.

“And we do a lot of the usual incidents such as structure fires, car fires and motor vehicle accidents.”

Receiving around 170 callouts every year, the brigade has a 2007 Hino 3.4C tanker, a 1998 Type 3 Isuzu pumper and a field command vehicle, alongside a hazmat trailer servicing the wider Macedon Ranges area.

“I remember our pumper when I first joined was a Mazda, it was a very small vehicle and not very powerful, so the one we have now is a big improvement on that.” 

Greg said the brigade is proud of its heritage.

“We certainly had a lot of people involved, before my time, in the Ash Wednesday bushfires and we were heavily involved in Black Saturday as well as Black Summer,” he said.

“We’ve had many members participate in those and they’ve contributed a lot to the culture and learning at the brigade.

“We have quite a heritage program in the brigade with trophies and other memorabilia and we try and encourage members to be good representatives of the brigade and of CFA as they serve in the community.”

For Greg, not only does his passion lie in mentoring up-and-coming firefighters but helping community members during a traumatic time.

“Sometimes it’s hard if we get called at Christmas dinner time but then I think well, actually this is the worst day of somebody else’s life so I haven’t got anything to complain about,” he said.

“I think the brigade is very well respected in our community. We’re included in a number of community activities.

“I’m very proud when I see members committing, putting in the effort to train, and then being able to apply that when the situation requires it.

“To see the members working with one another, even though we’re immensely different people, and we come from different backgrounds, we’re all there to carry out the functions of the brigade and help save lives and property.”

A plaque commemorating an extension finished in 2016 – now officially named The RG & RB Walker Extension – was handed over to members at the event.

The extension is named after members Ronda Beckley Walker OAM and ex-Captain Roger Gordon Walker AFSM.

“I felt honoured to participate with our Chief Officer in the official naming of this facility and the presentation of the commemorative plaque to honour two members who have contributed so much to the culture and development of the brigade for many years,” Greg said.

“This commemorative plaque will serve as a reminder to future brigade members of the heritage of service on which we build.”

Police have been investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a man in Kyneton earlier this month.

Officers had attended a property in Windridge Way about 2.30pm on Tuesday July 2 as part of an investigation.

A 27-year-old Kyneton man was arrested at the address and shortly after appeared unwell and became unresponsive.

Police immediately called for medical assistance and performed CPR on the man, however he was unable to be revived.

At this early stage it appears the man may have ingested some sort of substance.

As a result, five police officers who attended the scene were taken to hospital as a precaution.

Detectives from the Homicide Squad have been investigating the incident with oversight from Professional Standards Command,in line with standard procedure when a person dies in police custody.

The state government has announced the locations of the final six Women’s Sexual and Reproductive Health Hubs – with three to be established in regional Victoria including Central Highlands Rural Health at Kyneton.

Hubs are expected to help at least 4000 more girls and women access sexual and reproductive health services every year.

A public submission and survey process is currently underway with close to 9000 responses to date – it closes on July 31.

Anh Do’s bestselling book The Happiest Refugee has made readers laugh and cry, and was described by Russell Crowe as ‘the most surprising and inspiring read I have had in years.’

The celebrity artist is headed to Kyneton Town Hall this August with his stage show that takes it a step further, combining stand-up comedy with real life stories, photos and filmed pieces to retell his amazing story.

When one of Australia’s most talented comedians delves deep into his own life’s joys and sorrows, the result is an unforgettable night at the theatre that leaves an audience uplifted and quite simply experiencing… happiness.

Anh’s upcoming show takes place at Kyneton Town Hall on Wednesday 21 August, 07:30 PM to 09:00 PM with more information abut bookings available through the Macedon Ranges Shire Council’s website.

The Kyneton Town Hall will be illuminated purple this Saturday, June 15, in recognition of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD).

WEAAD is held globally each year on 15 June to raise awareness of elder abuse, neglect and exploitation, and to highlight the importance of the rights of older people.

The Macedon Ranges Shire Council’s Director Community Maria Weiss said elder abuse can take many forms including physical, social, financial, psychological or sexual, and is often carried out by someone known and trusted by the person (i.e. a family member, carer or friend).

“Research by Senior Rights Victoria suggests that up to 14 per cent of older people in Australia may experience elder abuse,” she said. 

“Elder abuse is often hidden, so it’s important we as a community look out for any signs of it and empower and support our vulnerable residents to report this behaviour or seek help.”

Warning signs may include an older person seeming fearful, anxious or isolated, injuries, an absence of personal care, or unexplained changes to legal documents or finances.

The council has implemented a range of initiatives through its PARTICIPATE Positive Ageing Plan 2020-25 aimed at supporting older residents in the community, including:

• the introduction of an age-friendly community directory, consisting of a range of supports and information including organisations specialised in seniors advocacy and elder abuse prevention
• social activities via the Village Connect program designed to promote inclusion and an opportunity for residents aged over 55 to come together in a safe environment and discuss issues relevant to them
• digital scam awareness workshops to teach older residents about common scams and tips to stay safe from them, as well as what to do if they’ve been scammed.

“Council will continue to look at ways we can proactively support and empower our older residents and ensure they feel safe and secure in their community,” Ms Weiss said.

If you are experiencing elder abuse, or concerned about an older person, you can get help by calling Seniors Rights Victoria on 1300 368 821.

Police have been appealing for public assistance as they search for missing woman, Harriet.

The 23-year-old was last seen on Mollison Street in Kyneton about 8.15am on 30 May.

Police and family have concerns for her welfare due to her disappearance being out of character.

It is believed she may be driving a white 2013 Toyota Corolla sedan with the registration MCAODA.

Police have released an image of Harriet in the hope that someone can provide information on her current whereabouts.

She is described as being Caucasian, of medium build with long black hair.

Harriet was last seen wearing a black polo top, black pants and black sneakers.

Anyone with information was urged to contact Gisborne Police Station on (03) 5428 2500.

Two Kyneton residents who stole firewood from the Metcalfe State Forest for profit have been ordered to pay a combined amount of $3000 and forfeit the tools and machinery used in their offending, after being found guilty of six charges each at Kyneton Magistrates’ Court.

On Tuesday, April 9, a 37-year-old woman and a 33-year-old man were each convicted and fined $1500 after they admitted to illegally cutting, removing, and selling red stringybark timber, dumping rubbish, and damaging wildlife habitat on public land in September 2022.

A 39-year-old male co-offender was convicted and fined $3000 after pleading guilty to two offences related to illegal firewood theft at Bendigo Magistrates’ Court in February.

The offenders were caught on concealed cameras installed as part of the Parks Victoria-led Operation Centaur, targeting the illegal removal of critical habitat and hollow-bearing trees on public land.