CHARLTON NEIGHBOURHOOD HOUSE

The Charlton community has rallied to get behind an important initiative lead by the Charlton Forum and Charlton Neighbourhood House. A range of work has been undertaking to beautify areas of the town, with many hours being undertaken mostly by volunteers from the North Central Garden Club, Lions, Flexible Learning Options program students, Beautify Charlton, CWA, OASIS, and civic minded individuals. The High Street concrete garden pots were given a lick of paint and some new plantings to enhance the new coloured tourism surrounds, while existing garden beds were weeded and trimmed back in preparation for spring growth. The Buloke Shire has assisted by donating some materials, waiving tip fees and clearing rubbish away.
The main effort has concentrated around the access lane between the Globe Hotel and commercial building next door. Trimming of non-native plantings, removing rocks and rubble, erecting a new fence, painting and laying of suitable all access walkway toppings. A huge thanks go to local trades people including Darren Mills, who has been co-ordinating the program, Wes Jenkyn, Chris Mathews and Brad Getley for all freely giving their time and expertise for the program. The end result will be a clearly defined access lane between the High Street and Avoca River precinct.
A thankyou BBQ concluded the mornings work, and everyone was extremely pleased on what had been accomplished by the group. This will be appreciated by the many visitors expected to our town over the coming months. Contact the Charlton Neighbourhood House if you would like details on how you can get involved with further planned activities, including a public art work proposed in the newly refurbished laneway.

The Charlton Neighbourhood House recently presented a well-attended Mosaics Course over 3 weekends that saw participants create both a kit form set of Mediterranean placemats, and a free style project of their own choosing.
Under the friendly and helpful direction of instructor Bronwyn Fisher, the group were eager to learn the tips and tricks of creating a beautiful mosaic item of their choosing which ranged from flower pots to butterfly stencils. With everything needed supplied, those attending just had to provide their creative energy into the project, and all attending were happy with the final products.
There is a lot of interest in continuing the activity on a regular basis, and perhaps even working to create a public space mosaic where young people and other members of the community can get involved and contribute. All agreed that future courses of mosaics would certainly be welcomed by the Charlton Community.

Charlton’s Second Tuesday Book Club has a couple of very exciting get-togethers planned for their upcoming meetings in August and September.
The August 10th meeting will have a special guest from Castlemaine, Libby Angel, author of ‘ The Trapeze Act’ coming along to talk to the Book Club attendees from 1:30 pm until 3 pm. Join us for lunch at 12 pm at the East in Charlton, or you can come at 1:30 to hear from Libby.
We’ll be celebrating our birthday on September 14th with a fantastic Birthday Celebration, and a special guest speaker, to be announced soon! Join us for lunch at 12pm at the East in Charlton, followed by book chats and our guest speaker at 1:30pm.
Both these exciting events have been made possible by the Victorian Government's Community Activation and Social Isolation initiative and Buloke Shire Council. To RSVP please contact Cheryl Kemp on 0417 601 856, and keep an eye on the Charlton Neighbourhood House for more updates. 

​School holiday activities kicked off last Friday with the Charlton Neighbourhood House hosting a session of pencil case decorating in the foyer of the Rex Theatre. Hosted by Jo Phillips, 9 primary age children did some fantastic work with the free blank pencil cases and bags provided, and all walked away with a terrific personal creation. It was also a great catch-up time for the adults as well who could enjoy a cuppa during the fun session.

Next Friday, July 9, from 10:00am the good times continue back at the Rex, with decorated greeting cards. Again, ideal for primary age children, registrations are being taken now by calling the Charlton Neighbourhood House on 0473 759 456. This is another free activity for Charlton’s children.

Greetings from the Charlton Neighbourhood House and welcome to our July update.  Despite the small hiccup with our closure due to COVID-19 restrictions, the Neighbourhood House has been very busy with activities and assisting our community.

​We have been proud to support the Monday morning FLO initiative at the Rex Theatre with a variety of community representatives coming along to inform or answer enquires about their group. A new initiative this term was the Charlton Youth Space being held Thursday afternoons after school at the Charlton Club. In a supervised environment the kids have been able to catch up with friends, enjoy some snacks and drinks and play games. Thanks to funding from the Victorian Depart. Of Health, this project will continue to operate in the future. Still meeting regularly are Tai Chi classes with Jo Russell and The 2nd Tuesday Book Club. Enquire at the Charlton Neighbourhood House if you would like further information.
 
With the second half of the year ahead, we are very excited about the courses and activities planned.  Apart from those mentioned above, our Table for 12 will continue monthly with a great variety of food selections. With  funding provided by Buloke Shire we will be arranging several ‘Explore’ daylong bus trips to a number of interesting destinations, and we will also be hosting many classes through our ‘Connecting Creativity’ planned activities.  Watch for details closer to dates.

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 Men’s Health Week was celebrated in a big way this year by the Charlton Neighbourhood House with ‘A Pleasant Sunday Morning’ at Rotary Park. With funding provided through Buloke Shire and the Victorian Governments CASI funding, a free BBQ, refreshments, free community transport and entertainment by Big Bad John was provided.  Thanks must go to the many groups and individuals who supported the day, including the volunteers who helped set up and pack away, the Rotary Club for assisting with the BBQ, the North Central Car Club for bringing along some of their magnificent vehicles, Dave and Lyn Edyvean for blood pressure checks and very popular neck and shoulder massages, Andrew from the Charlton Community Garden, and Jo Phillips and Deb Finlay assisting with the drinks.
 
The Charlton Forum Community Car continues to be very popular taking people to appointments from Swan Hill to Melbourne, and everywhere in-between. Please give as much notice as possible if you require the service to ensure availability of the vehicle and a volunteer driver. As always, we are extremely grateful to all the drivers who donate their time to provide this valuable service.

Would you like to become a Community Car Driver and help others in our town?  Call 0473759456 or drop in for more information. All training provided.

​As part of the celebration of Men’s Health Week, the Charlton Neighbourhood House was pleased to host a popular community event at Rotary Park on Sunday June 20. Under clear blue skies and with support from the Buloke Shires and Victorian Governments CASI Funding (Community Activation and Social Isolation Initiative) a large group of men and their partners shared a few hours of music, a BBQ and refreshments. A bus ran circuits of the town at regular intervals to pick up and drop off residents requiring transport, while great support was received from the Charlton Rotary Club in cooking and serving the selection of both traditional BBQ meats as well as some healthier vegetarian options. Zero , low carb and gluten free healthier options of beer was available to sample along with water and sugar free soft drinks.
Music was provided by the man in black, Big Bad John, as was well received by all those in attendance, as was the fantastic display of vehicles by the North Central Car Club. Neck and shoulder massages were given by local Lyn Edyvean while Dave Edyvean provided blood pressure testing. A supply of relevant men’s health pamphlets was available courtesy of East Wimmera Health Service, and many other volunteers assisted with the setup and pack up at the end of the day. Special thanks also go to Australian Eatwell Pty Ltd in Donald for their generous donation of healthier vegetarian options that proved very popular on the day. Feedback received from those in attendance all thought it was a terrific initiative and hoped that it will continue on in years to come.

The Charlton Neighbourhood is excited to announce they are offering free movie tickets for the 2:00pm screening of Peter Rabbit 2 at the Charlton Rex Theatre on Sunday 27.
With funding provided from their community partner Australia Post, this is the second opportunity Charlton residents have had to take advantage of a free film; the other being the recent showing of ‘Blackbird’. Tickets must be pre-booked prior to 1:00pm on June 27 through Humanitix via the following link. https://events.humanitix.com/cnh-kids-movie/tickets

The Charlton Neighbourhood House last week celebrated Neighbourhood House Week with a host of activities for young and old. The week was used to highlight the achievements over the past difficult 12 months, and to promote the huge number of courses and activities being planned for the coming months.
Monday kicked off with some delicious free slices to compliment the hot coffees prepared by the FLO Program students at the Rex Theatre. The Rex featured in Tuesday’s activities as Charlton residents were able to access free tickets for that nights screening of the new release movie, ‘Blackbird’. The fine sunny weather suited Wednesday mornings ‘Walk with a friend’ activity which finished back at the Neighbourhood House for a friendly cuppa and morning tea. The towns youth were not forgotten with a free afternoon of activities, food and drinks at the Charlton Club. This will be continuing over the next few Thursdays to judge if this can become a permanent weekly event. The week finished with a host of board games being available to enjoy during Friday, with tea, coffee and snacks on hand for those taking part.
The Neighbourhood House thanked everyone who took part during the week, and look forward to further involvement throughout the year in a number of planned events.