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New Liaison Officer visits U3A Dalby

21/07/2022

 Newly appointed Liaison Officer, David Bowden of U3A Roma, recently visited U3A Dalby. David’s visit is the first of a number of planned meetings to take place across Queensland in the near future.

These meetings are designed to keep the lines of communication open between U3As and the Network Committee to share ideas and formulate policy for the future. The newly elected U3A Queensland Network Committee has appointed Committee Members across the state to arrange meetings with other branches.

David stated at the meeting: “So why do we need to meet? Good question! One reason could be that we become rather comfortable in being satisfied with what we do and are not aware that the world is changing around us. Thinking we have always done things a certain way and that’s all I need to know may cause problems at a later time. We may not remember that we are part of the U3A International organisation with ties to other State and the International u3A in Toulouse France, where it all began . U3A is basically a learning and communication organisation. We know that it is most important for local Course Co-ordinators to provide suitable courses for Members to learn. Members must also know that there is need for communication to make sure that information regarding the running of the branch comes from U3A Queensland Network.”

David’s visit was a great success with many subjects discussed including group insurance which assists U3As in obtaining the correct insurance for their association at the right price without the hassle of obtaining quotes.

Participation in remote learning was also discussed with the emphasis on Zoom as an essential tool for people who want to learn but are disadvantaged by the tyranny of distance. This is particularly applicable in rural areas such as Dalby.

Please visit the U3A Network Queensland Facebook page here for more news and photos of U3A happenings.

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U3A Hervey Bay celebrates 25 years of Creative Writing

19/07/2022

Members of U3A Hervey Bay are elated that one of their tutors, Sue Downey and members of her writing group have achieved 25 years continuous writing in their class, and they have celebrated in style with past and present U3A members to recognise this significant milestone for U3A Hervey Bay.

Hervey Bay Mayor George Seymour attended the celebration in full regalia to join in the celebrations and to show his continued strong support for U3A, as he does for all the community support organisations in the region.

“I can’t begin to imagine how many stories have been written over that time,” he said. “I congratulate Sue and her group on their record achievement and I’m proud of the great work U3A do within our community.”

Before being elected, Councillor Seymour worked as a solicitor, a disability support worker and ran the region’s youth homeless shelter so he knows the importance of U3A in the community, and he has served as a U3A tutor.

For her part, Sue Downey was overjoyed to be recognised for her writing group’s achievement, a journey that began in 1995 when she moved to Hervey Bay from Millmerran.

“After I moved to Hervey Bay, someone who knew me in Millmerran spread the word that I might be worth approaching to take on a writing class here, and I was approached by the Hervey Bay Writers Group, and I gladly accepted the offer.

“That’s where I first met Brad Wells. He was the keenest writer/poet I have ever met, and I was thrilled to guide him through his writing journey. With his learning disability at the time, he struggled but tried his best every week to improve. With encouragement from others in the class, he completed all the work he needed to do, and his confidence and writing grew stronger each week.”

Unfortunately, the class continued for 18 months but folded. Then in 1997 Sue was invited to do a six-week course; however, that six weeks turned into 25 years.

Sue started the course fifteen students with an array of writers. “There were schoolteachers who wanted to do something unrelated to schoolwork, a lady who was a drover and had a myriad of stories to share and our precious Lyn Dorian who said she didn’t want to do it, but her doctor insisted.

“Lyn stayed for at least 15 years. We are so pleased she did, and we loved to hear of her exploits as a chambermaid, and of course we enjoyed her pikelets with crushed strawberries laced with a dash of rum.

“And then there was Doreen Grant, aka Dorro. Apart from being a brilliant artist she was a stage performer and being the smallest in her troupe, she was the one to be on the top of a six people high pyramid. She often talked about her stage days performing with Harry Secombe.

“From the first day of class, one of the teachers was Fe Cassell whose second language was English. Fe struggled with sentence structure, and with support from myself and the other students she learned to put words into perspective and excelled at writing. Now, she has blossomed into a beautiful writer often drawing on her life experiences in the Philippines.

“My weekly visits with my mentor and friend, Lotte Lewin encouraged me to be creative but most of all to enjoy what I was doing. A 25-year friendship I hold close to my heart. She stood in for me often when I was away, and I believe was popular with others in the class. She went on to take another class that is still current today.

“To the present day, I still have up to fifteen registered students from diverse background experience, who have also excelled over the years with their writing confidence and even though they object to some of the writing homework, they always do it, and every piece of writing is original and exciting to listen to.

“We struggled over the years to keep men in the class. Maybe they felt a bit intimidated?

“Enter Paul Leggatt. What an asset he is. Apart from taking us on a musical journey through the years in his writing every week, he has built a strong rapport with Brad and it’s wonderful to see.

“I am proud of my achievements over the last 25 years; to have helped many of my students reach their goals of publishing books, entering, and winning competitions, and most of all creating lifelong friendships. We support each other through good and tough times, and I would never change that. We are a family and that’s important.

“Special thanks go to U3A for giving me a lifechanging experience, and a special thank you to my students for their support of the writing class, and for making the celebration so memorable. They even bestowed an honorary professorship on me at the celebration event.”

Photo (top): Sue Downey in honorary professor regalia is congratulated on her more than 25 years voluntary service to U3A Hervey Bay by the Mayor,  Councillor George Seymour
Photo (side): Mayor George Seymour crowns Brad Wells ‘King for a Day’ in recognition of his achievements in creative writing with U3A Hervey Bay.

 

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U3A Rockhampton members enjoy Christmas in July

16/07/2022

U3A Rockhampton members enjoy Christmas in July

The regular U3A Monthly lunch at U3A Rockhampton had a ‘Christmas in July’ theme when members got together at the Victoria Tavern’s Secret Garden.
The 66 members who attended enjoyed a delicious 2-course roast meal.
Following lunch members took part in a Trivia Competition with an ‘It’s All About Santa!’ theme, and there were lucky spots, a game of two-up, and some were lucky to win a gift from under the Christmas tree!! 🎄🎅🏻
To view more photos of the Christmas party at U3A Rockhampton please visit their Facebook page here.

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U3A Redlands Centre Building Project fundraiser

01/07/2022

Fundraising for the U3A Redlands Centre Building Project was boosted yesterday by a generous donation of $1,000 from Mark Robinson MP for Oodgeroo.

U3A Redlands President Janese Lowe and Vice President Julie Porteous were delighted to accept the donation from Mark Robinson MP on the site of the U3A Redlands Centre at the Redlands Research Facility, Delancey Street, Cleveland.

The new Centre project will take many months to complete and will rely on grants from all levels of government and the generosity of members and our many community supporters.

Visit the U3A Redlands & District Facebook page here.

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U3A authors present their published books to Gympie Library

26/06/2022

Authors who are members of U3A Gympie, Carol Nugent, Betty Rimmington and Merv Welch, added their literary presence to the Gympie Regional Library by way of donations of their published books.

At the U3A Gympie morning tea in June, the books were presented to Councillor Dan Stewart of Gympie Regional Council, as inclusions in the Gympie Regional Library. In company with Greg Jones, President of U3A Gympie, the authors thanked U3A and their tutors for the encouragement and assistance they provided in bringing these works to life.

Titles of the books donated: Elizabeth Rimmington – ‘Rhylla’s Secret’ (third novel), Carol Nugent – ‘It’s Not a Drain’ (collection of poems) and Merv Welch – ‘Mrs Marshall is a Spy and other tales of a Mitchell boyhood’ (his first memoir). Merv’s second memoir is soon to be published.

Photo: Cr Dan Stewart, Gympie Regional Council accepts published books from authors Carol Nugent and Betty Rimmington, Greg Jones, President U3A Gympie, and author Merv Welch.

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U3A Gladstone author co-publishes ‘Cantella’

03/06/2022

As reported in the Gladstone Today by reporter Eilish Massie, an idea that was shelved for 63 years has finally turned into a novel, with two Gladstone authors bringing it to life. U3A Tutor, Claire Mitchell and co-author Alec Lucke have celebrated the recent launch of their book, ‘Cantella’.

As Eilish Massie reports, “Set in the 1800s, the book is told from multiple perspectives and centres around immigrants who moved to the Port Curtis colony, and then settled in Calliope.

Mr Lucke first started writing the book when he was 18-year-old, and now at age 81, his vision has come to life.

Mr Lucke, who now lives in New South Wales, said the novel had an ‘extraordinarily’ long gestation.

“I first started writing the manuscript when I was a teenager. I am now 81. I submitted Cantella to various publishers but only one offered a contract that I chose to decline,” he said.

After having the book appraised by an editor in Sydney, Mr Lucke was told his language was too formal and old fashioned for commercialisation.

It was then Ms Mitchell, who helped Mr Lucke with other projects, decided to come on board with the novel.

“I decided I could consign Cantella to the back drawer where it would never be published in my lifetime or alternatively, cede the manuscript to Claire Mitchell who, like myself, worked on the novel and believed in it,” Mr Lucke said.

“Congratulations to Claire who has faithfully kept the plot and brought the necessary changes and embellishments to the fore.”

Ms Mitchell said she had spent all of last year rewriting the book.

‘Alec approached me to do his writing, as it progressed I kept encouraging him to get the book out of the drawer,” she said.

“I’ve always loved writing, when I was going to school I recall winning lots of competitions for our compositions, and poetry.”

“But I’ve always loved writing short stories and I like working with other people, that’s one of my strengths.”

“Alec’s strength was creating the novel, my strength was characterisation and fixing it.”

Ms Mitchell said they wanted to celebrate the launch of their novel at Cedar Galleries in Calliope, as a nod to the book’s setting.

Both authors have been praised for their other works. Ms Mitchell previously published The Orphan Swaggy with Maizey James, and Mr Lucke’s novel ‘Road to Exploitation’, political capture by mining in Queensland, was published in 2013.”

Photo: Claire Mitchell at an impromptu book signing at Gladstone U3A coffee morning and a photo of Alec Lucke.

Acknowledgement: Published in the  1 February 2022 edition of Gladstone Today.

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U3A Redcliffe raises $6,693 at Cancer fundraiser

03/06/2022

The April newsletter of U3A Redcliffe reported that members were on a mission to help end childhood cancer by hosting a fundraising event on 15 May.

The event was a great success with 140 people having lunch in the U3A building, entertained by a children’s choir and a cent auction. The Redcliffe team raised $6,693 towards fighting children’s cancer. It just shows what  a dedicated group of 30 seniors can  achieve.

U3A Redcliffe President, Ruth Northcott congratulated members on an excellent and successful event, saying “thank you to Margie Woodhead and her team for organising the successful event.”

These comments were echoed by Sandra Ruck – Councillor for Division 5 MBRC, “that was an awesome event.”

Well done U3A Redcliffe.

Photo: Margie Woodhead and her organising team at U3A Redcliffe.

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U3A is the largest provider of adult education programs for retirees in Queensland. All programs are provided by volunteers. There are now 35 U3A groups in Queensland including U3A Online, with an estimated 24,000 members.

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Latest News

  • Theme notes for U3A Network Art Competition 2023

    Don’t be put off by the theme of this year’s...

  • Grant Cassidy OAM named conference MC

    Grant Cassidy OAM, Managing Director of Cassidy Hospitality Group, has...

  • Mahjong Madness at Rockhampton Conference

    By popular request, the Mahjong Club of Rockhampton in conjunction...

  • Fine dining planned for conference dinners at Rockhampton Leagues Club

    Delegates to the U3A Network Conference in Rockhampton are in...

  • Programme for U3A Network Conference 2023 released

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