Alstonville wins Tournament of Minds

By Samantha Elley

Alstonville Public School has walked away with the gold in the recent International Tournament of Minds held at La Trobe University in Melbourne nearly two weeks ago.

The team of Year 6 students: Nahla Turner, Bridget Farrelly-Wight, Charlotte Davis-Job, Cleo Wynd and Year 5 students Trixie Gillett and Ashor Kincade rocked the Arts segment of the competition.

After winning the NSW finals in September, they headed to Melbourne with teachers Amy Gartside and Dave Hutchins and their parents to come up against all the other states and New Zealand.

“They had two challenges they had to complete,” said Amy.

“There was a long term one where they were in a room for three hours.”

Tournament of Minds Raising Funds.

The project involved creating artwork, dances and performances.

The action was performed in a 3×3 metre squared space.

“At one point there was a spontaneous task of 10 minutes where they were judged on their creativity,” said Amy.

“They were confident with their spontaneity as they had received good feedback from the state finals.”

The talented six ended up walking away with the winners medal, a trophy and a gift pack from La Trobe University.

“I think they were super excited to win the La Trobe water bottle,” laughed Amy.

Tournament of Minds Winners

“They were over the moon with the win.

“There was a lot of cheering, especially as we were representing NSW.”

Amy said the girls and their friends and families had worked very hard to make it to the international finals.

“They raised all the money themselves, as they didn’t receive any government handouts,” she said.

“They work really well as a cohesive team and they have been very grateful for all of the support from our school.”

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Hold a garage sale this Second Hand Saturday!

ADVITORIAL

Second Hand Saturday – the North Coast’s biggest day of garage sales is back again and registrations to hold a garage sale are now open.

Over this month, Northern Rivers Council’s together with North East Waste, are hosting a series of free workshops for Buy Nothing New Month, to encourage reuse and repair over landfill. This year, Second Hand Saturday will conclude these celebrations and be held on one date only – Saturday 4 November.

Linda Tohver from North East Waste is inviting people to get involved in this year’s event, held across the Council areas of Tweed, Byron, Ballina, Kyogle, Richmond Valley, Lismore and the Clarence Valley.

“With millions of tonnes of waste being sent to landfill by Australian households every year, the humble garage sale is one of the easiest ways we can reduce the amount of ‘stuff’ ending up in landfill,” Linda said.

Selling pre-loved goods and buying second hand is a great way to keep items circulating within our community, especially when many of us are looking at options to reduce the cost of living.”

Second Hand Saturday Poster

Residents who register for Second Hand Saturday will once again have the option of holding their own garage sale, or to organise a joint sale with family and friends.

“We always encourage people to join forces with their local community to attract more attention – get your neighbours involved and hold a street sale, run a fundraiser or collate your efforts at your local club, school or church.  That’s just one of our tips for the day to get the crowds to your sale!” Linda said.

This year all registered garage sale addresses will appear in local newspapers, with full details listed on the Second Hand Saturday website. All you need to do is register online at www.secondhandsaturday.com.au before 25 October to ensure your address will be printed in your local newspaper. Alternatively, as listings go live after the registration process is complete, you can still register up until the 3 November, for a web-only listing.

For more information, visit the Second Hand Saturday website www.secondhandsaturday.com.au, follow the mysecondhandsaturday Facebook page or contact your local Council.

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A Day of Fun supporting Jos

By Samantha Elley

To watch a loved one suffer from a brain tumour is bad enough, but when that person you care for is a young teenager who hasn’t had a chance to live their life yet, that is a whole different layer of hurt.

That is the case for the family of Alstonville local Joscelyn McCabe.

The 13-year-old has been diagnosed with DIPG or Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Gliomas which is a highly aggressive and difficult to treat brain tumour found at the base of the brain.

To help raise funds to support Joscelyn and her family, the Alstonville Plateau Sports Club is having ‘A Day for Jos’.

There will be a Kids Disco with Disco Statik and a Treasure Hunt.

Joscelyn McCabe

NBN’s Big Dog will make an appearance with a host of other friends.

There will also be a show by The Wild Life Twins.

Local businesses have thrown their support behind the day by donating some fantastic prizes for the raffles.

The day will also hold an auction and up for grabs will be signed NRL jerseys, NRL packs, two nights at Alstonville Country Cottages, a night at the Ramada and much more.

The day will be on September 10, starting at 12pm, so come along to Plateau Sports, 10-14 Deegan Drive, Alstonville with the kids for a great day and a worthy cause.

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