Bendigo's New Beginnings community newsletter nominated for Awards Australia prize

The anonymous nomination put the newsletter forward for a community group award that recognises significant contributions to society, with nominations for other community groups welcome until August 11.

Ms Parry began New Beginnings after she started at the Neighbourhood Centre in February 2020, working part-time as a community development worker.

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"Then a month later [after starting] COVID hits so we were then having to work from home and how do you work from home when you really don't know the people or the centre well?" she said.

"Obviously none of us have experienced anything like that before so I suggested to the co-ordinator at the time that perhaps I could produce a little weekly newsletter, just so that we could stay connected to our volunteers and the regular participants at the centre so they could keep a sense of connection.

"Particularly because most people were feeling quite vulnerable and concerned about isolation and lockdown and COVID and all of those things that we knew nothing about.

"So the newsletter was to be a newsletter for hope and encouragement."

Ms Parry said the publication's name was inspired by a big tree growing out the back of the centre, which was just starting to lose its leaves for autumn when the pandemic struck.

"The tree loses its leaves, winter comes, we know that and the tree often looks dead, but we also know that while that's happening, the leaves are forming within the tree and come springtime it'll be back," she said.

"So it kind of made that whole analogy of new beginnings."

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The early days for Ms Parry were about establishing relationships and connections through emails and phone calls, with the likes of Havilah Road Preschool and ESTIA Health Long Gully, the local CWA and the local Whipstick Ward councillors from the City of Greater Bendigo council.

All those groups were contacted to contribute to the newsletter which they continue to do faithfully to this day.

The newsletter also features recipes sent in by community members, puzzles, trivia, craft and gardening ideas - something for people to do during lockdowns.

In its first year, the newsletter was published weekly, It has now continued on a fortnightly basis with many keen readers from across the region, not just in Long Gully.

The anonymous nomination said the newsletter had become "a mainstay and positive focus for many people who look forward to receiving it via email or as a hard copy picked up from the Long Gully Post Office or the Long Gully Neighbourhood Centre or hand delivered by volunteers in their letterbox".

The newsletter has also brought connection and encouragement to many readers during the difficult pandemic.

Whipstick ward councillor Dave Fagg, who contributes to the publication with his fellow councillors, said the publication had been "very well received".

"I think it was received really positively because when it came out, which was towards the start of those really severe lockdowns, I think for a lot of people across Bendigo, they were feeling pretty isolated, pretty lonely, pretty negative about things," Cr Fagg said.

"And the newsletter was just a really positive thing where people from the community were sharing bits of news, recipes, stories, photos, those kinds of things.

"And I'd say, from my experience, it really gave people a lift."

Cr Fagg was also involved in getting volunteers together to letterbox drop the newsletter which he said provided people with a reason to get out of the house, go for a walk within their 5km radius and do something positive.

"I think it's a really great example of a publication that is really grassroots," he said.

"It tries to link together all kinds of people and programs that are happening in Long Gully and just tries to be a really positive contribution to the area.

"I guess for us as councillors, it's also a really good way to just let the community know what we've been up to, and what the City of Great Bendigo is doing.

"So those kinds of publications, I think it plays a really good role in that in that sense as well.

"I think the nomination is very well deserved."

To get a fortnightly fix of positive news, visit lgnc.org.au/newsletter to read the latest edition. Positive stories can also be sent through via the website.

"People can source the negative stuff easily," Ms Parry said.

"It's much harder to find the positives, and that's what we want to be able to focus on and to be honest, we've successfully done that now for over two years.

"So I think we've kind of on a fairly good rhythm with it."

Awards Australia are accepting nominations across a range of categories through their website at awardsaustralia.com/easy-nomination/

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