50 years ago July 1976
John Hocken has done it again. He has won the open championship at the Rochester Golf Club for the 11th occasion, when he took out the 1976 title on the Rochester course.
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John Hocken's imposing record commenced in 1962 when he won the championship for the first time. He has gone on and won the championship again in 1963, 1964, 1965, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972 and now 1976.
One of the best golfers in the Rochester Golf Club for a number of years, John again displayed his outstanding ability as a golfer, winning the Rochester championship.
He played in only three of the four rounds; however, his rounds of 75-77-79-231 were good enough to give him the title. Runner-up was Aub Slatter.
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‘’Local pig and poultry farmers have expressed concern at the dramatic rise in meat meal prices caused by a worldwide shortage of protein for animal feed stuffs," Bruce Lloyd, Member for Murray, said last week.
‘’Unless pig and poultry farmers can receive a higher return to compensate for this increase, their viability will be threatened.’’
At the present time, meatmeal is a prohibited export and can only be made after receiving approval from the Department of Primary Industry in Canberra.
The Department ensures that adequate supplies are available for the local market and at the present time, less than 20 per cent of the Australian production is being exported.
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Lois Bickley, of Ballendella, has been named in the Victorian team to compete in the Australian championships in Adelaide on August 21.
On Saturday, Lois was second in the Victorian open 5000 metres cross country championship. In this event, Lois became the country champion.
Lois, together with two other girls from the South Bendigo Club, on Sunday, won the 3 x 3000 metres open road relay, with Lois gaining the fastest time in the relay.
This was the first occasion a country club had won the open relay in Victoria.
25 years ago July 2001
A narrow bridge near the intersection of Hansen and Lockington roads, Lockington, could be upgraded to accommodate two lanes of traffic if a black spot funding recommendation is successful.
The project to widen the bridge and improve safety at the intersection has been recommended for prioritisation for future funding under Victoria's black spot funding.
Nearby resident Roy Hann, who has lived in the area all his life and the past 50 years in Hansen Rd, said the bridge and road crossing dated back to the ‘’horse and buggy’’ days when irrigation first came to the area.
‘’It’s only wide enough for a couple of buggies - but these days we’ve got three milk companies' tankers, two school buses and a number of other trucks using Hansen Rd and turning into and out of Lockington Rd.”
Goulburn-Murray Water Rochester manager Graham Clark said the Hansen Rd bridge was one of a number of narrow bridges in the irrigation area, listed on a priority basis for upgrading to full width.
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The six-month battle to retain a five-module portable double classroom at Rochester Secondary College ended last Thursday when a crane and semi-trailers arrived to remove the building.
In a matter of hours, the building was disassembled and carted away, destined for Orrvale Primary School.
However, Rochester Secondary College principal Chris Eeles said the school had been reluctant to lose the double classroom, compensation had come in the form of a four-module technology portable moved onto the school's grounds on Wednesday.
Another portable, highlighted early in the year as substandard, had been refurbished over the mid-semester break.
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Fifteen Rochester Secondary College students will be watching the political situation in Indonesia with interest in light of their proposed exchange visit in September.
The People's Consultative Assembly was due to go into a special session yesterday to discuss beginning impeachment proceedings against Indonesian president Abdurrahman Wahid.
The Rochester group, along with Indonesian language teacher Janet Park and school principal Chris Eeles, plan to travel to Sulawesi in Indonesia as part of the school's exchange program, now in its third year.
In September, Rochester students will stay with Indonesian host families and visit schools and colleges.
10 years ago July 2016
The Lockington community is set to take full control of the town’s heritage centre and away from the hands of Campaspe Shire.
The shire announced at last week’s council meeting it had accepted a proposal from Lockington and District Heritage Complex Incorporated to buy the centre.
Complex president Joe Chappel said it would be the first time the group fully owned the centre since it opened as a museum in the 1990s.
‘‘It’s good news. It’s positive news. We’re all very pleased with council’s decision,’’ he said.
As part of the conditions of sale — which is contingent on meeting the requirements of the local government act — council will complete essential services works to bring the buildings into compliance with the building code.
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Ballendella’s Callan O’Riley is riding high after a solid performance at the Hattah Desert Race earlier this month.
The 15-year-old finished second out of about 80 riders in the 125cc B-grade junior category of Australia’s largest motocross desert race, held in Mildura.
Callan, a year 10 student at Rochester Secondary College, clocked the best lap time of 17 minutes and 32 seconds after recording the quickest prologue.
‘‘I am very happy with how I went,’’ he said.
‘‘Before the race, I would have been happy with a top five finish. Then, when I got prologue, that gave me a nice boost.’’
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Mental health among farmers is spiralling out of control and more needs to be done to stop it, according to one local professional.
Nancy Cutlack, an accredited teacher of mental health first aid courses in the Rochester district, said ongoing pressures such as the drought and dairy crisis were contributing to higher rates of anxiety and depression among local farmers.
‘‘It is certainly a major issue in isolated rural areas,’’ she said.
‘‘Many people suffer anxiety because they are worried about losing the family farm or not gaining enough income to support the family. And often anxiety leads to depression and ultimately substance abuse.’’