One matter that the articles have not mentioned is the origin of the Centre. Many of today’s citizens would not realise that the Centre was the first major project of the then fledgling Rotary Club of Stawell.

The Club organised and then built the Centre which opened in 1958 and served the community for many decades.

We believe it is important that our community come to recognise and understand the value of service Clubs to their communities hence we bring the matter of the Centre's history to your attention. 

The archives of the paper would have recorded the development and the opening of the Centre back in 1958 in which the Rotary Club’s representatives would have been present.

Previous articles have observed the important role that the Centre played in the town in providing maternal and child welfare facilities, example Stawell Times News (28-11-2017) “An honour to work there”.

We in Rotary are proud of the fact our fore runners were instrumental in what was then a very important project for our town.

Our current Rotary Club is at the stage of rebuilding our membership and we would invite men and women who are community minded to come join us so that we can carry on the traditions of our Club’s long history of service and continue to contribute to the well being and development of society.

Rotary has a broad community focus including local, national and international projects in which we try to promote better understanding between people throughout the world.

We would invite interested community minded people to contact me on 5358 2644.

Des Pickford

Rotary Club Stawell President

Roads Minister Luke Donnellan has hit a new low.

On a recent regional excursion to announce the further roll-out of expensive wire rope barriers on country highways, the Minister dismissed those that raised concerns as banjo-playing conspiracy theorists and dingbats.

No consultation was given to the communities of Ripon when these pricey wire barriers were erected on our local roads.

The CFA has raised legitimate concerns about the lack of gaps in the barriers, which has already delayed brigade response times to road incidents and roadside fires.

Drivers are concerned about the lack of space to pull over safely, and motorcyclists have spoken against the barriers, worried that high-impact collisions will result in certain death.

The Minister’s cold dismissal of concerned CFA volunteers as dingbats and banjo-playing conspiracy theorists is an insult to the hard-working men and women who selflessly give up their time to protect their community.

Attempting to stereotype those that disagree with you as backwards, banjo-playing hicks is not befitting of a Minister - but maybe it is to be expected from our Roads Minister, who has clearly developed a warped sense of Victoria’s regional communities from his home in Melbourne’s trendy inner-north.

Louise Staley

Ripon MP

Last week several people at a Melbourne Festival Hall dance required treatment for breathing difficulties after taking a drug.

So Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews is again under pressure to legalise pill-testing at such functions.

No, says the premier, he won’t, because “there is no safe level at which these drugs can be taken….”

Greens Party leader, Richard Di Natale, says Mr Andrews “has his head in the sand” -- because young people will always experiment with drugs….

Being opposed by the Greens may be a good sign -- many of their policies betray contempt for the rule of law and for human beings as potentially rational creatures.

It won’t be easy for Premier Andrews to stick to principle on this one.

Let’s hope he does.

We need to turn the tide away from irresponsible weak-minded “pragmatic” attitudes.

Arnold Jago

Nichols Point

RE: ‘Honoured for helping a great place: Dianne Radford to be an OAM’ Ararat Advertiser, January 26

Congratulations Dianne Radford on your OAM, a well deserved award to a unique, caring and compassionate person.

Thank you.

Margaret Young

Ararat

I am writing to complain about the disgusting condition on the Warrayatkin Road from the Ballarat Highway to the Ararat-Warrak Road.

Also the Warratkin Road at the start of the Dunneworthy Common through to Delayneys Gap.

In my 52 years of driving on these roads, they have "NEVER" been as bad as they are now.

Also as it is now "fire season" do we need a fire truck laden with water to tip over on one of these roads going to fight a bushfire?

If council can't do it, can we hire Glyn "Possum" Cameron to grade these terrible roads?

Mayor Glenda McLean can you get something organised a.s.a.p ?

John F. Smith

Ararat