Kyabram lost a true stalwart last week with the passing of Mary Bowman at the age of 93.
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As a councillor and mayor of Campaspe Shire, Mary for many years fought tooth and nail for causes she thought would benefit Kyabram and district, and didn’t hide in the background whenever contentious issues surfaced.
Mary was the first mayor of Campaspe Shire, serving from 1997 to 2000.
She stepped into the role following the local government amalgamations in March 1997, which combined the former shires of Rochester, Kyabram, Echuca and Rodney.
Before her time at Campaspe, Bowman previously served as mayor of the Kyabram local government authority in 1992.
Mary was a good scout by any standards, and former editor of this paper Gus Underwood recalled one year ‘‘getting her on board’’ to play a April Fools’ Day prank on Free Press readers.
‘‘We did a story on how rumblings at Mt Scobie were causing worries and an eruption might occur so an overseas volcanologist had been flown in to assess the situation,“ Gus said.
‘‘Mary was in on the prank and a lot of people believed it was a possibility of happening because of her standing in the community.
‘‘And I can assure you a lot of people were not impressed when the prank was revealed.“
Mary’s funeral was held on Tuesday, June 16.
Soggy start to winter
It’s been a damp start to June.
Up to Monday of this week, Kyabram weather station had measured 41.2mm of rain, with 2mm recorded over the past week.
Kyabram’s yearly total stands at 299.2mm, which is well above last year at the same stage when only 82.6mm had been recorded.
The top temperature in June so far was last Friday when the mercury climbed to 19.2°C and the coldest was recorded on June 1 when the temperature dipped to 2.9°C.
Drivers aren’t fools
A Traps reader was a bit intrigued last week to see the price of unleaded petrol at service stations opposite each other in Fairfield, Melbourne.
One selling at $1.99 a litre and the other at $1.58.
‘‘Bet you know at which service station the biggest line-up of vehicles fuelling up was in,’’ Ralph said.
Short day, bright night
The winter solstice will be celebrated this Saturday in Seymour.
Seymour’s Goulburn Park is to be transformed into a free solstice event from 5pm to 9pm, with light projections and illuminated spaces.
There will also be a community lantern parade.
It’s a free event.
Council reveals toll of bushfire
Murrindindi Shire Council has released a video highlighting the devastation of the January bushfires earlier this year.
Murrindindi was the hardest hit municipality by the Longwood bushfire, with almost a third of the shire burnt.
The video reinforces council’s call for a more equitable impact-based disaster recovery funding model and supports its submission to the parliamentary inquiry into the bushfires.
The video can be found at youtube.com/watch?v=9V9wiKI0haU
Author backs brigade
And while on bushfires, Deniliquin author Bernadette Murphy thought there was something she could do after bushfires devastated Ruffy earlier this year.
So she got to work, producing a children’s book titled Old Red, with all sales going directly to the Ruffy CFA.
Copies are now available for $20 at the Deni Peppin Heritage Centre and at Euroa, Benalla and Alexandra news agencies.
Battery gets green light
A new $1.3 million battery energy storage system at the Glenrowan Solar Farm has been approved by the Victorian Government.
The battery will be built in the north-west corner of the solar farm.
Store still going strong
One of the finalists in the 2026 ARC National Small Business Awards is certainly steeped in history.
The finalist, the Benalla-based Millers Department Store, has been serving the community for 135 years.
Sheryl Coughlin and her sister Anita Grubb run the store, which was purchased by their grandfather Alfred Grubb in 1932.
Square dinkum
G’day.
I ordered a book titled How to Scam People — it never arrived.
Hooroo!