Category: PDCA matters

Your PDCA News Brief – What’s Happening in Your Community

1.  A proposal for refurbishment of signs in and around the village including the village entrance, is being put together.  

2. Security – After the community meeting which followed the PDCA meeting, actions are being taken to officially register our community with Neighbourhood Watch through our local police station.  Our local security issues will be raised at a meeting in August with our local council representative, Margie Ryder.  We encourage everyone to register on our Paluma WhatsApp group set up solely for security purposes.

3.  Events Calendar:  This is regularly updated on the website. Please keep a lookout for any changes and community notices.  A new occasional social event will begin soon.  It is an end of week “Friday Chill” gathering where the bar at the hall will be open from 5 – 7pm to kick back, catch up and generally chill out with your mountain mates.  Do keep an eye on community posts on the website for the inaugural evening.  We have to note here our social event organisers are simply excellent at generating community spirit and we thank them for their extra time and effort for our benefit.

4.  A Community Meeting is being organised with Margie Ryder with an August date to be confirmed:  Issues to be raised and discussed include:  signage; animal control and hygiene; community security; vegetation control and road maintenance.  All will be welcome to attend.

5.  The Hall Bar management has officially been handed over to the capable Lynda Radbone from our iconic Irishman, Les Hyland.  Les’s many years of reliable service  and cheerful management of the Hall bar was noted and we appreciate his generosity of spirit and time in ensuring the takings were profitable.  Thank you Les and we look forward to seeing you enjoying your 92nd birthday celebrations coming up SOON!!!

6.  The Paluma History Display – Lyn and Les Hyland are stepping away from involvement in the History display.  Lyn’s contributions and efforts to ensure an effective, interesting and valuable documentation of Paluma’s heritage is very much appreciated.  Her input and efforts will be very much missed.  Anneshka Brown will be calling for volunteers to help support our history display which will be changing from a Tuesday to a Wednesday.

If any of the above raises questions or you would like to know more information, please don’t hesitate to contact any of your PDCA committee members.

Did you know, five years ago on June 23rd, Paluma’s water treatment plant was opened by Margie Ryder and the community was invited to tour the facility?

It was your PDCA which played a key role in getting the Townsville City Council to install the facility.  This became a necessity after a series of momentary shutdowns, monthly testing for giardia and finally many months of water not being fit for drinking.  

Text and Photos by Juanita Poletto

Pictures of people on Paluma.org

During many of our community events such as community social evenings working bees and meetings. Members of the PDCA often take pictures during these events including individual participants. These pictures are then used to enhance a post on Paluma.org or other publications that report on this event.

While the editors of Paluma.org, and other PDCA executive members generally receive positive feedback regarding the use of pictures of participants in various events, we have been made aware that some individuals would prefer not to have their photographs published.

This matter was discussed at our last Annual General Meeting (AGM) and it was decided that while the practice of taking pictures by authorised people and subsequent posting on Paluma.org should continue, there should be a clear and simple procedure for those who are not comfortable having their picture published to opt-out.

The PDCA AGM agreed that we should never take or publish pictures of people who have indicated that they do not want this to occur. We (the organizers of events) will endeavour to remind people at each event that we are taking pictures for publication but we ask those who do not want this, to ensure that the photographer or one of the event organizers knows that you feel this way as soon as possible. If an event photographer starts taking your picture or has just taken your picture before you have had a chance to express your wishes, please politely let them know and they will ensure that no images of you are published.

I hope that the procedures above will provide appropriate assurances to those who do not wish to have their picture taken, while still allowing others to enjoy reviewing the description and images of recent events that they had fun at, or wished they hadn’t missed!

If you have any concerns regarding this issue please don’t hesitate to contact me or any other member of the PDCA by email or in person.

Jamie Oliver
PDCA President

Bumper Easter Market at Paluma

It was a big Easter at Paluma with lots of visitors to the village, both day visitors and campers who stayed on for a few days. The local accommodation was fully booked and reports are that the camp ground at the Paluma Dam was at capacity. There were certainly a lot of people out and about enjoying the beautiful Autumn weather and all that Paluma has to offer.

The Sunday Easter Market was a roaring success. There were queues several times throughout the morning at the Sausage Sizzle and all stall holders reported excellent trade. The fundraising efforts for the PDCA on the day were outstanding.

The Sausage Sizzle alone raised over $630.00 and thanks go to Don, Leslie, Anneshka and Jill for keeping everyone fed. Lynda made the delicious coleslaw for the BBQ. Jill was a roving volunteer who popped up everywhere and between herself and Colin the coffee/tea stall raised $80.00. Stella’s contribution of freshly baked scones with jam and cream were a delicious addition to the coffee/tea stall, giving people the opportunity to enjoy a Paluma-style version of ‘Devonshire tea’.

The Paluma Bakers Stall made a record profit of some $454.00. Once again the Kitchen Goddesses of the village excelled themselves with their efforts. Eleven ladies baked to their hearts content to produce a huge variety of cakes, slices, biscuits and other sweet treats. Anneshka and Bronwyn deserve special mention as they both went above and beyond. Anneshka donated a huge variety of goods including freshly baked hot-cross buns. Bronwyn’s gluten free options and very glamorous baked treats sold like’ hot-cakes’ and were all snapped up early in the day. Thanks to the following ladies for their outstanding and very generous contributions for the cake stall – Stella, Ros, Bronwyn, Jill, Anneshka, Julia, Jan, Lynn, Michele, Bobbie and Jennie. Charlie ran the cake stall, assisted by Michele.

Other funds were raised on the day from an Easter raffle run by Wilfred. The raffle raised over $140.00 and the Easter egg and chocolate-filled food hamper was won by ‘Jessie’, a visitor to the village staying at one of the cottages on Mt Spec Road. Con the Fruiterer (aka Wilfred) raised $165.00 from the sale of produce (pineapples and bananas, etc). Les and Lynn report that the Paluma History (books and card sales) raised $240.00. Peter and Jan ran the book stall for fund-raising for the Paluma Rural Fire Brigade.

The overall success of the Paluma Easter Market and the impressive fundraising for the community is possible due to the generous contribution of time from the many volunteers in planning, setting up and cleaning up on the day. Lynn worked tirelessly and was still at the Community Hall at 3 pm on Sunday. To all of the volunteers from the community, well done and a big thank you!

And a similar big thank you to all those residents and their visiting friends and families who stopped in at the market to buy a sausage sizzle, some baked goods for morning/afternoon tea and to shop at the numerous stalls. Your support is greatly appreciated. Well done Paluma!

Text & Photos by Michele Bird

PDCA AGM – Executive Committee for 2022-23

This year’s Annual General Meeting was well attended with 25 people in attendance. Don Battersby and Lynda Radbone manned the BBQ to provide a lunch beforehand which may have helped to bring in a range of members from around the village.

The AGM minutes will be posted on the Member’s area shortly, together with the President’s Report, Financial Statement and History Project Report.

This year there were advance nominations for two new members of the Committee, who were elected unopposed (Anneshka Brown as Vice-President, and Juanita Poletto as Secretary).

Sarah Swann decided not to run for office this year, and I would like to thank her on behalf of the PDCA for her efforts on several PDCA initiatives and inputs into discussions over the last few years.

The remaining Committee Members agreed to stay on for another year and were elected unopposed. After a call from the floor for other nominations to fill available positions, I am delighted that Leonie Crennan and Linda Whitely agreed to join the committee.

It is great that we start this year with four new faces on the Committee and with the position of Secretary filled after more than two years.

The final composition of the PDCA Committee is listed below.

PresidentJamie Oliver
Vice-PresidentAnneshka Brown
SecretaryJuanita Poletto
TreasurerWilfred Karnoll
Committee Member (SES)Charlie Allen
Committee Member (RFS)Ross Hyne
Committee MemberLyn Hyland
Committee MemberJill Meads
Committee MemberLeonie Crennan
Committee MemberLinda Whitely

If anyone is interested in reading a summary of events and achievements for the year, you can download the President’s Report here.

Jamie Oliver

Reminder: PDCA Annual General Meeting this Saturday

Don’t forget to come along for a free lunch prior to our Annual General Meeting this Saturday, April 1 at 12:00pm. We need a quorum for these meetings so please come along to support the work that you PDCA officers do, and to ensure that we can elect officers for the next year. More details here

We will be sending out press gangs around the village if it looks like we will be short on numbers. If you are unable to come but would like to assign a proxy vote to ensure we have a quorum please email Jamie Oliver or any other PDCA Committee member to let us know.

See you on Saturday.

Ramp Reno’s Completed

Following on from last week’s post about the Ramp Renovations at the Community Hall, the new ramp is now installed and completed. The fine weather last weekend meant that the hard work to build the new ramp took place as planned. We have numerous volunteers to thank for their hard work on this project including Wilfred, Colin, Jamie and Don. If you haven’t seen it yet, here’s a few photos of the new ramp. Be sure to thank our dedicated volunteers in person next time you see them round the village!

Text by Michele Bird with Photos courtesy of Jill and Colin Meads

Ramp Reno’s at the Community Hall

In recent days you will have noticed that the Community Hall entrance-way has been cordoned off with hi-vis barrier netting. This is because the old wooden ramp to the front entrance of the Hall was removed last Sunday. To gain entry to the Hall at the moment you will need to undertake a rather impressive long jump of several metres on an incline ……….just joking people, please don’t try this!!

The removal of the old ramp was completed last weekend in preparation for the installation of a new improved ramp. The old wooden ramp had seen better days with some of the boards starting to rot and the aged timber was becoming very slippery when wet. The new ramp is to be made from flash new plastic boards to be installed next weekend. I have been reliably informed that the new ramp will be in place by the end of next weekend, weather permitting of course.

The renovations are being carried out by a team of dedicated volunteers. We need to thank Colin, Wilfred and Jamie for their hard work in renovating the ramp to ensure safe and reliable access to our beloved Community Hall.

Work in progress to remove the old wooden ramp.
Work in progress to remove the old wooden ramp.
Careful planning and deliberations on the job (otherwise known as having a rest).
The hall entrance way ready for the new ramp to be installed.

Text & Photos by Michele Bird

Call-Out to Paluma Bakers for the Easter Market

The Paluma Easter Market is fast approaching on Sunday 9th April and so this is a call-out for Paluma’s amazing cooks to donate some baked goods to sell for community (PDCA) fund raising.

If you are interested in doing some baking and donating your goods for sale at the Easter Market then please read on…..

Here’s what to do:-

  1. Please divide your baked goods into small batches for sale. We suggest batches of 2, 4 or 6 individual pieces as this has worked well at previous markets.
  2. Please plate the goods (in batches) and secure with glad wrap or suitable packaging. (We have previously used paper plates and glad wrap and this works well).
  3. Please add a sticker or other suitable label outlining the contents of your baked goods. You will need to add this label to EVERY individual batch of goods. This is required for health & safety reasons.
  4. Please add a price sticker to your goods, with what you think is a fair and reasonable price for your baked delights.
  5. Please deliver your goods to the Community Hall on Sunday morning 9th April at 8.30 AM (for a 9 am market start).

If you have any questions or need any further information, please contact Lynn Hyland by phone or email:- leshyland@icloud.com

Previous cake stalls have been a roaring success, so please contribute if you can for the upcoming Easter Market.

Notice of PDCA Annual General Meeting

Members (and prospective members) are advised that the Annual General Meeting of the Paluma & District Community Association Inc. will be held on:

Saturday, April 1, 2023, at 12pm for a BBQ lunch followed by the AGM at 1:15pm in the Community Hall

Nominations are open for all Executive Committee positions. Nominations should be forwarded to any member of the Executive Committee or by email to PalumaPDCA@gmail.com. Please use the nomination forms, which can be downloaded here.

Positions are:

  • President, 
  • 1 or 2 Vice-Presidents
  • Secretary
  • Treasurer
  • General Committee members (numbers flexible)  

Members are reminded that Annual Subscriptions are now due and should be paid prior to the commencement of the AGM.   Membership is $45.00 Please use the subscription form here to submit your dues. New members are more than welcome and should use the same form.

Please note that you must be a PDCA member to nominate someone to the Committee or vote for any Committee member.

The AGM will be followed immediately by a normal General Meeting with the new Committee.

AGM AGENDA

  1. Opening – circulation of attendance sheet
  2. Apologies
  3. Minutes of previous AGM April 24th, 2021
  4. President’s Report
  5. Treasurer’s report
  6. Election of Officers for 2021-2022
  7. Election of Auditor for 2021-2022
  8. Close of Annual General Meeting

Normal General Meeting Agenda

Normal General Meeting Agenda

  1. Open General Meeting
  2. Proposed Events/Fund-raising for the coming year
  3. Any other business
  4. Close of General Meeting

Calling All Paluma Volunteer Bakers……..Again!

The next Paluma Community Market is fast approaching this coming Sunday 2nd October and we are again calling for Paluma’s amazing cooks and kitchen goddesses to donate some baked goods to sell for community (PDCA) fund raising.

If you can donate some baked goods for sale that would be greatly appreciated. Charlie has kindly volunteered to run the stall for this market.

Here’s what to do:-

  1. Please divide your baked goods into small batches for sale (we suggest batches of 4 to 6 individual pieces as this worked well at the previous market).
  2. Please plate the goods (in batches) and secure with glad wrap or suitable packaging. (We used paper plates last time and plastic glad wrap and this worked well).
  3. Please add a sticker or other suitable label outlining the contents of your baked goods. You will need to add this label to EVERY individual batch of goods. (This is required for health & safety reasons).
  4. Please add a price sticker to your goods, with what you think is a fair and reasonable price for your baked delights.
  5. Please deliver your goods to the Community Hall on Sunday morning 2 October by 8.30 AM.

If you have any questions or need any further information, please contact Lynn Hyland by phone or email:- leshyland@icloud.com

Please donate some goods if you can and apologies for the very late notice this time. Better late than never they say!