Tuesday, 4 June 2024
We had a roll up of twenty-nine (29) for this event which included one (1) visitor Ray Lewis – Welcome Ray.
Our first stop of the day was at Greenup–Meeting Place, for smoko (Refer copy of pamphlet attached). I cannot speak highly enough of the venue & the way we were treated – The mother & son team opened the meeting place just for us on their rest day; allowed us to bring our own drinks & eats etc; & use all their facilities with no expectation that we would purchase anything from their café. However, true to form most of our members purchased coffee at least from the café.
The next stop of the day was the rabbit works where we were met & welcomed by volunteers Nancy Hopper & Shirley Moffat in the reception area, & Jon Schwartz & Bronco Thompson in the Engine room. Bronco tried hard but had no luck in starting the motor that drives all the cold rooms, & eventually concluded that it didn’t like the cold morning. While we were waiting for Bronco & Jon to start the motor, most of our members kept themselves occupied with a self-paced walk around the Rabbit Works & we finished up with an information, & Q & A session led by Bronco in a nice sunny spot outdoors – Well done Bronco & Jon.
Following this we moved on to the Heritage Museum where we were greeted by volunteers Robyn Glasser & Lucia De Bortoli. Robyn welcomed & provided us with an overview of the history of the museum & area along with declaring that it was Lucia’s eighty-seventh birthday, so we joined with Robyn in singing Happy Birthday to Lucia – Also, when we cut our usual monthly birthday cake after lunch, we sent slices back for the four ladies with Bronco & Jon who had joined us for lunch. Lucia then provided us with an in-depth guided tour of the Tobacco area of the museum & we were then left to walk through the rest of the museum & ask questions as required – Well done Robyn & Lucia.
We then adjourned to the Stockman’s Hotel for lunch.
After lunch, we had our usual birthday cake etc with birthdays for the following members falling in June acknowledged & celebrated in our usual manner Viz Ray Andersen, Peter Aylward, Ron Bathurst, Tim Blades, Peter Cavanagh, John Cutler, Keith Hoffman, Michael McGoldrick, John Schmidt, Kerry Smith, Terry Sullivan, Peter Taylor & Bob Whittaker.
We then packed up & headed for home via a drive through the old original township of Texas.
In closing, special thanks to those who contributed to making this another safe & enjoyable event/outing for all attendees (despite the cold weather), including:
- Jon Schwartz – For organising this event.
- All the Volunteers at the Rabbit Works & Heritage Museum – For hosting this event.
- Robyn Glasser – For her interesting briefing on the history of the museum.
- Lucia De Bortoli for her guided tour & information sharing about the tobacco industry.
- Bronco & Jon for their efforts to start the motor along with the information, & Q & A session – Well done to you both & much appreciated.
- Warwick Dingle – For ensuring we were all on board before the coach departed after each stop.
- Warwick Dingle & Howard Gregson – For cutting up & serving our birthday cake.
- Michael Bourke & Russell Mauch – For looking after our finances & name badges during this event, & Russell for the receipting & banking of our surplus cash.
- The Hotel Kitchen Staff – For providing & serving us with a great lunch.
- Peter Thompson – For his usual gig as coach doorman ensuring we all got on & off the coach safely at each stop.
- Ron Lewis & Eric Canning – For looking after our Hydration & Hygiene needs with bottled water & hand wash respectively along with the loading & unloading of the coach as required.
- Mother & Son Team at Greenup – For their excellent hospitality.
- Bob Whittaker & Michael Bermingham – For being on duty as our trusty first aid officers.
- Jan Neal – For making our much-appreciated birthday cake.
- Peter Taylor – For taking & sharing photos.
- Finally, our coach driver Ray Sanders for transporting us to & from Texas safely.
Dick
11 June 2024