National 2008 easter Convention... Reports

The national convention for 2008 has been held in Victoria near Bacchus Marsh. It was held at the YMCA Camp. Lady Northcote in Rowsley.

Members Points of view : Mother of the Year in Melbourne

Members can view photos here.

First of all I would like to thank the following carers, who done an absolutely wonderful job far beyond was what expected of them. Thank you to Susan, Julie, Rachael, Michael and Bernie.

From a children's carer's point of view. I was one of the carers who looked after the children on the Easter weekend. We had 18 children ranging in ages from 7 to 18, a wide variety of ages. The weekend was a great success with children coming in from Victoria, ACT, Queensland, Western Australia and south Australia. It was nice to see that so many children got along 'like a house on fire' and joined in on the activities.

Then there was the question that arose earlier, how do we entertain them? Well, we did just that. We got all the children together and took them for a spot of archery, even the little ones and the carers joined in. They were able to go swimming in the pool, which some did playing volleyball while in the water.

On the Saturday night we had a disco, and a big thank you to all the kids for helping to decorate the hall, and a special thank you to Michael our DJ for bringing along all his DJ equipment and making the night great for us. Also, special thanks go to Julie and Rachael, who organised an Easter egg hunt in the bushes for all the kids. Easter Bunny hid approx 120 eggs, and we did seem to loose a few (I think someone got hungry). A great hunt, thanks to the ladies.

There was also the flying fox which was a great hit with the kids, and again the carers (we were getting brave). If I come to the conclusion on which were the best activities over the weekend, they must have been the canoeing and yabbying. This was greatly enjoyed by all, as everyone mentioned.

We also had the Rowsley fire brigade come and give us a demonstration on how the engine works and how to fight fires. This was an instant hit with the kids as they got to squirt everyone with the hoses.

I would like to see what the children or the adults thought of the weekend, please drop me an email or send a letter describing how you saw the weekend. Send me your photos or upload them here now.

Bernie (Carer)

Mother of the Year in Melbourne

I had the privelege of escorting the Mother of the Year on a little glimpse of our great city, Melbourne. The convention finished at lunch time on Sunday, but their plane was not due to leave Vic till 10:30pm. I was asked by Karen (Mother of the Year Ambassador) if I could take her and Debra, as they were on the same flight for a scenic tour around Melbourne. We arrived in the city and parked at Crown Casino ($6 all day parking... great in Melb). We then decided to walk along Southbank until we got to the bridge leading to Flinders Street railway station, and took a tour through there. We proceeded up Elizabeth street to King street and to the Rialto. If you have not been to the Rialto we can recommend it. The ladies were overwhelmed with the sites from Rialto. There are some photos in our members area. After we left Rialto, it was dinner time at Kings Restaurant in the Crown complex, then back to the airport. It was a fabulous afternoon out, especially since they had never been to Melbourne before.

Bernie