Casual Board Vacancies: Do YOU Want To Make A Difference? 1st December 2011: Do you want a make a difference to the lives of women living in rural, regional and remote areas of Queensland? If you do, then QRWN President Georgie Somerset would like to talk to you! The QRWN Board currently has two casual vacancies following the recent departure of our long-serving Treasurer Ann Houston and Board member Eunice Donovan (both of whom we'd like to sincerely thank for their great service). The Board oversees the operation of the QRWN; sets our organisation's policies and direction; undertakes new initiatives for members; and generally looks after the broad operation of our 28-year-old group. Any member is welcome to nominate for the Board. And we always welcome new ideas and new approaches on ways to achieve our core mission: growing the potential of individual women in the communities we serve. So if you'd like to nominate and/or find out more about what being a QRWN Board member might entail, send Georgie an email. Right now.

Ho! Ho! Ho! Here's A *Really* Great Way To Have A Very Merry Christmas! 16th November 2011: It seems incredible but Christmas is only a little over five weeks away now (where on Earth did the year go?). So if - like many members - you're starting to plan your holiday shopping, we have an absolutely sensational offer to help put some extra cheer into your Yuletide celebrations. Cellarmasters are Australia's largest online wine site. And between now and December 31st they're offering all our members a really special Xmas deal: one dozen premium red and white wines PLUS a bonus bottle of Yellowglen Yellow Sparking NV for just $70. Yes, you did read that right - that's around $5 a bottle! And all of them are absolutely top class wines too. This dozen normally sells for $178 without the bubbly, and right now it's being made available to the general public for $120 as a Cellarmasters Christmas special. But our members can get it for just $70 by claiming a special $50 discount coupon that you should use when you place your order. And you can get that $50 QRWN discount coupon by clicking here. Merry Christmas!

New Photo Gallery: 2011 World Rural Womens Day At Wooroolin Town Hall 14th November 2011: On Friday 14th October around 100 women from the North, South and Central Burnett converged on Wooroolin Town Hall for the annual World Rural Womens Day lunch. The event is jointly run by the QRWN and Centacare South Burnett and it's a very popular annual networking event. This year the lunch was addressed by Tina McPherson from Tina Berries in Bundaberg, who talked about her experiences working and farming in New Zealand, Uruguay and Indonesia before she and her husband purchased a Bundaberg cane farm and then decided to ignore cane and grow strawberries instead. Thanks to Bev Hughes from Wide Bay Rural News (who supplied the photos) and the Gympie Times (who covered the event and have allowed us to republish their story) you can view a photo gallery of the day and read more about what happened by clicking here. Photo: Ness Bambling of Gayndah chats with guest speaker Tina McPherson from Tina Berries, Bundaberg at this year's World Rural Womens Day lunch in Wooroolin.

QRWN Metal Work On Display This Month At Kingaroy Art Gallery 11th November 2011: Earlier this year the QRWN's Barambah branch secured RADF funding from the South Burnett Regional Council to run a welding workshop for women in the South Burnett. The workshop was a huge success and in addition to learning how to weld for practical purposes, everyone who took the course also learned how welding could be used to create sculptured artworks. Tonight the South Burnett Regional Council will be unveiling a new art exhibition at the Kingaroy Art Gallery which showcases many of the art-related projects that its RADF programme has funded over the last 12 months. And as the photo above shows, welded sculptures created by our Barambah branch members will have pride of place alongside ceramic portraits created by the Jumping Ants Art Group and portrait photography created by the Woorolin/Tingoora Young Mothers Group. Marg Enkelmann and members from the Barambah branch will also be presenting a Wearable Art Fashion Parade at tonight's opening (doors open at 6:00pm). So if you can attend it looks like being a really great night!. But if not not, the works will remain on display for the next month and you can pop in any time to see them. PS: A big "Thankyou!" to Val Sapin for this photo, as well as several others she's sent us showing these incredible sculptures. We hope to have a photo gallery of these available on our website in the next few days so that members who live far away from Kingaroy can see them too.

A Golden Opportunity! Take A Year Off To Help Promote The Australian Year Of The Farmer 10th November 2011: A few days ago we told you about the up-coming Australian Year Of The Farmer in 2012. And now we'd like to tell you about a once in a lifetime golden opportunity associated with it: How would you like to take a year off - on full pay - to travel around Queensland with the Australian Year Of The Farmer team to promote this wonderful event? Right now the AYOTF team are looking for suitable people to help them organise all aspects of this unique celebration. The first hirees will begin training in late December with the aim of taking the AYOTF Roadshow on the road early next year. Art4Agriculture Young Farming Champion Hollie Baillieu (see video, above) has been engaged by the Australian Year of the Farmer team to coordinate the Roadshow component. And she's looking for potential recruits to travel around Australia to showcase the industry. You can find out all the details about the work and the sorts of qualities she's looking for - which many QRWN members would have in abundance - on her website. So if the idea of taking a year off to travel around Queensland promoting agriculture and farming to the general public appeals, act quickly!