DEAR News Of The Area, RECENTLY my daughter Janelle was celebrating her birthday with some friends at a local cafe. They were seated outside and one of her friends had brought a cake along. When the waitress arrived with the cake she requested that they didn’t sing happy birthday. Janelle obviously thought it

  DEAR News Of The Area, I NOTE that our busy Federal parliament has scheduled just five more sitting days before the next election. Nice to see them working so hard and dodging sensible action on climate change, and on a Federal ICAC to counter the rising stench of corruption. To remind us of

  WHEN you were a little boy, Lord, before the world began, did THE FATHER allow you to be a child before you became a man? Did you unlock the jungles of Africa and set the Elephants free? Did you sweep the ocean beaches clean sending Dolphins off on a spree? Did you colour the beautiful Butterflies? Did you teach

  CUCUMBERS are super easy to grow here and kindly prolific with fruit. The Coffs Harbour area is a commercial growing hub for cucumbers, though usually in greenhouses to meet the perfectionist requirements of supermarkets year round. For backyard gardeners, cucumbers are grown ‘in the field’ and do very well at providing more

  I AM both privileged and honoured to be able to serve the people of MidCoast as Mayor and to work with my fellow Councillors and the staff of MidCoast Council to deliver positive outcomes for our community. For those who don’t know me, I was first elected to MidCoast Council in

  *COFFS Harbour’s John Akway Cham contributes stories for News Of The Area on the diverse, multicultural nature of the region, with a focus on the experiences of the area’s refugee community. COVID-19 has been a main global issue for the last two years, having many impacts on our way of life. Covid

  DEAR News Of The Area, I AM beyond angry, I am furious at the lack of affordable/renting housing in the Coffs Harbour area. Why are people living in tents and cars, near the local creek and the Jetty area, through no fault of their own, when the grand new wasteful Civic Centre

  DEAR News Of The Area, WHEN my wife and I are able to venture north to Brisbane to visit our daughter and grandson we always take our bikes, because of the extensive network of well-maintained cycleways there. Then we return home to Woolgoolga and become disgruntled on two counts regarding the bike

  MYRON and Fay Kelsey were married at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, Bowraville on 19 January, 1952. Seventy years later, Myron and Fay have four children, six granddaughters and six great grandchildren. They have continued to call Bowraville home. Congratulations to Myron and Fay!  

  DEAR News Of The Area, BOTH Margaret England's and Richie Tassicker's letters to News Of The Area on 28 January 2022 are spot on. Margaret's letter (‘More refugee representation’, p22): How can we, as an empathetic and caring community, possibly agree with or support the abhorrent and inhuman treatment of refugees/asylum seekers