Mayor4Unley

Hyde Park resident Janet Jenkins is helping to wage the war on plastic bags. She buys fabric from op-shops and makes re-usable bags that can be used when shopping; especially to carry fruit and vegetables. After using cloth bags for 16 years, she now intends to make more and give them away. What a great initiative and generosity on her part. Janet is asking for volunteers to form a working group to make the bags to get more out into the community. She says that there are tasks for non-sewers. Why not volunteer to help Janet. Her details are: Janet Jenkins email janet.jenkins.au@gmail.com

CYCLISTS WANTED to volunteer for an experiment. The University of SA will conduct a study to evaluate the effects of dried fruit & nuts on exercise performance & recovery. All food will be provided; just dried fruit & nuts. You will get $200 upon completion of the study. For some reason the study is only for males. Why ? ( Let me know if you find out .) Sounds like a worthwhile study, so give it consideration. For more information: see the photo and email  sansom.researchvolunteers@ unisa.edu.au  or phone 83021365. #Unley #Cycle #Cyclist Vote 1 Bob Schnell #Mayor4Unley to enhance cycle & walking paths across Unley. Written & authorised by Bob Schnell, 10 Halmon Ave, Everard Park 5035

A fabulous Sunday night at the #Unley Town Hall hosting the ‘ The Travelling Table ’. Many courses of simple Italian food cooked by a team of Nonnas, just like they cook at home. The decorations were rustic style - branches of olive tree (with olives still attached) supporting strands of mood lighting. On the balcony, Italian voices entertained us and encouraged us to singalong. Good Italian tucker and excellent company. The Unley Town Hall should be used more for such events. The Travelling Table = ‘ Celebrating migrant food, culture & stories from South Australian kitchens ’. about The Travelling Table

The Unley Repair Cafe held monthly (on the last Saturday of the month) at Clarence Park Community Centre would not be successful without the many volunteer skilled workers. Most are Unley residents. When I took my broken chair to be repaired I was assigned to Peter Moors . It took a while to remove the broken screw. The rest of the repair job went quickly. Here's a photo of Peter Moors holding the repaired chair. more info on the repair job ... #Unley #RepairCafe #UnleyRepairCafe

The Unley Repair Cafe held monthly (on the last Saturday of the month) at Clarence Park Community Centre is just fantastic. Such a great concept and all made possible by a large group of skilled volunteers. I went to the May session and took my broken bentwood chair. The chair had a wonky leg with a screw broken off (inside the wood). It was a tricky job, but Unley resident and volunteer Peter Moors fixed it. Peter did a great repair job and I picked up a couple of tips. Every repaired job gets a photo. Here is a pic of me absolutely delighted with the repaired chair. #Unley #RepairCafe #UnleyRepairCafe

Volunteers are the backbone of most community organisations. At Unley Council there are 400 volunteers who service the community. Many Council services would fold (or be reduced) without the help of volunteers. I salute all of these volunteers ... from bus drivers to home services to the library ... the list just goes on. I was delighted to read that one of the best new release camellias has been called Volunteer to honour the volunteers across Australia. This camellia has gloriously ruffled blooms. They really are quite different with petals that open a soft pink with white at the edge. As the season progresses, the colour deepens and retains a white edge. The centre of the flower is heavily textured and has a pin cushion in shape. The bush grows to 2m in height. If you're thinking of planting a camellia then consider the Volunteer .

The Advertiser headline was Queen's Birthday Honours: SA's Tireless Heroes . It annoys me that people who get the prestigious awards are mostly people just doing their paid job; like the winemaker. Yes, he makes good wines, but he gets paid handsomely for doing his job. And then there's the actor who got a gong. Damn annoying. It annoys me that average Joe down the street doesn't get a mention. He works tirelessly as an unpaid volunteer. He contributes so much to his neighbours and the local community; but he gets no mention. He contributes so much more to the community than highly paid winemakers and actors and others who are just doing their job and earning a huge salary. Maybe it's my fault or your fault. Maybe we should have nominated average Joe or his wife Maud. If we had then Joe or Maud would have maybe got a lowly award; not a big one reserved for the high flyers (like the Qantas boss) with influential friends. It's all a bit sad. I'm sorry J...

I am a member of the Infrastructure and Sustainability Committee @ Unley Council. At the meeting on 07 June, one of the agenda items was 'Greening Our Verges'. This item was given healthy debate. It involves encouraging residents to plant and maintain the verge in front of their home to beautify and help to cool the suburbs. Further, a street with healthy street trees and roadside plantings makes a welcoming visual impact and encourages drivers to slow down; rather than speeding down a bland looking street. The recommendation to encourage the greening of verges will go to Council in June 2016. What really appealed to me was the proposal to give Golden Gnomes as awards to residents for excellence in planting and maintaining their verge. It is a low cost proposal and I am sure that residents will embrace the concept and try to receive an award. It is considered appropriate that the Ward Councillors will decided on who gets a gnome. Each Councillor will have 4-5 gnomes to gi...

Wildlife Hospital The other night I found a young  rainbow lorikeet by the road side. It was not looking too good and had ants on it. I took it home and placed it in a small cage that I keep in the shed; for such emergencies. I was sure the bird would die that night. The next morning there was renewed life, but it still looked crook. So I took it to the Adelaide Koala & Wildlife Hospital @  282 Anzac Highway , Plympton. They provide a free service to native birds and animals. It is next door to a Vet who provides assistance. Check out their website  www.akawhospital.org.au Whilst there I asked for and was given a tour of the hospital. Patients in care were: A galah A magpie Many tawny frog mouth owls A kookaburra Many koalas, including the mother and baby shown on their website The hospital is a fantastic success and provides great service through the dedication of a team of volunteers. All of the medical equipment (eg. X-ray) is don...

On Tuesday this week a team of Concordia College students came to Forestville Reserve to remove all the graffiti the tags from the tram overpass wall. It was an absolute mess. This activity was a part of the students' community service; a part of their course work. It was good to see them at work. Look at the photos to see the before, during and after status.

At the February 2015 Council meeting, Unley endorsed the creation of a local bicycle user group (UBUG). I am enthusiastic about the feedback this group will provide to Council. Cycling is a growing mode of transport and we need to promote it. Unley Council will assist the group in its formation and provide meeting venues. UBUG will be a residents' user group and govern itself without any Council presence or intervention. UBUG will provide feedback on cycle routes and their condition and assist in promoting health and the social benefits of cycling. Time will tell in the merit of assisting in the formation of UBUG. I think it will pay off. The first meeting is scheduled for Tuesday  21 April 2015 at the Unley Community Centre, 18 Arthur Street, Unley at 6.00 pm If you are interested in participating then here are the contact details: Email pobox1@unley.sa.gov.au or Phone Council on 8372 5111 and feel free to email me via bschnell@unley.sa.gov.a...

Good news. At the intersection of the tramline and Leah Street, Victoria Street and Aroha Terrace ... this area will be planted with trees and shrubs (mostly shrubs) starting next Monday 18 August. This will soften the blow of the current barren landscape. I have been campaigning for this over the last 12 months (hhmmm, maybe longer). It was devastating to lose that last tree that had potential to overhang the power lines. With the warmer weather and spring approaching, it should look good in a few months. I encourage local residents to adopt the plants and help provide extra watering. Maybe the nearby shops could get involved.

Give some thought about who in our community should be awarded for their community spirit. Consider nominating them for an SA Community Achievement Award. More details ... Nominations for the SA Community Achievement Awards are now open. These awards highlight and acknowledge the contribution of individuals, groups, businesses and organisations to helping local governments to build stronger and more vibrant local communities. Nominations are being sought under the following categories: ·         Volunteering Award ·         Carer Achievement award ·         Sports Award ·         Dementia Care Excellence Award ·         Community Road Safety award ·         Small business achievement award ·         Community group of the year award Further details can be found at  this link . Nominations close on 30 J...