50 years ago, June 1976
An Apex Club has been successfully formed in Moama.
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A meeting, which resulted in the formation of the club, was held at the Border Inn Hotel in Moama.
Ten Moama men attended and elected Mr John Hinchey as foundation president and Mr Nick Dorogoj as the club's first secretary.
Monday's meeting was also attended by several members of Echuca Apex Club — the sponsor club — and representatives of Mathoura Apex Club.
No projects have yet been decided on by members, but discussion has centred around the possibility of making a contribution to Moama’s new pre-school and cleaning up of the town's cemetery.
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Moves are being made to have Echuca named as a regional freight centre.
Echuca City Council is keen to be involved in the Victorian Railways $20 million plan to build up a network of regional freight centres.
A decision to push for Echuca’s name to be included in the plan for development as a regional centre came from last week’s meeting of council.
Reporting on a recent meeting of the Loddon Campaspe Regional Planning Authority, Cr J. G. Quinn told council of VR plans to establish regional centres at Swan Hill, Bendigo and Shepparton.
He said it was important that Echuca should be included in the list of places designated as regional freight centres.
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About 500 Echuca football enthusiasts have had a brief look at Victorian Football League training methods.
Two Geelong Football Club senior team ‘’regulars’’, Kevin Sheehan and Michael Turner, visited Echuca, showing local Geelong training methods, or what they call ‘’the hard work’’ in football.
They passed some of their knowledge on to students from Echuca high and technical schools and St Joseph’s College.
The two visiting Cats also turned out for a training session with Echuca Football Club.
25 years ago, June 2001
Talks in the Industrial Relations Commission have failed to resolve the dispute between unions representing workers locked out of Nestlé’s Echuca plant and management.
Further talks between the unions and Nestlé are scheduled, with a report back to the IRC in Echuca next Tuesday.
Nestlé on Monday rejected a compromise package put by the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union and the Electrical Trades Union.
The dispute centres around proposed extra working days and 12-hour rosters.
The 80-odd employees at Echuca have been manning a picket line outside the chilled dairy plant in Denmark Rd since they were locked out by Nestlé on June 19.
Nestlé decided to take protected industrial action because continuing work bans and limitations since March had thrown the business into a downward spiral.
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The Echuca and District 15 and under Navy netball side is the Smokefree champions.
Fourteen teams from around the state arrived Sunday morning to play in the Smokefree Association Championship 15 and under section.
The Echuca Navy team had to play a round robin against Wimmera, Altona, Sale, Hapden FL, Doncaster and District and Shepparton.
After winning all games in the preliminary rounds the team was top in its section. In the semi-final encounter, it broke the Diamond Creek team with exceptional play all over the court.
In the final, the side took on the unbeaten Mountain Districts.
All players contributed on the day with determination to take the state title.
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Echuca-Moama residents plan to block the Murray River bridge in a bid to force authorities to hear their concerns about the central bridge option.
It won’t be the first time in the structure's 123-year history that residents have rallied on it to force a point.
In 1878, hundreds marched across it to force the opening of the newly constructed bridge.
Organisers of the approaching rally plan to temporarily shut down the bridge while they voice opposition to the central option.
More than 200 residents voted on Thursday night to oppose VicRoads and the NSW Roads and Traffic Authority's choice of the central option.
Organisers Liz Baxter and Cath Franklin called on the community to consider the costs the central option would have on their lives.
10 years ago, June 2016
Pans are heating up across town as our top chefs prepare for the third annual Great Taste of Echuca-Moama.
The event, organised by the Echuca branch of the Blue Ribbon Foundation, will see six chefs go head-to-head in delivering a six-course degustation menu.
Cock ’n’ Bull head chef Dave Hollamby is the man to beat after being crowned champion in both competitions to date, but he was not getting too cocky about his chances this year.
‘‘I will give it my best shot,’’ he said.
Competing alongside him at the August 6 cook-off will be David Bowman (Cafe 3564), Abu Shebani (Shebani’s), Cass Wills (M.V. Mary Ann), Michael Giarusso (Junction) and Phil Edwards (American Hotel).
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Echuca and district firefighters are angry.
The CFA volunteers are fighting a union takeover they believe will destroy the organisation.
Holding signs reading ‘Hands Off CFA’, more than 60 members packed into Echuca’s new fire station on Thursday night to discuss the controversial issue with Volunteer Fire Brigades Victoria representatives.
They join members statewide protesting a proposed enterprise bargaining agreement which will see United Firefighters Union have greater control over the CFA.
‘‘The message that came out of Thursday night was that the community does not want their CFA touched or ruined,’’ VFBV board member Bill Maltby said.
‘‘They don’t want union interference taking away what they are trained to do for their communities.’’
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Rosalie Drill won her third Rich River Golf Club women’s championship on Wednesday with a final round of 85 and an overall lead of four strokes ahead of Karen Fitzgerald.
Drill began the final day with a two-stroke lead but thought she had blown her chance at her third title when she had eight shots on the first hole.
‘‘I did everything I could to throw it away,’’ she joked.
‘‘But I’m very happy to win.’’
Drill also won the women’s championship in 2002 and 2004 but considers playing for enjoyment more important than winning.