Author: Keith Platt

THERE’S something about fishing. Rain, hail and shine, anglers are always out there casting a line. Sheltering from the weather or running to see what’s happening when someone’s reeling in something that’s obviously bigger than the baited hook, anglers can be a social bunch. The delights of casting a line, the patience required and, yes, skill, are all the things that Glenn Couper uses to bring friendship, companionship and healing to a variety of people who often find themselves marginalised in mainstream society. A Frankston resident, Mr Couper’s fishing-based work with people with mental illness, autism and physical disabilities seems…

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THE Ahmadiyya Muslim Association, which has a mosque in Langwarrin, has condemned the “barbaric” terrorist attacks in Paris responsible for the deaths of 132 people. The death toll is expected to rise with 97 of 350 people wounded in the attacks classed as critical. The so-called Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the six coordinated attacks which led to France closing its borders and the declaration of three days of mourning. “We offer our deepest condolences to the families and friends of the innocent victims of the Paris attacks,” the national president of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community Australia, Imam Inam-ul-Haq…

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ARTISTS across the Mornington Peninsula are showing themselves as well as their works over the next two weekends. While it’s usually a display of their works, 19 artists are on the map for this year’s Peninsula Studio Trail, inviting the public into their studios to see art in the making. “You can look forward to rooms filled with the smell of drying paints and ink; canvases waiting to be stretched; needles threading; ceramic wheels wet and turning; hot burners burning, and molten silver pouring,” gold and silversmith Katrina Newman said. Many of the artists will be demonstrating the techniques that…

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SONGS and music cut across all boundaries and a concert being held in Mornington this month is being held to help young people take up education rather than crime. Run by the Brotherhood of St Laurence, the RESET program helps students fit back into mainstream classes at Monterey Secondary College, Frankston. Concert organisers say lyrics of the song Street Angel sung by Colleen Hewitt about the plight of street kids best expresses their thoughts: “The soul of our nation shines through the eyes of her children.” The RESET – (Re-engaging Early Secondary Education and Training) – project is designed for…

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AN estimated 10,000 cyclists took to the roads on Sunday in the 23rd annual Around the Bay – Ride for a Child in Need. Most of those opting for the longer 250 kilometre ride around Port Phillip had some relief from pedalling while aboard the Queenscliff-Sorrento ferry. However, the 28 members of the Pirates Sporting Club swapped handle bar for oars, rowing surf boats across the 12 kilometre stretch of water. Other riders followed courses ranging from 20 to 10 kilometres, including ones starting at Geelong and Sorrento. From the beach at Sorrento the Pirates were back on their bikes…

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