2024 Yarrilinks AGM
Yarrilinks held the 2023-24 AGM on 12th October 2024 at the Wheatlands Agricultural Museum. We started with a round robin of updates from around the room, before officially opening the meeting at 10:30 am.
Following the meeting we enjoyed an absolutely decadent lunch courtesy of The General Store Warracknabeal, and enjoyed a guided tour of the museum.
Annual Report
Minutes of the previous meeting were circulated and confirmed, followed by lodging of the 2023-24 Annual Report (including the financial report). This summarises our year, celebrates our achievements, and reports on year 1 of the action plan outlined in our 2024-25 Strategic Plan. Highlights include:
26 community events engaging 667 people in activities
3527 volunteer hours across all network groups
10 Ha of weed control
1000+ native plants distributed/planted
95 Newsletter subscriptions, 4 newsletters and 40 blog articles published
Recording outputs against 28 of 30 year 1 and 2 actions identified in our Strategic Plan.
Committee Elections
We then moved on to committee elections. David Drage, local farmer and Wimmera Catchment Management Authority Board member, kindly officiated the elections, taking the chair and declaring all positions vacant. There were no contested positions, but we did end up with three new Ordinary Committee Members. The 2024-25 Committee is as follows:
Office-Bearers:
Chair: Tim Inkster (and Wallup Agricultural Group Representative)
Vice-Chair: Adrian Tyler (and Rupanyup Landcare Group Representative)
Treasurer: Tracy Dart (and Lah Landcare Group Representative)
Secretary: Corinne Heintze
Ordinary Committee Members:
Daryl Barber (and Minyip Landcare Group Representative)
Fred Ackland
Sammie Coleman
Unmani
Facilitator’s Choice Awards
Following a busy year, Alicia wanted a chance to recognise the efforts of volunteers involved in Yarrilinks activities. Although the whole Yarrilinks committee and many other members undertook significant work to support our causes, Alicia managed to narrow down three categories:
Committee Contributions: Tracy Dart (Yarrilinks Treasurer)
For significant work undertaken to bring Yarrilinks’ financial records up to date and standard
New Initiatives: Fred Ackland
For enthusiastic participation in events, training opportunities, and proposing new activities
Event Support: Paula Clark
For support provided for the “Meeting with Mushrooms” Fungal ecology Day at Murtoa in June 2024
Museum Tour
After the formalities were concluded, we enjoyed a tour of the museum by one of their dedicated volunteers. We saw heaps of old machinery in the numerous sections of the museum, including some old chainsaws. The museum also has an extensive collection of historical grain varieties on display.
