STAYING connected with your community and all that is going on around you becomes increasingly fraught with problems as you get older.
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The young and the still-mobile will have no grasp of what it means if you are bedridden, if you are confined because of age and disability, or if you are sometimes isolated from the wider world and relying on others to find out what’s happening.
The news, for many older residents, is a staple. They can’t always see it, they often can’t hear it, but if it comes in a pre-packaged form, they can turn up the dial and listen to their local news in big daily doses.
And anyone younger with the most rudimentary of computer skills, with a bit of a bent for reading, and just a bit of time up their sleeve, can provide a huge contribution to the lives of others with a bit of a sacrifice of service.
If you only ever want to do one small thing for your community, then consider lending a hand to the local News on Wheels group.
It’s been around since being set up in our bicentenary year, when three blokes got together with an idea that still serves us nearly 30 years on.
Originally they collaborated with Tom Aurisch, who’d tragically become a quadriplegic after an accident but was a voracious reader of news and an enthusiastic local who wanted to keep in touch.
Today the service means much more to many more people, not just the vision impaired.
While the cynical and critical who decry the cost of The Leader for a measly $1.60 each day might suggest they can get a free daily dollop from radio, according to the old timers, they can still get a lot more local from their local rag than the intermittent bulletins and current affairs they have access to.
The News on Wheels comes via volunteer readers and some technically savvy others who read and record daily Leader news each week which is then distributed to individuals and groups right across the region. A dedicated 20 or so need some fresh blood, so to speak.
While technophiles might suggest the news can be “played down the line” easier than burning to discs these days, the thing is the discs actually work better in this real world for these clients.
But if someone has more modern ideas for an age-old recreation of reading, they’d love to hear from you too.