The following most informative article was written for the Benalla Ensign by Margaret Jenkins for Age Friendly Benalla.  Margaret is also Research/Grants Officer on the U3A Benalla & District's Committee of Management. 

“Mr Dom Testoni, CEO of Benalla Rural City Council has announced that Benalla Rural City Council are spending $130,000 to upgrade of the interior of the Benalla Senior’s Centre located in Fawckner Drive Benalla. The funding is from two sources: namely Drought relief funds as well as Federal Government funding.

The Benalla Senior’s Centre is a multipurpose facility which houses activities of the Benalla Senior Citizens, the Benalla Bridge Club and U3A Benalla.

The entire air conditioning unit is being replaced with a new system which has environmentally friendly refrigerant gas. The air conditioning machinery will be in the same place and use the same duct work. The work is to be completed mid January 2021 and will cost $70,000.

The switch board at the Benalla Senior’s Centre is being converted with a backup generator system, so that if the power goes out, the Benalla Senior’s Centre can be used as a Refuge point for Benalla.

The switch board of the Benalla Town Hall is being similarly converted with a generator backup so that it also can be used as a Refuge when required.

Internally in the Benalla Senior’s Centre building there are a series of alterations planned with the Stage in the main auditorium to be removed. This will allow for the building of a new office for the Benalla Senior Citizens. An area adjacent to this will become storage for the bowling mats used by the Benalla Seniors.

The Benalla Bridge club is to have slightly increased storage as their area will incorporate the area occupied previously by the steps to the former stage as well as their current storage facility.
U3A Benalla have been offered the use of the former Benalla Senior’ Office as a second meeting room.

Upgrades to the main kitchen area will see a new dish washer and the incorporation of the stove from the other small kitchen.  It is anticipated that a standalone glass double fronted refrigerator will allow storage for all groups using the centre.

These internal upgrades are estimated to cost about $60,000. The builder for the project has been selected and expects that the internal work will be completed by Monday 8 February 2020.
U3A Benalla expects to resume classes on Monday 15 February 2020 in their current U3A room. 

Due to the building works, Registration Day for U3A Benalla will be held on Monday 18 January 2021 and Wednesday 20 January 2021 from 9.30am to 11.30am in the Benalla Town Hall.
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Further information regarding Registration Day can be obtained from Mrs Dorothy Webber on 5762 2116.”  

• ​Members when attending U3A Benalla groups, classes or functions  are required to keep 1.5 meters apart at all times.
• Members when attending U3A Benalla groups, classes or functions are required to be at a density of not more than 1 person per 2 square meters of floor space.
• Members when attending U3A Benalla groups, classes or functions are required to wear a face mask when indoors providing this is currently mandated by the Victorian State Government.
• Hand sanitizer is to be provided at the entrance to the U3A Benalla room and any other venue being used by U3A Benalla. Members of U3A Benalla are requested to use the hand sanitizer when entering the U3A room or other venue being used by U3A.  
• Hand wipes will be provided for Convenors or their assistants to wipe down furniture such as chairs, tables and door handles after each class held in the U3A Benalla room or other venue being used by U3A.  
• Attendance Records. An Attendance record for each class is to be located on the Table outside the U3A room or other venue being used by U3A. Every person entering the U3A room or other venue is to be ticked off on this attendance record. U3A Benalla will hold in another location the phone number and address of all members attending groups or classes.
• If a person is not currently enrolled for this particular group or class, they are to write their name and phone number legibly on the attendance sheet.
• Any member of U3A Benalla who is feeling unwell is asked not to attend a class or group to which they belong, but instead get tested for COVID 19 after phoning Benalla Health to make an appointment.
• Close contact of members in the U3A Benalla room or other venue being used by U3A is to be avoided due to COVID restrictions.   

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Dorothy Webber and Margaret Jenkins

U3A has been offered assistance from CASI program to help us get back up and running.

We have been offered space outdoors at the Tennis Club and or the Racecourse, the benefit of the Racecourse is that it has undercover space.

Lightweight chairs we be provided.

With this in mind are you prepared to reconvene your group?

When we know how many are interested we will work out the details.

Please let me know no later than midday Monday 12th October at .
dotwebber2608@gmail.com.

Dorothy

 

Convenors Margaret Jenkins Investment, John Lloyd Sustainability and Jane Rushworth Demystifying Psychology  now regularly engage with class members by Zoom.  

“It has been a fun way to keep our minds active as well as offering social stimulation”. 

A number of other convenors are now dipping their toes into the Zoom environment.  Dorothy Webber has offered to help those who weren't involved in the earlier training and find themselves becoming more interested in doing so.  

It's not all about Zoom though.  Joy Shirley uses email to keep in contact with her groups Creative Writing and Film and Literature,  Music Appreciation convenor Bill Squire emails and distributes session notes with You Tube links, while As Time Goes By story collections on the ‘Our Stories’ page.  Pauline Bailey and Horst Gunther even set homework for the German class!  Finally,

Avid Facebook users and 'photographer/correspondents' Andi Stevenson and Bev Thornell regularly post news and photographs of Birdwatching, Easy Walks & Mid-Week Walks activities on our Facebook page - thanks Bev and Andi!  Our Newsletter and website also provide a wonderful way of keeping in touch. ​  Thank you  to the convenors who have been making contributions during the Covid break - hopefully it won't be too long before we are all able to write reports of activities each month, though this is unlikely to be this year.

​Media Team

Margaret Jenkins recently contacted convenors to gain expressions of interest from convenors keen to find out more about Zoom and explore possible applications in their classes.  A group already trialling Zoom are to act as mentors to around eight convenors who expressed interest in a 'first round' of training sessions. If there is enough interest, further training may be made available in future. 

The following YouTube video could be helpful for convenors/tutors who have participated in  Zoom sessions as participants who are now keen to trial offering Zoom sessions to class members.

Classes will continue with if Convenors are comfortable in doing so. If anyone does not want to lead their class that class will close down. Numbers will be down, but till the Council or Government close the building down we’ll stay operating. This may change at any time.

Please leave the two doors open (this means less handling) or use the self opening front doors. Council have recommended this.

The Library has stopped all group meetings and U3A will no longer have any classes at the Library. Let me know if you need a new venue (Mobile 0412 263 071..

As the situation is changing day by day, who knows what’s ahead.

Dorothy

The first classes have begun for the year and it's time to distribute the updated 'A-Z- for 2020.  The A-Z is produced each year and  provides useful advice for new convenors as well as updating past convenors about any changes.  

At the beginning of the year convenors are often keen to develop or update a group email list which targets class members.  It is possible to do this on gmail and outlook email accounts, and possibly also others.  

A key element of creating an email group is adding email addresses from the class lists sent to you by Len to your Contacts or Address Book beforehand.  There are many You Tube videos on You Tube about creating email lists - just go into You Tube and type 'create an email list in gmail' or 'create an email list in outlook' into the search bar.  Here are two Tube Resources found in this way which may help you on your way or refresh your memory about what to do!

or... for outlook users, try....

Try to remember to click bcc before you add the mailing list label to the To button... "If sending out emails to a list, select the ‘BCC’ blind carbon copy option so that individual member email addresses remain private.  If you unintentionally forget –try to remember next time.  (An enrolment form provision does make provision for sharing of such information between members.)"  Benalla U3A A-Z 

If you need some support to create and use a group email list for your class, make an appointment with Bev on 5762 8171.  You will be enrolled - albeit briefly - in Tech Savvy Community Projects and get one to one help in the U3A office.

The Convenors' meeting held in late October was very well attended, as the photo reveals!  The meeting proved most informative, with each Convenor sharing information about their course or activity.

As enrolment days for 2020 draw near, it's time to thank Convenors who have stepped back and new convenors who are 'stepping up' in 2020.  

Thank you so much Judith Borthwick (Collectors); Meg Dillon (Moments in Australian History; History of Western Civilisation; a four year 'opera subscription' series; Art Appreciation) ; Shirley Kearney (Chat N Chew) and Les Rogers (Tech Savvy Talks and Tech Savvy Talkers), for the important and highly valued roles you have taken in convening programs for U3A Benalla over the past four years.  Thank you for contributing to the newsletter and website - we hope you enjoy looking back at your reports over the next few years.

To Alex Adkins (Coin Collectors), Neville Gibb (A Different History of Germany), Brian Harker (The News - Fact or Fiction?), Janet Martens (German Conversation), Carol Perry and Broken River Artists (A Taste of Art), and Jane Rushworth (Demystifying Pschology), thank you for offering new programs. To Dorothy Webber (Collectors), Neville Gibb (Tech Savvy Talks), Max Powell (Life Ball) and others who have stepped up or are stepping up in 2020 to convene existing groups - thank you.  The preparedness to offer new programs and keep successful programs going makes U3A Benalla thrive.

Bev Lee
Programs Committee/Web Manager

Photograph:  David Palmer

Each month a report is placed in the Newsletter by either the Convener or their nominated person, giving a brief outline of the activities undertake by their group during the previous month.  As a limited number of pages can be folded comfortably in an envelope to be mailed to members who do not have Email access, it is suggested that these reports are concise but informative.  This is not possible in some cases, but please keep it in mind when presenting them for the Newsletter.

If you have any dates or times that you wish to notify your groups of upcoming activities, please include this information.    This information is then used to keep the calendar on the website up to date, keeping members informed.

Photos are also welcome, but a limit maybe placed on the number used in each edition as these take up megabytes and therefore the final Newsletter is above the required size for emailing out to members.   These photos are also passed onto the calendar convenor/website manager who uses them to update the webpage.

If a report is not received in time, it will be either left out of the Newsletter or a short summary may be inserted by the Editor, depending on information available from members.

The timeline for receipt of Newsletter reports, preparation and printing/emailing is as follows:

• Reports from conveners to be received by 25th day of each month.    Please forward report to newsletter@u3abenalla.com.   If you have the Email in your contacts on your computer/ipad please check that it is the correct email address for the Newsletter.    Old Newsletter addresses are no longer operational.
• Collating reports and setting up Newsletter to be completed by the last day of month.
• Calendar for the following month updated from reports at end of month, formatted ready for printing with Newsletter - this calendar will include the 1st week of classes in the next month.   e.g.  the upcoming April Newsletter has reports of March activities conducted.   Calendar is for April classes plus first week of May activities and attached to the rear of Newsletter.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Newsletter Editor Heather Wallace
newsletter@u3abenalla.com Phone: 0418 353 244