Advertise on podcast: Tales of the Valley

Jane and Ali lift the lid on what it takes to curate a major art exhibition in regional Australia. The exhibition Feathered: Birds in Myth and Memory was a coup for Manning Regional Art Gallery and a major highlight of the two women’s long artistic careers.

How many residents of the Manning Valley have featured on an Australia Post stamp?  Macquarie Island, located between Tasmania and the Antarctic, was the site of the world’s most successful rabbit eradication program ever conducted and Gus, the Springer Spaniel, was part of this program.  Narelle Campbell, Team Leader on the island, fell in love with Gus and adopted this amazing dog after a tragic accident.  This is their heart-rendering story.

The Manning Valley has produced some amazing people and stories. Today, we hear of a life very well lived! From early wartime memories of plane-spotting through to living in the bush for months at a time as a 14 year old, Brian Crisp recounts his personal, life-long journey with our region. A working life that only slowed when he got to 82 years of age.  The Manning Valley is a region he knows in some detail as he went on to become the surveyor of many of our coastal villages, such as Wallabi Point. Brian's story starts at a pretty logical beginning – when he was born.

Paralympian runner James Turner is the best in the world. He's hoping to repeat his world beating performances in the T36 category of the 2021 Tokyo Paralympics. James tells us that he’s always been active despite living with cerebral palsy. He took up ballet, Tai Kwon Do and even football as a child but now running is what he excels at. And his able-bodied, athlete twin sister Hayley has always kept him competitive!

The Manning River means different things to all of us - the natural beauty for some, or for others it is a playground for sailing, rowing and other aquatic activities. To the Saunders family it represents an historical connection that goes back thousands of years and continues today. In this episode filmmaker Grant Saunders explains that connection and how he has used the river as a scene for telling stories.

There are some really well known 'main street' families from Taree. One of them is the Dahdah family which had a high profile connection to  Victoria Street for generations. Peter Dahdah worked in the clothing retailer for many years and has contributed to the local community through his extensive service club work and connections. We asked Peter to recall his recollections of the family's early days in Taree, the changes to the business and how the Manning Valley has changed in his lifetime.

It can take courage, skill and sometimes a bit of luck to follow paths that are offered to us in life. Di Morrissey has found herself on many 'paths' . She's worked as a journalist,  lived in many interesting places overseas, worked as a high profile TV presenter and mixed in diplomatic circles.  Her journey has now come full circle with a return to the Manning Valley. She is perhaps best known for her prolific and best selling novels and she has become one of Australia's highest selling and popular author. Di Morrissey's new release is called Before The Storm and was published on 27 October 2020 - further details  here 

Travel in our younger years can expand the mind and our ideas. Then many of us settle down to our regular life back at home. For Brian Wallace his earlier adventures have led him on a path to living and working in China for around 30 years where he is the Founder and Director of the Red Gate Gallery. The gallery is famous for the forstering, development and showcasing of contemporary Chinese art and artists. Brian has lived through the massive social and cultural changes and challenges the world's most populous nation of the last three decades. He was back in his home town Taree and on an extended visit due to COVID 19 preventing his return to his other home, Beijing.

A life in the bush and in farming can be an education. But some skills and knowledge are learned. Others are just a 'gift'. Arthur Vinnicombe is a water diviner, helping farmers and rural landholders find precious water sources deep within the earth. He uses a piece of wire and his natural 'gift''.  He's also pretty good at finding buried electrical and telephone lines! His connection to earth doesn't stop there. He's an avid bush seed collector and hopes to establish native gardens to preserve local plant species.

The Cochlear implant has changed the lives of many - both young and old. One of the men responsible for surgeries that have brough hearing to so many is  Professor William Gibson who has a close connection to the Manning Valley. Listeners may want to check out the group Cicada for more information and connections

Continuing our series on bushfire stories. Today we hear from Bernard and Leah Hunt who run  Parkland Wholesale Nursery business at Tinonee. They had battled drought for months and thought they were prepared for the fire season. In the aftermath, they've been been impressed by their community's response and resilience.

Who could forget the summer of 2019/20? The horrendous fire season destroyed lives, property and wildlife. For many it will be a life changing season, where communities fought the fires together, looked out for each other and hope to rebuild again in recovery.  Bushfires surrounded the coastal village of Wallabi Point. Kirby shares her story of preparation, evacuation with her three small children and then the start of the recovery process. Despite the odds, her village didn't lose a single house, but it was oh so close and very scary!

Our guest today is a man with deep local connections and commitment to the Manning Valley, and who has literally left his mark! He’s the man who first installed the Christmas lights on the pine tree at the Manning Base Hospital. John Ritchie grew up here on the Manning, and he’ll be recounting his early days of life in Taree, where there were not only weekly dances, but also shotguns on the street! John recount his early days, career opportunities and of course climbing to the top of that tree at the hospital!

Narelle Campbell's dreams of going to the Antarctic began when she was a 16 year old.  She didn't not get to realise that goal until she had achieved success in her business career. Now she has been a team leader at four Australian Antarctic bases. In this episode she shares the story of her journey from Wingham High School to one of  the world's final frontiers. Its fascinating and inspiring! 

Tracey Yarad is from the well-known business family in Taree. Instead of following the tradition of being in local clothing business, her decision to chase a musical career brought with it both adventure and heartache.  We’ll hear how music is something she simply HAS to do. She speaks about her late, legendary father, John Yarad, her beginnings in music and her current life in the Big Apple, New York City!