Fish handouts off the menu
GOVERNMENT-imposed restrictions to prevent the spread of COVID-19 have had unforeseen effects on wildlife. The ban on fishing has obviously been a lifesaver for many fish, but it has also (temporaril...
Author Archives: Fran Henke
Nothing new about ‘epidemic panic’
WITH daily media reports of the increasing number of people around the world diagnosed with COVID19, irrational hoarding and profiteering, I am cast back to my childhood and epidemics of a virus that...
Slower growers may change the fiery loop of the eucalypts
TEN years ago, following the fires of Black Saturday, a retired rabbit trapper from Mt Eliza sent in a poem to a newspaper, written in 1851 about fire. Lawrence Prout, the trapper, was 85 then. The p...
Drawing on a new career
LIFE as a bank teller was not Rondelle Douglas’s dream. She loved to draw as a child. When events took a challenging turn (divorce) the mother of three decided to return to Victoria and rediscover th...
Artists without a studio
AFTER 31 years of tuition, demonstrations and exhibitions, McClelland Guild of Artists is being shown the door by its landlords – McClelland Gallery Trustees. Gallery director John Cunningham met rep...
Art to lift the spiri
VISUAL arts students at Chisholm Frankston are taking their work to the walls of Monash Health this month to cheer and stimulate patients, visitors and staff. Their show, featuring paintings, sculptu...
Novel approach to peninsula crime
ROGER Stanley has played many roles in life but always wanted to be a writer. In recent years he set about this dream methodically, undertaking a graduate diploma in professional writing and editing ...
A grazier gardener who grew into a statesman
FORMER Prime Minister and Merricks resident Malcolm Fraser died on Friday. He was revered as a radical in his retirement, perceived as a statesman. Leaving “toxic” party politics behind in 2010, havi...
In the garden with the Frasers
Fran Henke spoke to Tamie and Malcolm Fraser in 2013 about their love of gardening. When the President of Open Gardens Australia says this will be the last time of opening her garden, you have to wo...
Sorrento hotel on market for $15m
SORRENTO’S historic hotel the Continental is on the market for the first time in almost 20 years. The Di Pietro family, who bought the hotel on Ocean Beach Rd in 1996, is hoping for $15 million. The ...
