by Dylan Stone
Silverton Village Committee, businesses, and individuals, are all pulling together to make sure the upcoming open day on February 25 is a success.
Helen Murray, Chairperson of the Silverton Village Committee is preparing old photographs and texts to be displayed in the old Courthouse and Municipal Chambers, where face-painting and hair braiding will take place.
“This gives people the opportunity to read a bit about the history of those buildings and the community, while the enjoy the comfort of air-conditioning and shade,” Mrs Murray said.
The Committee has also successfully installed a new fully automatic defibrillator for use by the community.
The AED has been fitted at the Silverton Hotel to replace the existing AED which had been at the pub for the last 18 years, and had been used successfully on two occasions.
The Village Committee noted the work of publicans Peter and Patsy Price, who had, “very generously replaced batteries and pads over the years to keep [the AED] operational” and now with the new unit in place the Village Committee has now adopted responsibility for the device and for an upcoming training session planned for community members so they all know how and when to use the AED
Mrs Murray says the training will be delivered by St Johns, so the community know not only how to use the machine, but how to check the coordinates of the location on a phone.
Mrs Murray noted that many roads in Silverton are not gazetted roads, and so they may fail to show on maps. In the event of an emergency, Mrs Murray is worried that without the ability to confirm the coordinates of a person’s location, “it means that we can’t provide the best possible help that we can”.
Funding is now being sought to purchase additional AEDs, to be placed in other locations around Silverton.
“Given our ageing population and the number of tourists visiting Silverton, the Village Committee see’s these devices as essential,” Mrs Murray says.
If installing a new AED isn’t enough work to keep the Village Committee occupied, a tidy-up of the grounds of the old Courthouse (the Youth Camp) was then held on the same day. Weeding, raking, and bob-catting all had to be completed during the working-bee, and Mrs Murray confirmed “we are now ready for the Open Day on February 25”.
PICTURE: Brad McLennan (Village Committee Secretary), Peter Price (Silverton Hotel Publican) and Helen Murray (Village Committee Chairperson), standing in front of the newly-installed AED.
