THESE PILGRIMS ARE MAKING PROGRESS ! by Greg Martin
progress / noun / forward or onward movement towards a destination .
The members of Pitt Town Progress Association certainly know the meaning of the word !
The association was founded around the time Sir Henry Parkes delivered the Tenterfield Oration in 1889 ( now that was a giant progressive step towards the Federation of the Australian states ).
Pitt Town Progress Association ( PTPA ) has made more progress than Christian in John Bunyan ’ s book , the Pilgrim ’ s Progress !
Down the decades , membership numbers have fluctuated but there have always been enough members on hand
Putting that Huskie to work ! Susan Templeman aboard the nee Husqvarna ride-on mower backed up by ( l-r ): Lynwood Golf and Country Club CEO , Matthew Bailey , and Pitt Town Progress Association ’ s Steve Brown , Peter Ryan and Kevin O ’ Conner . to help neighbours in times of trouble – floods , famines , wars , recessions and pandemics .
Five years ago , membership tallied around 30 residents but since then has progressed to involving 300 Pitt Towners .
Under the strong leadership of president , Peter Ryan , vice president , Steve Brown , secretary , Vince Rayfield and their fellow committee members , the association has indeed helped improve the lot of their fellow citizens .
“ Our main objective is to improve local infrastructure , facilities and community life for the residents of Pitt Town and district ,” Peter Ryan explained .
“ We are also kept aware that if any of our fellow residents are in need of aid , we will certainly lend a helping hand .
“ For instance , several of our neighbours have been doing it tough for health or a variety of reasons and they can ’ t tend to their properties , so we used to grab hand mowers , whippersnippers and do their lawns and tend their gardens .”
Well , they used to push the hand mowers but thanks to a recent Federal Government grant and the generosity of Lynwood Country Club , members jostle to get behind the wheel of a brandspanking new Husqvarna 28-inch ( cut ) ride-on mower . “ For that we have to thank our local ( Federal Government ) member , Susan
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Templeman and Lynwood Country Club ,” Peter explained .
Not to mention Paull ’ s Richmond Mowers who sold the PTPA the whoopeedo mower at a bargain price !
“ We approached Susan last July and she successfully lobbied the government to give us a $ 2500 grant towards the cost of the mower and then Matthew Bailey , the CEO at Lynwood , persuaded the Castle Hill RSL Group board to chip in another $ 1000 ,” Peter said .
Joe Barbagello , a local auto electrician , installed a safety strobe light on the mower and then the PTPA purchased a trailer and “ voila ”, the Huskie was soon bobbing up all over the district .
For the previous three years , long-time member , Kevin O ’ Connor , headed a small group of members who were determined to improve the entrance to the town along Pitt Town Road from Lynwood Country Club .
“ And the best way to do that was to hand- mow the verges alongside both sides the road - and I don ’ t have to tell you what hard yakka that was ,” Peter laughed . Hitch up the Huskie and let it run ! In 2018 the PTPA organised a giant clean-up on the annual Clean-Up Australia Day and members flocked to do their bit .
“ Gordon Douglas ’ s Douglas Plumbing provided a huge truck and excavator , and we were able to remove 45 cubic metres of rubbish ,” Peter said .
“ We discussed what we had achieved and decided to make it a regular project , so each month we designate a patch of the district , and it is all hands on-deck to chip in and clean up .
“( Hawkesbury ) Council sets up collection points and remove the rubbish .
“ I ’ m proud to say that because of our work , there ’ s no need for any residents to participate in Clean-Up Australia Day – we ’ ve been doing that monthly for three years !”
The PTPA also rounded up two 205-litre metal drums which they placed at the end of Punt Road near the boat ramp .
“ I reckon those litter drums have prevented around three tons of rubbish – plastics , cans , bottles , etcetera – from polluting the river ,” Peter said .
Currently the PTPA is lobbying Local , State and Federal governments across a wide-ranging list of improvements to the district .
These include , a flood evacuation route , a Pitt Town bypass to get lumbering trucks out of the town centre , upgrades to inter-sections along Pitt Town Road from McGraths Hill , and the widening of shoulders along Pitt Town Road .
Peter asked if your writer could plug that the association was looking for donations to help offset the annual cost of around $ 600 in covering public liability insurance on the ride-on mower . But of course , I couldn ’ t possibly do that !
For further information on the progressive PTPA contact Peter on 0431 430 800 or go to the website , www . pitttownprogress . com . au .
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30 ISSUE 143 // APRIL 2022 theindependentmagazine . com . au THE HAWKESBURY INDEPENDENT