WHYLD Newsletter March 2025

May Minimarket

Saturday May 10

12 – 3 pm

Don Valley Hall
22 Old Dalry Road
Don Valley

Monthly Movie Nights

Last Friday in the month
April to October

6:30 pm

Don Valley Hall
22 Old Dalry Road
Don Valley

Winter Warming

Sunday June 22

4 – 7 pm

Woori Yallock Recreation
Reserve
Healesville Koo Wee Rup Rd
Woori Yallock

September Minimarket

Saturday September 13

12 – 3 pm

Don Valley Hall
22 Old Dalry Road
Don Valley

WHYLD is an acronym for the five small towns of and activities over the years. Outside the BBQ will be Woori Yallock, Hoddles Creek, Yellingbo, Launching Place and Don Valley. WHYLD Community Group is a group of committed members representing these towns with a vision to create a more connected community.

WHYLD has been around for a while now and seen  members come and go. Our current members come from different backgrounds and have a wide range of interests, but the one thing we do have in common is our commitment to the group and the Sydney Halbish Hall. Since taking on the lease of the hall five years ago we have gained strength as a group through having a base and place to call home.

We are in the process of securing a new five-year lease, with an option to renew for a further four years after this, but we need your support to do this.

So we would like to showcase the hall and WHYLD’s, current and future activities with a WHYLD Hall Hub Warming on Sunday 18^th May from 12 noon until 4pm at the Sydney Halbish Hall.

We invite you to stop by and spend some time with us at the hall and find out more about what we do. Inside the hall will be interactive displays showcasing our events

Seasonal minimarkets have been running at the Sydney Halbish Hall (aka Don Valley Hall) since 2021, supported by Yarra Ranges Council.

The markets made their debut in Autumn 2021 in the hall carpark, then moved inside the hall grounds and finally indoors for the past two years. The move indoors meant a reduced number of stalls with the restricted space, but we managed to fit everyone in with our dedicated group of regular and reliable stallholders and our equally reliable patrons. Sadly though, we have farewelled the seasonal minimarket schedule as interest waned and our funding ran dry.

On a brighter note, we plan to trial run two minimarkets this year, at what we hope are quieter times with less competition from other events. Our first market on Saturday May 10 will have a craft theme and being the day before Mothers’ Day a great chance to find that special gift for any mum. The second market on Saturday September 13 will remain as our Spring second hand market where anyone is welcome to have a stall to cash-in on those unwanted household items.

Both markets will offer the usual hot food (Don Valley Primary School) and drinks (Yarra Valley Red Cross), and WHYLD will offer roasted chestnuts and toasted marshmallows since we now have a custom-made fire pit at the hall.

(Photos: Leanne Patrick supported both Autumn and Spring minimarkets last year)

Our Movie Nights have developed a small gathering of regular visitors on the last Friday of the month.

Kids love the little sofa seats where they can snuggle up in their pyjamas and help themselves to popcorn throughout the night. And adults can enjoy the humour in the movies that goes over the kid’s heads, and perhaps relive the nostalgia of their own youth!

Friday night at the movies will be a regular fixture at the hall from Autumn through to Spring this year. With the schedule fixed to daylight saving times, the first feature will be screened on ANZAC day, April 25.

Starting times will remain at 6.30 pm with an intermission set at around 7.30 pm for supper (bring a plate or pack of goodies to share with hot & cold drinks & popcorn available) and a stretch.

Winter Warming made a welcome return in 2024 in its new location at the 1^st Woori Yallock Scout Hall located in the far corner of the Woori Yallock Recreation Reserve.

The solstice celebration heralded a perfect winters day with clear blue skies preceding the calm fresh night. Hillcrest CFA were back to manage the parking and bonfire, together with the Yarra Valley Red Cross serving ^{COMING SOON!}

hot food and drinks, including deliciously warm and aromatic mulled wine. Scouts provided marshmallows for toasting as a fundraiser and WHYLD offered roast chestnuts for free to sample.

Richard Brown and Bluebird sang and strummed guitars in the background as locals gathered around the bonfire for warmth as the sun set.  Free face painting inside the hall attracted a regular queue of the young and young at heart.

Finally, a little tin can lantern parade around the bonfire – led by Cailleach Beara: Bringer of Winter – capped off the evening. While attendance was down on previous events, we felt that this revamped comeback of the event (managed on a shoestring budget) was a great night out and is set for a repeat performance this year on Sunday 22^nd June from 4 to 7pm. We hope the word spreads and welcome more people to enjoy this iconic event.

Photos: CFA volunteers man the bonfire (upper); Rod

Neason is a regular at Winter Warming (lower)

Blue skies and sunshine heralded a fine day for the Camelot Castle Medieval Village Fair last month, providing the perfect setting for an iconic event that has been running now for more than ten years.

Thanks to the care and dedication of the event hosts, the gardens in the grounds of the castle were lush and green, despite the surrounding paddocks being brown and dry.  

Proudly sponsored by Woori Yallock and District Community (Bendigo) Bank Branch (with funds managed by WHYLD Community Group) and planned and organised over tireless hours by Yellingbo CFA and Woori Community House, this event is a fine example of collaboration between local groups and businesses.

The Fair has evolved over the years with various forms of free entertainment, and this year brought a variety of animals with the feathered and furry farm, Animals on the Move, native Oz Animals, and Deerhounds.

Love to dance but not sure how to start? Move IT or Lose IT could be for you! Designed to get your brain and your body working together, this class is a fantastic way of getting fit to fabulous music while    having fun. It’s a judgment free zone and all ages, abilities and levels of fitness welcome.

What about singing with others? Never have, want to, but are a bit scared to try? Loads of experience and want to enjoy singing with others with no ongoing commitment? Come spend some time in harmony and song with a fabulous, welcoming bunch of locals.

Both activities are the brainchild of Santha Press.   Santha has been leading singing in school, healthcare and theatrical settings her whole adult life and she is