HOW TO FIND UNCLAIMED MONEY

Searching for unclaimed monies is made easy by accessing various websites.  Unclaimed money from bank accounts, company shares, life insurance policies, unpaid wages, deceased estates, proceeds of sale and superannuation that hasn’t been rolled over are waiting for their rightful owners. 

There is currently $13 billion superannuation contributions waiting to be claimed and a further $600 million unclaimed from bank accounts, shares and life insurance policies. Check out the following websites: 

SHARE DIVIDENDS, PROCEEDS OF SALE, DECEASED ESTATES, RENTAL BOND REFUNDS, ROYALTIES, TRUST MONIES and more go to the Qld Public Trustee website by clicking HERE. 

UNPAID WAGES can be checked by accessing the Australian Government Fair Work Ombudsman website HERE.

SUPERANNUATION waiting to be claimed or rolled over can be checked by accessing the Australian Taxation Office’s SuperSeeker website HERE. 

BANK/FINANCIAL INSTITUTION ACCOUNTS, SHARES AND LIFE INSURANCE POLICIES may be checked at the Australian Securities and Investments Commission website HERE. 

Happy Hunting!

DO NOT CALL REGISTER is gaining momentum ....

In less than five years, seven million numbers have been listed on the DO NOT CALL REGISTER, including just over half of Australia’s fixed line home numbers.  

"Many Australians are choosing not to receive telemarketing and fax marketing,” said the regulator Chairman of the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), Chris Chapman.  The ACMA is Australia's regulator for broadcasting, the internet, radiocommunications and telecommunications.

Not surprisingly, the uptake in registrations is not only on fixed line numbers, with more than three million mobile numbers now on the register.  Mobiles accounted for 75 per cent of new registrations over the last eight months. 

Why register your number with the Do Not Call Register? 

The Do Not Call Register allows you to greatly reduce the amount of unwanted telemarketing calls and marketing faxes you receive.  Telemarketers and fax marketers are required by law to stop contacting you once you’re on the register.

Will registering my number stop all telemarketing calls and marketing faxes? 

No, registration won’t stop all calls and faxes.  Some public interest organisations (charities, political parties and educational institutions) can still call numbers listed on the register.  This ensures these organisations can continue to provide valuable services to the community. 

If you have an existing relationship with a business, it can still contact you, but you can advise them if you do not wish to receive telemarketing calls or marketing faxes from them in the future. 

$250,000 Penalty

Anyone can complain if they think a telemarketer is breaching the standard, and penalties of up to $250,000 can apply.  There is also a Fax Marketing Industry Standard with similar enforceable rules.

How to Register

Registration on the secure database is free, valid for five years and you can re-register or remove your numbers at any time.  To register or seek further information, go to the DO NOT CALL REGISTER website by clicking HERE. 

Southern Downs Sports CONNECT Community Forum

Invitation 

Do you think people with a disability want to ..  

- Belong and feel part of their community?

- Have fun, adventure and new challenges?

- Increase friendships and social networks? 

IF yes, then come along to the Southern Downs Sports CONNECT Community Forum for families/support networks of people with a disability, disability service providers and local sporting organisations. 

HEAR how Sports CONNECT, an initiative of the Australian Sports Commission, is working towards increasing opportunities for people with disabilities. 

LEARN about being involved in the local sporting and active recreation community through pathways such as being a player, coach, official, volunteer or administrator. 

MEET and LINK with people with disabilities, their families, carers and local sporting and active recreation providers in the Southern Downs. 

SHARE your own stories about sport and active recreation. 

Date:  Tuesday 21 February 2012

Time:   5.45 pm for 6.00pm start, concluding at 8.00pm (a light supper will be provided)

Venue: Vineyard Christian Church, 85 Connor Street, Stanthorpe

RSVP: by 7 February 2012 for access and catering purposes to Kylie Walker, Administration Officer, Sporting Wheelies and Disabled Assn by phone (07) 3253 3333 or email: 

For more information about Sports CONNECT visit www.sportingwheelies.org.au

Australia Day Triathlon 

The 2012 Australia Day Triathlon event’s main purpose is to engage the entire Stanthorpe community in a physical and healthy activity during and in conjunction with the 2012 Australia Day celebrations.

Nominations will be taken for teams and individuals wishing to compete in the Opens and Under 12’s divisions. For the Opens category, the Triathlon will compose of a 400m swim, a 10km ride and a 4km run through the township of Stanthorpe, Gleeson parklands and the Stanthorpe Pool. The under 12’s will complete distances of a 100m swim, a 4km ride and a 1km run. Starting at the Stanthorpe Pool for the swim, participants will continue on to ride through a township loop then finalising the run through Gleeson parklands and finishing at the Stanthorpe YMCA car park. To make the event inclusive, eligible disabled or elderly participants have the opportunity to take part with tailored sections of the Triathlon such as the ride can be conducted in the YMCA’s spin bike room and the run which can be conducted on treadmills in the gymnasium with modified distances.

Nomination fee:

Opens $20.00 per team and individual nomination

Under 12’s: $10.00 per team and individual nomination

Entry form can be found here: Entry Form

For more information please contact the Stanthorpe YMCA on 07 4681 2411 or check our website www.stanthorpe.ymca.org.au

The 136th Stanthorpe Show is on this coming Friday the 3rd and Saturday the 4th of February. The Stanthorpe Show has a full day of entertainment on the Friday with fabulous fireworks and ring events. There is much more to see and more great entertainment on Saturday. The Stanthorpe Show has something for people of all ages. Fireworks Sponsored by Rebel FM

To obtain a copy of the show schedule and entry forms, dates and times of events, click on the link below:

http://www.granitenet.com.au/groups/tourism/agsociety/show

Southern Downs Regional Council announced today that the Stanthorpe Landfill and Resource Recovery Centre will now open seven days a week (except Christmas Day).

It will also be open an extra half an hour each morning and during the summer months it will open for an additional hour in the evening.

Previously the Centre was closed on Tuesdays.

“These longer hours make it even easier for Stanthorpe residents to dispose of domestic, commercial and recyclable waste appropriately,” said Tim O’Brien, Acting Director Planning & Environment.

“We encourage people who are self-hauling rubbish to the Stanthorpe facility to actively separate their waste into recyclables such as cardboard, glass, plastic, metal (including white goods), construction and demolition waste and green waste,” Mr O’Brien said.

“All of these items are recycled at the Stanthorpe facility, thereby reducing the amount of refuse that goes to landfill and extending the life of our landfill.  Sustainability starts with individuals, partnering with Council services.

“Residents are reminded that domestic waste including furniture, refrigerators and stoves can all be disposed of free of charge at the facility.

“People can also come to the Stanthorpe facility to purchase our high quality garden mulch made from recycled green waste,” Mr O’Brien said.

The extended hours are in line with Council’s waste management strategy and Corporate Plan goals to improve waste management in the Region.

Opening hours are now: 

- Summer (1 Sept - 30 April): 7am - 6pm; 
- Winter (1 May - 31 August): 7am - 5pm. 

For details on opening hours at any Southern Downs waste facility seewww.southerndowns.qld.gov.au.

• Varying levels of expectations about the software provided and its potential for impacting on the lives of seniors. The initial stage of the project sought to meet the basic access needs of the broadest range of seniors in the most accessible way. This was challenging for some kiosks and limiting for others.
• Technical difficulties and adjustments. The project covered both “Greenfields” and existing set-ups, each with its own peculiarities and challenges and with varying levels of on the ground IT expertise.
• Varying levels of enthusiasm from tutors. Some sites for kiosks had histories of recruiting and supporting volunteers while others have struggled.

About the Networkers
We are looking for enthusiastic and suitably experienced contractors in each state and territory of Australia to help build our BFS tutor’s Community of Practice.

Activities would include:
• Maintaining and managing a list of kiosks in state / territory including information about how the kiosk is progressing, whether the tutors are new adopters of technology through to proficient enthusiasts.
• Making contact with as many kiosks as possible via phone, email and face to face visits.
• Providing advice to kiosk coordinators and tutors on recruiting and supporting volunteers, adult learning principles, and ICT.
• Encouraging participation in the Community of Practice by either advertising sessions , inviting tutors to attend activities and posting relevant information on the bulletin board.
• Gathering information about areas where tutors need support and forwarding this to the Coordinator and team in order to plan appropriate Blackboard Collaborate/Elluminate sessions.
• Posting relevant information to the Bulletin Board,
• Taking part in regular team and staff meetings via Elluminate with the Project Coordinator and other Networkers.
Potential / By Negotiation

- The provision of at least one face to face training and networking session in each state or territory for Broadband for Senior tutors.
- Organisers may be called on to offer Blackboard Collaborate/ Elluminate sessions in their area of expertise.
Timeline
Networkers would be expected to start in February 2012. The project concludes in June 2013.
Remuneration
We are looking for one contractor from each state or territory of Australia with their own ABN’s to undertake a contract for the work on a flexible basis.  Contractors would be expected to provide their own IT and internet access, and use their own car if necessary.

WA and Qld
Remuneration of $850 per month is available to the successful applicant/s with an additional $400 per month to reimburse travel expenses.

Victoria, Tasmania, NSW, SA
Remuneration of $850 per month is available to the successful applicants with an additional $200 per month to reimburse travel expenses.

NT
$450 per month with an additional $200 per month to reimburse travel expenses

Selection Criteria

1. Enthusiasm for the Internet and its potential to improve the lives of Senior Australians.
2. Understanding of adult learning principles and experience providing professional development or learning programs for adults.
3. Experience building teams, networks and communities of practice.
4. Experience working with a not for profit community based organisation and / or understanding of community development principles and practices.

Expressions of Interest outlining qualifications and experience and addressing the four selection criteria should be emailed to:

Sally Thompson
Chief Executive Officer
Adult Learning Australia

Applications close on December 17 2011

Hi there:  We at GraniteNet are seeking new volunteers for our Broadband for Seniors Kiosk plus basic software training. If you have any skills that relate to the list below and have some spare time, please feel free to contact us or come on down for a chat.

We currently offer training in the following:

• Microsoft Word
• Microsoft Excel
• Microsoft Publisher
• Google Picasa
• Google Earth

In addition, we also provide assistance with:

• Basic Computer Training
• How To Use The Internet
• Setting Up And Using Email
• Basic Photo Editing
• Anti Virus and Anti Spyware Software advice
• How To Keep Your Computer up-to-date

If you have experience in some of the above or have any general computer knowledge, your time and skills would be greatly appreciated.  As we are a not-for-profit organisation (no government funding - depend entirely upon community involvement) you would be helping citizens of the Granite Belt community to enjoy the benefits of getting online.

Contact Details:

GraniteNet (15 Hilton St) opening times:
Mondays 9am-12 noon
Tuesdays and Wednesdays 9.00 am - 1.00 pm
Fridays 9.00 am - 5.00 pm

Phone: (07) 4681 4384

Email: contact@granitenet.com.au

Opening times will hopefully increase in the future with more volunteers.

We look forward to hearing from you.

“Retweet” – Facebook has “like”, Twitter has “Retweet”. Retweet is simply sharing tweets. If someone posts something of interest, for example “The #Apple&Grape Harvest Festival starts Today!”, then you can click the “Retweet” option at the bottom of the tweet. This adds that tweet to your feed and all of your followers can see that information

.

“Reply” – When you Reply to a tweet, the “tweetbox” automatically inputs the at-tag of the user that you’re Replying to. For example if you Reply to the post “The #Apple&Grape Harvest Festival starts Today!” when Replying to that you’ll be tweeting directly at that tweet, starting a conversation between two people. If they Reply to you, the conversation continues

.

“Favourite” – You can Favourite a tweet as well. Why Favourite? Well that’s simple. If someone links to something or talks about something you really want to read later, perhaps a job advertisement, you can Favourite that tweet. When you Favourite a tweet it adds it to a separate feed so you can easily see all the tweets you really want to read.

We have set up a roster of volunteers to do this and are very willing to put more items on for any community group that have web sites on GraniteNet and also from anyone who has a community oriented activity or event they would like to bring to wider attention.

In addition we are now using Twitter to link these events to a wider audience much like Granite Belt Wine Tourism do with their Twitter links; @GraniteBeltWine.  For example we are now compiling a set of happenings for each weekend for quick reference.  Our Twitter feeds are @Granitenet and @StanthorpeQLD.

If you wish to make use of this please send us the details of your event with dates as appropriate.  This is best in the form of a plain text document and a separate picture to go beside it of about 80kb.  If you have a flyer that can be downloaded such as a .jpg then send us that as well and we can provide a link for it.  You can also send queries to too.

Remember we will only put on community related items, not commercial advertising (this may come later) and the items will disappear from the front page after their use-by date.

Look forward to hearing from you!  Michael Jefferies.

Please either come in and enjoy one of our computer courses or simply give us a donation. Contrary to popular belief we are not government funded, we are purely non-profit.

If you wish to donate email us Here or by telephone at 4681 4384

Signing up for a Twitter account is as easy (if not easier) than signing up to Facebook, so there really should be no trouble in acquiring a Twitter account.  To get started there are a few things that you should know:

Follow – With Twitter instead of having a “friend’s list” you have “followers”. When someone is interested in what you have to say they will “Follow” you, essentially subscribing to see new tweets. In turn, you can also follow anyone that you have an interest in, without there being any confirmation from either party.

#word – The ‘#’ in a “tweet” refers to a subject. If you wanted to say something about Stanthorpe you would include “#stanthorpe” in your tweet so that anyone looking for ‘Stanthorpe’ would be able to easily find it and tweet back to you.

@user – the ‘@’ in a “tweet” is a direction. By typing a person’s username, for example, “@GraniteNet” you are tweeting at that person. That person can then see your tweet whether or not they are ‘following’ you. 

A word of warning before using Twitter: you should never, ever say anything that you wouldn’t say to your mother. Why? Because what you post on Twitter can be seen by everyone no matter what, so be cautious of what you say.

GraniteNet is now teaching the uses of Twitter for individuals and for businesses at a reasonable cost. Call us at 4681 4384 or via Twitter @GraniteNet.

To contact us about twitter

There is an Ebook to download, detailing more on the use of Twitter (large pdf. approx 19MB).

Have you thought to yourself ‘I’d like to try Tai Chi’. Let 2011 be the year you do! Tai Chi for Health is back on at the YMCA and instructor Karen Zanolini knows first hand the many HEALTH BENEFITS Tai Chi offers. For the busy worker, Karen runs a Tuesday evening class from 5.30pm to 6.30pm. For those with more time, the Tai Chi for beginnings class is Thursday mornings from 9.30am to 10.30am. The Tai Chi advanced class still runs form 10.30am to 11.30am and all are welcome. Karen teaches a Yang style Tai Chi suitable for everyone and encourages you to come and try for yourself. Join Tai Chi to improve your health, strengthen your body and mind while at the same time enjoying the relaxing exercise/art of Tai Chi. For only $7.00 per session this ancient Chinese practice looks after you from head to toe. For further information please contact Karen on 4685 2108.

Contact Suzie on 4681 3556

Donations to the Mayor's Appeal can be made at the Suncorp Bank in Stanthorpe as well as the Queensland Country Credit Union.

This is called ABC Feral Month, click here to go to it but note it can load quite slowly.

Photo c Animal Control Technologies.

“Young Ambassadors (Warwick) and Young Delegates (Stanthorpe) are committed young people who work with Community Youth Workers to make the area more youth-friendly by organising exciting events and projects,” Ms Stebbings said.

“The YA and YD programs have always been a great success, that's why we need some high-energy young residents to take on the challenge in 2011.”

Ms Stebbings said young people had a lot to gain by getting involved.

“It is a fantastic learning opportunity to mix with other people, create new friendships, develop leadership skills and build self-confidence,” Ms Stebbings said.

To be eligible for the programs applicants must be under 25, be motivated to make a difference for youth in the Southern Downs region, and also must be available to attend a compulsory training weekend in February 2011.

To be eligible for the programs applicants must be under 25, be motivated to make a difference for youth in the Southern Downs region, and also must be available to attend a compulsory training weekend in February 2011.

Young Ambassador application packs are available from the Warwick Town Hall youth office or at www.southerndowns.qld.gov.au.

Young Delegate application packs are available from Stanthorpe Community Development Services, www.granitenet.com.au and at www.sou therndowns.qld.gov.au.

Applicants are urged to treat their nomination like a job application.

Young Ambassador queries should be directed to Bonita Tyler on 46617166, or email .

For Young Delegate inquiries, contact Rebecca Schroder on 46810925 or email .