[box]We encourage readers to write a letter to Bluestone Magazine if you have something to say, or a special event to promote. Write to us at editor@bluestonemagazine.com.au.[/box]

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #8F9F59;”] D [/dropcap]ear Editor,

I am writing to you on behalf of many voices within South West Victoria regarding an issue that can no longer be ignored.

Quality training for those in our local community who wish to fulfil their dream of becoming a successful chef in our region is out of reach.

Our hospitality industry is growing in leaps and bounds, but trained professionals are nowhere to be found.

Why?

We no longer offer cookery students a place to blossom and learn paramount skills here in Warrnambool or surrounds.

How do I know this? I drop my partner off at the Warrnambool train station each Monday morning at 5:30am to go to the city of Geelong to attend the Gordon TAFE to fulfil her dreams.

This has serious consequences.

Serious consequences for individuals, industry and the communities here within South West Victoria.

I hear of many people from Warrnambool, Portland, Hamilton, Horsham who work within the industry and then have to source the time, energy and money to travel to the city of Geelong to the Gordon TAFE to undertake their full day cookery classes.

Safety and knowledge for the student, productivity for the local food establishment, and long term community benefit are all suffering from cookery training no longer being offered through South West TAFE.

A once bustling TAFE restaurant now sits empty. Another industrial-sized kitchen at Brauer College sits awaiting eager hands once more. Two ‘A’ class facilities left to gather dust and cobwebs.

We are a progressive and fast growing city and region. We must demand quality tertiary education for those who wish to better themselves. We have an obligation to individuals, industry and the community to provide high level training and skills within our fast growing and highly popular food and hospitality industry here in this region.

No longer as a community can we remain complacent with this current situation.

Action is needed now before we all become losers in this current no winner scenario.

Roxanne Thomson, Warrnambool.

[box]You can write to us at editor@bluestonemagazine.com.au Please include a full name, address and contact number. Letters are published at our discretion and may be edited for length or clarity.[/box]

Older letters here…

Walk in memory of a working class man

Milk processing plant location needs forward thinking

Hello subscribers and Bluestone readers,

Thankyou to those people on our newsletter list who provided us with feedback on what you enjoy about Bluestone and the ideas you have for our continued growth.

What we have heard is that you enjoy the sense of community that Bluestone has fostered in the south west in past 18 months, and many of you have subscribed because you don’t want to lose that. Thankyou!

A lot of you have also subscribed because you enjoy our focus on the arts, and people, and stories that highlight the positive aspects of the region.

An equally large group like that we ask the hard questions of those in power and have subscribed to help us continue our analysis and investigations of the local issues that affect our community.

We will continue this balance of stories, but we are also making changes to Bluestone as a result of your feedback.

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”] M [/dropcap]ore rewards for subscribers:

A large part of the feedback from subscribers is that we give away too many stories for free – and that this deterred people from subscribing.

We think the time is right to password protect more stories, giving early access to subscribers only.

[box]A fresh password will be sent to subscribers monthly via email. (Check your emails for the March password.)[/box]

We have also introduced a free photo service for subscribers. If you would like a free high-res copy of an image taken by Bluestone, simply email us.

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”] Y [/dropcap]our letters page:

We’ve also decided to create a space for more public debate and from this edition you’ll see a “Your letters” section.

Subscribers and non-subscribers will be welcome to submit letters, short or long (up to 800 words) about any local issue, but publication is at our discretion.

You will have to provide a name and contact details for your letters, but only your name will be published.

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #DC943C;”] M [/dropcap]ore contributors from the community:

 

We welcome ideas and contributions from those doing interesting work in the community that they would like to share.

This edition, we have the team behind the Big Life project – Michael Barling and Sean Kenny – writing about how it all works.

If you would like to write a piece for Bluestone, email us with your idea and we can see if it fits with the focus of our magazine: editor@bluestonemagazine.com.au

We hope our subscribers like the direction we are heading and that more readers will make the leap from reading us, to supporting us.

Thanks again for taking the time to respond to our survey.

Louise and Carol, co-editors, Bluestone Magazine.

March 15, 2015