ABC Friends WA held a stall at the Vic Park Community Market, John Macmillan Park, Kent Street, on Sunday 29 October 2023.

L to R: Liz Millward, Treasurer; Cathy Bardon, President; Danelle Baxter, Committee. Photo by John Macgowan, Secretary. Jenny Meyrick, VP, also attended.

We had had a stall at these markets before, in November 2021. The market is run by Rotary and they will provide a marquee and table for a small fee, which saves time and organization. This market had a Halloween theme – we printed a little poster on theme, which can just be seen – and Rotary supplied small lolly bags for children whose parents agreed.

Many of the visitors to the market are young families with small children. Unfortunately many of the parents did not claim to be ABC viewers or listeners, but their children watched ABC children’s programs. Mention should be made of the gentleman who read our email and decided to cycle to the market, got lost on the way but still made it eventually and had a chat! We sold some tote bags and gave away stickers.

Our flyer for the day detailed how ABC funding has not been fully restored, using figures from ABC Alumni. The second page summarises the newspaper situation in the WA regions, emphasizing how important ABC regional reporting is. There are no printed daily newspapers in WA other than Perth-based The West Australian.

Cathy Bardon
President
ABC Friends WA