The Bega Pioneers' Museum was this year given the bound copies of the Bega District News which had been held at the former BDN office in Carp Street. The earliest bound copy given to the Museum was for 1945 and for this week's Looking Back we will take its stories from the 1945 papers. This one was in the January 15, 1945 edition.
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Teaching Swimming
THE junction, the well-known bathing pool below the town, was the scene of great activity on Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, when two young ladies from the NSW Amateur Swimming Association, Misses Channon and Simmons, gave instruction in swimming to about 85 children.
With the Mayor and Mayoress and the town clerk, the news editor visited the scene on Tuesday morning.
None of the children could swim a stroke before the instructions, and it was remarkable to see how, after such a short course, they could swim.
A start was made by teaching them to float, then dog paddle, and finally to use the crawl stroke.
The following gained proficiency certificates for distances from 15 to 35 yards, and they were very proud to get the certificates, which were nicely printed: - John Deacon, Kathleen Woods, Lorna Grant, Keith Beresford, Russell Wood, Isabel Pender, Dorothy Kydd, Margaret Flanagan, Mary Harris, Norma Deacon, Henry Deacon, Nola Fourter, Dorothy Connell, John Rheinberger, Cecile Wakeling, Lawrence Hergenhan, Arthur Pascall, June Pender, Ron Cooper, Barbara Taylor, Kevin Watson, Peter Hayes, Norma Luff, Ailsa Cazneau, Joan Woods, Mary Foley, Dawn Smith, Jean Ubrihien, Nedra Armstrong, Rhonda Smith, John Millard, Joan Brunton, Bert Watson, John Baird, Peter Rheinberger, Michael Guthrey, Eddie Koellner, Ted Whales.
The children who did not gain certificates were all able to swim a few yards, Miss Channon was very pleased with the results and especially at the regular attendances, which she said was the best they had on the coast.
Miss Channon is on the staff of Manly High School and has given up her holidays to carry out these classes, while Miss Simmons is a clerk in a city office.
They are not paid for their services. On off times here they were taken to the butter factory, Errina cheese factory, to Mr Ubrihien's dairy and to Tathra, while they also went to the dance at Brogo on Monday night.
The swimming classes, which were sponsored by Bega Council, were a great success, and the Town Clerk, Mr Laws, gave a lot of time to the organising.
Hospital subsidy
In January 1945 Mr Jack Beale MLA was informed by the Minister for Health that the Health Commission had determined the subsidy for the current year at 2136 pounds, an increase of 384 pounds on the existing subsidy.