selbyfest 2014, community at its best

Congratulations to organisers of the 2014 Selbyfest, a great celebration of all that is community in the hills. Centered around Selby Community House and the Minak Reserve, one of the shire's top 10% of high biodiversity reserves.

That's the Kettle TeaHouse behind me (in the dome),
a lush space full of soft furnishings, yummy cakes and
of course tea, a wonderful addition to Selbyfest.

The day was jam packed with plenty of activities, showcasing the broad range of talented hills folk. There was an extraordinary range of community stalls, highlighting the many activities going on locally, whether it be arts, landcare, fashion, wild animals, there was something for everyone at Selbyfest.



Selby Primary provided great entertainment, their rendition
of Eye of the Tiger was terrific,



Local brigade, Selby CFA, were well represented, providing traffic management and car parking coordination and of course the sausage sizzle, they report a good day out with 400 snags sold on the day. There was plenty of food to choose from and it was great to see many local food businesses selling their wares at Selbyfest.

Captain Koala made an appearance - thanks
Selby CFA!

Great to see local community radio station 3MDR there, with a live broadcast going all day as well as an exhibitor stall to fly the 3MDR flag.

Hugs for Kids (in Belgrave) kicked off the fashion parade,
Bec doing some rousting of her models. Hugs for Kids
prides itself and unique, handmade and locally made products.

The fashion parade is one of the Selbyfest highlights and I was delighted to be able to MC this year's parade once again. I was also very pleased to give special recognition to Tracey Van Vloten, Selby Community House Program Coordinator, she's been the driving force behind the organisation of Selbyfest and in accepting her gift she said "it takes a village".

The Limerence models strut their stuff, Limerence
is located in Belgrave and stock all Australian made
fashion and art. It's great to see this local business
participate in Selbyfest. The shoes were supplied by
new local business in Upwey, Shoe Boutique.

Selbyfest is a great example of community, my thanks to all the volunteers who make it happen, they do it freely and are very committed to the local community. Yarra Ranges Council is proud to be able to support Selbyfest through our Community Festivals grant program.

In an impromptu catwalk, Tracey struts her stuff and
her gift for her outstanding efforts coordinating
Selbyfest.

The Voicemob performance was captivating,
bringing together a number of hills choirs, this is the
4th official flashmob performance of Voicemob, a project
aimed at encouraging flashmob signing, singing and dancing.