iHeart Upper Hunter

Political candidates chasing votes in the Upper Hunter have been warned to keep the issues close to home. We chat with Liz Ritchie from the Regional Australia Institute on why your vote will matter. 

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Freshly graduated from the Police Academy, mother-of-two Kate relies on many layers of support to fulfill her long held ambition to work as an officer in her home town of Scone.  

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Is Muswellbrook about to usurp Bundaberg as the rum capital of Australia? 

Sydney Rum Distillery CEO Steve McGarry has big plans to turn the old milk factory into a mecca for rum aficionados.

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He's barely off his P's, but Denman's Rylan Gray is a gun racing driver, who is finding out just what it takes to make it to the Supercars main game.

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Forget Farmer Wants a Wife.  In this episode, we chat to a few of the 400 members of Solo Socials Upper Hunter group about what it's really like to be single and ready to mingle in Muswellbrook.  

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From helping to heal the heartbreak of the Greta bus tragedy, to being in the thick of a rugby scrum, Gerard MacMillan is one of Singleton's finest, with an Order of Australia medal to prove it.

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The picture perfect village of Mitchell's Flat is hardly what you'd describe as "nimby" territory,  but locals can't see the sunny side of plans to put 170-Thousand solar panels onto prime farming land. 

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27-year-old Rolanda Clout-Collins wears more than the one Akubra -  farmer, trusted accountant and agricultural advocate for the Upper Hunter.  She's being touted as a future leader in all things farming, including the mental health wellbeing for anyone on the land. 

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There's a lot of dirt under fingernails out Merriwa way.  

The town's community nursery has its sights set on growing thousands of trees, but it's also nurturing more than just garden beds. 

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Step inside the garages of Wayne Murphy & Geoff Button and discover what drives them to collect iconic classic cars, and why they think the EV generation need to have  a little more respect for what's revved before! 

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Kerry Patford is the Chief nurse of the McGrath's Foundation, and she leads an army of 300+ breast care nurses, including those in the Upper Hunter. Kerry believes women diagnosed in regional areas should be putting themselves first to improve their outcomes.

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Mayor Sue Moore has been in Singleton Council for 25 years, and she's just been re-elected for another term.

The desire to make Singleton the jewel of the Upper Hunter, still burns fiercely in this local government warrior! 

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It's one of the craziest Olympic sports - Modern Pentathlon - running, swimming, show-jumping, fencing & pistol shooting!  And Singleton's Geneveive van ResBurg is fresh from the Paris Olympics, contemplating whether she's up for another Games in 4 years time. 

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He grew up in Murrurundi, and spruiks the real value of growing and utilising local produce. Paul West fondly recalls how his upbringing has shaped many of his menus in his journey as a TV chef. 

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Three earthquakes in 30 days... 30 aftershocks. How well prepared is Muswellbrook and surrounding areas should the unthinkable happen, and we get a really big shaker!  

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There's not much that unsettles Troy Stolz - whistleblower, gambling reform advocate, cancer combatant.   

Now he believes the residents of the Upper Hunter could do with his straight talking  style in local council, so this is what he stands for. 

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Stuart Forrest from Singleton Heights is a lucky guy.  

He takes us step by step through what happens when you are bitten by a brown snake, and what not to do!  And he is truly grateful for the council crew that saved him.   

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Merriwa residents Warwick Edden and Mark Fitzroy have no beef about getting the Goulburn River Solar & Battery Storage Farm in their backyard. But they are pretty steamed over how Ringwood Road is not being upgraded to deal with a massive increase in truck traffic. 

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She's a trailblazer for women in Emergency Services, and Deanna has been on the frontline of many crisis events in the Upper Hunter. But her real passion is helping other women break down barriers in what has been a mainly male domain. 

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