Youngsters Fairlie McLean and Katelyn Groenveld were kept entertained by Vanessa Kydd (back) and Georgia Groenveld at the Xtravaganza.
2025 was certainly a year of great accomplishments and community commitments; from the overnight visits of the Lions Need For Feed stop over in January and again in March, to an Xmas Xtravaganza held on December 20 the residents of Finley can be proud of.
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Need for Feed came about back in 2006/7 thanks to the actions of one Lions Club member Graham Cockerell who, after delivering a load of his own hay to farmers burnt out in East Gippsland, decided to do something about it.
Several school reunions were also held throughout the year including Finley High School Class of 1974, Classes 1970/75 and Finley St Joseph’s Class of 1964.
Finley Rotaract Club members over the years 1971 to 1992 also held a reunion in October, with many former teenagers attending.
There were many family reunions, including that of the Mathesons who played a large part in the establishment of Finley and surrounding areas.
Finley Public School celebrated 130 years of education in October with great enthusiasm, culminating in the burying of a time capsule later in the year to be reopened as part of the 150 years celebrations in 2045.
Finley High School is extremely proud of the establishment of the Anzac Memorial Area which came about thanks to some grants and financial assistance from Student Representative Council, Berrigan RSL Sub-branch, Finley High School P & C, Berrigan CWA, Finley Rotary Club, Finley Menshed (mural and other projects) and Finley RSL Sub-branch.
Finley High School Year 10 students gave astonishing coverage of stories of relatives and locals who took part in World War I and World War II, which were spread out over several weeks of publication.
Mental health was addressed in many ways over the past 12 months.
A dream of Bernie Thomson’s came to fruition when the Blue Tree project was carried out near Murray Irrigation on the Newell Highway in February and, of course, the ‘Unlocking Hope’ sessions organised by Berrigan Shire Dementia Alliance have proved to be of considerable help in understanding what some families are experiencing.
Finley LHAC (Local Health Advisory Committee) came on board with visiting guest speakers, as well as routine reports to keep the community informed.
The Anglican Parish of the Newell - which consists of Holy Trinity, Finley; St Alban the Martyr, Tocumwal and St. Stephen’s, Jerilderie - was excited to celebrate its centenary in Finley in October.
Work on the Finley Health Service redevelopment began, and will result in Finley and the surrounding areas having access to many health services, which otherwise would have involved travelling to other towns.
Consistent reports have been coming in from Finley PCP (Passionate Community Participants) on the progress of the community owned property working towards a future fund that will be available for community members and service clubs to embark on projects that otherwise may have been out of reach financially.
One cannot overlook the hard work carried out by local volunteers, which has resulted in donations and contributions to the needs of the community from so many local organisations.
These include the Finley Secondhand Shop, Finley Men’s Shed, the two Finley Op Shops, as well as the many service clubs.
The Finley Art Network has provided the opportunity for local artists to display their works and provides a venue for allowing them to further their accomplishments.
Another highlight was the most recent project of several Rotary Clubs, including Finley and Tocumwal, to bring the HALT program to our area.
This resulted in incredible support from business houses and individuals donning purple T-shirts and other items on Tuesday, November 25 to promote awareness of domestic violence.
The annual Christmas Xtravaganza brought the year’s celebrations to a close on December 20 when a large number of families, friends and visitors came together at the Finley Memorial Park to celebrate the festive season.
Perhaps the most important achievement for Finley was the success of the younger members of our community, who continue to excel in so many ways.
Academically and in the sporting arena, they have given their best, particularly in Little Athletics, swimming, tennis, football, other sports.
And there was also the Finley High School students’ chess championships which took place recently with three groups – Novice, Year 7 and the Master Class.
May 2026 see Finley continue to flourish and be the community we are all so proud to belong to.
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Items for ‘From Finley’ may be submitted by phoning 0428 293 922, emailing anne.freestone@bigpond.com, or left at the Southern Riverina News office.
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Christmas Lighting Awards winners Aaron Saviour and Jess Patrick, with dogs Tasha and Tiger, were happy to show the results of their hard work.
The Butterfield, Williams and Wall families enjoyed the recent Xmas Xtravaganza.
Eagle I Machinery team members (from left) Dela Gargaro, Bec Gargaro, Leanne Marshall, Tatiana Acevedo, Yonathen Ramirez, Greg Berryman, Louis Breytenbach, Ricardo Elkin and Matt Clarke support the HALT program.
Jack, Ella and Charlie Bunnett made a lovely picture at the Xtravaganza.
Christine and Dayle Malseed from Quality Meats supported the HALT program.
