HEATED debate, handicraft and home-style cooking will all feature in Griffith this week when the Country Women’s Association of NSW (CWA) “road show” rolls into town.
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CWA will kick off its 92nd annual conference today at the showground, with the official opening and the event running until Thursday.
Up to 1000 members from around the state have converged on Griffith, booking out most of the available accommodation.
They are expected to inject around $1 million into the Griffith economy while here.
State president Tanya Cameron said the 2014 annual conference will continue the tradition of bringing together members over a four-day event to debate motions and issues.
She said the biggest issue on the agenda was the possible sale of their Potts Point head office.
A pair of delegates from each branch attending this week’s conference will be asked to vote on the proposed sale of the Sydney headquarters and club residences, valued at $12.5 million.
The association’s state executive received an engineer’s report last year that said in the short term, the five-storey building (with basement car park) required repair works to meet Australian Safety Standards to the tune of $1.7m and to maintain the building to a “medium standard” it would cost about $3 million.
“We will be debating all sorts of issues, the majority of them are branch issues,” she said. “The possible sale of our property is big and will be a closed debate on Tuesday morning.
“It’s hard to tell what will happen. Obviously some members are emotionally upset about the possibilities. We will just have to wait and see.”
Other motions to be debated include that Lyme disease is recognised as a legitimate medical condition and exists in Australia and that European Red Foxes (Vulpes Vulpes) cannot be bred, rescued for being kept or re-homed into a domestic environment in any way and that the foxes be declared feral in line with other Australian states.
NSW Land and Water Commissioner Jock Laurie will be keynote speaker at the official opening this morning.
Conference speakers will include founder of the Lighthouse Surgery and Scholarship Fund and winner of the 2013 Telstra NSW Business Woman of the Year Business Owner Award Dr Jennifer Wray and inspirational local speaker Gordon McCaw.
Art, china painting, handicraft and “The Land Cookery” entries will be on display and open to the public until Thursday morning, with some items available for purchase.