GOULBURN’S 150th anniversary is an opportunity for the district’s citizens to openly show pride in the place they call home as well as highlighting the city’s past.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The city has been known, for the entirety of its history, as a centre for sheep and wool growing.
The Goulburn group of the Knitters Guild of NSW came up with a project to include people who would not otherwise be able to participate and share their pride and connection to the city during the month of celebrations.
The knitters have enlisted the support of Waminda and Warrigal Care aged care facilities in their quest to create a 30- metre long and one and a half metre wide scarf for the city’s iconic Big Merino.
So far there are about 26 metres of the scarf completed but the guild is still looking for more people to be involved in helping to piece the wrap together and/or creating some of the knitting that is going into the scarf.
Spokesperson for the group Susan McDonnell said it has been very exciting seeing the people at work knitting sections.
It is something that they can be part of and it will be recorded as an historic event in the City’s history.
“It is a unique opportunity to be able to tell the grandchildren and great grand children that they participated in this project,” Ms McDonnell said.
“Our contributors are really excited about being part of this and just talking about it brings a smile of enthusiasm to their faces.
“The scarf is being gifted to the owners of the Big Merino who intend to wrap it around the icon as part of the 150th celebrations.
“No doubt the scarf will be an added attraction to bring people to the Big Merino to be photographed with it while it is wearing its colourful wrap.
“It will be another reason to visit Goulburn,” Ms McDonell said.
“I am hoping we will be able to provide each of the participants with a photograph of the Big Merino with its wrap as a record of their part in this project,” Ms McDonnell said it was a little disappointing that they had to use acrylic yarn instead of wool, however the dyes in wool tended to run when wet and had the potential to permanently stain the concrete in the icon.
“The scarf is an array of bright colours which we could not achieve with real wool and we are assured of the colourfastness of the yarn,” she said.
“It should be a real stand out feature and attract a lot of attention and the participants are already feeling very proud that they can be part of Goulburn’s 150th birthday celebrations in this way.”
People who would like to lend a hand in completing the scarf before March 8, the handover day, can contact either Lynne Mortimer on 4821 4686 or Susan McDonnell on 4821 3418
