Yarra Ranges National Seniors
A warm welcome to Yarra Ranges Branch of the NSA. (covering approximately the Yarra Ranges Council Map area of the Yarra Ranges and Yarra Valley). We are a friendly, inclusive and active Branch of over 50s with a voice to Government.
Guests and visitors are most welcome to join us at any of our - Meetings (held on the 2nd Monday of the month) at the Lillydale Lake Comunity Room, Lilydale Lake Road, Lilydale. Our Guest Speakers are interesting, informative and cover many subjects.
Also we are involved in many Activities - 'Out & About', 'Dining Out', Saturday and Wednesday Walks and a variety of Entertainment (live theatre, Musicals, films and Ballet etc).
This Branch was first formed in 2006 and has during this time supported a variety of charities to improve the welfare of the community.
Happy Birthdays and Congratulations to.
5 July - Trevor
17 July – Lynne L
18 July- Caroline
27 July – John K
14 August – Ross
15 August – Chris H
17 August – Ruth W
22 August – Boris
24 August – Alan
27 August – Julia J
30 August - Adrian
Our President's Report
Hi Members,
Another two months have gone bye. All the train trips & dine outs have been well attended. Both meetings of our 20th Anniversary with cake & our NSA CEO Chris & the ‘Lamplighter’ presentation were great. I think there was 43 attending the ‘Dine Out’ at Eastwood Golf Club, Kilsyth. We are looking for a new venue for our Christmas breakup and it seems like a great function area for it.
Sending best to all those who have been in hospital over the last few months. See you at our July Dinner Meeting at The Crown Lilydale at 6.30 pm. Look forward to seeing everyone there.
Happy reading
Trevor President
General Information
MEMBERSHIP FEES
Please ensure you use the ‘Yarra Ranges NSA Application Forms’ at the end of our ‘Grapevine’ News Letter (downloadable from this Website) and then give it to the Branch Secretary(Lyn). By using our form this informs NSA that you are a member of this Branch. The Branch receives an annual payment for your Membership.
EVENT ATTENDANCE
Everyone needs to please text or email Chris with any changes they want to make after they have put their name down for an ‘Outing & About’ / ‘Dining Out’ / ‘Morning Melodies’. Also, if you put their name down for an ‘Outing & About’ / ‘Dining Out’ / ‘Morning Melodies’ please make sure you put it in your diary, so you don’t overlook or forget what you have made a commitment that day.
WELFARE INFORMATION
Please contact Steve, our Welfare Officer, if you know of anyone who is unwell, having an operation, in need of help or has passed away within the family.
COMMUNITY INFORMATION
JP facilities are available at the Croydon & Lilydale Police Station on the following days and times –
Croydon Tuesdays 10.00am to 1.00pm Lilydale Thursdays 10.00am to 1.00pm
CONTRIBUTE TO OUR NEWSLETTER
Have you been travelling? Have you attended a good show? Have you read a good book? Is there something you have experienced, that you would like to share with the members of the Branch? A story? One-liners? Photos from outings? Contact Lyn.
GUEST SPEAKERS for our branch meetings
If you have a suggestion for a ‘Guest Speaker’ please let a Committee Member know.
2026 Casey Community Award
Aaron Violi Federal Member for Casey held his Award Ceremony on Saturday 30 May 2026. A couple of YRNSA Branch Members had nominated for one of our Members to receive an award due to their support within our Branch and to the wider community.
We managed to keep the Award as a secret surprise from Chris our Activities Coordinator. It was only when we arrived at the venue, did she realise what was happening.
Aaron thanked everyone for joining him to celebrate the true backbone of our community our volunteers. He went on to say – They are the unsung heros who often work behind the scenes and away from the spotlight yet their impact is felt by everyone. To all the volunteers here today, thank you for your service to our community. Your dedication and hard work make our community a better place to call home.
Congratulations our Chris!
V-LINE TRAIN TO MACEDON
It was an early start to catch the train from Lilydale to Southern Cross for the Bendigo train to Macedon. It was a lovely cool autumn day with the trees in their golden leaf colours with Mount Macedon in the background. The cross on the top is not visible from this side of the mountain. It is only visible from the Highway side.
There is a small village near the station, with the main town of Macedon 4½klms away. We went in search of the obligatory coffee and found a great café further down the street. Everyone agreed that it was the BEST COFFEE at ‘Gogo’s Café’.
The Macedon Village Hotel is cosy and friendly with big wide windows looking out to Mount Macedon (see photo on the right). The food was very good and a good variety to choose from. It was only a short walk across the road to the
rail station. We chose to catch an earlier train home. The trains are crowded due to the free ticket fares until the end of May, but we managed to find seats coming and going. Another good day out! Thanks Chris
V-LINE COACH to YARCK
It was a little low cloud as we headed out of Lilydale at 10am for Yarck. After going through Yarra Glen and up Mount Slide to the undulating countryside with small pockets of low cloud in the valleys and the sun shining. It was good to be able to concentrate on the beautiful scenery instead of the road when driving. The coaches are very comfortable.
At 11.30am we arrived at Yarck to ‘Where can we get a coffee?’ The Harvest
Organic Market & Café provided the best coffee and yummy blueberry muffins. They are also a wholefood bulk supply place with pulses, lentils, flours, nuts etc. The Yarck Hotel proved to be the best option for a relaxing lunch. The steaks are definitely recommended with Seniors meal only $16.00.
The return V-Line Coach from Mansfield would arrive about 2.00pm so in the meantime we wandered the small main street discovering the Bucks Bakehouse,
Mechanics Institute, Church, War Memorial and a plaque to Hume & Hoe who passed through this area in 1824.
A lovely day out in the countryside.
Thank you Chris.
July & August 2026
Yarra Ranges Grapevine
May & June 2026
Yarra Ranges Grapevine
March & April 2026
Yarra Ranges Grapevine
January & February 2026
Yarra Ranges Grapevine
November/December 2025
Yarra Ranges Grapevine
September/October 2025
Yarra Ranges Grapevine
