Royal South Street Society | BMI Community Partner
I imagine everyone knows what RSSS stands for, but in case you don’t it’s Royal South Street Society and here at the BMI, we are all about RSSS for the months of July, August and into September . We are so pleased to welcome RSSS into the building as their competition season kicks off along with the brand new Schimmel grand piano that now “lives” in our building and will be able to be utilised by performers as part of our venue hire moving forward, through special arrangement.
The special arrangement will be with our Community Partners RSSS. It is lovely to hear the tinkle of many talented performers in the Minerva Room, and see the constant flow of competitors and their supporters as they come through our doors. If you would like to attend any of the sections, tickets are available at the door.
The Royal South Street Society is delighted to have been selected as a finalist in the 2025 Community Bank Buninyong Spark Tank Community Event alongside some other wonderful local organisations. We now have the opportunity to pitch our idea for some music equipment to support our Instrumental and Choral programs! Best wishes to everyone involved…what a fabulous community initiative! Huge thanks to the Community Bank Buninyong for their ongoing support of so many local organisations and initiatives.
The Royal Treasure Trail is an exciting new initiative by the Royal South Street Society (RSSS) Ballarat Eisteddfod, designed to share and promote our fabulous local businesses to over 20,000 attendees throughout the 2025 eisteddfod season.
Embark on a journey through Ballarat and uncover fantastic spots to eat, shop, and explore. Every must-see location on the map offers its own special way of welcoming you in, and if you mention RSSS… who knows what extra surprises might await!
Download your Royal Treasure Trail map and uncover something unexpected…
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The Hooper Room
The Hooper Room has received a bit of a makeover courtesy of the funds received from the State Government recently provided to the 9 remaining active Mechanics’ Institutes across the State. This first stage is replacement of the light fittings, and
a new lectern and headset microphone for workshops and talks has been purchased. The carpet will also be cleaned shortly and this will make this significant space once again more appealing for small groups and our internal events.
The Ballarat Chess Club continues to utilise our spaces for their weekly competitions and have been doing so for a very long time. In fact this year marks the 100 year anniversary of the match between Geelong and Ballarat that is featured in the photo that hangs in the Hooper Room. This
anniversary will be commemorated on August 10, when the two clubs come face to face in our
building once again. The Club are taking the opportunity to utilize the original chess tables that have been used in our Lending Library for some time, and to record the occasion with a new
photograph. We are so pleased to continue to be the venue of choice for the Chess Club and wish them every success on the day.
The Little Brass Band: Raise a Glass to Brass
August 10 is a popular day for BMI events, as we prepare for the BMI Fundraiser entitled Raise a Glass to Brass, conceptualised by and featuring The Little Brass Band. This generous group have prepared a wonderful program of around 2 hours, featuring many favourite tunes (older and more recent) and will definitely include something for everyone. Enjoy the warm ambience and heating in the Minerva, purchase a drink and enjoy some nibbles, all for a good cause (details are featured in the events insert). Thanks so much again to The Little Brass Band for this amazing opportunity to fundraiser for the BMI.
National Science Week
We are once again participating in National Science Week with a talk by Professor John Long on The Secret History of Sharks – this will happen on August 15. For those of you who don’t know, this year the 50 year anniversary of Jaws the major motion picture – come along to learn more about why these creatures were the perfect subject for this iconic film! (unfortunately we won’t be screening the Jaws as there is a marketing embargo due to the celebration of the 50 year anniversary).
Twilight Talks – Season 3, 4 & 5
In the first talk for the Spring Series, Hedley Thomson will reveal many unknown facts about Henry Lawson.
The young Henry visited Ballarat, specifically to ‘bone up’ on the happenings at Eureka on Sunday 3rd December 1854; he proceeded to write numerous poems and prose pieces about the ‘battle’ and – more so – the effects of its outcome on the developing Australian national identity; that many of his pieces mention Ballarat in the same context?
As with so many of our iconic personalities across our history, there’s much that is not well-known about their lives and achievements. Henry Lawson is a case in point, with the special appeal that in 1889, as a twenty two-year old, he actually came to Ballarat and that the visit materially affected his subsequent writings over the course of his nearly forty-year career.
To help make up for that deficiency, as the first of the Ballarat Mechanics’ Institute’s Spring 2025 ‘Twilight Talks’, Hedley Thomson – local actor and a big Lawson fan – will be presenting a talk on Lawson’s time in Ballarat, which will include performances of several of the more notable pieces (both poetry and prose) that Lawson was inspired to write following his Ballarat visit.
Keep an eye on our Talks Webpage as information on the Spring Series is confirmed.
Vintage & Preloved Clothing Shop – Fashion Parade
Sunday 14 September, 2pm – 4pm | Minerva Room
This popular event will be back in September.
Complimentary Champagne will be served upon arrival. We will have two categories of seating surrounding the Catwalk. It will be lots of fun which will including entertainment and Silent Auction. Tell all your friends to come and enjoy.
Cost: $50 per person for the front catwalk section & $35 for section 2 section (plus booking fee, includes gst.)
Governance
Behind the scenes the Board continues work on governance issues, including the HR audit, overseeing the review of operational policies and procedures at Venue Management level including OH&S, work towards adherence to the National Child Safe Standards and ensuring compliance with the new National Standards for Volunteer Involvement, amongst other things. We are still waiting to hear the outcomes from 2 key grant applications which if successful will allow us to press on with much needed maintenance in and around the building.
Cathy Drake
I would like to thank Cathy Drake for her outstanding and lengthy service as a Board Director and Company Secretary. Cathy has resigned from the Board due to time commitments in other areas and we will greatly miss her guidance and expertise, especially of course for her legal experience. A search for new Directors is now underway, considering the overall skill set requirements to achieve the strategic aims of the organisation.
End of Financial Year Appeal
Thank you to everyone who assisted us with the End of Financial Year Appeal, we depend on this support every year and continue to improve efficiencies and carefully monitor expenditure to honour these contributions.
Paula Nicholson
