Established in 1981 as the
proudly serving Melton and Moorabool
19 NOVEMBER, 2024
Marking 40 years on air
(Ljubica Vrankovic) 442233_04
After 40 years of working in community radio, Melton Community Radio DJ Duane Zigliotto is more passionate than ever. Mr Zigliotto, who started as a promoter, found his passion for radio when a spot came up at Triple R for a 2am time slot. “From that, it started and then I moved on and created three different shows,” he said. “One is an Italian show, one is a Eurovision show, and one is an international music show.” All three shows aired on Melton Community Radio. “Currently, I’m on air Monday and Tuesday, and it’s actually probably three hours to produce a show,“ Mr Zigliotto said. “I have been doing it for a long time, and you develop a lot of context, I know a lot of people now, so it’s much easier than when I first started.” Besides his musical endeavours, Mr Zigliotto is also a radio production trainer. After 40 years in the studio, Mr Zigliotto said he’s learned a thing or two. “These days, community radio is more important than commercial radio because you get more messages out there,” he said. “In the last four, five years, I’ve noticed that there’s more people listening to community radio.”
Spreading Christmas joy By Faith Macale Spending Christmas Day in the hospital is not a common thing for most people, but for terminally ill children, that is the norm. Melton local Daniel Roberts’ son contracted bronchiolitis and Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) at just two months old and spent a week in hospital. This drove Mr Roberts to raise funds for terminally ill kids through Very Special Kids. “It was about a week in hospital with feeding tubes and oxygen, and it was a challenging week,” he said. “It was hard to see your kid go through that. “It would be even harder if my kid was terminally ill or had cancer or if they’ve got a short life expectancy.”
One night, while scrolling through TikTok, Mr Roberts found Very Special Kids, and from then, started a GoFundMe to raise money for sick children. “It helps kids with terminal cancer, different disorders that shorten their life expectancy,” he said. “It’s also about the parents trying to cope in those times.” “Expenses for hospitals, medical treatment, just general needs … it could be just as simple as just formulas. Mr Roberts said he heard stories from other parents when his son was in the hospital. “They’re talking about their kids in the ICU and hospice, it also got to me,” he said. “Coming up to Christmas, we enjoy buying all your kids presents, but we’ve got to do something nice, and give support to kids who
need it.” Like striking a spark that lit up big flames, Mr Roberts has raised $600, surpassing his initial goal of $500. “Family, my wife, people at church, and friends, all the credit goes to them,” he said. “I just started it, they’re the ones that made it grow. “Just by donating a small amount or just contributing, you’re doing more for someone than what you already know. “If you do it, it’s amazing what you’re doing.” For donations, visit vsk.grassrootz.com/dosomething-very-special-your-way/roberts-fa mily?f bclid=IwY2xjawGgzpBleHRuA2FlbQ IxMQABHc0Tg86lWowe6NLJn3yAmjunD_ Yr-_LBgychTGVsB4U5QReUkCKyGOZZSQ_ aem_08e3ohzW2tEn6daOZ8TnmQ
Dan Graeme with his six-month-old son Carter. (Ljubica Vrankovic) 442586_03
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