🌞 An 105-year-old woman's birthday rave

Happy Sunday!

All I can say is WOW.

That Good News Brews event was truly something else. I loved meeting 250 of our Sydney-based Good News crew, and am so proud to be part of such a warm and optimistic community.

For those who missed it, we’ll be sure to host another one soon. In the meantime, here’s a sneak peak!

🎂 105 year old’s birthday celebration

Well, for 105-year-old Hilda Jackson, her celebration of another year around the sun was a…full blown rave. That’s right, the centenarian celebrated her birthday with a party complete with a DJ, rave lighting, UV paint and glow sticks.

The care home Hilda lives in organised and hosted the rave, which featured a pop up Jägermeister bar for attendees. The party was a fitting celebration for Hilda, who attributes her longevity to her love of dancing. In case you were wondering, her favourite move is a jive. She still ballroom dances regularly.

Reflecting on the success of her party, Hilda said: “I think it’s been absolutely fabulous. I never expected this at all. I knew there’d be some [people] but not the amount of all the people who have come. And I’m very, very grateful to everyone that has come, [it’s] lovely.”

🩼 World record beaten on crutches

A 73-year-old British man has broken the world record for the fastest marathon completed by someone…on crutches. That’s right, Chris Terrill, who has run more than 50 marathons in his lifetime, completed a full marathon (on crutches) in 6 hours, 11 minutes and 11 seconds. That time saw him beat the previous world record by a whopping 13 minutes!

Chris was on crutches after a hip replacement following a cricket related injury last year. He had registered to compete in the marathon before the injury, and figured he’d still compete, crutches and all.

He said he wasn’t aware any record had been broken until his running club alerted him to the success. He added: “"If I'd known there was a record to be beaten, I'd have gone faster…People in the crowd who knew me asked me to stop and have a selfie. If I'd known I was after a world record, I'd have said 'sorry, I'm in a hurry'”.

You’ll be glad to know that Chris has made a full recovery, and is training for his next marathon, which will actually take place this weekend! As if he couldn’t get more impressive, Chris uses his marathons to fundraise for the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity.

Onya Chris.

🎵 Feel good song of the week

🐦 Bird species detected in Vic

Now, moving a bit closer to home, where a critically endangered bird species has been detected west of Melbourne for the first time in 35 years.

With an estimated population of around 250, the plains-wanderer is one of Australia’s rarest bird species. Zoos Victoria placed dozens of recording devices in grassland habitat where the birds were once thought to have lived.

After analysing thousands of hours of audio, AI software designed by Museums Victoria and QUT identified the bird’s unique call at two locations. Researchers then listened in to confirm the find.

It’s the first time the bird has been documented in the region since 1989.

Message from Up

“Splitting bills is so last year”

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📸 Photo of the week

You’re looking at a diver swimming through the underground lakes of a cave in Cancun, Mexico.

This photo was included as one of the winners of the Underwater Photographer of the Year 2025 winners.

How beautiful is it?!

☕️ Meet All Things Equal

Today is Zero Discrimination Day, which is why I’m so excited to highlight a community good news story from this week, courtesy of All Things Equal. Now if you haven’t heard of All Things Equal, it’s a social enterprise cafe in the heart of Melbourne that is transforming the hospitality industry through its innovative employment for people with disability.

I want to quickly provide some context to explain why All Things Equal is such a necessary and positive step. So firstly, there has been no improvement in employment rates for people with disability in Australia over the last two decades. Of 2.7 million working age individuals with disabilities, just 56.1% are employed, compared to 82.3% of people without disabilities.

Enter: All Things Equal. Since opening its doors in 2021, the cafe has created 28 job pathways for people with disability, has an 100 person waitlist to join the team and has helped eight team members transition into mainstream employment.

What a brilliant initiative to celebrate on Zero Discrimination Day!

TDA asks