Why does Christmas ham taste so much better than normal ham? Maybe we'll never know the answer, but what we do know is where to get one - at Your Local! Many of our local pubs are having Christmas raffle all though December giving you the chance to stock up while also having a fun night out. Here are just some of the Christmas raffles happening this month: Belmore Hotel, Maitland Ham raffles every Thursday until Christmas from 5.30pm Blackbutt Hotel, Lambton Toy raffle on Thu

Local hotelier Marcus Wright from the Wickham Park Hotel has stepped into the ring to support up-and-coming Raymond Terrace amateur boxer Benson Manton achieve his sporting dreams. They may have met under unusual circumstances, but despite 22-year-old Raymond Terrace boxer Benson Manton having never stepped foot into the Wickham Park Hotel, from the moment their paths crossed, hotelier Marcus Wright was determined to do whatever he could to help the young athlete come one st

Hotelier Locky Heffernan might be relatively new to the area, but the Edgeworth Tavern licensee knows exactly what it takes to engage his local community. Fundraising, free barbecues and Happy Hour every Saturday. The initiative came about when Locky realised the level of community support present at the hotel, and was keen to harness the generosity of locals to help community groups such as cancer support organisation the Kaden Centre at Warabrook. "Since coming to the venue

This week marks the end of an era at the George Tavern Greenhills, as the keys to the award-winning pub are handed over to new owners Thomas Hotels. After more than 20 years at the George Tavern, Greenhills hospitality couple Dan and Janine Redman described the sale of the hotel as a bittersweet, but necessary move. The sale, brokered by highly-experienced, Hunter-based broker Deane Moore from Moore & Moore Real Estate currently represents the highest price paid for a hotel i

Australian Hotels Association (AHA) Newcastle Hunter is proud to once again be a Gold Sponsor of the annual Mark Hughes Magic Ball raising money and awareness for brain cancer research. For the past thee years, AHA Newcastle Hunter has been a Gold Sponsor of the annual Mark Hughes Magic Ball, which last year alone raised more than $200,00 for brain cancer research. AHA Newcastle Hunter President Rolly de With described the relationship between AHA and the Mark Hughes Foundati

In the lead up to summer, the Wickham Park Hotel, affectionately known as The Wicko, will lend a hand to help support local children's charity Surfing the Spectrum which teaches children with autism how to surf. The hotel's Surfing the Spectrum fundraiser, to be held on Saturday, 28 September, will include a stellar line up of local live music and aims to raise awareness for the organisation and help raise funds that will bring surfing to children with autism across 10 locati

Four Newcastle locals and handful of pubs prove the spirit of giving extends all the way from the Stone Age to present day They’ve been at the pub week in, week out, all year, for the past seven years dressed as the Flintstones and never once have been asked to leave, not even when Fred (AKA Geoff Haran) shouts out Yabba Dabba Do at the top of his booming voice. In fact, the Flintstones are four of the most welcomed people you will find at both the Duke of Wellington and Nort

It was six days of driving, dirt roads and delighted kids as the 2019 NSW Variety Bash made its way across more than 2,000 kilometres of outback NSW, delivering in excess of $50,000 in funding to rural schools. This year's NSW Variety Bash raised more than $1 million in total for Variety -the Children's Charity and was proudly sponsored by the Australian Hotels Association Newcastle Hunter, for the eighth consecutive year. "This year our annual charity race day raised more th

This Sunday, 26 May the George Tavern at Greenhills will host a fundraising afternoon to support local resident Kate Roberts in her bid to help find a cure for Multiple Sclerosis. From 1pm on Sunday, the George Tavern will become a buzz of colour and music with raffles, live auctions, live music, face-painting and crazy hair for the kids. Kate said since being diagnosed with MS five years ago, while on her dream Hawaiian holiday and just after her 30th birthday, she has been

On Sunday, 19 May more than 100 cars are expected to gather at Foreshore Park, Newcastle before heading off for the annual NSW Variety Bash. Since 2013, the Australian Hotels Association (AHA) Newcastle Hunter Sub-Branch has been the major sponsor of Variety’s NSW Bash, an iconic 2,000-kilometre, round-trip adventure from Newcastle, made in cars more than 30 years old. “AHA members have supported the Variety Bash event almost since its inception, with member hotels sponsoring

The Kent Hotel. The Duke of Wellington. Lakeside Village Tavern. The Seabreeze Hotel. These hotels, all owned by Hunt Hospitality, have worked together over the past year to help raise more than $100,000 for the 2019 NSW Variety Bash, which provides funding and assistance for children and families experiencing illness and hardship throughout rural NSW. Hunt Hospitality owner Stephen Hunt, a long-time supporter of Variety- the Children's Charity, said while the hospitality com

The Australian Hotels Association (AHA) – Newcastle Hunter 2019 Race Day, held on Saturday, 4 May at Newcastle Racecourse raised $92,000 for children’s charities Variety – the Children’s Charity and Hunter Children’s Research Foundation. While Variety, a long-time partner of AHA Newcastle Hunter, was the recipient of $66,000 raised on the day, Hunter Children’s Research Foundation was a first-time beneficiary of the event. Organisation spokesperson Lorraine Gardner said the m

For Tamworth Tradies Support the Ladies founders Gary Sinclair and Mathew Whitson, creating a non-profit organisation aimed at stopping breast cancer in its tracks is all about education - and they're bringing their unique style of awareness to the Bull n' Bush Hotel Medowie on Friday, 5 April... It started with something simple - asking friends and colleagues to wear a pink shirt to work on Fridays, but two years on the organisation has grown from its humble beginnings in Ta

Each year, the Australian Hotels Association (AHA) Newcastle Hunter holds an annual charity race day to raise money for Variety - the Children's Charity. Most years the day raises in excess of $60,000 for the organisation, which is used to support the annual NSW Variety Bash, Newcastle - Newcastle event. In 2019 however, in addition to raising money for Variety, AHA Newcastle Hunter has announced a second beneficiary of the race day event, Hunter Children's Research Foundatio

By Wednesday night, 27 March the George Tavern, Greenhills and Maitland Football Club will have together officially raised more than $100,000 for the local sporting club. The milestone comes as part of a partnership between the club and the pub which includes a dedicated monthly fundraising draw opportunity donated to community groups by hoteliers Dan and Janine Redman. “Every month local non-profit organisations are given an opportunity to take turns hosting our fundraising

Jacinda Norman works at the Nag's Head Hotel, Adamstown. She is also a passionate advocate for dementia support and research. On Sunday, 31 March Dementia Australia will hold its annual Memory Walk and Jog to promote an active lifestyle and to raise money for dementia support services. It is a fundraiser both Jacinda and the Nag's Head Hotel will be supporting. "Jacinda has been with us for about 18 months now. She is an amazing member of our team and sadly her father has bee

Last year Ray and Joy Webb, along with the Commercial Hotel at Morpeth's loyal patrons, raised thousands of dollars for local organisation Volunteers of Palliative Care. This year, using the hotel's same unique chocolate wheel style raffle, the venue and its patrons have raised more than $7,000 for the Cerebral Palsy Alliance. "We decided this year to raise money through our weekly raffle in support of people living with Cerebral Palsy," Joy said. "This was our non-profit org

The Australian Hotels Association - Newcastle Hunter is proud to be this year’s major sponsor of the Kurri Coalface Pedal, raising money for Westpac Rescue Helicopter. As the new major sponsor of the Kurri Coalface Pedal cycling event, Australian Hotels Association (AHA) - Newcastle Hunter will work closely with both the Westpac Rescue Helicopter Service and Hunter-based cycling group The Kurri Mongrels to ensure the event is as successful as possible. Now in its fifth year,

The Bradford Hotel, Rutherford has teamed up with Camp Quality in what is easily the hotel's largest community sponsorship initiative to date. As the new Gold Sponsor of Camp Quality's 1000kms 4 Kids cycle event for the next three years, the hotel has committed $45,000 to the organisation, which currently supports more than 160 local Hunter families with children impacted by cancer. "This came about thanks to a number of our local patrons," hotelier Neil Hedges said. "We have

The sudden loss of 17 year-old Isaac Lourie, who died in a ski-boat accident on the Williams River near Raymond Terrace earlier this year, left classmates and staff at Newcastle High School searching for a way to honour his memory. "It is always difficult trying to find the right way to honour a member of the school community once they are passed," school principal Nathan Towney said. "Lime Cordiale was one of Isaac’s favourite bands and we thought to have them to perform at