Robert joined the ABC as a producer and journalist at its Wollongong-based radio station in 2011. In the years since, he has worked as a news and multimedia journalist in a number of the ABC's NSW offices, including Bega, Orange and Dubbo. Robert is currently the multimedia reporter for 1233 ABC Newcastle and ABC Upper Hunter, and produces feature stories for online, radio and television.
Follow Robert on Twitter: @Rob_Virtue
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| UpdatedA training program for young mother's is having huge success in Kurri Kurri.
Topics: parenting, adult-education, access-to-education, kurri-kurri-2327
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The Hunter region's increasing interest in craft beer is resulting in more people wanting to become accredited judges.
Topics: alcohol, lifestyle-and-leisure, education, newcastle-2300
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A Maitland woman is going to extraordinary lengths to better her community and get residents talking about the city's potential.
Topics: people, human-interest, offbeat, maitland-2320
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A school in Newcastle is teaching students how to fly drones as part of the curriculum.
Topics: photography, film-movies, surfing, education, subjects, community-and-society, youth, merewether-2291, jesmond-2299
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A Hunter Valley farmer is now running out of feed and water due to dry weather, months after the dairy price wars.
Topics: drought, rainfall, rural, agricultural-crops, dairy-production, livestock, east-gresford-2311, newcastle-2300, nsw
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With the rise of online resources for people to delve into history from the comfort of their own homes, there is concern historical groups could eventually become a thing of the past.
Topics: historians, history, community-and-society, internet-technology, community-organisations, lemon-tree-passage-2319, newcastle-2300
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| UpdatedThere is concern in the NSW Hunter Valley that hay supplies could run low into winter if good rain does not fall across the region soon.
Topics: rural, pasture, rainfall, weather, drought, dungog-2420, forbes-2871, newcastle-2300
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Despite a series of challenges in her life, Newcastle woman Lee-Anne Holmes has learnt to embrace challenges and thrive as a leader.
Topics: leadership, community-and-society, women, newcastle-2300
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Young regional Australians pitch their ideas for change at the Heywire Regional Youth Summit in Canberra.
Topics: rural-youth, rural, canberra-2600
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| UpdatedYoung people discuss whether regional schools can give country students the same opportunities as their city cousins.
Topics: access-to-education, education, rural-youth, rural, canberra-2600
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From Borroloola in the NT to Penguin in Tasmania, 41 young Australians are converging on Canberra for the annual ABC Heywire Regional Youth Summit.
Topics: rural-youth, rural, community-and-society, youth, canberra-2600, austinmer-2515, alice-springs-0870, launceston-7250
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A Morpeth man celebrates more than 25 years working to preserve precious pieces of art and paper.
Topics: visual-art, arts-and-entertainment, work, community-and-society, morpeth-2321
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| UpdatedA boy with albinism is planning to teach his new friends about the condition when he starts high school.
Topics: secondary-schools, schools, education, children, newcastle-2300
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A Newcastle woman takes a leading role in fundraising for the community after the death of her son.
Topics: brain-and-nervous-system, diseases-and-disorders, children, child-health-and-behaviour, disabilities, charities-and-community-organisations, people, human-interest, newcastle-2300
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A project in Newcastle encourages children to put down their fancy toys and technology devices, and embrace playing with cardboard boxes and craft supplies.
Topics: craft, children, parenting, family-and-children, newcastle-2300
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Survivors of a large bushfire in the NSW Hunter Valley are cleaning up after the blaze.
Topics: bushfire, fires, disasters-and-accidents, loxford-2326, kurri-kurri-2327, heddon-greta-2321
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| UpdatedA program helping reduce loneliness among older people in Newcastle is expanding.
Topics: aged-care, community-and-society, community-organisations, volunteers, wallsend-2287
Posted
| UpdatedThere are hopes to grow an art project assisting families affected by suicide.
Topics: suicide, community-and-society, newcastle-2300, largs-2320
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| UpdatedThe Hunter region is becoming increasingly attractive for filmmakers to work in, according to one local director.
Topics: film, film-movies, newcastle-west-2302
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| UpdatedA Newcastle doctor retires aged almost 95, after over seven decades in medicine.
Topics: doctors-and-medical-professionals, health, work, community-and-society, broadmeadow-2292
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An exercise program for seniors of multicultural backgrounds is having big success in keeping people in their homes for longer.
Topics: aged-care, community-and-society, exercise-and-fitness, women, older-people, health, waratah-2298, newcastle-2300, egypt
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| UpdatedA Newcastle school student has won a scholarship to learn from some of Australia's leading Shakespearean actors.
Topics: actor, arts-and-entertainment, community-and-society, youth, education, schools, theatre, hamilton-east-2303, uganda, sydney-2000
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A Newcastle family twice impacted by breast cancer is fundraising to better support others affected by the disease.
Topics: breast-cancer, diseases-and-disorders, health, women, community-and-society, family-and-children, newcastle-2300, nsw
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A community garden in Newcastle helps people from different cultures seek support.
Topics: multiculturalism, gardening, waratah-2298
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Former Newcastle Knights player Clint Newton is standing up against domestic violence as a White Ribbon Day ambassador.
Topics: domestic-violence, community-and-society, newcastle-2300