If not, you’re not alone!

Thankfully there are some wonderful community organisations with nimble fingers who can fold and tie presents with precision. All it costs is a gold coin per gift (a larger donation is appreciated for large gifts) and it’s all in the name of charity.

Caneland Central

Have your gifts beautifully wrapped by a band of merry volunteer elves at Caneland Central.

You'll find volunteers from Alpharho ESA Mackay at the two charity gift wrapping stalls near Target and upstairs at Universal every day until Christmas Eve.

Proceeds will help keep RACQ CQ Rescue up in the air and saving lives across the festive season!

Home Co, Mackay Bucasia Road

The lovely ladies from Mackay Scope Club are gift wrapping again this year at Home Co.

You’ll find their festive wrapping table near Spotlight. All proceeds are going to The Street Aid Project - Chances Op Shop, Mackay n District Special School, and MARS Animal Rescue.

The wrapping services are daily until Christmas Eve, 9am-5pm. If anyone would like to donate time to wrap, please phone Jan on 043 734 3220.

Grab a coffee from K&Co while the elves magically wrap your pressies, so all you need to do is find space under the tree.

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Caneland Central

Home Co

Runners, walkers, cyclists and motorised small vehicle users will be excited to find out that the boardwalk between the VMR boat ramp and Shingley Drive is due to re-open to the public this morning.

This section of the Bicentennial Boardwalk which runs five-kilometres along the coast between Airlie Beach and Cannonvale, has been closed since September for Stage 2 of the works.

Whitsunday Regional Council engaged Plants Whitsundays to complete the upgrades which will now mean the boardwalk has been widened by one-metre.

In addition, the timber surface of the structure has been replaced with a composite fibre material, which is both durable and easy to maintain.

The hardwood timber previously used for the boardwalk has been retained by Council for future projects.

The entire project has been well organised and completed on-time and within budget.

“We thank the community and local businesses for their patience while these works have been undertaken and are grateful for the hard work being put in by our contractors to have the boardwalk completed in time for the festive season,” said a Council spokesperson.

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The boardwalk between the VMR and Shingley Beach will re-open to the public today. Photo supplied

Virgin Voyages newest boat, Resilient Lady, checked into Airlie Beach last week, adding our port to their list of destinations on its expedition around Australia and across the South Pacific and Europe.

The Resilient Lady has just over 1400 cabins and can host between 2800 and 3200 passengers with just over 1100 members of staff and crew.

Resilient Lady is the third vessel in Virgin’s fleet, with the fourth due to be setting sail in 2024.

“We are thrilled to be here,” explained Andrew Eglin, General Manager on board Resilient Lady.

“This is the most port we have seen so far, and we have been from Athens, all the way down.”

The vessel is currently completing the tail end of a 45-day cruise, from Athens, through Europe and the south Pacific.

“This is day forty-two, and we’ll end up in Sydney in three days’ time, but Airlie Beach has been our favourite. It’s beautiful, clean, friendly, it’s just an incredible experience,” Mr Eglin explained.

Whitsunday Regional Council Mayor Julie Hall said it was exciting to welcome the first Virgin cruise ship to the Whitsundays.

“It was an honour to present the Virgin Resilient Lady captain with a plaque last Friday to commemorate their maiden visit,” she said.

“The cruise ship was given a special acknowledgment with a smoke ceremony and the Cruise Whitsundays team joined our amazing Volunteer Cruise Ship Ambassadors to welcome guests with a cheerful Whitsundays welcome.

“Adding to the regular cruise ships arrivals at Port of Airlie, our Shute Harbour Marine Terminal is also kicking goals and will host 17 cruise ship visits over the Christmas-New Year period.

“On Wednesday welcomed another ship on its first visit to Whitsunday waters when Celebrity Edge with 2900 passengers and 1200 crew docked at Shute Harbour,” Mayor Hall said.

“In the first season after reopening in December the facility hosted 28,000 total passenger movements but by sticking to its strategic plan the Shute Harbour Marine Terminal is on track to host over 260,000 passenger movements in 2023-24 with 155,000 marine tour passengers and 55,000 resort connections.”

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Resilient Lady received a warm welcome from Mayor Julie Hall, Cruise Whitsundays staff and the Volunteer Cruise Ship Ambassadors. Photo credit: Bronte Hodge

Mayor Julie Hall with Andrew Eglin, General Manager on board Resilient Lady. Photo credit: Bronte Hodge

A traditional smoking ceremony was performed on the day. Photo credit: Bronte Hodge

Right now, there’s only 17 more sleeps until Christmas.

That means there’s just over two weeks to finish your Christmas shopping, or in my case, start my shopping.

Let me say Christmas shopping isn’t really one of my strong points.

Coming up with ideas as to what presents to get someone really doesn’t seem to be that hard, but when it comes to my brain, nothing is that easy.

I reckon this weekend I’ll head up to the shops at Mt P and spend some cash on the kids, buy a few lollies in readiness for Christmas Day and my life will be sorted. If you see me at Mt Pleasant looking perplexed with a worried look on my face, fear not, I’ve got it all under control. Honest.

I will tell you a secret though. My head is still singing Christmas carols after last week’s fun at the 4MK Carols in the Gardens. So many songs that brought back great memories of growing up and I loved it. This time of the year is just so much fun. Music, decorations, gifts, helping people, and a visit from Santa.

To everyone who came along, thank you. We can’t wait to do it all again next year. I’ll also ask Santa If the reindeers could not use the backstage area of the amphitheatre as a stall, that would be appreciated.

A reminder that next week we are heading out on the road having a look at some beautiful Christmas decorations with the 4MK Xmas Lights Bus Convoy. We will have three buses each night taking a whole bunch of beautiful people to see the lights displays around Mackay and the Pioneer Valley.

It will be a lot of fun on the 14th and 15th so if you want to be there with me on the buses, listen into the breakfast show. Miss Honeybee will be driving one of the Emerald Coaches and based on what she’s worn the last few years, this year’s costume will be out of this world!

Remember if you are doing decorations and lights displays at your place, tell us on the 4MK Interactive Lights Map at the 4MK website. It’s free and it makes it so easy to find the lights that are closest to where you are. Add your address of lights and ones you see out and about as well. It’s 100% free, there’s no prizes, we don’t need to. Merry Christmas!

You can join Rob Kidd from 5am weekday mornings on 4MK 1026 AM in Mackay and Proserpine, 91.5FM in Airlie Beach or just ask your smart speaker to play 4MK on iHeartRadio!

Some of our local resort islands are set to become more accessible thanks to a round of State Government funding which will facilitate the construction of public jetties and pontoons.

Hook, Long and Keswick Islands will each receive $1 million for new and upgraded visitor access infrastructure that aims to improve visitor access to natural areas.

Hook Island Eco Lodge CEO, Glenn Piper said the Whitsundays is one of Australia's most significant and alluring tourist destinations, but accessibility has been hindered by a series of natural disasters.

“Following Cyclone's Ita and Debbie much of the region is no longer easily accessible as it once was and Government support such as this is vital for re-establishing access to many of the region's most iconic tourism assets for both locals and tourists,” he said.

“We are very pleased to receive government support to assist in the restoration of Hook Island.

“The grant is invaluable for the restoration process and will also provide public access now and into the future.”

Abandoned for over a decade, the only resort on Hook Island was closed in 2013 following damage from Cyclone Yasi.

Previously, the jetty and observatory on Hook Island were iconic landmarks of the Whitsundays, but the observatory has since been removed and access to the island has become limited.

The island resort was severely damaged once again in the 2017 Cyclone Debbie.

Shortly afterwards $25 million from the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) Island Resorts Rejuvenation Program was used to clear the site, creating a blank canvas for Glenn Piper to create a luxury eco lodge there.

Meanwhile, Long Island has been closed since 2015.

Previously, it was home to the much-loved Club Med and in later years Club Crocodile, both providing destinations where many people created fond holiday memories.

In 2021 the island was purchased by Oscar’s Hotel Group for $20 million and there have since been plans in-place to create an upscale resort on the existing site.

It is now hoped that the $1 million Queensland’s Great Barrier Reef Marine Infrastructure Program will not only recognise the importance of visitor access but also act as a catalyst for private investment in new nature-based tourism experiences.

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The old jetty and observatory on Hook Island were a popular experience for tourists. (Supplied: State Library of Queensland)

Coral Sea Marina has stepped up to the plate to back Whales of Whitsundays, as they endeavour to achieve Whale Heritage Site certification for the Whitsundays and become the first Whale Heritage Site in a World Heritage Area.

Whales of Whitsundays is committed to conserving, protecting, and respecting the whales critical birthing habitat and ensure that the animals thrive in the Great Barrier Reef.

The waters of the Whitsundays are uniquely special for whales, as their birthing place, who travel thousands of kilometres to the warm waters to breed and give birth.

Olivia Brodhurst, Chair of the Whales of Whitsunday Steering Committee explains “As one of our sponsors Coral Sea Marina joins this extraordinary journey, and through their dedication we are committing to help preserve and celebrate the wonders of our Whitsundays’ Whales.”

Joscelyn O’Keefe, Head of Marketing & Business Development explains the reason for the marina’s support of this Whale Heritage Site program application, “Many of our marina guests and visitors come to the Whitsundays purely to experience the natural wonders of the ocean. Seeing the majestic Humpback whales nurture their young through the warm water of the Whitsundays is a truly a life-changing experience and one which will remain with you forever.”

“We feel strongly that the region attaining the Whale Heritage Site accreditation will benefit not only the animals themselves but also will continue to provide further opportunities for visitors to enjoy them sustainably in their natural environment.”

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The Whitsundays is on the path to become a Whale Heritage Site. Photo supplied

Graduates from the latest intake of Whitsunday PCYC’s Get Set For Work Program were celebrated at a special ceremony on the Airlie Beach Foreshore on Saturday.

The program, which is dedicated to helping youngsters between the ages of 15 and 19 who are not currently at school, has been a huge success over the past year.

The ten-week course gives them training in everything from how to participate in a successful interview, how to write a resume and the importance of punctuality.

Most importantly, however, it teaches participants that they are all special and capable of completing a course that is designed to help those that are not built for conventional schooling.

The program culminated in a week of work experience where local businesses stepped forward to offer practical training, and in some cases future job prospects.

A total of twelve participants began the course and all completed, aside from one individual who moved to Townsville and continued with the program from there.

Program Manager, Scott Lynch, said he was proud of all the graduates when he handed out specially framed certificates and youth worker, Declan Coull echoed his sentiment.

PCYC Manager Sergeant Billy Li led the ceremony and then closed by choosing four participants who contributed an exceptional effort, giving them a special award to commend their individual achievements.

“We are extremely proud of the eleven young men and women graduating our program, it is amazing to see the positive changes to the individuals in such a short amount of time,” said Sergeant Billy.

“Our participants have now attained the necessary qualifications to enter the industry they aspired to explore, I’m confident that they will find success when they continue to apply the learnings from the program.”

Member for Whitsundays Amanda Camm MP and Councillor Jan Clifford also attended the event to offer words of encouragement, along with many proud parents.

If you know someone who could benefit from the program, call Whitsunday PCYC on 4948 1144 or email whitsunday@pcyc.org.au. The first intake begins in term one, on Monday, 22nd January.

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Back row: Sergeant Billy Li, Dylan Mulcahy,Harrison Pilgrim, Amanda Camm, Levi Fewin, Teaghan Lloyd, Jan Clifford, AvaGallagher and Declan Coull. Front row left to right Jesse Bertram, JacksonDarby, Quinn Smoothy, Scott Lynch, Blake Kropp and Ethan Dixon. Photo credit:Rachael Smith

The ladies of Zonta Club of the Whitsundays are about to wrap up their annual 16 Days Of Activism, which began on November 25 with the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls, and will conclude December 10, with Human Rights Day.

Erecting 10 Orange Ladies across the region, Zonta Whitsundays aimed to raise awareness that sadly every week, an Australian woman is murdered by an intimate partner.

Club President Dianne Trueman said nearly 730 million women worldwide have experienced either physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence at least once in their lives.

“No country is within reach of eradicating intimate partner violence,” she said.

“Despite the scale of the problem and these worrying trends, financial commitments to violence prevention remain limited. Investing in preventing violence against women and girls is crucial to achieving gender equality by 2030.”

The 16 Days of Activism is aligned with the international campaign Zonta Says NO to Gender Based Violence and aims to raise awareness of and increase actions to end violence against women and girls.

Beginning in 2012, this period is often marked by public spaces and building being lit up orange, the United Nations colour of activism.

Dianne said that this year Zonta clubs across the world combine as one voice to take a stand against gender-based violence.

“Zonta envisions a world where no woman lives in fear of violence,” she explained.

“Through the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign, our members, and allies advocate for action. We want community leaders to stand up and work for a better world for women and girls.”

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Two Whitsunday Zonta ladies with one of the Orange Ladies. Photo supplied

Stall holders from the Lions Airlie Beach Markets were given just a few weeks' notice about the relocation of the markets to the large green vacant lot next to Port of Airlie.

Whitsunday Regional Council decided to relocate the weekly markets for a period of three months so that the grass at the current site could be treated to eradicate some troublesome weeds.

Many of the stallholders, although supportive of the works, felt it was a poor decision to conduct them at this time of year, with the upheaval scheduled to take place throughout the school holidays.

Jeff and Annette Dutton have operated a stall for the last 12 months and say that the markets are frequented by cruise ship passengers, with 13 ships carrying around 3,000 passengers each expected to arrive in the month of January.

“We were given really short notice, and this was not the ideal time to plan these works,” explained Jeff.

“The site recommended for us to move to also had no shade and we felt it would not be suitable.”

A group of stakeholders approached Councillor Clay Bauman who raised the issue with Mayor Julie Hall and discussed it with the rest of the Councillors.

A decision was then made to postpone the works until mid-January.

“We are really happy with the outcome,” said Jeff.

“Although they are still due to start on Jan 13.”

Councillor Clay Bauman said he was also pleased with the outcome and hopes that when the works commence there will also be the opportunity to address the drainage issues while they are eradicating the weeds.

“I am hoping they are going to fix some of the other issues instead of just the grass that will still be mushy and unusable at times,” he said.

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The Lions Airlie Beach Markets. Photo supplied

Member for Whitsundays Amanda Camm MP is critical of the State Government’s move to reduce and limit Spanish Mackerel catches.

According to Ms Camm, while in session, the state government closed discussions prematurely regarding a Spanish Mackerel debate.

“Last night in Parliament, the Government cut the debate short, so Members like myself couldn’t raise critical issues like data integrity, lack of Government transparency or tell the story of the many fishers in my electorate and how they will be impacted”, Ms Camm said.

“I’ve sat around the table from our local fishers, many whom are about to lose their ‘super’, their livelihood, and unfortunately for some, their will to live”, Ms Camm stated.

“This government does not care about small and family businesses. Regional Queenslanders and our fishing community deserve better.”

As of July 1, recreational and commercial fisherman were hit with massive cuts to the quotas of Spanish mackerel. In particular, the local mackerel fishing industry was reduced from 600 tonnes to just 165 tonnes.

This was a governmental response to depleting mackerel numbers, however many fishers proclaim that there are plenty of stock in the waters.

The sudden departure of the Australia Post mail contractor in Collinsville caused extensive delays and frustration among the local community over the last few weeks, but thankfully a system has resumed and mail is getting delivered once again.

Last month the local postal contractor made a “sudden” departure from Collinsville leaving the local community without a home-delivery service.

At this time of year, this caused extensive disruption, but a daily delivery of express postal items has now resumed along with standard letter delivery two days a week.

An Australia Post spokesperson thanked the community for their patience while solutions are sought and said they are currently seeking interest from any interested parties who may like to take over the run.

Member for Burdekin Dale Last MP has been communicating with Australia Post and the community to help re-instate a regular postal service.

“When you live in rural and regional areas, a reliable postal service is essential at all times and especially important in the lead up to Christmas,” he said.

“As soon as issues surrounding deliveries in Collinsville were raised with me, I made contact with senior Australia Post management to ensure they were made aware of just how important this issue was to the people of Collinsville.”

“While it will take time for a replacement contractor to be appointed, we have been successful in having an interim arrangement put in place.”

“While the interim service will see deliveries of parcels and letters on alternate days, I am advised that additional deliveries were undertaken on Saturday (December 2) to clear the backlog that came about due to the loss of the contractor.”

The final Whitsunday Regional Council Community Catch-Up for 2023 took place last week, with over 20 Cape Upstart and Gumlu residents joining Mayor Julie Hall and Councillors at the Molongle Creek Boat Club.

Discussions included bushfire resilience projects, road updates, disaster and storm season preparation, Molongle Creek boat ramp and washdown area, and a budget overview.

This was the final Community Catch-up for 2023 and Mayor Hall said that, since taking office in August 2022, she has been a huge advocate of face-to-face engagement with residents in the Whitsunday region.

“At the start of this year we scheduled a series of Community Catch-ups so myself and Councillors could better connect with our local communities, build relationships, share information and gather feedback on local issues.

“The vision of the Community Catch-ups was to provide an informal setting to discuss topics important to the local community,” she said.

“Face to face catch ups allow us to facilitate a two-way flow of information, updating residents on Council projects relevant to them and listen to issues affecting the local community.

“We kicked off the Community Catch-ups on March 1 at Dingo/Hydeaway Beach and have since held similar meetings at Mt Coolon, Conway/Wilson Beach, Proserpine, Bowen, Cannonvale, Scottville, Airlie Beach/Shute Harbour and last week’s final catch-up for the year at Gumlu/Cape Upstart.

“To close the loop Council provided participants who provided contact details with a detailed report of discussion, key outcomes, and future actions from the meeting via email,” Mayor Hall said.

“All catch-up reports have been posted on our Your Say Online Engagement Portal project page for interested residents that were unable to attend.”

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About 20 people came along to the CommunityCatch-Up at Molongle Creek Boat Club. Photo supplied

The executive committee of Bowen Tourism and Business has been appointed for the next 12 months.

At the November meeting of the organisation, Jenn Honnery was re-elected unopposed as Chair for the sixth year in a row.

Manager of Bowen Tourism an Business, Leanne Abernethy, was again appointed to the position of secretary and Leah Darwen was elected unopposed as treasurer.

Natalie Lydom will join the executive committee for the first time as the Vice Chair.

Bowen Tourism and Business is a not-for-profit Local Tourism Organisation with more than 200 members.

The organisation operates the Bowen Visitor Information Centre next to the iconic Big Mango as well as the information booth at Bowen’s Front Beach.

Any profit recorded is used to market Bowen as a destination, promoting such things as the fringing reefs, secluded beaches, fresh seafood, stunning lookouts and country hospitality.

In the past 12 months, the organisation has reported a record number of visitors and the Bowen Visitor Information Centre won a bronze award at State Level at the Queensland Tourism Awards

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Chair, Jenn Honnery

Vice Chair, Natalie Lydom

Secretary, Leanne Abernethy

Treasurer, Leah Darwen

A familiar face in the Whitsundays, Jade Richardson has been living in the region for the past seventeen years and as a previous small business owner herself, is perfectly qualified for her new position at Tourism Whitsundays.

“In my previous business I was dealing a lot with small business owners and there is a real flow-through with the community and connection I’ve experienced over the years,” said Jade.

“One of the benefits of my new role is that I can relate to the other side of it as well, I’ve had hands-on experience myself.”

Jade is the founder of Whitsunday Creatives, a pop-up shop in Proserpine that brought together local small creative businesses and offered them a platform to shine and one central location in which to operate.

“There was a big need for the community to connect,” explained Jade.

“And I have always felt the need to support local small businesses, I was blessed to have the opportunity with Whitsundays Creatives, and I feel blessed to have this opportunity now.”

Jade started Whitsunday Creatives two years ago and recently sold the business, enabling her to now focus on her new career with Tourism Whitsundays.

She is excited for her new role and looking forward to helping small business owners in the community.

“Give me a call or an email anytime and we can arrange a catch-up!” said Jade.

On the weekend you can find Jade outdoors enjoying one of our many hiking trails, exploring the islands on a tinny and spending time with her five beautiful children.

To connect with Jade, email: membership@tourismwhitsundays.com.au

Well, to our Asset Management Improvement Team (AMI) at Whitsunday Regional Council it means an exciting challenge of implementing new and innovative software solutions to manage over $1.3B of community assets. This might seem like a headache in the making for most of us, but for our enthusiastic and motivated friendly AMI team, it’s an exhilarating adventure in waiting.

A newly initiated team within Council, the AMI team have been working on their current project for the past 6 months. The team is made up of four wonder women, Helen Pisarek - Project Manager, Sue Worsfold – Change Manager, Claire Ruffell – Business Analyst and Dianna Smith – Support Officer.

Collectively the team have over 30 years of project experience across a range of sectors ranging from private enterprise, the health sector, non-for-profits and State and Local government.

The team are all new to the region, moving to our beautiful backyard from all over QLD and Victoria for the wonderful lifestyle and the family friendly opportunities the Whitsundays has to offer.

A fun and vibrant team, they enjoy focusing their energy on delivering their project in order to benefit the wider community, whilst learning from their new colleagues and peers.

Outside of work, the team all enjoy dining in our local restaurants and taking advantage of the outdoor Whitsunday lifestyle.

We’ll leave you now with a game of guess who… one member of the team can do a mean Quickstep, whilst another is adept at pole dancing!

Contributed with thanks to the Whitsunday Regional Council.