How One Woman Turned A Little-Known Wallaby Into An Award-Winning Community Celebration

Leigh Skead founded the Proserpine Rock Wallaby Festival in 2025 to celebrate the region’s unique wildlife, local creativity and strong sense of community. Photo source: Proserpine Rock Wallaby Festival

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By Chelsea Ravizza

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When Leigh Skead realised that many locals were unaware of the existence of the Proserpine Rock Wallaby, she set out on the animals’ behalf, creating a festival that has since become a mark of community, conservation and local pride.

“The Proserpine Rock Wallaby is found nowhere else on earth. Nowhere,” Leigh said.

“Most people drive through Proserpine without knowing it exists, and that felt wrong to me. It felt like a story that needed telling — not just for the wallaby’s sake, but for ours.”

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Founded in 2025, the Proserpine Rock Wallaby Festival quickly captured the community’s imagination, earning Community Event of the Year at the 2026 Whitsundays Regional Council Australia Day Awards and establishing itself as a vibrant celebration of local wildlife, creativity and community spirit.

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Endemic to the Whitsundays, the Proserpine Rock Wallaby (Petrogale persephone) has inhabited the region’s rocky landscapes for thousands of years and has also been the focus of significant conservation efforts, including a Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service recovery program that saw more than 1,200 wallabies translocated from Hayman Island to mainland habitats between 2014 and 2017.  

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For Leigh, the festival’s impact extends far beyond a single weekend of celebrations – her aim is to spread awareness across the state to protect the native species.  

“You cannot protect what you do not know exists,” she said.

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Through initiatives such as the festival’s art exhibition and Proserpine Rock Wallaby Art Trail, visitors of all ages are encouraged to learn about the species, with families exploring the town’s wallaby sculptures and children gaining a deeper understanding of the animal’s significance to the region.

Leigh said conservation efforts in regional Queensland often rely on the dedication of a small number of wildlife officers, volunteers and community advocates, making public support and awareness crucial.

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“Every region has beautiful wildlife, but the Proserpine Rock Wallaby carries our name. It belongs to us in a way that nothing else does,” she said.

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“It was named for this place. It evolved here. It cannot be found anywhere else on the planet. That is an extraordinary thing to be the custodians of. A community that knows and celebrates what makes it unique is a stronger, more connected, more resilient community. The festival felt like the way to bring those two things together.”

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In the festival’s inaugural year, more than 1,200 people from across the Whitsundays and beyond attended, with many leaving with a newfound appreciation for Proserpine and its unique wildlife.

Leigh’s most memorable moments include watching residents from local aged care facilities enjoy the artworks and seeing children confidently explain the significance of the Proserpine Rock Wallaby to their families after learning about the species through the festival.

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“That’s the most rewarding part; watching people fall in love with Proserpine,” she reflected.

“Not the logistics or the grant applications or the planning, but those moments when the community recognises itself in what has been created.”

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With the festival continuing to grow, a permanent Art Trail established throughout the town and plans for an expanded event in 2026, Leigh hopes the Proserpine Rock Wallaby will become a symbol of the Whitsundays and inspire greater environmental awareness for years to come. She also hopes the festival encourages more people to become involved in shaping their community’s future, and invites anyone interested in supporting the event to reach out to her via emailing prwf2025@gmail.com.

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“The festival is built on community,” she said.

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“It needs more hands, more hearts, more people who love this place and want to invest their time in something that will outlast all of us.”

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