across year groups being friends, and of assisting each other to better themselves and excel at their chosen passions. This passion for achieving your personal best, and of helping each other is strong in the 2024 College Captains both Primary and Secondary School. For Secondary School Captain, Zoe Shepherd-Smith, she decided to become a captain because she’s always admired the captains, since watching them from Prep. “I’ve seen a lot of captains, and they have helped me develop my own leader
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Get ready to share and experience the many cultures that call the Whitsunday Region home, with the return of the annual Whitsunday Multicultural Festival. Celebrating and sharing the cultures that are prevalent in our region, the Multicultural Festival is sure to have a large variety of food and drink, arts, music, and performances scheduled for the day. Don’t miss the excellent cultural cooking, traditional dance, and amazing activities and celebrate our Whitsunday Way. This year, the Whitsu
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The 2024 School Leaders of Proserpine State High School have officially been inducted into their roles, at a special ceremony last week. These students are now eager to begin their year of school leadership with prowess and confidence. The School Captains, Reid Ogden and Alice Pini are two confident and capable leaders, and are joined with School Vice Captains Holly Perrin and Nathan Richards. School Principal Mr Don McDermid said he looked forward to seeing all students thrive and reach th
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The revitalised Whitsunday Writers Festival has announced their Whitsundays Literary Heart Awards this week, just in time for Valentine’s Day. With substantial cash prizes up for grabs, the awards will recognise and honour the diverse and talent writers, while paying homage to the beautiful Great Barrier Reef. With categories encompassing writing, poetry, and book cover design, the Whitsunday Literary Heart Awards is offering up to $10,000 in prizes across four categories, with finalists in ea
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Introducing KC’s Bourbon Bar, exclusive and enigmatic and perfect for the locals and visitors. With a slight restructure to keep locals on their toes, this imaginative Bourbon Bar will take front and centre stage of KC’s Bar and Grill restaurant, in the encompassing warmth of the main dining room. The only bourbon bar in the Whitsundays, KC’s is taking Airlie Beach by storm, adding a layer of rich and aromatic flavours to the KC’s menu. And the grand opening will be a sight to behold, with the
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Up-and-coming musician Tiffany Grace has returned from renowned Tamworth Country Music Festival Country Music Academy, extending and progressing her own skills as a solo musician, songwriting and performing. Having launched onto the stage in recent years, Tiffany has seen great success, from winning the Young Whitsunday’s Got Talent in 2022, to performing alongside other musicians at the 2023 Whitsunday Songwriter’s Festival and being a headliner for the Airlie Beach Festival of Music. Tiffany’
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This is an explosive mix that tastes so sweet with the delectable flavours of a margarita, and The Mad Mariachi Band which are sure to bring the heat! Created in the heart of tropical Queensland, and intensely packed with the flair and beats of traditional Mexican Mariachi music, this show offers more than a dash of contemporary rhythms. From the creative imagination of Nelson Mansilla, The Mad Mariachi Band is best described as a “spaghetti-western Mexican music”. “We’re non-traditional,” N
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Photo credit: Bronte Hodge and Ruby Gorlick
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For the past 35 years, people have been travelling to Bowen for the town's annual polocrosse carnival. Polocrosse is a horsemanship sport that is a combination of polo and lacrosse and has been played in Australia since the 1930's. The annual Bowen carnival will be held on July 27 and 28, 2024. Representatives of the Bowen Polocrosse Club met with representatives of Bowen Tourism and Business this week to discuss the promotion of the 35th annual carnival. Chair of Bowen Tourism and Business,
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32 new Australian citizens have been welcomed in an official citizenship ceremony conducted by the Whitsunday Regional Council, at a special ceremony in Bowen earlier this week. The 32 individuals, from 13 different countries were invited to the ceremony, held at Bowen’s Flagstaff Hill Function and Convention Centre on Tuesday, February 13. “We meet today to acknowledge the individuals who are officially being Australian,” explained Deputy Mayor Gary Simpson. “Australians have a unique nati
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1 in 3 People Will Get Cancer Early Detection Is Best Know Your Normal
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Over the last month we have been working with Tourism and Events Queensland (TEQ) and the Department of Tourism and Sport on marketing campaigns to help the region recover the losses sustained in early December and late January from tropical Cyclones Jasper and Kirrily. There are several campaigns already underway or finished, including; 50 per cent off deals with Bonza that finished on 14 February, deals were available on Whitsunday Coast to Newcastle, Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast routes. A
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What started as a simple gathering in 2014, to bolster the relationship between the Bowen Cricket Associations’ wives, girlfriends, and mums, while raising important funds for the McGrath Foundation, has grown exponentially in 10 short years. Bowen Cricket’s Pink Stumps Day has become a much-loved feature on the Bowen community calendar, an event that is widely known and regularly sees over 300 ladies attend, dressed in their best pink outfits to support the worthwhile breast cancer charity. In
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For Karen Linich and Denise McCallum, becoming a McGrath Breast Care Nurse was an honour and a privilege, a decision that has allowed them to assist and support all breast cancer patients with quality care and upmost confidence. Karen started her nursing journey at the age of 18, beginning her training in New South Wales, before she specialised in surgical nursing. She transitioned to clinical nursing and nurse counselling, primarily working within regional BreastScreen, where she excelled in t
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Next Stars Sport Academy has returned for 2024 with a range of exciting new programs and an enthusiastic turnout of participants, revelling in the joy of staying active and healthy. Founder and Head Coach, Tim Oberg, expressed his delight, stating, "We were blown away by the levels of enthusiasm and participation across all of our programs. “From Ninja to basketball and our running squads, all have seen record attendances which shows just how many families in the Whitsundays are focused on help
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Bowen’s Port Denison Sailing Club had its first 2024 race and training session on Sunday the 11th of February, with sailors of all ages gathering together on the water. Making the most of the extreme high tide, the Green Fleet junior sailors had a practise session, sailing a long leg from the clubrooms on the Bowen foreshore towards the Big Mango and homeward again. Georgia Jeffrey, age 7, recently graduated from the beginner learn to sail programme run at PDSC and is enjoying sailing indepen
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23 Cannonvale Cannons travelled to Brisbane to compete at the Queensland Sprint Championships on the weekend. This was the highest number of Cannons that have ever competed at a state competition. The coaches, Ken Crittenden, and Mark Erickson were very proud of all the Cannons and their achievements. It was the first state championship for many of the young Cannons and they all performed extremely well. The coaches would like to thank all the parents for supporting the swimmers and the team at
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Mark Richards won the Tuesday stableford with 41 points, one ahead of Scott Mason. Lyn Muller had 35 points to beat Tina Badenhorst by one. Pins went to Gerard Lovell, Kev Cooper, Diane Chard and Tina Badenhorst. The PDLAW Wednesday monthly medal winner was Penny Wardroper over Pam Harrison, both with 72 net. Pins went to Jacqueline Wall, Rehab Hull and two to Penny Wardroper. Following several days of the back nine holes under the lagoon, a big clean up allowed the full course to be open fo
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The slightly cooler weather bought out more players with 19 WGC competitors in the single Stableford competition. LADIES A GRADE : Winner: Tiina Randmae with 37 points Runner-up: Anna Winterbourn LADIES B GRADE : Winner: Jo Moynihan with 26 points Runner-up: Pam Casey MEN’S A GRADE : Winner: Jason Bourke with 35 points Runner-up: Darren Reynolds MEN’S B GRADE Winner: Paul Nicol with 39 points Runner-up: Scotty Vlismas LONGEST DRIVES : Ladies’ A: Tiina Randmae Ladies’ B: Sally Little Me
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The weekly 9-hole stableford saw Matt Baines take first place with 23 pts, second with 21 pts c/b was Tim Walton and third place with 21 pts was Matt Burke. Fridays 9-hole stableford saw Jimmy Millar take first place with 23 pts, second with 22 pts was Billy O’Connor and third place with 21 pts was Tim Walton. Sundays 18-hole stroke competition was a great turnout, coming in first c/b was Brad Low, second place was Glenn Rees, and third place was Tyson Flavel. Nearest the pin this Sunday wa
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Nominations are open for all Proserpine Bowls Club competitions. Get your names in as soon as possible to allow plenty of time in order for us to get our draws out and games progressing. On Wednesday, we had 11 players enjoying games of Social bowls. Jim Bownds, Barry Zillmann and Peter Lawton defeated Alen Sanderson, Pat Bownds and Bryan Davy 21 - 11. John Anderson, Heather Brown and Philip Brown defeated Mary Hedgelong, Heather Brown and Mike Harrison 20 - 12. Contributed with thanks to
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The Whitsunday Regional Council local government elections were delivered a curveball on Wednesday this week when the popular current Mayor, Julie Hall, announced she would not be running for the Mayoral seat in the next election. Ms Hall provided a public statement citing her reasons for withdrawal were “putting my health and family first.” “It has been a very hard decision and an honour to serve the people of the Whitsundays, I will complete my time as Mayor when the new council is elected a
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By Hannah McNamara In a splashing triumph of athleticism and adventure, the Mackay Triathlon Club set North Mackay ablaze with its second Aquathlon race on a sun-soaked Sunday. The air was filled with the energetic buzz of club members, from seasoned triathletes to spirited newcomers, all ready to dive into the thrill of the Aquathlon, starting at the Pioneer Pool. With courses designed to challenge and exhilarate, from the shorter enticer's scenic run around the Gooseponds to
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Amidst the ongoing discourse surrounding the maintenance of our community's green spaces, Councillor Martin Bella's recent Facebook post struck a resounding chord. I don’t always see eye-to-eye with Marty on everything, but his heartfelt message, directed towards the resilient members of our council's outdoor crew, echoed how I felt about the online (and in-person) abuse these workers have been copping. Marty speaks directly to the struggles faced by these workers, offering a glimpse into the h
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In an act of kindness, a volunteer from a local hamper organisation has announced the startup of a monthly giveaway for families in Mackay, particularly aimed at mothers, to lighten the burden of financial stress and give a helping hand to those who deserve it most. Realistically, all mothers are deserving of a pamper pack, but if you know a special mother figure in need of support, nominations are now open! The idea of the giveaway is to uplift those who are struggling, to remind them that they
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