By Chris Karas Life is rewarding for Mackay’s emerging rugby league playmaker Adam McSherry. The fifteen-year-old St Patrick’s College student capped a memorable 2023 when he received the Caleb Woodland Memorial Award for the dedication and courage shown during an eventful campaign this season. McSherry accepted the trophy at the Junior Sports Award ceremony staged at the College’s Mercy campus from graduating St Patrick’s student and Queensland Schoolboys hooker Xavier Kerrisk. It has been
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Mackay Surf Lifesaving Club recently travelled to Alva Beach, Ayr to compete in the North Barrier Branch Champion Lifesaver Carnival. The event involves lifesavers being assessed on their surf sports fitness, patient assessment and CPR skills, as well as a detailed theory paper. Mackay SLSC Director of Surf Sports, Josh Grant said, “This competition is extremely important in developing the skills of our lifesavers. “These are the people who patrol our beaches and are there for the community to
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Mackay Tennis Association recently concluded its latest season of fixtures for 2023, rounding out a memorable list of centenary celebrations for the club. In Division 1, 'Team Federer' emerged as the champions in a closely contested and very competitive fixture season. Congratulations to Troy, Adam, Shane, Lexi, Clem and Bree whose consistency over the season saw them defeat ‘Team Djokovic’ by a solitary point to claim the honours. Meanwhile, 'Wanderers' combined to win the Division 2 champions
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Harrup Park and the Great Barrier Reef Arena are delighted to announce the inaugural Great Barrier Reef Arena Gift, scheduled to captivate Mackay on the 23rd of March 2024. This annual event will bring together some of Australia's top running talent, showcasing their prowess in nine exhilarating races spanning genders, ages, and distances in a celebration of athleticism and community spirit. The races will take place on the newly completed Great Barrier Reef Arena grass track, continuing the
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The Mackay Contract Bridge Club held its annual Christmas Party last Saturday. A delicious meal was catered by our own Janelle Conroy and her many helpers, with everyone enjoying the meats, salads, desserts and morning tea. Bridge was played by 63 members and partners, with merriment and fun had by all. Director Geoff Taylor made the Christmas Pudding and Christmas Cake, not only a Congress Director, teacher and mentor to many, a man of many talents. Raffle winners went home with a selection of
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Proserpine Cricket Club have extended their winning streak in the 2023-24 Mackay Junior Cricket Association Under 15 Mixed Division A competition. The all-conquering Pitbulls had too many big guns for the combined Pioneer Valley/Norths X1 at Abbott Park – chalking up a ninth consecutive victory to push their claims for the title. Promising all-rounder Joshua Geisler top scored with 40 as Proserpine posted 6-174 off their 25 overs with support from Malaki Gabey (32 not out), Lachlan Riley (20),
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Growing a passion for innovation and mining careers for the next generation
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Bowen Community Centre is now officially open, with a special ceremony taking place last week. In attendance were Member for Burdekin Dale Last, and Minister for Communities Leeanne Enoch, alongside local Councillors Jan Clifford and Michelle Wright. The ceremony boasted more than an additional 30 attendees, with the Bowen Community Centre facilities officially opened. The Centre is a purpose-built facility, and includes a large kitchen, meeting spaces and offices. The new building cost $4.3 m
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Hi Everyone, Have you decided what you’re going to give this Christmas? I’m not talking presents to loved ones (or yourself!), I’m talking about giving back, doing something for someone less fortunate. Two years ago, I purchased a toy and gave it to Whitsunday Counselling and Support to go towards a family escaping domestic violence. I asked my son to choose the present and told him to make it something he would really like himself. I then explained that we would be giving it away to a boy
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When Nadine Little’s daughter and husband visited Woolworths in Cannonvale a few weeks ago, they were surprised by the generosity of the grocery store’s staff. Oceana, Nadine’s daughter, brought home a massive box of goodies, including sweet treats, an advent calendar, seafood sauce, a ham bag, and even a Naughty Elf figurine. Oceana was even instructed to make sure to ask her family if they’d like to share the unexpected surprise. Turning to Facebook, Nadine’s post attracted many other commu
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The highly anticipated refurbishment of the Airlie Beach Boardwalk is complete, with the section between Pinnacles Resort and the VMR now upgraded to similar standards as the Coral Sea Marina section. For 13 weeks, Stage 2 of this refurbishment was undertaken, in order to reinvigorate the boardwalk and meet the demand and expectations of residents and visitors who regularly use the boardwalk. The project included widening the boardwalk by one metre, in order to increase user capacity and allevi
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This week marks the official end of the 2023 crushing season of Wilmar Sugar and Renewables’ Proserpine Mill. Group Manager Operations James Wallace said the last cane was crushed at 4.24pm on Saturday 9 December. “We processed just over 1.7 million tonnes of sugarcane for the season, to manufacture about 240,000 tonnes of raw sugar,” Mr Wallace said. “I’d like to thank all of our Proserpine employees for their hard work in processing this year’s crop. They’ve put in a stellar effort and shou
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Bowen’s claim to fame is back on the big screen, with Baz Lurhermann’s Australia being reimagined into a new six-part miniseries, called Faraway Downs. The 2008 movie was filmed in Bowen, and pushed our small regional town into global stardom, with many local icons and personalities playing keys roles in the blockbuster film. The Faraway Downs series features 2.1 metres of film that the original movie’s director, Baz Lurhmann, had kept in his possession and has not been seen until now. Mana
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It was a weekend of a lifetime for Robert Hendrickson at the Airlie Beach Festival of Music. More affectionally known as Robbie, he was tasked with an important job for the festival, as an Accessibility Ambassador at the Main Tent, greeting people as they entered. Robbie is part of Endeavour Foundation, who partnered with the Airlie Beach Festival of Music to sponsor an elevated accessibility platform for individuals of various abilities to be able to view the main stage from a great vantage p
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Budget airline Bonza has once again cancelled a range of services, including the scheduled launch of the new Whitsunday Coast Airport to the Gold Coast route. Now postponed for the second time, Bonza reasons the delay due to the “regulatory process for the new aircraft joining the fleet,” as explained by Tim Jordan, CEO of Bonza. “As we’ve previously shared, in the short term we will use an aircraft leased from our partner Flair at our Gold Coast base whilst we recruit Aussie crew for this thir
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Whitsunday region locally grown produce has travelled onto the international centre stage, with the ‘Taste of Queensland’ Agricultural Trade delegation. Travelling to Japan just over a week ago, the delegation was led by Queensland Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Mark Furner and included horticultural growers from across North Queensland. Ry Collins, Chief Executive Officer of Bowen Gumlu Growers Association, was a member of the delegation and commented, "This delegation has been a phenomen
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A huge thank you to all that attended the combined Tourism Whitsunday and Whitsunday Chamber of Commerce Christmas party. It was a great night with everyone enjoying the mixed company and relaxed format. As the Chamber looks forward to 2025, we look forward to working more closely with TW for the benefit of all our members. Industrial Relations – Whilst it’s a busy time for all businesses, and many looking forward to a well-earned break, please don’t forget to keep an eye on new and existing ind
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As of this morning, the Cannonvale Skatepark is officially reopened to the public, and the timing is perfectly coordinated with the community gearing up for the inaugural Cannonvale Classic! The skate park upgrades initially began with consultation with local skaters in 2021, as the previous skatepark was deemed unfit for more skilled skaters, too steep gradients on the quarter pipes and poor drainage throughout. Stage 1 of the works created a street style park for beginners and intermediate sk
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The entrepreneurial spirit runs deep with 13-year-old Zac Courtie, the savvy young businessman who is behind Zac’s Airlie Carwash. What started out as a small neighbourhood job washing his mums’ and neighbour’s cars for pocket money, has since snowballed into a full-blown business operation which has seen Zac’s services in high demand over the Christmas period. And Zac’s mum, Kylie Thomson, could not be prouder. “What I love most is the feedback we get, of how much of a lovely young man he is
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When you head out to do your Christmas shopping this festive season, consider shopping local, keep your dollars within our community, and ensure small business keep flourishing. That’s the ethos behind Local 4 Locals in Bowen, an initiative that’s been thriving within the community for years and continues to grow momentum. And for this special season, Locals 4 Locals Bowen is rewarding those shopping local. Once you make a purchase at one of the 33 participating local small businesses, you’ll
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Ensuring the smooth and safe operation of our record-breaking Whitsunday Coast Airport is a key role for newly appointed Airport Operations Manager Andrew Elliott. Having worked continuously in Aviation since starting his career as an apprentice Aircraft Maintenance Engineer at ASTA Aircraft Services in 1989, Andrew now has over 34 years’ experience in aviation and has worked for every major airline in Australia and some internationally. He is a Licenced Aircraft Maintenance Engineer and a s
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Did You Know? Our Whitsunday Disaster Dashboard now includes a Cyclone Track Map. This interactive map has been developed by the BOM and shows weather events in local time to our region. Furthermore, the app offers weather projections for a 5-day forecast, rather than the typical 3-day forecast offered by the BOM. Official BOM forecast advice and information can be accessed directly by clicking on the spinning cyclone icon in times of cyclonic weather alerts. For more information or t
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Whitsunday Regional Council is gearing up the festivities with the annual Christmas Light Competition. Decorate your home, business and streets with Christmas lights, and you could win the ‘best residence or shopfront’ or the newest category, ‘best street’, and go into the running to win a special street sign proclaiming your street as the most festive street in the Whitsundays. And don’t forget to add your Christmas light display to the Whitsunday Regional Council Christmas Lights Trail map, s
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This week over 60 presents have been donated to families in need, making sure more children can experience the joy of opening a gift this Christmas. A partnership between the Rotary Club of Airlie Beach and Ray White Real Estate, these 60 children’s gifts have been hand-selected, wrapped and delivered to families across the region, just in time for Christmas. “We’ve been doing this for years,” explained Sue Griffiths, Operations Manager of Ray White. “As soon as the Christmas period starts, w
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Confidently carving out a sterling reputation in the Whitsunday wedding industry for the past decade, this year was the first time Aquava Boutique Catering embarked on an awards journey, and they started right at the top! The highly regarded wedding caterers brought home the Gold Award in the Independent Wedding Caterers category at the Australian Bridal Industry Association (ABIA) Awards which were held in Brisbane earlier this month. The winners are measured by reviews and ratings from over
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