Australia Day on the Tablelands

Mayor Tom Gilmore with 2012 Citizen of the Year, John Bailey, and 2012 Young Citizen of the Year, Rylee Venables.

Mayor Tom Gilmore with 2012 Citizen of the Year, John Bailey, and 2012 Young Citizen of the Year, Rylee Venables.

Regional Presentation Ceremony

The Tablelands today publicly honoured its community, sporting and cultural achievers at the 2012 Regional Australia Day celebration, held at the Atherton International Club.

Mayor Tom Gilmore and Tablelands Regional Councillors announced the winners of the Regional Australia Day Awards in 13 categories, with Millaa Millaa's John Bailey named 2012 Citizen of the Year.

Mr Bailey was given the honour in recognition of the strong sense of community he has shown over many decades. Mr Bailey is president of the Millaa Millaa Lions Club and recently received a Star Award from the club to recognise his service to the community.

He was a very active member of the Millaa Millaa Centenary Committee and sat on several other steering committees involved with this event to ensure its success.

Mr Bailey and his wife Valarie arrange and host "Social Afternoons" once a month for anyone who wishes to attend but it is generally senior citizens of the community who enjoy playing cards, indoor bowls or just having a cuppa and a talk. (Full bio below)

Young Citizen of the Year was awarded to Rylee Venables from Ravenshoe. (Full bio below)

As a young entrepreneur, Rylee established her own hairdressing business at 19 and in 2010 was chosen as one of five National Top Stylists in Australia. In 2011, Rylee established a charity, "Astons Gift" which she uses to raise funds to give assistance to underprivileged children and families of car accident victims, and promotes and supports sporting events on the Tablelands and in North Queensland. (full bio below)

The remaining awards (Full bios below) went to:

Community Event of the Year - Rotary FNQ Field Days 2011
Development of Commerce and Industry Award - Drive Malanda
Environmental Excellence award - Peterson Creek Landcare Group
Senior Community Service award - Ravenshoe Disaster Group
Junior Community Service award - Kimberlee Fowler
Sports Administrator award - Alex Srhoj
Senior Sports award - Heather Quadrio
Junior Sports award – Adrian Madrid and Meg Donovan
Senior Cultural award - Colleen Sheppard
Junior Cultural award – Ryan Searle

In other highlights of the Australia Day celebrations at Atherton, 21 people became Australian Citizens in the special Australia Day ceremony and 5 people were presented with Quiet Achievers’ certificates in recognition of their service to the community. They were:

Kirilyn Batchelor for her leadership and contribution to Mareeba State High School and the Mareeba community as a whole.

Richard John Cawood for his commitment and service to the Ravenshoe Heritage Steam Railway over many years.

Hazel Coleman for her 54 years of nursing service at the maternity ward of the Atherton Hospital. In fact, Hazel might be the longest serving member of Queensland Health.

Rita King for her untiring efforts, which are all voluntary, in introducing computer skills to seniors in the region.

And

Hilda Barkworth for dedication and service to Meals on Wheels (Atherton and Malanda) for more than 37 years.

The winners of the Faces and Places Photo Competition were also announced.

There were 233 high quality photographic entries for the judges to choose from.

The winners received $125 for first place, and $50 for second place.

The winners were:
The Big Picture (Landscapes)
1st - Caitlin Mills - "Fishing by the River "
2nd - Rob Macaulay - "A peaceful place in Chillagoe"
Highly Commended: Louisa Crossle, Elise Helen Harper and Jaime Gunton

Capture the Action (Sports and Action)
1st - Stella Winlaw - "Shadow Rider"
2nd - Ashleigh Grigg - "Watersports at Tinaroo"

Strike a Look (Portraits and People)
1st- Kaddiesha Leask - "My sisters show off their jeans"
2nd- Andrea Goetze - "Did I win?"
Highly Commended: Miki Bradley

Shades of Grey (Black and white)
1st - Kayde Lehman - "The Old Gum"
2nd - Sandy Carroll - "Peter reflects on life at Lake Eacham"
Highly Commended: Linda Platz, Harold Eriksen, and Bernie Lakey

Creative Expression (Editing and Manipulation)
1st - Rob Macaulay - "Bushstone Curlew"
2nd - Michael Petersen - "Wild River Swimming Hole"
Highly Commended: Anwen Towne

Call of the Wild (Wildlife and nature)
1st - Rob Macaulay - "Kookaburra and Catch"
2nd - Sandy Carroll - "Kissing Cuties"
Highly Commended: Helen Douglas, Donovan Wood and Ross Brown

The winners of the Creative Writing Competition were:

The overall winner for grades 3 - 4 was: Tom Bell
Highly commended for grades 5 -7 were: Daniel D'Avis and Nikita Campman
Second place for grades 5 - 7 went to: Shannon Reynolds
First place for grades 5 - 7 went to: Sahge Walmsley

The winners of the Creative Drawing Competition were:

First place went to: Mischama Roy
Second place went to: Amy Hill
Highly Commended were: Kyla Caghin, and Tirzah Tokarahi, Mahkeeba Gutchen

BIOS on all Award winners are below

Environmental Excellence award

Peterson Creek Landcare Group

The Petersen Creek Landcare Group has been the driving force behind the revegetation and maintenance of the Peterson Creek track at Yungaburra.

The group's passion for reinstating the original wonderful natural environment and their interpretive work, which complemented their efforts, has made the tracks a showcase of environmental excellence and has provided a rich community asset.
Their efforts include planting and maintaining more than 3km of land, the creation of a cassuarina walking track and wallaby track, a shelter shed, interpretive signage on trees, platypus life, indigenous history and early settlement, and the construction and funding of a suspension bridge. The group continues to seek funding for future endeavours in the area including more shelter areas and tree plantings.

Development of Commerce and Industry Award

Drive Malanda

Creating a resilient, bountiful community with a vital future is the goal of Drive Malanda - a group that has evolved from a founding group originally called Sustainable Malanda. The group's charter was to create a model for the economic reinvigoration of the small rural town through sustainable methodology.

Drive Malanda has worked tirelessly over the past few years on a variety of projects to benefit Malanda and its surrounds including redevelopment of the riverside and providing a model of urban renewal.

The group's proactive and unwavering commitment to their town and district has resulted in the development last year of a comprehensive Scoping Document which outlines a number of strategies and a framework for future actions.

The group stands as an example of how positive actions can benefit an entire community and provide it with a higher sense of optimism about the future.

Coach/Administrator Sports award

Alex Srhoj

As president of the Mareeba United Football Club and operations manager for the FNQ Bulls, Alex has made more than a significant contribution to the sport of soccer and to the community.

On a volunteer basis for the past five years, Alex has overseen the day to day operations of the Mareeba United Football Club, which has a huge membership of over 400 players, and played a key role in taking the club to the next level, with entry into the State League by the FNQ Bulls.

With the assistance of a hard-working committee, Alex has helped to develop the club's facilities, with a new bar and function area that will allow the club to continue to develop strong financially.

In addition, Alex works with both the junior and senior teams in a supporting and advisory role.

Alex has put the interests of the club above his own personal interests and life - he works full-time, coaches, trains, plays and fills very responsible positions with both Mareeba United and the FNQ Bulls - his fact you could say, his whole life is soccer.

Junior Sports award

Adrian Madrid

Adrian Madrid has been an excellent role model for students at Mareeba State High School and the Mareeba United Football Club. He has a passion for sports, boosted by his "can-do" attitude and enthusiasm.

Under his leadership in 2011, Mareeba High School's McKinlay House won both the athletics and cross country carnivals and came second in the swimming carnival. Adrian was subsequently awarded House Captain of the Year, and also won the Pierre De Coubertin Prize which recognised his outstanding participation in sport and his attributes of fair play and respect for others.

Throughout 2011, Adrian managed to balance sporting and academic commitments at school with work and sporting commitments in the wider community including being Captain of the Under 18 team at Mareeba United Football Club.

Meg Donovan

Meg Donovan is a shining example that anything is possible with the right attitude. Meg is classified as an "Athlete with a Disability" but despite this, she has achieved tremendous results in sport in 2011.

Her cross country and athletics achievements in the interhouse competition at St Stephens Catholic College culminated in her representation at State and National level.

She won the gold medal at the Qld State Titles and at the Australian National Titles in her age group for cross country, and won silver medals in three events at the Qld State Titles for Athletics as well as setting a new record for her class in two events.

She also competed in the 2011 Queensland State Swimming Championships.

Her determination to succeed, despite the difficulties, makes her an excellent role model for her peers. Not only is Meg well respected, admired and popular with the student body at St Stephens, but her leadership skills, strength and quiet demeanour resulted in her being elected as female vice-captain for 2012.

Senior Sports award

Heather Quadrio

Heather Quadrio is dedicated to the sport of hockey. It has been a part of her life for the past 47 years in one way or another. She has been a player, coach, umpire, selector, administrator or organiser during this period, always putting the development of the sport first.

Heather began playing hockey in 1965 at Ravenshoe State School - in 1975 she began coaching school teams on the Tablelands and has continued this tradition for the past 36 years.

Heather was a founding member of the Atherton Junior Hockey Association and served as either secretary or treasurer until it was incorporated with the senior association after which Heather held various management positions and was named a life member.

Heather retired from playing after the 2010 season but there is no doubt she will be a keen supporter of hockey in this region for many years to come.
Junior Cultural award

Ryan Searle

A talented young all-rounder, Ryan Searle has been described as someone who does equally well in academic, cultural, sporting and community service pursuits.

In addition to his strong academic record at Mareeba State High School, Ryan has excelled is many other areas including web design, 3D game design, and the Lions Youth of the Year program as well as in theatre and musical productions.

Music has always featured strongly in Ryan's life but particularly his love for the trumpet. Ryan and his trumpet have become a common sight at community events over the past three years, playing the Last Post at Anzac Day ceremonies and performing at the Mareeba Multicultural Festival as well as a member of the Tablelands Regional Band and the Mareeba Concert Band at various events.

Ryan's talents have been recognised throughout the years, winning the Mareeba High School Cultural Award from 2007 through to 2010.

Senior Cultural award

Colleen Sheppard

Anyone who knows Colleen Sheppard will tell you she's a quiet achiever - not only does Colleen utilise her talents to provide entertainment to the community, she also encourages young people to find and make full use of their own musical gift.

Colleen has been a member of the Walkamin Country Music Festival since it began back in 1995, helping to set up the event, accompanying young performers and mentoring them. For over 20 years, she has been a part of Carols in the Park in Mareeba involving herself in rehearsals, costumes, script presentation and music.

She has performed at Australia Day celebrations, the Mareeba Multicultural Festival, the annual Ambulance Carnival and the Feast of the Lady of the Chain as well as playing and performing at her local church.

As a teacher, Colleen dedicates a lot of her personal time to developing students in performing arts, putting on a production every second year during which she spends countless hours painting backdrops, making props, and costumes.

Let's all congratulate Colleen.

Senior Community Service award

Ravenshoe Disaster Group

When Ravenshoe was threatened with severe Tropical Cyclone Yasi last year, representatives of 15 groups and organisations came together to form the Community Disaster Action Team and played a vital role in supporting the community in preparation for the event and in the response and recovery operations in Yasi's aftermath.

This strong network of community people, led by police officer Michael Musumeci, enabled the town and surrounding area to recover far more quickly than anticipated and at the same time, freed up resources for the authorities to assist others who were affected in the region.

This was the first initiative of its kind on the Tablelands, now known as the Ravenshoe Model, is now being promoted by the tablelands Local Disaster Management Group as a good practice community resilience model to bring together similar plans for other towns in the region.

This model will make our rural communities safer, stronger, more disaster resilient and better prepared to manage challenging situations in the future.

Junior Community Service Award

Kimberlee Fowler

Kimberlee has made an outstanding contribution to her local community through her dedication and commitment to Mareeba State High School. Throughout 2011, Kimberlee was an inspiring leader at the school, being named the President of the Student Council which resulted in a program of regular events that raised over $2000 for worthy causes and for improved student facilities.
Kimberlee has been an active participant in school life beyond the classroom and in the broader community showing strong leadership qualities.
She was an active member of the school’s Interact club which has led to many commitments in the community with Rotary.
Kimberlee is a mature, reliable, enthusiastic and inspiring young woman who excels in all of her subject areas and her chosen sports. She has spent the past few years juggling her school work, sporting commitments and her community service commitment and is worthy role model in the Mareeba community.

Community Event of the Year award

Rotary FNQ Field Days 2011

Run by the combined Rotary clubs of Mareeba and Atherton, the 2011 Rabobank FNQ Field Days was the largest event of its kind ever held in Far North Queensland.

More than 200 exhibitors came from across the country to this bi-annual event which is organised by a dedicated number of people, all volunteering a significant amount of their time to make it a success.

The Field Days are the largest and most comprehensive showcase of agricultural equipment and related products and services in the Far North, attracting more than 8000 people through the gates during the event.

The 2011 event generated in excess of $150,000 in profit which will be distributed back to the Atherton and Mareeba Rotary Clubs to benefit various clubs, charities and causes in the area.

Young Citizen of the Year

Rylee Venables

For her young years, Rylee Venables already has many runs on the board. She has excelled in so many areas of community participation, development and business in Ravenshoe and the wider Tablelands, it's hard to include them all.

As a young entrepreneur, Rylee established her own business in Ravenshoe at 19 years of age and in 2010 was chosen as one of five National Top Stylists in Australia.

For the past three years, she has grown the Runway Fashion based shows in Ravenshoe which attract large crowds locally, and from the wider region and interstate, boosting the local economy and promoting her town.

Rylee has recently established the Venlee Model Management Agency where she achieved recognition as a premier young entrepreneur for this exciting business initiative.

In 2011, Rylee established a charity, "Astons Gift" which she uses to raise funds to give assistance to underprivileged children and families of car accident victims, and promotes and supports sporting events on the Tablelands and in North Queensland.

Rylee Venables stands out as an inspiration to others to be the best you can be and as someone who is committed to making a positive impact on her local area and provide motivation to other young people.

2012 Citizen of the Year

John Bailey

For most of John Bailey's life, he has been giving back to his community. Born and raised on the Tablelands to a dairy farming family, John is now 75 years of age but that doesn’t stop him from getting involved in all kinds of community activities and causes.

He receives great fulfilment and satisfaction from his charitable endeavours which are far too many to list here.

John is president of the Millaa Millaa Lions Club and recently received a Star Award from the club to recognise his service to the community.

He was a very active member of the Millaa Millaa Centenary Committee and sat on several other steering committees involved with this event to ensure its success.

John and his wife Valarie arrange and host "Social Afternoons" once a month for anyone who wishes to attend but it is generally senior citizens of the community who enjoy playing cards, indoor bowls or just having a cuppa and a talk. Until the end of last year, they held old-time dances on a monthly basis as well.

John and Val also help at Blue Light Discos and any other community event that needs their help.

It doesn’t matter what the occasion, John will be there because he is a true community champion and leader.

John doesn’t just sit on committees - he gets his hands dirty and has helped in working bees organised by the Lions Club in the wake of Cyclone Yasi. He also helps the Christmas Lights Committee to put up and pull down the lights and decorations right around the town every year.

John's age has not slowed him down - his energy, commitment, drive and community spirit is an example for others to follow.