Sunshine Valley Gazette

The Nambour Museum Float entry in the 1993 Sugar Festival Parade with Gayle Plater sitting on the hay bale. “Support Call for Nambour Museum” was the headline in the Nambour Chronicle resulting in a public meeting being called on the 22 August 1992. After hours spent collecting suitable objects, constant, lobbying and endless discussions, a generous donation from a local citizen, Mrs Bolton, enabled the lease of a few rooms in the present Museum building. Appropriately , part of the building was composed of the the Nambour School headmaster’s residence in use from 1908 to 1931 and then occupied through the years by the Departments of Primary Industries and Public Works (QBuild).. Nambour’s first museum was officially opened with much fanfare on 20 April 1998 by the Hon. Neil Turner M.L.A. who murmured to Shire Chairman Eddie de Vere “We’d better be careful. They’re looking for old things in here!” A large rental of $2 000 per annum was paid for partial use of the upper level of the building. This required constant fund-raising until lobbying by Peter Wellington MP resulted in the granting of a 30 year lease of the entire building and grounds to the museum for the […]

Unapologetically Dressed is an exhibition that is part of the Horizon Festival. The idea was was born out of Mill Street Fashion Walk — an Instagram page that documents fashion on the streets of Nambour. It is the brainchild of Ketakii Jewson-Brown and Shaye Hardsity of ShayeKet Productions. They began scoping out the street style of Nambour back in 2019. As the tongue-in-cheek “fashion capital of the Sunshine Coast”, Nambour’s streets showcase a visual smorgasbord of eclectic, unapologetic and unique offerings daily. Through sideways glances and “Excuse me” moments, and thanks to obliging members of the public, Unapologetically Dressed is to Nambour what Vogue is to New York. The following is an interview with Ketakii and Shaye. Q. If you had to describe this project to someone you didn’t know, what would you say? A. A dive into Nambour Street fashions and the people behind them. Q. How would you ‘sell’ the experience? A. Love fashion, street style and the grit and glamour of Nambour? Come along to The Old Ambulance Station and check out ShayeKet Productions’ video piece highlighting all the above and more. Q. Who will love your project? A. Anyone who wears clothes Q. What are you

Caravan sales within the region have doubled over recent years. Whether it’s a journey of a thousand miles or a weekend getaway, this is the first step on your next great adventure.  It is the Let’s Go Sunshine Coast Caravan & Outdoor Expo, which is being held at the Nambour Showgrounds from Friday, August 18, to Sunday, August 20. One of the Sunshine Coast’s largest caravan, camping and outdoor events will feature more than 90 exhibitors showcasing an enormous range of caravans, camper trailers, motorhomes, campervans and accessories. It is a family-friendly event that will include many free activities, including the popular Walkabout Working Dogs campfire cooking demonstrations with a side of bush poetry and ballads from Ranger Nick, live music on our “VAN JAM” stage. There will also be Weight and Towing Masterclasses to educate new and seasoned caravan or RV owners about all things weight, loading, towing and safety. Sunshine Coast Council Division 10 Councillor David Law said the Council-supported event was the ideal opportunity for residents to discover new ways to explore our region and further afield.  “From the hinterland to the beaches, the Sunshine Coast has so many wonderful areas which are worth exploring and experiencing,’’

Kent Roberts of Charity Bricks and Aus Living Support Marketing Director Dessi Mitzeva in the Lego room. Those little pieces of plastic that litter the floor of so many homes with children can help keep someone else in a house. Pre-loved Lego has raised thousands of dollars for Aus Living Support, a Sunshine Coast-based charity helping people who need a hand to pay their rent or mortgage. Charity Bricks, housed in a room off the Aus Living Support op-shop in Howard Street, Nambour, has so far generated $25,000 in income to help people meet their payments. Aus Living Support project officer Kent Roberts decided to try a re-selling Lego after seeing the success of other Lego stores. “I do a bit of Lego myself and after collecting Lego for the last five or six years, I had an excess of Lego and saw another way we could make some money for the charity,” he said. Kent pulled more than 20 plastic tubs containing about 300kg of excess Lego out of his Lego room at home to stock the shop for starters about a year ago. The Lego room is open on Tuesdays and Saturdays and has proven popular with all

Sawitree Thumwong, Aaron Hellinga and Mitch Seidl are all smiles. The Nambour Street Fair on Saturday was hailed as such a success that organisers want to make it a monthly event. The event, billed as a festival of food, saw Club Hotel Namba and the Royal George join forces with Tramco’s regular TramFest and Council’s Curated Plate. It featured street food, drinks, bands and entertainment – and thousands of people. Tramco’s Rhonda Billett estimated that more than 5000 people funnelled through Mill Street, which was closed for the day from Currie Street to the Tram Terminus. Even Small Change Espresso, which used the occasion to open at night for the first time, was packed out. Punters also flooded the Club Hotel Namba and the Royal George, across the road. “It takes a lot of conversations, a lot of council funding and a lot of volunteers to put events like this on for Nambour,” said Rhonda. “However, the economic benefits are very significant, and it is just something that we cannot overlook. “Foot traffic in the Nambour CBD on Saturday was unlike anything the town has seen in years with a combination of the Swap Meet at the Show Grounds in

Organisers Mike Morley and Wayne Taylor with volunteer Kent Roberts, centre, manning the BBQ: “We often hear that it’s having the company of other people around that people enjoy even more than the food.” by Cameron Outridge Two mates were having a coffee last August and got talking about the cost of living, inflation and financial stresses that everyone was facing.  So they decided to do something about it. The seed was planted for Nambour Community Dinners on Thursday nights in the Town Square.   “We thought it would be a great idea to provide a relief for struggling individuals and families,” said organiser Wayne Taylor. “Mike (Morley) and I came across the unused square at Nambour and thought it was a great central location.” After about a year the reaction has been fantastic and the idea was growing each week. “People are extremely grateful,” Mr Taylor said. “The  feedback we often get is that if they didn’t get fed by us that night then they would not have eaten that night.  “The people genuinely love the community feel it gives by seeing so many gather in one place all happy and smiling. “We often hear that it’s having the

CEO Ian Harris and Marketing Director Dessi Mitzeva at the Nambour Op Shop have put out the call for donations to help keep families in their homes. THE HEAD of a Sunshine Coast charity which supports battlers trying to keep a roof over their heads says there is no sign of the need abating. Aus Living Support helped 284 families who were struggling with their rent or mortgage repayments last financial year. The charity provides up to $200 a week in assistance to people who, through no fault of their own, find themselves unable to pay their rent or mortgages. Chief executive officer Ian Harrison put out the call for donations to help keep locals in their homes as many continued to struggle to make ends meet. “We’re currently getting four applications a week for rental support. It’s not easing off,” he said.  ‘Many are single mums with kids’ Mr Harrison said many of those needing help had children in the household and many were women. “Many are single mums with kids and there are a lot of ladies over 55 that now find themselves single and haven’t had a lot of experience paying bills etcetera,” he said. “There’s certainly

Studio manager Aelish Healy passes on some advice to member Gerry Ryan at The Pottery Studio. The studio offers one-off classes and short courses. by Janine Hill PATRICK Swayze and Demi Moore are nowhere to be found. In fact, The Pottery Studio at Nambour is a place where people are heading to lose themselves. Studio manager Aelish Healy said playing in clay was not just a creative pursuit but a chance to escape from “real life” for a while. “Some people want to achieve a piece,” Aelish said.  “It’s a huge investment for people to come and switch off and not really think about things that are going on in normal life. “Once you’re handling the clay, you have to focus in such a way that you can find yourself switching off from everything else.” The Pottery Studio offers one-off classes and short courses for people who want to try or learn how to throw pottery on a wheel or hand-build pieces in clay. “Most of our classes are on the weekends. People come in for two hours and make a piece, and come back and glaze it, and then we do four and six week clay courses for people

The Club Hotel Namba invites everyone to taste the flavours of the world at the July 29 Street Party in conjunction with TramFest, The Royal George and Sunshine Coast City Council. Mill Street to be blocked off for bars, flavours, rides and live bands. by Cameron Outridge It’s a street party and everyone in Nambour & hinterland is invited to come and taste the flavours of the world. The Saturday July 29 event will combine the ever-popular Nambour favourite, Tramfest, with new-kid-on-the-block’s Club Hotel Namba in a collaboration with Sunshine Coast Council’s Curated Plate culinary festival.  “It’s a party in Mill Street,” explained Cartel Music and Events director Lea Bye.  “We’re closing down Mill Street,” she said. “And we’re teaming up with the TramFest crew. People can come and join the party at this free community event. We’ll have free face painting, free entertainment and live music, bars from Tramfest, Club Hotel Namba & the Royal George Hotel, as well as plenty of international flavours.  This event is part of the Curated Plate festival, so we wanted to bring to Nambour all of the best international street food vendors that we have here on the Sunshine Coast and beyond. We’re

Phil Dalton and Aaron Borg at the Bad Habit store where music, vintage toys, skateboarding and vinyl records collide. By Janine Hill MATES Phil Dalton and Aaron Borg share a bad habit: collecting stuff.  For Phil, that means vintage toys, skateboards and movies while Aaron’s stuff is music, namely records. They share their afflictions with the rest of the community through Bad Habit record and collectables store, which recently relocated from Blackall Terrace to the Old Ambulance Station in Howard Street. At Blackall Terrace, Phil and Aaron organised live music gigs in conjunction with neighbouring café, The Village Pickle. They continue to organise live music at The Old Ambo, a key multi-media venue within the Nambour entertainment precinct.  “There’s a certain synergy there,” Phil said. The men do not pitch a particular music style. A punk outfit and gospel singer are booked to play on the same card soon. Phil said the place was developing as a niche for metal bands who often could not get a go on the coastal strip. “English band Rat Cage played here and said it was the best show they’d ever done.” “I just think Nambour crowds are pretty enthusiastic. That type of music