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QCWA 100 years of Friendship
Presentation of cardiophone to the Cooroy Hospital, 1977
By Margie Wegener
AUGUST this year marks the centenary of the Queensland Country Women’s Association (QCWA).
It is one hundred years since Ruth Fairfax was appointed founding President at a ceremony in Brisbane’s Albert Hall.
From 1922 to 1928 as the new QCWA President, her commitment and personal travel throughout the state is credited for the creation of 283 CWA branches, totalling 13,000 members. She famously crisscrossed the state for six months in an opentop car, organising branches and holding meetings, sometimes on creek banks.
“I believe that we are an association for all of us to be proud of. We know there will be differences of opinion, but these matters we can overcome and our association will grow in strength over the next hundred years,” she was quoted as saying in 1921. By all reports Ruth Fairfax was a remarkable country woman, with a strong message and the ability to galvanise country women around important issues.
Today there are 220 Branches of the CWA and the association is a powerful lobby group; a non-sectarian, non-partypolitical, non-profit lobby group working in the interests of women and children in rural areas. Cooroy CWA President, Wendy Bebbington says, “I love CWA really. They get on with it and don’t muck around.”
The Association remains powerful for three key reasons; numbers, history and women. Wendy agrees that not many people know about the work of the CWA, but agrees, “they do have power”.
At a state level some of the QCWA resolutions are quite robust and progressive. In 2019 these included directions for social change and improvements in health care, for example adding dental care to Medicare, addressing food standards and marketing aimed at children, advocating for midwifery services and specific environmental issues relating to women and children in regional and rural communities.
The Cooroy CWA branch will host the State Centenary commemoration on July 1, with a luncheon for ninety official guests. Members have compiled a ‘History of the State’ presentation and there will be a commemorative unveiling of a Ruth Fairfax statue, by her grandson, Tim Fairfax AM and the QCWA State President, Mrs Sheila Campbell.
An enthusiastic band of pioneering women formed the Cooroy branch in 1927 and the 95th Annual Meeting will be marked at the end of July. During the great depression of the early 1930’s - despite their own hardship - this stalwart group provided parcels of clothing and food to those in need. Functions were held in the daytime as there were no electric lights.
Their work included providing scholarships for education, rebuilding the primary school tennis court and endless fundraising. They were often paid to provide morning teas and suppers at functions and the RSL Ball. Throughout the 1940’s they supported the Red Cross, the local hospital and the school. During World War II they adopted the activities of the Australian Comfort Fund and threw their weight behind the war effort. In 1948 the branch formed an international link with Whitfield UK and have continued to correspond with their English pals for 74 years. In 1954 branch members sponsored a public meeting and the town’s muchloved kindergarten was formed.
“Labours have been sometimes arduous, but we have been rewarded in many ways. CWA today has the same ideals - caring, working for local projects, the betterment of women and children, especially those who are less fortunate than ourselves. Friendship is the greatest asset of CWA, whatever level we work,” says Wendy. There is much to celebrate.
QCWA branch hall, Cooroy prior to street scaping and renovations
SPORTS PHYSIOTHERAPY | WOMEN’S HEALTH | MANIPULATION SPINAL PAIN | ARTHRITIS | DRY NEEDLING | PILATES
Rebecca Steele Craig Steele Sabine Anderson
hinteractivephysio Ph: 5442 5556
SATURDAY 18TH JUNE
Doors Open 12noon Starts 1.00pm Admission $5
CENT SALE
ALL WELCOME
CWA HALL Great Prizes to be Won
NEED TO TRAVEL BETWEEN BOREEN POINT, COOROIBAH AND TEWANTIN BUT DON’T HAVE A CAR?
No problem! Jump onboard Noosa Council’s Flexilink service. Provided a booking is made, the service runs three return trips a day Mon-Sat for $2 each way for an adult or $1 for children or concession holders. All the details https://bit.ly/3AjyVie
Tuesday June 14 - 10 to 11.30 am Cooroy Memorial Hall, $8 For tickets: www.trybooking.com/BZMAC
With all the regulars - Sunshine Coast Foodie, Noosa Black Coffee PLUS featuring MOVE Choir (magic of voice Eumundi) coming together over fresh hot scones and loads of freshly whipped cream!
DIY RESEARCH TO GROW YOUR FAMILY TREE
You can access Findmypast for FREE at Noosa Library Service branches. Findmypast is a leading genealogy database that includes billions of searchable records to help you find your ancestors and grow your family tree. Records include census, electoral rolls, births, deaths and marriages, cemetery records, probate, land and court records, migration records, criminal reports, directories, almanacs and government gazettes, and military records from Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and around the world. Access in Noosa Library Service branches only. THE last ‘First Sunday of the month’ event at Noosa Botanic Gardens is happening on Sunday, June 5, from 9am.
The Noosa Council grant funding allowing the Friends of Noosa Botanic Gardens to host this popular event runs out at the end of June.
So come on down and enjoy a Botanic Art workshop (yes, it’s back!), along with some great music from popular Noosa singer/ songwriter Jay Bishoff and his keyboard maestro sidekick Andrew Higgins.
And make sure your Sunday morning gets off to a flying start with a Cooroy Roasters coffee made through the talented hands of Bus Stop Espresso’s own Rob, who will be there with the bus’s second espresso machine.
Bring a chair or cushion for the music, bring a picnic for a longer stay, and bring some walking shoes and hat for a trip into the Shade Garden and/or a walk round the gardens’ eight hectares of nature along the lake. The coffee’s on from 9am, along with the Shade garden opening and the Botanic Art workshops (which you need to book for online).
The music gets under way from 10am.
It’s a great day out at Noosa Botanic Gardens on Sunday, June 5, located on Lake Macdonald Drive about 4km from Cooroy. For more information visit www.noosabotanicgardensfriends.com.
CELEBRATE HISTORY FOR QLD DAY
Enjoy a family day of old fashion games, bush poet and local musicians. Hear from the town crier, and see ladies in costume, artists painting, antiques, classic cars, vintage engines, and local crafts for sale. Contact Yandina Historic House for more details. Yandina Historic House & Museum. June 4, 10am - 3pm. https:// yandinahistorichouse.com.au
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139 Eumundi Noosa Rd 5473 3760
LAST Saturday Australians went to polls and elected a new Government.
In Australia we don’t get to directly elect our Prime Minister but we do get to choose who represents us in the Australian Parliament, and having been re-elected as your representative is a trust that I have always and will continue to carry earnestly and I thank everyone who has given me their confidence.
I am honoured, humbled and grateful for the support that I have received from so many people and I will continue to put Wide Bay first and foremost in everything I do.
I congratulate Mr Albanese on his elevation to Prime Minister but a change of government doesn’t mean a change to the things that are important to us here in Wide Bay.
Improving access to health services remains a priority, which is why the former Liberal and Nationals Government committed to extending Distribution Priority Area (DPA) classification for the Cooroy and hinterland areas for an additional year to attract more doctors and medical professionals, and we need the new Government to stand by this commitment.
The last budget also allocated $1.5 million to expand Katie Rose Cottage Hospice palliative care service and I will work to ensure this funding is delivered.
The new Government adopted our policies to increase access to the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card and reduce the price of PBS medicines and it must now honour these commitments. As always, if you need assistance with any federal matter, please do not hesitate to contact my electorate office on (07) 4121 2936 or through my website www.llewobrien.com.au. Dear Residents,
Thank you for entrusting me to continue to serve as your Federal Member.
While the government has changed, my resolute focus on representing you and delivering for our community remains unchanged.
I send a big heartfelt ‘thank you’ to hundreds of volunteers who generously helped on the campaign, often braving awful weather conditions.
I also pay tribute to the other nine candidates who contested the seat of Fairfax and their volunteers. To them and their supporters, I thank you for your service and commit to do my best to also represent you in this next parliament.
My thoughts are with many of my own colleagues across the country who have lost their seats.
I congratulate Anthony Albanese and the Labor Party on being elected as the next government of Australia.
My hope is that we can work together to ensure that important local projects like bringing heavy rail to the Coast can still be delivered.
There’s a lot of work ahead and I’m ready to throw myself into it.
Yours sincerely, Ted O’Brien
DAN PURDIE State Member for Ninderry
I joined the Verrierdale community to celebrate the launch of the new ‘History of Verrierdale’ earlier this month. SMALL BUSINESS – THE BACKBONE OF OUR ECONOMY
MAY is Small Business month, and there’s no better time to be showcasing the diversity of small and familyowned businesses that are operating in our backyard. Recently, I launched a new campaign to help put the spotlight on some of these businesses. The centrepiece of the ‘Supporting Local’ campaign is a hamper stocked entirely with locally made goods, including: • Environmentally friendly cleaning products from The
Pleasant State and Go for Zero • Handmade soap and bath bombs from The Soap Bar • Selection of teas and spices from Planet Organic • Popcorn from Sweet Az Popcorn • Longlife meat alternatives from Veff by Fenn Foods • Pasta, couscous and risotto mixes from Belladotti • Coffee from Flying West Roasters • Craft beer from Eumundi Brewery
These hampers are being donated to local charities and groups to help them with their fundraising efforts. If you know a local not-for-profit that could benefit from one of these proudly local hampers, get in touch.
GAMBLING GRANT SUPER ROUND
If you are part of a community club or group that has been impacted by a natural disaster in the past 2 years, you are encouraged to apply for a grant of up to $100,000 in the Gambling Community Benefit Fund’s super-sized Disaster Recovery Round. This round is open now, with applications closing on 15 July. Applications from non-affected groups are still welcome in this round, with grants capped at $35,000. For more information visit www.justice.qld.gov.au/initiatives/community-grants.
