AS I write this column, on Monday, it’s a beautiful, calm, sunny morning.
I make note of it purely because we have had such wild (unseasonable) weather recently, from very windy, to very cold, to incredible rainfalls – sometimes two of these things at once.
Thankfully, the rain held off for the Marathon Festival, on the weekend, which saw 464 entrants pounding the streets of Airlie Beach. See story page 3.
We also had a cruise ship anchored in Pioneer Bay – it was so great to see the town bustling with people and filling our pavements, cafes and retail outlets.
In other news
The Great Barrier Reef Festival is just around the corner (August 4-7).
It’s not too late to get your entries in for the Wilmar Sugar Wearable Arts Competition (held on August 6).
The festival is one of the region’s biggest crowd-pullers and there are plenty of opportunities to get artsy – visit www.greatbarrierreeffestival.com.au for details.
Talking of getting ‘artsy’, the Whitsundays Arts Festival Art Prize Exhibition entry deadline is looming (August 1).
The winners’ artworks will go on display at Coral Sea Marina Resort, from September 23 to 30, as well as scooping cash prizes. Visit www.whitsundaysartsfestival.org
Meanwhile…
We launched the Whitsunday News website, on the weekend, after months of work by a lot of people.
Thank you to my team and Kapow Interactive – and the State Government for the grant!
Please check it out at www.whitsundaynews.net.au and let us know what kinds of things you’re interested in reading online.
We still cherish our printed newspaper, and we always will, so please don’t worry about that.
However, the website extends our reach to people outside the Whitsunday Region, who can’t buy a printed newspaper.
It also opens us up to a new demographic of people who have grown up with phones in their hands!
Thanks for reading this newspaper.
Deborah.