…about people who change their lives to settle on the Range and why they choose to stay.
Stephen & Lee King have not only succeeded in making a longed for move to the Blackall Range just three months ago, they have also found their dream business. They recently took over the popular Lyles of Montville which they now own and operate in conjunction with two of their sons.
Why did you come here?
Lee: We had been up here several times over the last five to six years and stayed in different cottages and B & B’s. We simply fell in love with the place, and it was also the first place that we both agreed we could settle and be able to live in a country environment.
Stephen: I came here because providence allowed me to. It had always been my dream to raise our family in the country, but it didn’t quite work out that way.
What did you have to change to come here?
Joining their parents in a Range tree change are chefs Jushua and Nathanael King
Lee: The hardest thing for me as a mother was leaving one of our sons and our daughter, as well as our grandchildren behind in the city. But it was also a delight to leave Brisbane because of the sad memories associated with only recently losing my mother.
Stephen: I changed my whole lifestyle. But it was a conscious choice to make that change. And it was one
I couldn’t wait to make. My suburban existence was making me feel caged. I was caught up in a tedious job that was totally unrewarding and it left me with a feeling of constant emptiness.
What will keep you here?
Lee: My family will keep me here of course, and my desire to experience the tranquillity and peace of living on the mountain. You take time to reflect more up here and you take each day with its beauty and wonder and you enjoy it. There is also the warmth and generosity of the people who live here which I really value.
Stephen: I used to wake up and think “Not another day,” and now I am excited by the thoughts of so many things – eating dinner in our own restaurant in front of a log fire; Balmoral ridge; Balmoral Park; Western Avenue; Lake Baroon; wallabies on the lawn; and maybe most important of all, at last giving myself the chance to let my creative side flourish.
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