HT: Some Coast community groups say your ‘linein-the-sand’ is simply that … a line that can easily be rubbed out … that you aren’t tough enough to challenge the state government on growth planning.

BA: Well, I’d ask at what level do I not challenge the state? There’s still a lot of work to be done on the planning scheme, and detailed work, but I don’t see any weakening of this Council’s position. There isn’t a Council policy that says there’s a line in the sand, but Council policy is determined to ensure that those long term sustainability issues are well and truly entrenched in the planning scheme.

I think there is a very strong backlash against the Queensland Government’s persistent view, and I’m talking about 30 years, that in the state of Queensland, growth is good. And when you see predicted in the next 20 years massive growth in the south-east corner, that to me rings extremely loud bells in the community.

HT: Do you think councillors would resist the state government and risk having their planning controls taken away … possibly losing their seats in the process?

BA: That’s an awful big question for a Council. If the first test comes and the state legislates to remove the planning responsibilities from all of local government, then that’s a big onus to put on the Sunshine Coast regional councillors. But let me say, this Council has a determination like I’ve never seen before.

HT: Minister Hinchcliffe recently backed down on a massive development proposal on the Caboolture River through a threat of war from the mayor of Moreton Bay. Can you say your Council is equally strong enough to support you in opposing say, Palmwoods and Maroochydore greenfield sites?

BA: The Minister is very clear on my position with Palmwoods, Caloundra South and the Maroochydore areas. There will be some development in those areas but – no development without infrastructure – that is still the solid commitment of this Council.

HT: If infrastructure is the key for your Council accepting the kind of growth being pushed by the state government, what is the infrastructure that must be put on the front burner?

BA: CAMCOS is critical. We need efficient public transport that will create movement through the coastal corridor without the need for motor vehicles. It’s got to be able to tie together the town centres of Maroochydore, Kawana, Caloundra and the future Caloundra South in a highly efficient, cheap, high patronage system. What we need is public transport on the Coast, not public transport to the Coast. I think that’s the first course of action.

HT: So why is CAMCOS so delayed?

BA: I think it’s the capacity argument. When do we get to the size that we need that kind of integrated transport system.

HT: So we have to develop first, then we get an integrated public transport system?

BA: Well, this is the argument we can play. Currently there are significant problems with traffic, and the current level of public transport is struggling to cope, mainly because it’s not competitive, because it’s on-road. Translink’s doing a great job, but they’re working on a very limited budget, and they’re working in some difficulty because of the layout of the Sunshine Coast.

The point is, we still don’t know the carrying capacity of the Sunshine Coast, yet we have been forced into making decisions before we understand what that is. My view is we need to know where the community wants us to go, and to do that we need a planning scheme in place.

HT: You told me early last year that you felt that after 350,000 people the Coast would be moving into a different style of community. Aren’t we well into that now?

BA: My original comments to you were not based on science. I only rely on what I see. The Gold Coast is the analogy that I use. When it got up to that 350,000 that’s when their world started to change and it lost its small town feel . So, I would like to see us develop policies and a philosophy so that we didn’t go beyond that. That will be heavily driven by this first Council and heavily driven by this first planning scheme. That’s why this Council wanted to put its stamp on that and get it through in this first term.

HT: Do you sense there is a crunch time with the state government?

BA: I don’t see one crunch time, but there are a number of issues ahead of us such as the minister’s response to Palmview and to Maroochy town centre, because we’ve basically dug our toes in on that. We’ve started discussions on Caloundra South and that will be another crunch opportunity. I think the really big crunch will come when Council advertises its planning scheme. That will be a milestone of some note. And we will want it finished well before the election in 2012.

HT: You were elected because many residents of Maroochy and Caloundra wanted a piece of what Noosa had – a strong balance between the built and natural environments. Half way through your term, some electors are saying where is our piece of the Noosa action.

BA: Well the reality is we are where Noosa was 15 years ago when it was having these growth arguments in the community, and when a number of battles were fought under the leadership of Noel Playford. We’re having those battles now in the south but we are faced with significant hurdles to jump because previous councils made assumptions on Caloundra South , Palmview, Maroochy town centre and Caloundra town centre. But at the same time as trying to deliver some of this growth we are trying to deliver some of that protectionist psyche for our communities to give them a rate of growth that they can accept and not lose their lifestyle.

“Volunteering – an important part of life for Rhonda Hetzel”

Rhonda (left) with volunteer recepionist, Claire.

WHEN Rhonda Hetzel took on the task of coordinating the Maleny Neighbourhood Centre four years ago she added another level of professionalism to the way it was run, and with its new, purpose-built building in Bicentenary Lane the centre is flourishing. Rhonda took time out of her busy schedule to explain the role of the Maleny Neighbourhood Centre to Hinterland Times Editor, Michael Berry.

“We were given a grant for this Centre because of the lobbying of Carolyn Male. But we don’t own it. We lease it for a peppercorn rent, on Council-owned land . Although we’re in a government building that we don’t own, the Department of Communities has been very good to us. We are an unfunded centre which means that everyone who works here is a volunteer. We don’t have any paid staff.

“We got a gambling fund grant to furnish the building, but we need money to run the centre. It probably costs $25,000 a year to run the centre so we need to get sponsorships for some of the programs we’re running. We definitely need community support to keep us going “We’ve been told this is your building now. You make it work for you. That’s my philosophy anyway –to get the community engaged with the neighbourhood centre, and to connect up with other local organisations. We need to get people in here having their meetings, and making use of the building. We get paid rent, and that’s one of the ways we will pay our way.

People still ask what is the neighbourhood centre and what does it do. There are several centres on the hinterland including Beerwah, Mooloolah, Landsborough and Conondale.

“Basically what they all do”, says Rhonda, “is they respond to the needs of the people who come through the door. They also reflect the type of skills of the volunteers. So for instance they might focus on the older people or their youth or life skills.

“In Maleny we are very focused on youth because we have the flexi-school, and one of our aims this year is to establish a youth program.

“When the neighbourhood centre was first set up it was for homeless people, people on the dole, youth -all those people who slip through the cracks and we fail to see them, or don’t want to see them. What I love about being here is that we’re actually saying to all those people we respect you enough to have this beautiful building and this is your place. So we’re not telling them they’re insignificant and invisible anymore.

“Over the past year our clientele has changed. We now get pensioners and old Maleny dairy families coming in and saying they can’t cope. So, we’ve developed programs to help those people. We take them out on bus trips. We have morning teas for them. We teach them how to clean their home easily in a green way without buying all those chemicals that cost a fortune. We talk about cooking from scratch and different ways of shopping and all sorts of things that really do help to support them.

“We’ve got a free legal service that operates every fortnight and is manned by volunteers – most of whom are Maleny lawyers. It’s a two hour session. Anyone in the community can ring up. It’s free and not means tested.

Head teacher at the flexi school, Brad Owens, with teachers

The flexi school is located in its own suite of rooms in the centre. It takes young people who don’t fit socially into the local high school. It is incorporated within the state education department and it liaises closely with Maleny High School staff. Head  teacher is Brad Owens assisted by John Mays and teacher’s aid, Carol Ferriday.

Our bus is also used to pick up food from the food bank in Brisbane for our emergency assistance. When people don’t have anything to eat, they can come to us and we will give them groceries.

Homelessness is a problem in Maleny even though some people don’t believe it is a problem. There is the presumption that this is a wealthy community and therefore there is no reason for anyone to be homeless.

Rhonda says there are about 20 homeless people at any one time. They are mostly young people but there are also women over 60.

“When there are homeless people in town -which is always”, says Rhonda. “ they can come here and have a shower. They can wash their clothes and dry them. That situation is dire because there is no emergency housing anywhere in Queensland. There’s nowhere to send them. There are no vacancies in hostels. We have lots and lots of people couch surfing in Maleny, or sleeping under the bridge.

“We have two people who work in the building who are paid by other agencies. One is a family relationships worker. She works with families with children aged up to eight years. She looks at how the family is functioning and tries to help them. It might be for a short time or it might be for years. We also have a family relationships hub, where couples may be breaking up and we can offer them counselling – that’s an outside service we can offer.

“We’ve also got a community development worker three days a week and she works with other centres. She has experience in community and youth work and is a great help to me.

One wonders how Rhonda survives if she’s not paid. Her background is writing and she still writes for Burke’s Backyard magazine, as well as writing a book. She is also regarded as the most popular female blogger in Australia, getting paid for advertising on her blog site.

“It’s a struggle to fit everything in”, says Rhonda who spends three days a week running the centre as well as countless hours at home. “This is really a full-time job, but I have a lot of eggs up in the air and I hope I don’t drop too many of them”, she adds with a laugh.

“Whatever I do, I do it to the best of my ability, whether I am paid for it or not. Volunteering in the community is a very important aspect of my life. I have had a good life and I want to give back some of what I’ve had. That is why I am here and I hope that because I do my best, people will respect it and I will be seen not just as a volunteer but as an important member of the team.
Contact: Rhonda Hetzel, rhonda@malenync.org.au

Humble Beginnings…

The Maleny Neighbourhood Centre began in 1993 when a group of concerned Maleny residents recognised the need to develop supportive responses to families, young people and people with special needs. The organisation was incorporated in 1994 and became the first community association in Maleny that had a specific purpose to address poverty and social disadvantage in the area.

When they started, the organisation rented a small space in the RSL Hall, which limited its activities. So, they focused on active projects out in the community and not in the Hall. Over the years the MNCA has moved several times, always looking to develop programs and services that respond to the community within the limitation of the premises they were in.

They are now operating five days a week Monday to Friday from their own purpose-built building at 17 Bicentenary Lane.

“A Vision come true for Howard Buckley”

Howard Buckley, key founder and long term president of the Maleny Neighbourhood Centre.

MALENY RESIDENT Howard Buckley has been at the forefront of setting up and guiding the Maleny Neighbourhood Centre over the past 17 years – it’s a vision come true for this dedicated community worker.

“The journey of the neighbourhood centre has been about people in the community being there for other people in the community”, says Howard. “They have struggled together to try to do things for other people, and to work with other people to make things happen. So, having a new centre will enhance that immensely.”

Tertiary trained in community welfare and social planning, Howard has spent 25 years in community development. He is currently managing a youth service in Deception Bay. It was a youth crisis 17 years ago that sewed the seed of a neighbourhood centre in Maleny.

“Back in 1993 when the neighbourhood centre first began it was a time when there had been a spate of suicides” says Howard. More than 100 people turned up to a meeting and out of that the neighbourhood centre was formed.

“There’s been one core thread right throughout”, adds Howard,” and that is about people’s commitment. Without setting ourselves above any other community group, a neighbourhood exists because the people involved want to see other people in their community get help.

They want to give to their community and I guess that’s the heart of what a neighbourhood centre is all about – social justice. The head part of the centre is about the planning and the strategies we use to get there – essentially partnering with other organisations, particularly with those on the Coast because we don’t have those resources in Maleny. For example, mental health – we’ll never ever get government funding to provide a mental health service in Maleny, and it’s a problem that’s growing in our region. So, we create the hub so that they can come here to provide those services.

The new building is a dream that began in 1998 when again, a group of concerned people began planning a “space” that could be a hub for community services in Maleny, particularly for young people.

“We developed a concept plan for a new centre called Centre for Youth Community and Arts Development (CYCAD). It would provide a shared home for the MNC and the Maleny Flexi School. Carolyn Male took the CYCAD plan and knocked on the doors of every State Government minister in an attempt to get funding for the proposal. Eventually in September 2006 the then Treasurer Anna Bligh dedicated the funds to make the concept a reality.

This began a long process to find suitable land, building designs, and eventually making the whole project become a reality by building it!”

“Being here from the very start I have seen some difficult times for the MNC –judgementalism, ignorance and even malicious attacks on the centre from people who don’t understand what we do. At times we wondered how we were going to continue so I guess this is a moment of celebration, not only for what we have achieved but how we have achieved it. Having this wonderful building is certainly an exciting phase in our history, yet it is just another chapter in our story of how people working together in a respectful way can achieve good things for other people”

A volunteer management committee is headed by Howard Buckley, and after 17 years he says it’s probably time for him to take a lower profile.

“My passion is working with young people and maybe in the future I will work with the flexi school on a voluntary basis. Professionally I started in youth work 25 years ago and now I am managing a youth service, so I guess that’s a thread for me – continuing to work with young people.”

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Market organiser, Jill Petersen said the move will be made for the market day of Sunday February 21 (8am- 2pm). Jill said the switch from the Community Centre was mainly for access and ease of parking for both customers and stall holders.

“We will also be able to use the lawns outside the Hall down to the Creek”, said Jill. “This means we can fit in more stalls, and inside hopefully there will be space for people to sit and enjoy coffee and cake.”

Anyone who is interested in having a stall should contact Jill on 5435 8844 or 0448 423 919.

Stan Ceglinski, captivates the Wood Expo crowd with timber stories from a bygone era.

ORGANISERS of Maleny’s popular Wood Expo weekend at the beginning of May advise that applications for stallholders close at the end of February.

If you are interested in being part of the Expo – as a furniture maker or selling wood products, as a mobile miller or with slab sales, or as part of the Taste Maleny Produce Store or the Sustainable Lifestyle area – you need to get your application in to exhibit.

Application forms are available online at the website: www.malenywoodexpo.com.au

Recognised throughout Australia as one of the best “wood shows” on the calendar, the Maleny Wood Expo showcases all styles of woodwork by local and regional wood artisans, from rustic bush furniture to contemporary design.

The Maleny Wood Expo is hosted by Barung Landcare to demonstrate the beauty of our local native timbers and the need for sustainable harvesting if we are to have this resource in the future.

A wonderful family event with attractions for all ages, the Expo attracted over 8,000 visitors in 2009. This offered local woodworkers, mobile millers and craftspeople an excellent opportunity to present their work to a wide audience from across SEQ.

For more information or any queries, phone Barung Landcare on 5494 3151 or ring Expo Coordinator, Steve McLeish, on 0428 674 335.

The Maleny Credit Union will launch a new finance broking business this month to boost service options to its Hinterland clients, and to attract a broader client base beyond the Sunshine Coast.

MCU Financial Services will be powered by the credit union but it will have its own logo and identity, and is the brainchild of MCU CEO Greg Stevens. His aim is that all existing and potential clients of MCU have access to the most comprehensive advice on their lending options, in addition to consumers who solely want access to this business separate from the credit union,whether it’s self- managed super schemes, to commercial and business loans.

Mr Stevens told the Hinterland Times that loans negotiated through MCU Financial Services will earn additional income for the credit union which will make more funds available for the MCU’s Community Grants Scheme. This will mean greater ongoing support for MCU members in the Hinterland region as well as support for not-for-profit groups and local art projects.

Maleny-based Marlene Jackson has been appointed to run MCU Financial Services which will have a three person board including MCU CEO, Greg Stevens. Greg will also be the managing director of this business. Marlene Jackson has an MBA in marketing and many years experience in Asia and the Pacific representing international firms such as the UK property company Richard Ellis, and international management consultantcy Arthur Anderson. She established her own business as marketing consultant and finance broker since moving to the Hinterland almost six years ago.

Ms Jackson said that MCU Financial Services will introduce a new level of lending expertise to the Hinterland.

“We will look at lending solutions that are specific to the person we are talking to”, said Marlene. “Where a bank does it the other way around. They have to massage the client around their products, because they can’t change their products.”

What it means for the average client is that the first port of call will still be an MCU loans officer. If he or she can’t provide the loan you want, then they will recommend you to MCU Financial Services.

Marlene will be developing this business independently of the credit union. However, if an MCU loans officer can’t provide the loan you want, then they will, with your consent, recommend you to MCU Financial Services.

“I would look at the person’s individual scenario”, says Marlene, “and shop around to find the best deal. This service is available to everyone and you don’t need to be member of the Credit Union, and all information given to MCU Financial

Services is kept separate and confidential from the Credit Union’s operations.

And there’s another benefit for MCU members”, adds Marlene.

“We can provide what we call a ‘health check’ on their finances to ensure they have the most suitable loan for their particular circumstances. That advice is free, and even if I find that a member’s existing plan is the best they can get, then I will advise them not to change.”

This new financial arm to the MCU is likely to be a shot in the arm to the income stream of the business that started out as a local co-operative more than 25 years ago. The credit union is hamstrung in growth potential by its relatively small geographic lending area, the loan funds it has available at any one time, and the types of loan instruments it can write.

Marlene Jackson says “Setting up MCU Financial Services is a pioneering and entrepreneurial way for a credit union to think as well as providing consumers with a one stop shop. You have to give Greg Stevens full marks for his vision in looking at new income streams for the MCU”.

Marlene won’t have a 9 to 5 regime and she won’t be office-bound. “I will be mobile”, she says, “and I will come and see you in your time and wherever it suits you, seven days a week.

Marlene Jackson has the entire country to market the new financial services arm of MCU. She is used to negotiating loans across the country and across the world. She will work closely with Greg Stevens to ensure MCU Financial Services is well pitched to attract both local clients and those outside the region.

It’s that time of year again!

Fine food, fine wine and fine conversation will be the highlights of Ron and Helen Geyl’s annual Montville Gourmet Food and Wine evening at the Poet’s Café on Wednesday 10 February.

ONCE AGAIN all proceeds will go towards helping the 41,000 animals that pass through RSPCA Qld Shelters every year.

This will be the fifth year that Ron and Helen have staged the event. They provide the venue and all food and drink free of charge and last year they also offered complimentary food at Poet’s Café and free accommodation at their Coolabine Ridge Eco Sanctuary for the RSPCA Inspectorate Conference.

“We’re tremendously grateful,” said RSPCA Qld CEO Mark Townend. “Ron and Helen have been incredibly generous. They’re lovely people and this is one fundraising event everyone really looks forward to!”

The legendary Bob Irwin will speak during the evening and there will also be a pet photography master class with RSPCA Qld’s official photographic partner, Zoo Studio. Plus of course there will be raffles, lucky door prizes and a quiz.

The night promises to be both informative and entertaining. Tickets are $40 each or $70 for two. Places are strictly limited, so to avoid disappointment please book today.

RSVP Friday 5 February 2010 to Shana Johnston PO Box 6177, Fairfield Gardens, Qld, 4103

Phone: 07 3426 9932 or email: events@rspcaqld.org.au

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There’s a parlour room, kitchen, laundry, embroidery room, as well as rooms displaying war memories, Scouting, the Moreton Sugar Mill, Nambour Hospital and telecommunications.

This amazing window into local times past has been assembled by a volunteer group led by its president, Clive Plater and secretary Barbara Want.

What is most fascinating are the implements and furnishings of a society now foreign to the digital world of our modern experience. So, there are embroidered samplers that were de rigeur in the 19th century, beautifully delicate wedding dresses of the 1920s, hat boxes and trinkets that define the interests of Nambour householders of times past.

In the kitchen is fine bone china laid out on the dresser, a butter churn and a bowl of scones in the centre of the kitchen table. The laundry displays washing hung on a line with wooden pegs and a collection of steam irons of all shapes and sizes. A copper sits against the wall.

Reminders of the Moreton Sugar Mill, built in the late 1800s can be seen in the recreated Board Room with its original boardroom table and timber-lined walls. Outside in the museum grounds adjacent to the now demolished mill, is the restored engineer’s hut.

The sugar train ‘Eudlo’ has been restored by museum enthusiasts, along with a tipper and fly wheels and several pieces of sugar mill machinery engines, looking like items of techno sculpture.

An entire collection of tools from Potter’s Bootmaking Shop is on display in the downstairs area of the main building, along with a collection of lawnmowers and an old red ‘tardis’ telephone box.

Bizarre stainless steel items for medical and surgical procedures are featured in the Hospital room. They contrast dramatically with the contemporary hospital facilities of Nambour’s modern hospital and are a reminder of how the treatment of patients has changed over the past 100 years.

For those with a gadget preference, the Telecommunications room is a delight. The progression from the telegram boy’s bicycle, magneto telephones and manual switchboards, through to telex machines and the first mobile phones can be seen here, all packed into a small space.

If you love to poke around in the past, the Nambour Museum is a remarkable collection that reflects our recent history. It is a place that reminds us so poignantly and so graphically just how far we have come and just how quickly.

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John is currently refurbishing a 1917 Fordson tractor – machines that were sold to farmers by Henry Ford around the world, and were made to last.

“These wheels are the heaviest I have ever handled,” says John, a retired mechanic. “They are solid steel and I wondered why they were so heavy until an old farmer explained. He said you’d often hit a hillside and the front would come up. So that’s why Henry Ford made the front wheels so heavy …to keep the front down.”

John hopes to get the old Fordson running again if he can find the right magneto.

“Someone nicked the magneto off the engine. But a British visitor came in recently and he became so enthusiastic that he said, John, I will go back to England and source a magneto for you.”

John’s lifelong commitment to mechanics and transport led him back to the museum after he retired.

“One of my thrills three years ago”, says John with a nostalgic look in his eye, “was to look at this poor old dear all covered in rust. And I thought I would love to renovate you and put a new coat of paint on you. Then I saw a little ad in the local paper asking for volunteers, and I thought, well I’ve got the time. So, now I’m fulfilling a dream. “

For all enquiries phone the Nambour Museum secretary Barbara on 5441 2119.
The museum is open Wednesday and Saturday 1-4pm. Adults $3. Children $2.
More detail is available on the Museum website at www.nambourmuseum.org.au

John (above) with his latest mechanical renovation - a 1917 Fordson tractor, and (left) in his workshop underneath the Nambour Museum.

Clinical nurse at Maleny Hospital, Bernice McLennan is packing her bags - all 60 of them – and is about to head off to the Philippines where she will be part of a surgical team whose chosen mission is to repair the lips and palates of poor Filipino children. Bernice spoke with HT editor Michael Berry before she left for Manila.

THIS IS Bernice’s twelfth trip to isolated parts of the Philippines where transport is scarce and medical care is even scarcer. She is the secretary and mission manager for Helping Children Smile Inc - a Sunshine Coast voluntary organisation that provides free reconstructive surgery for Filipino children who otherwise would have no access to specialist surgery.

“There’s 13 of us in the team”, says Bernice. “Anaesthetists, surgeons and nurses. My role is team manager for the upcoming mission. I don’t go into the theatres, but if I am needed I do recovery or the ward round.”

Bernice organises the team’s departure from Brisbane – about 800 kg of equipment, kindly loaded free onto the aircraft by Qantas. The team takes everything they need says Bernice because the small Luzon towns they’ll visit have primitive conditions, and hospitals provide the barest of essentials.

“We take everything with us”, adds Bernice, “from the cotton wool balls to the anaesthetic machines, suction units, defibrillators. We get good support from companies loaning equipment and other essentials. We go for two weeks. We fly out on a Saturday. We screen on the Sunday, start operating on Monday and go right through,

depending on the numbers of children. We usually have the Sunday off mid way through, because we are knackered by then”, she laughs.

The surgical team operates for up to nine days of the two weeks away, and they can deal with up to 90 children over that period – some are simple lip operations, others are more complex lip and palate reconstructions. The results of these 1-3 hour operations are not only physically life- transforming, but they turn around the social lives and health status of the children and their families.

“Sadly, if the children don’t have reconstructive surgery they are ostracised”, says Bernice, “and very often the parents are also ostracised because they are considered to have sinned at some time. They believe that God is paying them back with this awful infliction on their children. But once we repair the lips and palates of the children, they can go out to work and augment the family income, which of course helps to support their parents and grandparents”, says Bernice.

The team operates on children as young as four months and it is the young ones who get the most benefit because their speech has not yet formed.

“We did a little girl of six”, says Bernice remembering with a smile, “and her lip was so badly deformed she couldn’t speak. But her first word after the surgery was ‘Mum’. We’ve also done cosmetic surgery on older people”, adds Bernice. “We had a street vendor who had a terrible mouth deformity. He was just selling corn or whatever he could find to sell on the sidewalk. We operated on him the first day we were there. Four days later he was back on the sidewalk. He came and saw us on the day we left and told us that his income had doubled, and that was purely because of his improved appearance.”

Bernice explains that no-one really knows why there is such a high incidence of cleft palate in the Philippines. It’s thought the cause may be poor dietary intake in the first six weeks following conception when the facial muscles are formed, but that’s not conclusive.

There’s never a shortage of children turning up when the surgical team arrives – usually at a small government hospital. Host hospitals offer the team free use of their operating theatre, recovery and ward beds.

“Ahead of our arrival we usually contact social workers”, says Bernice. “They go out to the communities and churches to spread the word that we’re on our way. Many times they don’t believe we’re coming until we’re there, because they’ve been let down by other organisations in the past. They also construct banners across the main street of each town and do radio messages for those who have radios. But a lot of it is just word of mouth. We’ve seen children in supermarkets and told them what we’re doing and they’ve come along for the surgery.”

Bernice says the two weeks away in the Philippines is very busy and there’s not much time for the team to let their hair down. “But we do have a lot of karaoke and dancing at night, if we’ve got the energy”, she adds with a smile.

The team receives no Australian or Philippine government funding. Fundraising alone has helped restore the smiles of over 600 children in the Philippines since their first mission in 1997 under the name of Helping Children Smile Inc.

With her typical sense of humour, Bernice McLennan says she and husband John occupied a penthouse at 50 Maple Street, Maleny for the first 18 years that they lived on the Hinterland. John was ambulance superintendent until his retirement in the early 1990s. Bernice’s life has always been nursing. She commenced training at 16 and only now says that every day is closer to retirement. She has been a clinical nurse at Maleny Hospital since 1975 and experienced big changes in her profession.

“Once upon a time when a patient walked through that door of the hospital we seemed to relieve them of almost all of their independence; and not always did we clearly discuss management plans with them . Now we like to include patients in their care and make sure they are happy with how we’re managing their illness. Maleny Hospital is a community hospital. We nurture ownership of that hospital and we ask the community to comment on our practices and how we can improve our services.

“There used to be a large gap in the relationship between medical and nursing staff in years gone by. These days there’s a better relationship because we all work together as a team more closely than we ever did in the past - we simply have to, to get better outcomes.”

Having been a Maleny resident and a nurse at its hospital for so many years Bernice McLennan finds it increasingly difficult to see locals she knows come into the hospital, and perhaps later, come to the end of their journey through life.

“When you’ve known them for a long, long time and know how they’ve contributed to the community and to their families, I must say, sometimes it makes you think you’ve been here too long.”

And every day is getting closer to the end of Bernice’s professional career, she concludes with her infectious laughter.

No person in living memory has made such an impact on the township of Maleny as Jill Jordan.

Ian Bryce, the former Deputy Mayor of Caloundra City Council said at Jill’s memorial service that Jill came to live in Maleny in the early 1970s when the Blackall Range had stopped making butter and the dairy industry started its slow decline.

But for many oldtimers and new comers alike the young Jill became a spark of optimism, a restless spirit of ideas and can-do projects that helped give Maleny new directions. Her stimulation of community projects for new business, co-operative ventures and employment schemes defined a new identity for Maleny that has spread nation-wide.

That identity is one of a community that cares about itself and its future. Jill articulated that message even to those who didn’t want to hear it. But Jill cared and it showed. She personified a community that talked, argued and debated together, and eventually got things done together - whether it was on Council on the land or in countless community forums.

The Hinterland Times takes this opportunity to record the sad passing of Jill Jordan. A lasting memorial is being planned and those interested in contributing ideas should book at the UpFront Club, Maple Street, Maleny for a buffet dinner 5.30-6.15 pm on Feb 11 followed by a facilitated discussion. Bookings essential, places are limited: Ph 5494 2592

JILL ASKED me to conduct her ceremonies of funeral and farewell so I went to Bowen in the week before she died to be with her and create them together. It is in a spirit of grave pleasure, privilege and gratitude to her life and for her many gifts that I serve her in this way. Jill and I did not have a lot of time.

Jill lived a life of service. Service was her passion, her focus, her purpose and for that she was deeply grateful. It is easy to surrender to hyperbole when describing

“Jill Jordan was a bridge builder …”

Jill for she was both ordinary and extra-ordinary. Jill was a Buddhist who embodied the principles of Buddhism in her daily life. There was no piety about her practice, she simply acted it fully, as she lived her life fully. Jill was looking for more than western psychology which she saw as only sniffing around the edges when she discovered Theravadan Buddhism as a young woman in the sixties.

Through taking refuge in the dharma, Jill developed a different understanding of the world. Things were not as she had previously seen them to be. Things, in fact, were transient and quite impersonal, whilst also being very, very personal. For Jill, railing against the difficulties of life, raking over the coals of old hurts, over and over, has no value. One has to go on and do something about it. And if one can do nothing, then to let go and let be.

Jill thoroughly understood the transience of the world, how everything is always changing, and about the interconnectedness of all things. She learned about the importance of the ability to detach oneself from life whilst being fully engaged.

Learning the dharma was the most beneficial thing in the world to her. It was not always pleasant or enjoyable, sometimes it was very hard. It was not always comfortable. To learn that the moment of death is not more nor less important than the moment of stretching out and taking an apple from the Tree of Knowledge in the prime of life.

Remember her watch-words: Trust the process and ‘Can I make a suggestion?’ The latter could mean, now stop fluffing around and get on with it, or that she did have a suggestion to make. Jill was a dancer and a singer and she loved being silly. She says she only learned to be silly when she was forty, before that she was focused on being responsible. She saw this as one of the great gifts of her life: to get to know that being silly goes very well indeed alongside taking up responsibility.

Jill was not owned by anybody, she belonged to the world.

Jill was a change agent. She was bold, quite happy to speak her mind and leap in where angels fear to tread. She could be quite measured when she did jump in. In the end she was not afraid nor ashamed of making mistakes - she learned from them.

Jill was a strategist. And she learned over her life that you always had to bring other people in. She got better and better at harnessing and chanelling other people’s energy.

Jill trusted people and process. A great and careful listener, she did not hesitate to name what was going on in a group: anger, hostility, resistance. She trusted that if she got it wrong the group would get it right.

Jill was a leader. She had no difficulty being the alpha leader and would take that up when required. She also knew, as good leaders do, to be a follower and supporter of others evolving leadership.

Jill was a teacher and mentor. She taught, mentored and then moved on. However, she was always available for support and critical reflection down the track.

Jill was a bridge builder between people and groups with diverse views. She was passionate about building bridges across seemingly unbridgeable chasms.

Jill never procrastinated. If there was something to be done she did it or passed it on. Right then. She understood you use up energy in putting things off and, what’s more, you lose the precious, fresh energy of the moment.

Jill knew she didn’t have to be everything; she was a brilliant networker. If it was her gig she had to be the expert, otherwise she looked for the expert in others and connected people up.

Jill was modest. She never boasted about what she had done and we will take a long time to get the measure of her life of service. Service has been her life and she has loved it.

Thich Nath Hanh has written very beautifully - birth and death are only doors through which we pass, sacred thresholds on our journey. Birth and death are a game of hide-and-seek. So laugh with me, hold my hand, let us say good-bye, say good-bye, to meet again soon.

There’s no end to it really after today. We will continue

to do Jill proud for the rest of our lives.

Anna Herriot Memorial celebrant and Jill Jordon friend