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Cassowary Festival for Mission Beach - naturally ! Media Release 13 June 2018 |
The Mission Beach Community loves to celebrate and they have a lot to celebrate!
Following the success of the inaugural Mission Beach Community Cassowary Festival last year, the Mission Beach community is ready to once again to show off their creative talent . All in the name of the Cassowary or in local Djiru Traditional Owner language, the Gunduy.
"The cassowary is what everybody who comes to Mission Beach wants to see" said Mission Beach Visitor Centre manager Evelyn Swarbrick. " If I had 10 cents for every person who asked at the visitor centre where they could see a cassowary, I would be a retired millionaire by now"
"It's only natural for the Mission Beach community to want to celebrate the cassowary , after we are known as the Cassowary Capital and we are the Cassowary Coast"' said Mission Beach Cassowaries group spokesperson Liz Gallie, who is a leading advocate for promoting the ' Mission Beach - naturally!" tourism destination branding.
The Mission Beach State School kids are always excited to participate in projects to celebrate the beauty of their area and to help protect cassowaries. They have formed a choir and have been rehearsing a song written theywrote called Mission Beach Naturally - a magic place'. They are also designing temporary roadside signs promoting cassowary awareness for people driving to the festival.
Vibrant Cassowary Coast creature sculptures have been created at a series of workshops under the tutelage of well known art and drama teacher Jan Davies. Both the song and sculptures were made possible with Cassowary Coast Regional Council RADF Grants and will add vibrant additions to the festival and the Drumming of Cassowaries Parade.
A large scale interactive installation incorporating the cassowary will make an exciting and significant contribution to the Cassowary Festival festival. The' Gunduy Midja' installation created by well known Mission Beach Artists, Djiru Ttraditonal Owner Leonard Andy and textile artist Nina Dawson will be a major drawcard to the Cassowary Festival where the Djiiru people will be sharing their knowledge with locals and visitors. The Gunduy Midja has also been funded with a RADF grant
There will be environment displays, art and craft workshops, guest speakers and a great line up of local musicians to entertain throughout the day. Local musicians will include rising music star Tay Oskee who will be travelling 'home' from successful touring to perform at the festival.
"We have an extremely creative community" said Mel Bowman Finn who will be the MC at the festival. "All our entertainers are local so it is a true Mission Beach community event. The awareness of this great bird brings out the best in us all"
Our aim is to celebrate Mission Beach through our points of difference. "The festival is a fun and creative way of doing that. It will be an added attraction for visitors and increase nature-based tourism business opportunities and environmental awareness ". "It's the low key development and 'wildness' character that creates the real charm of Mission Beach" said Liz " It is also the core of the 'Mission Beach naturally' branding vision.
Hilary Watson owner of Helen Wiltshire Gallery agreed "A community festival is a very important event. It brings life into town". "The Cassowary Festival is a natural fit for Mission Beach. It not only celebrates the great wildlife we have but also what we're here for". "A major part of that is the relaxed village atmosphere" said Hilary.
A big audience is expected with the date being in the middle of the tourist season. The festival aims to further Mission Beach’s reputation as a national and international tourism destination where the community helps protect cassowaries and the exceptional natural environment. Organisers hope the festival will become an annual event with benefits for the local arts and business community.
The full program and list of events can be found on www.cassowaryfestival.com
Ends
----------------------------------------------
Link to photos via dropbox
For more information
Contact
Mission Beach Cassowary Festival Committee
Liz Gallie
0414 402 315
For the Gunduy Midja project contact Nina Dawson
0488 263 926
Following the success of the inaugural Mission Beach Community Cassowary Festival last year, the Mission Beach community is ready to once again to show off their creative talent . All in the name of the Cassowary or in local Djiru Traditional Owner language, the Gunduy.
"The cassowary is what everybody who comes to Mission Beach wants to see" said Mission Beach Visitor Centre manager Evelyn Swarbrick. " If I had 10 cents for every person who asked at the visitor centre where they could see a cassowary, I would be a retired millionaire by now"
"It's only natural for the Mission Beach community to want to celebrate the cassowary , after we are known as the Cassowary Capital and we are the Cassowary Coast"' said Mission Beach Cassowaries group spokesperson Liz Gallie, who is a leading advocate for promoting the ' Mission Beach - naturally!" tourism destination branding.
The Mission Beach State School kids are always excited to participate in projects to celebrate the beauty of their area and to help protect cassowaries. They have formed a choir and have been rehearsing a song written theywrote called Mission Beach Naturally - a magic place'. They are also designing temporary roadside signs promoting cassowary awareness for people driving to the festival.
Vibrant Cassowary Coast creature sculptures have been created at a series of workshops under the tutelage of well known art and drama teacher Jan Davies. Both the song and sculptures were made possible with Cassowary Coast Regional Council RADF Grants and will add vibrant additions to the festival and the Drumming of Cassowaries Parade.
A large scale interactive installation incorporating the cassowary will make an exciting and significant contribution to the Cassowary Festival festival. The' Gunduy Midja' installation created by well known Mission Beach Artists, Djiru Ttraditonal Owner Leonard Andy and textile artist Nina Dawson will be a major drawcard to the Cassowary Festival where the Djiiru people will be sharing their knowledge with locals and visitors. The Gunduy Midja has also been funded with a RADF grant
There will be environment displays, art and craft workshops, guest speakers and a great line up of local musicians to entertain throughout the day. Local musicians will include rising music star Tay Oskee who will be travelling 'home' from successful touring to perform at the festival.
"We have an extremely creative community" said Mel Bowman Finn who will be the MC at the festival. "All our entertainers are local so it is a true Mission Beach community event. The awareness of this great bird brings out the best in us all"
Our aim is to celebrate Mission Beach through our points of difference. "The festival is a fun and creative way of doing that. It will be an added attraction for visitors and increase nature-based tourism business opportunities and environmental awareness ". "It's the low key development and 'wildness' character that creates the real charm of Mission Beach" said Liz " It is also the core of the 'Mission Beach naturally' branding vision.
Hilary Watson owner of Helen Wiltshire Gallery agreed "A community festival is a very important event. It brings life into town". "The Cassowary Festival is a natural fit for Mission Beach. It not only celebrates the great wildlife we have but also what we're here for". "A major part of that is the relaxed village atmosphere" said Hilary.
A big audience is expected with the date being in the middle of the tourist season. The festival aims to further Mission Beach’s reputation as a national and international tourism destination where the community helps protect cassowaries and the exceptional natural environment. Organisers hope the festival will become an annual event with benefits for the local arts and business community.
The full program and list of events can be found on www.cassowaryfestival.com
Ends
----------------------------------------------
Link to photos via dropbox
For more information
Contact
Mission Beach Cassowary Festival Committee
Liz Gallie
0414 402 315
For the Gunduy Midja project contact Nina Dawson
0488 263 926