Mark 10th Birdlife Art Awards More than 280 people gathered to celebrate Hinchinbrook Shire Council’s 10th Birdlife Art Awards at the TYTO Regional Art Gallery on Friday night, 1 August 2025. This milestone event continues to honour the rich birdlife of the Hinchinbrook region through the eyes of talented artists from across Queensland, New South Wales, and Victoria. It features an impressive 106 entries across various mediums, including drawing, painting, photography, sculpture, and m
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Sporting and recreation clubs across North and Far North Queensland impacted by early 2025’s severe flooding can now apply for a share in a $30 million funding package to help repair and rebuild their facilities. The Sport and Recreation Recovery Program (SRRG) — a joint initiative by the Albanese and Crisafulli Governments under the Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA) — offers up to $1 million per facility for eligible not-for-profit sport and racing clubs, as well as local cou
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Locally loved artist, Katie Louise, has graced the region once again, painting a beautiful mural on the wall of the infamous Frosty Mango building located 40km South of Ingham along the mighty Bruce Highway. Hailing from Townsville, Katie’s paint brushes have coloured many surfaces across North Queensland where she has artistically captured the unique qualities of several communities including the Atherton Tablelands, Charters Towers, and now Cardwell. Katie’s recent piece within the shi
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Former players, supporters, and families reunited in Ingham over the weekend of 18–19 July 2025 to celebrate the 55-year-long legacy of the Wallaman Rugby League Club, with attendees travelling from across Western Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and all corners of Queensland. Though no longer active, the Wallaman club holds a proud place in local sporting history. Formed in 1970 under challenging circumstances, the club faced early struggles just getting a team on the field. With determina
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As a proud Australian of a multi-cultural nation, I believe it’s important to celebrate where we’ve come from while embracing the values of our country. It’s been disappointing to see the growing trend of corporations and groups using their influence to push people away from celebrating Australia Day—one of the most important dates on our national calendar.
Not celebrating all things Australian on the designated day sounds un-Australian to me. In recent years, the minority voices have tried to shame Australians for celebrating our heritage. Our country and forebearers are not without fault and it’s understandable some may have negative feelings towards our past, but at some stage we must find a way to move forward.
Australia Day is more than just a date, it’s an opportunity to be embrace all that it means to be Australian, what it means to be a resilient, strong and united country.
It’s a time to reflect, to celebrate the people and the achievements that make this country great, and to acknowledge both the triumphs and the challenges that we have collectively faced.
We are a great sporting nation; we are a nation with a proud military history, and we are home to some of the world’s most brilliant minds. Although we are a young nation comparatively, we have a rich multicultural background that can be interwoven with our Indigenous peoples story to create what is modern day Australia.
Bowing to cancel culture by trying to erase Australia Day doesn’t fix anything—it only divides us further. We should be finding ways to unite our nation while instilling national pride in our flag, anthem and country.
This January 26, I encourage every Aussie to find a way to come together with family and friends, to celebrate what it means to live in the lucky country, a country free from war, conflict or imminent treat, a country where everyone is afforded opportunity and free will.
If you choose not to mark the day, that’s your choice—that’s the beauty of living in a free country. But no one has the right to tell us to stop celebrating what the majority love about Australia.
Nick Dametto MP
Member for Hinchinbrook
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