Community Afternoon Tea at the Cooroy Butter Factory

Mayor, Noosa Shire Council, Councillor Frank Wilkie; community leaders and volunteers; distinguished guests; ladies and gentlemen. 

I begin by acknowledging the Original Custodians of the lands around Cooroy, and pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging, and to any First Nations people here today. 

Thank you for that warm welcome. I am very pleased to join you this afternoon in the delightful space of the Butter Factory.

It’s wonderful to see this important building, with its long and somewhat chequered history, reborn into a bright, welcoming space — a vibrant focus for art, the community, and visitors.

During the course of my term as Governor, which draws to a close in November, I’ve made multiple visits to the Sunshine Coast region, and greatly enjoyed meeting many Queenslanders lucky enough to call this area home.  

It has been a privilege to learn of the challenges, hopes and triumphs of so many, and to witness the power of community in strengthening our vast and diverse state.  

Later today, I will have the honour of formally conferring the Medal of the Order of Australia to a well-known member of the Cooroy community, Mr Charlie Cobb OAM, for his long years of generous service to the Sunshine Coast region. 

The notion of community is not, of course, static. Inevitably, change comes, and few places in Queensland have seen that process unfold more dramatically than this region.  

Growing populations, and the infrastructure and facilities that follow, can certainly bring marked improvements, but that change can also engender real concern for the overall wellbeing of the area — for the protection of not only the region’s magnificent natural topography, but also the lifestyle and business operations within it.  

It’s striking to note that almost 98 percent of the businesses in the Noosa Local Government Area are small or family-owned — a major consideration as the region develops.  

The locals of this area are rightly passionate about the future of where they live. Here in Cooroy, as in many communities, future development and growth continue to be topics of keen local interest; as do worries about how the cost of living and housing affordability might affect the next generation.  

How food producers, like pineapple-growers in this region — Australia’s only commercial production area — might be affected by imports; and how the Sunshine Coast’s natural beauty — its beaches, bushland and waterways — might be kept safe and clean.

It’s a difficult balance as you strive to retain all that is precious about your enviable lifestyle, while ensuring that future needs are met. My visits have shown me that the people of this region are capable, resilient, and deeply hospitable. I know you face the future with confidence and determination.  

I would like to take this opportunity to note the recent passing of two remarkable local people: Roy Thompson OAM, and his wife Nola. On behalf of the people of Queensland, I would like to express my deep gratitude for all they achieved in their long lifetimes, especially through their extensive philanthropy—particularly in health and education.

In 1979, the Thompsons, alongside other local business people, co-founded the first rescue helicopter in the region — irreverently known as “The Big Cow”— marking the start of the extraordinary achievements of LifeFlight.

Recently, I attended the opening of LifeFlight’s new Experience and Education Centre at Sunshine Coast Airport, and marvelled at how, in under five decades, LifeFlight has become the largest and most advanced aeromedical service in the Southern Hemisphere.

I believe the vision, and generosity of spirit, displayed by so many local people, has shaped the outstanding success of the Sunshine Coast region. I have no doubt it will continue to shine, and in no small part due to the people gathered here today.  

And so on behalf of Queenslanders — and especially those who will benefit from your efforts — I offer my sincere thanks and best wishes for the future.