Coronavirus was the overseas disease. Until it wasn t. We knew it was on cruise ships and we had locals from Mackay and Whitsundays on board in late February. But back then I was still planning on jetsetting to Italy and Spain for my friend s 50th. It ll be fine. The virus is just in the north of Italy, we assured ourselves. We re young and this virus is hitting the oldies, we told our families. On March 10, our trip was cancelled when Italy closed its borders to try to shut down the spread of COVID-19 as hospitals were overrun with patients and deaths escalated.
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Subscriber only With community groups and clubs taking leave over the holiday period, please phone the organisers to check the events are still going ahead. Â
LET US KNOW The Community Diary offers free entries to not-for-profit groups, organisations, clubs and schools in the wider Mackay region. Email details of your event, under the subject Community Diary to heidi.petith@news.com.au Â
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 30 - PAINTING GROUP, 9am-3pm and 5-9pm, costs $5 for members, $10 for non-members, includes use of easels, Mackay Art Society, Snow Wright Crt, Beaconsfield. Ph: 0409 474 291. - BEACONSFIELD Road Men s Shed: 8am-noon, Beaconsfield Rd. Ph: 4942 3321.
We don t want to be burying anymore brothers or bike riders . That was the message from Sons of the Southern Cross Mackay president Ken Smiley Hyde who urged motorists to take more care on the roads. The memorial at Handlebar Heaven, Ooralea, created by Sons of the Southern Cross Mackay members for fellow late member Wes Pop Carlton who died in a tragic crash in Kyogle, New South Wales on October 20 last year. Pictured are SOSS members Ted Bubbles Walters, James Knuckle McGovern, President Ken Smiley Hyde and Josh Professor Van Loenen. Picture: Heidi Petith
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Subscriber only This year will probably go down in the history books as one of the most eventful in modern history. For some, it was a year they would like to forget. But for others, it was an opportunity to start afresh. No matter how much you were affected by the global COVID-19 pandemic, there is no doubt that 2020 was quite the rollercoaster ride for the human race. From the fallout of coronavirus to disasters we never saw coming and the moments that made us proud to call the region home, here are the 10 events that shaped Mackay in 2020 in no particular order:
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With community groups and clubs taking leave over the holiday period, please phone the organisers to check the events are still going ahead. Â
LET US KNOW The Community Diary offers free entries to not-for-profit groups, organisations, clubs and schools in the wider Mackay region. Email details of your event, under the subject Community Diary to heidi.petith@news.com.au Â
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 23 - PAINTING GROUP, 9am-3pm and 5-9pm, costs $5 for members, $10 for non-members, includes use of easels, Mackay Art Society, Snow Wright Crt, Beaconsfield. Ph: 0409 474 291. - DAILY morning prayer: prepare for Christmas with 30min of prayer and readings, 11.30am-noon, Mackay Street Chaplaincy, 21 Wood St.