”The sun is shining when the NGC group meet at Nambour RSL, sharing combined knowledge of the club's history and why they each love gardening. They have contrasting gardening styles and yet blend together so well. You like them immediately and know the club must be an extension of them all, welcoming and interesting.

The making of a milliner - Maleny designer takes on Paris

“Don’t die with a story in you.” Angeline Dunne has been a Nambour business owner with her husband for almost two decades. Beloved local butcher shop owners and the owner of Burn Candle and Gifts which many locals to Nambour would know for its famous Christmas displays. But Angeline was also all along an author too, with a book just waiting to be written. “20 years I’ve been wanting to write. It just had to come out, it’s my time.” She says warmly. Angeline launched her debut book at the Brothers Sports Club in Nambour to an eager crowd of followers and a public display of her unusual boot collection.

Alex Jarvis is a talented florist and small business owner in Nambour on the Sunshine Coast; but her story isn’t just about her beautiful flowers, Alex is an inspiration and role model to thousands of people living with disability. When she found it hard to find employment that worked for her, she created her own job, by creating her own small business. Alex had a dream and she made it happen. Her tenacious spirit made her dream become reality and it took a lot of self-belief, planning, hard work and determination. “My mum always taught me to find a will and a way.” For many people living with a disability, employment can be problematic, be difficult to find and to manage and can even in some situations be traumatic. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics approximately 45.2% (40,300) of employed people with disability in Australia reported that they experienced discrimination or unfair conditions directly due to their disability by their employer. And 42% (37,400) further reported they experienced direct discrimination or unfair treatment, due to their disability, from their work colleagues. And the negative experiences can start as early as primary school.

Gen Z may just be the breath of youthful fresh air our communities need. Many are giving, empathetic and community minded leaders

Cover story

She is a grand old dame whose story began in 1899 at Bridges, just two kilometres from Yandina. A classic beauty and now a local icon. You may have driven past this precious piece of preserved history while visiting the The Ginger Factory or Nutworks. Maybe you even wondered at her heritage and treasures inside. The beautiful old-style house with steps leading up to a sweeping verandah that welcomes you to its information desk, manned by some of the most knowledgeable volunteer historians you could meet."

The wall that would be an art gallery

From the hills of the hinterland to the valley of Nambour and surrounds there is some pretty impressive talent on skateboards, and many are guided by Slothy’s Skateboarding Lessons. A bit of a Coast legend. When owner of Slothy’s Skateboarding Lessons, Leon Winter, was a competitive skateboarder he won King of The Sunshine Coast, placed first in some major skateboarding competitions and even competed in the XGames in Sydney. And his career started from one lucky moment.

Take a walk down Currie Street in Nambour and look for the bright yellow signs at the entrance to the staircase at number 103. Each step leads you downwards to a discovery of literature that feels like a secret Potteresque bookshop. Impossibly large, like Doctor Who’s Tardis, Nambour Book Exchange is a generational passion that is one of Queensland’s largest secondhand bookshops.

Who knew a trip to Scottland would lead to a career in Australian butterfly preservation and education. Butterfly Hill owner Brett Hoopert shares his passion for Australian butterflies and the importance of 'host plants'.

Standing with a dapper elegance is Kevin (Kevi) Bryant. His old-world gentlemanly charm and clothing style starkly contrast the modern crowd of bustling people with Covid masks at a Nambour shopping centre. Kevi walks from his home every morning dressed in fine clothing that has been recycled from the local op shops. Sometimes local seamstresses in town have created jackets for him. He is part of the town's fabric, always popping in to the local shops on his rounds

She’s a former professional ballerina, Royal Academy of Dance examiner and teacher, ballet school founder, choreographer, entrepreneur and creator of Progressing Ballet Technique, a program taught in 3500 schools globally. And now Marie Walton-Mahon is also an Order of Australia Medal recipient. “On the 16th of June it was 47 years,” says Marie, reflecting on the beginning of her career as she sits poised with beautiful, youthful grace at 67. Cover story and photograph.