Tourism Industry Raises Funds for Bushfire Relief

Local tourism operators met on Friday night at the Mackay Tourism Christmas party, to raise much needed funds for the bushfire recovery.

As part of a wider effort to reactivate tourism, Mackay Tourism held a charity auction for prizes generously donated by its members.

Donated prizes including ‘An Evening with Johnathon Thurston’ tickets, and products from Sarina Motor Inn, Sarina Sugar Shed, and the Mackay and District Italian Association. Russell Pollock of First National Real Estate graciously donated his time as auctioneer.

In total $1,360 was raised for the charitable organisation, Givit. These funds will go towards relieving communities impacted by the recent bushfires which devastated large parts of Queensland, including areas of the Pioneer Valley and surrounding region.

Mackay Tourism General Manager, Tas Webber, said the charity auction was just one of the measures locals were making to support those impacted by bushfires.

“Many local tourism operators have been significantly impacted by the recent bushfires. This auction was one way our industry could come together and support those affected” he said.

“To mitigate the lasting impacts of natural disasters, it’s important we create positive messaging to show that tourism operators are open for business and needing our support”.

Mr. Webber continued, “if you’ve been to places like Broken River at Eungella, and seen how green it is, share your pictures and video”.

“It’s all about locals supporting locals and engaging tourism operators to promote the region as a desired holiday destination”, he said.

“Local business, even those not impacted directly by the bushfires, will see an impact on visitor numbers if perceptions persist that the bushfires destroyed our regions natural beauty”.

He continued, “I visited Broken River on Friday, and this couldn’t be further from the truth. Most of the rainforest of Eungella has survived unscathed and looks as beautiful as ever”.

“This is the message we need to get out. Through positive word of mouth, we can get visitors back and support local tourism operators to get back on their feet” said Mr. Webber.

Charitable donations can be made to https://givit.worldsecuresystems.com/donate-funds. If you’ve taken snaps throughout The Mackay Region, share these with the #meetmackayregion hashtag or tag @visitmackay.

 

Contact: 

Daniel Brown - Communications Officer

0448 994 180

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Published: 11 December 2018