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Susan Alley’s new book, Alley & Co: Mulgrave Valley 1877-1897, was launched on 16 May 2026 at the Gordonvale Museum. An interested group of history addicts, family and well-wishers enjoyed Susan’s talk on the highlights of her book, a history of the Alley family of Gordonvale and Babinda. The Alley family were early settlers in this area, south of Cairns, Far North Queensland, beginning as cedar cutters and moving on to timber and other transport. The Alley family had a hotel called Riverstone which was on the route from the coast to the Tablelands, following Robson’s Track. The book also …read more
Bernie McCarthy’s life has definitely not been boring, as he has always done things a little differently. Sometimes it has resulted in a bit of drama, such as being involved in a boat crash off Mornington Island, attacked in Cape Town by a knife-wielding youth, robbed in Budapest and Los Angeles, and evacuated from Thursday Island to Cairns Hospital. Bernie grew up in Heathcote in Victoria, a country town founded during the 1850s gold rush. His country roots explain his strong connections to nature, hard work and family. His steadfast determination, diligence and courage have resulted in a life story …read more
The clever creatives at ARC Disability Services in Cairns have written and illustrated three new children’s books. A book launch and exhibition of the authors’ artwork will be held on 3 March 2026 at the ARC Community Hall at 92 McNamara St, Manunda. Frank the DJ by Imogen Lambeth and Andrew Barton Frank is a flying fox who lives upside down in a giant fig tree outside the Cairns Library and dreams of being a DJ. When Frank sees a DJ performance at the Cairns Festival it ignites his passion for music, and he secretly sneaks into the library …read more
Mario Calanna, the well-known and well-respected Cairns pharmacist, has a new book, just released by Jabiru Publishing. In his very interesting and helpful book, Mario covers the story of the Calanna family after his father migrated to Cairns from Italy and bought a cane farm. When Mario decided to study pharmacy rather than become a cane farmer, his father began to subdivide the farm, located at Woree south of Cairns. A medical centre and pharmacy were built on the old cane farm, and thus began the development of the chain of pharmacies, Calanna Whole Health Pharmacies, which has now grown …read more
Denise Petersen always wanted to be a nurse, just like her Aunty Mavis. Despite her reading difficulties, she successfully completed her training as a nurse. Thus began her career in nursing, starting with a stint in a tiny country hospital on the Nullarbor Plain, followed by nursing and midwifery in Australia and Papua New Guinea. She lived in Papua New Guinea for many years in a range of interesting, exciting and sometimes dangerous jobs. With her husband and children, she sailed in the family yacht to Cairns, North Queensland. There, the family settled, and Denise embarked on a whole new …read more