May 2, 2013
Kingaroy mum Colleen Gunn, who has inspired hundreds of local women to get fit and improve their health, has been selected to appear on the cover of this year’s phone book.
The Maryborough White Pages and Yellow Pages – which covers the South Burnett as well as Maryborough, Hervey Bay, Bundaberg and Gayndah – will start being distributed on Saturday.
Colleen was selected for the cover to match this year’s theme “Keeping Our Communities Healthy”, which publisher Sensis says “recognises selfless Australians who go above and beyond to improve the quality of life for locals in their area.”
Also featured are Joanne Sellick, Julie Stenning, Vicki Ramke, Kerry Stumm and the club’s longest standing member, Donna Clark.
The photo shoot was held last November but the club was sworn to secrecy.
In 2006, casual runner Colleen established the Go Getta Girls running group after surprising herself by successfully completing a half marathon.
The group – which encourages ordinary women of all fitness levels to get active – now has more than 80 members.
Colleen also teaches women how to exercise on a budget and runs free information sessions about nutrition.
In 2008, Colleen also introduced a fundraising component to the Go Getta Girls.
Over the past six years the group has held a range of charity events, including hosting the first Kingaroy Mother’s Day Classic last year which raised more than $30,000 for the Queensland Cancer Council and the National Breast Cancer Research Foundation’s research and patient support programs.
This year’s Mother’s Day Classic is on Sunday, May 12.
“I’m really excited to have been selected to appear on this year’s phone book. I hope my story inspires other women to give running a go,” Colleen said.
“With all of life’s commitments it can sometimes feel impossible to find time to exercise. But it can be done. I’d encourage everyone to spend a few hours each week doing something to improve their health.”
This year’s phone book will also be printed using a larger font.
White Pages Product Manager Sarah Simpson said the return to a larger font followed a review of feedback from users and advertisers about the previous year’s compact-size book.
“Although we believe most people prefer a book that is lighter and easier to handle, to publish this type of book we had to alter the font size,” she said.
“We will continue researching a solution that meets these needs, but, in the meantime, the larger font will appear in this year’s book.”
Residents and businesses can choose not to receive a copy of the phone book by calling Sensis on 1800-008-292 or visiting www.directoryselect.com.au
Footnote: We believe the last time the South Burnett was on the front cover of the phone book was 2000-01 when a group of locals was featured playing boules in Kingaroy’s Memorial Park.
