December 18, 2020
Wet weather forced a last-minute change of venue for the “Discovering The Heart Of Christmas” event on Sunday, but it couldn’t put a dent in the high spirits of the many children who took part.
The event began as a project to connect 15 Indigenous kindergarten children in Brisbane with 15 children from Kingaroy, and was originally planned to be held at Kingaroy’s Memorial Park.
But when Sunday dawned wet and blustery, organisers made a quick decision to relocate somewhere drier and Kingaroy Showgrounds came to their aid by opening up their main hall.
The event – which was also open to local families with young children – was hosted by Jocelyn Clancy and local artist and educator Toni Philips-Petersen.
Australian beach volleyball champion Taliqua Clancy – Jocelyn’s granddaughter – paid a flying visit back to her old home town to take part.
And Olympic gold medallist Natalie Cook, Taliqua’s long-time mentor, also played an important role.
Over the course of several hours the kindy-aged children exchanged gifts and Christmas wishes, played games and took part in a variety of art activities that kept them busy, happy and largely oblivious to the rain falling outside.
Later, Jocelyn estimated as many as 70 parents and children took part in the morning’s activities.
Jocelyn said she was very happy with the roll-up.