Episode 4 - Biloela
Monday 29 June at 8:00pm
BILOELA, QUEENSLAND – LAND OF OPPORTUNITY
This week Heather Ewart travels to the Central Queensland town of Biloela.
Biloela recently hit the headlines in its bid to stop a Sri Lankan Tamil family from being deported.
The campaign to “Bring them back to Bilo” reignited a nation-wide conversation about asylum seekers and immigration detention.It took some locals by surprise that the industrial town, a traditionally conservative heartland, was so outspoken in its support of the family who had lived in Biloela for only four years.
“There are a lot of people who would like to see them here - this is their home!” says local Marie Austin, who knew the family well.“The town was in shock.”
Biloela, known by locals as ‘Bilo’, is a place where people look out for one another and a hard work ethic trumps ethnicity, nationality or religion.
Doctor Richard Tan is a great example. Still a practising GP at 79 years young, Dr Tan has delivered more than 2000 Biloela babies.
Heather also meets Doctor GB Singh, the medical director of the Biloela Hospital. GB moved to ‘Bilo’ from remote Western Australia, after migrating from India back in 2000.
Of the ten GPs in ‘Bilo’, the majority were born overseas.
Other industries in Biloela also have international workers. The local meatworks has a long history of employing workers on skilled migrant visas.
Refugees and workers recruited from Asia, South America and the Pacific make up the bulk of the 420 staff. Jane comes from rural China and works at the meatworks - when she’s not singing in the church choir or learning ‘Aussie’ English from her friend Marie.
Shire Councillor Pat Brennan is also a blow-in – he’s only been in town for 40 years. “I love Biloela. Everyone who wants to come here gets an opportunity if they want to take that opportunity in both hands good on ’em - they’ll succeed.”
In short, if you’re willing, you’re very welcome in Biloela.
Episode 5: PENGUIN TASMANIA
Monday 6 July at 8:00pm
Once the overlooked Cinderella of the picturesque north-west coast of Tasmania, a recent community make-over has transformed Penguin into its crowning glory. The rejuvenated foreshore, the only one in the north west to boast absolute beach frontage, not only brought the community together, but also is the home of two drawcards - the Big Penguin and the world’s smallest penguin.
Toni and Lance Hingston are the lucky owners of a private headland where the fairy penguins arrive in droves, once a year, to breed. Self-confessed ‘mother- hen’, Toni says, “They’ve got little personalities; you get shy ones, you get cheeky ones, they’ll chatter away to you.
Several new businesses in the town’s beautifully preserved heritage buildings have also contributed to the town’s rebirth. These buildings line the main street and act as a charming counterpoint to the town’s new look. One of them houses a toyshop, which can only be described as a child’s wonderland. Young owners, Anna and Simon Davis are early-childhood teachers who understand the value of play and of heirloom quality toys. Their commitment to bringing joy to families, becomes all the more remarkable when Heather Ewart learns of the tragedy the couple endured only two years ago hen they lost a child of their own.
The community has also restored its decommissioned, heritage listed cemetery which overlooks magnificent Bass Strait. It’s now become a sought- after location for community events, “a place for the living as much as for the dead” according to local, Ross Hartley, who once turned to, yes, stripping to raise money for headstones.
The town’s face-lift and natural beauty has become a magnet for families looking to escape from the urban rat race. Sydney couple, Marcelo Cardona and Margo Peart, with their teenage son, Titus, fled Sydney for the spectacular Dial Ranges in Penguin’s hinterland. Marcelo says the family wanted to ”re-invent the way we see ourselves and how we see our lives in the future”. The family can now indulge in their passion for mountain biking, a sport that’s boomed since their move to Penguin.
Join Heather Ewart as she meets a community that all about rejuvenation and taking life head on.