|
September brought more sunshine and community events. The 2024 Miss Wagga Wagga Quest Entrants hosted a successful meat tasting at CSU, to raise additional funds for this year’s beneficiaries. The ladies did well to fill the room on a Thursday night and spoke well, with only a couple of weeks to go they should all be very proud. Next up for the ladies is the High Tea and it’s just been announced that this annual favourite is sold out!
I had the pleasure of assisting in this month’s Citizenship Ceremony, it’s always a pleasure to be able to make this achievement so special for the recipients and Mayor Dallas Tout always takes such pride in the event. A special mention to Jessica and Seira, it was beautiful to meet the two girls, find out about what they were doing these school holidays and congratulate them for receiving their Australian Citizenship. The event was finished with a fantastic acoustic National Anthem and We are Australian by the Wagga City Rugby Club Men’s Choir - if you ever get the chance to have dinner at the William Farrer Hotel on a Tuesday night you might be lucky enough to catch them rehearsing! Next up is the Miss Wagga Wagga Quest High Tea and we can’t wait. We’ve got a busy October ahead and are looking forward to it. Hopefully we’ll see you there! Kate, Miss Wagga Wagga and Haylee Burkinshaw, Miss Community Princess The month of August was an exciting one for us as Titleholders, starting with attending the Mayoral Reception for the Legacy Centenary Torch Relay, and ending with an incredible and memorable visit to Leavenworth, USA.
At the Mayoral Reception we had the opportunity to speak with many community members on how Legacy has helped them, their families and friends through many tough times. We are humbled to have the opportunity to have the Legacy CEO, Graham Boyd, speak to us about his career, community support and Legacy. Community Princess, Haylee Burkinshaw got to be back clicking tongs at the famous Bunnings BBQ alongside fellow Miss Wagga Wagga Quest Entrants. I truly love the Bunnings BBQ because it is such a fun event that makes such an impact for the Miss Wagga Wagga Quest fundraising. I then had the most incredible meeting with Cycling Without Age where I had the opportunity to Grant this hard working organization with $500 from the Community Princess Foundation. “There is a guy who’s quite nonverbal with dementia, but when he rides with his carer something happens. He just starts talking to him and remembers stuff from his past.” - Committee Member, Neil These are moments that make me forever grateful for the Miss Wagga Wagga Quest and the Wagga Wagga Community. Miss Wagga Wagga had the pleasure alongside 2024 Entrants, Velika and Jess, to assist with the Golden Crow Awards Evening. What an incredible night! Congratulations to all finalists and award recipients, and the Wagga Wagga Business Chamber for hosting a fantastic event celebrating local businesses and leaders. A special mention to Quest Sponsor, Macarthur Real Estate Agency for being awarded the Excellence in Large Business Award, well deserved recognition for the hard work of Mark and the team. The Miss Wagga Wagga Quest Committee went above and beyond to organize a bon voyage dinner at the Thirsty Crow for us both before we fly out to Leavenworth, Kansas!! This was the moment that it truly sunk in that we get to travel to the other side of the world, representing our home Wagga Wagga, with someone who has become my best friend… I better start packing… 22nd AUGUST, 2023… The alarm goes off, the suitcases are packed and we are off to the Airport to visit our Sister City, Leavenworth, Kansas, USA. Once landed after 20 hours of travel, we hit the ground running and were straight into a council meeting where the Mayor of Leavenworth, Jemaine Wilson, proclaimed 21st Aug - 27th Aug 2023 as ‘Wagga Wagga Week’. We were blown away to be a part of this incredible sister city relationship and history that has continued since 1962. We were both told on numerous occasions how kind and loving the people of Leavenworth are and how well we will be taken care of, but the city of Leavenworth truly had us speechless from the moment we landed until the moment we left, by their passion, generosity and kindness. Everybody we had the chance to meet will truly forever have a spot in our hearts, and we can’t thank them enough for taking such good care of us and giving so much of their time to show us their home. We experienced 5 eventful and busy days in Leavenworth where we were shown “Wagga Wagga Drive”, Leavenworth High School, Fort Leavenworth, National Cemetery, Richard Allen Cultural Center & Museum, Amelia Earhart Museum, Steamboat Arabia Museum, The Boulevard Brewery, National WW1 Museum and Memorial, Kansas City Soccer game and the C.W. Parker Carousel Museum (where we even met the daughter of Mayor of Leavenworth, the Hon J F Mitchell, who offered the invitation of the Sister City relationship). We were lucky enough to be in Leavenworth for their annual Charm Hunt, a chance to meet locals and visit 20 different local businesses to speak with customers, employees and owners, and share who we are and why we were in Leavenworth. With over 1,000 participants from all over the country (and now globe!) joining in for the 20th anniversary of the Charm Hunt to collect their 20 bracelet charms from different local businesses. A highlight was being able to share our presentation on Wagga Wagga, the Miss Wagga Wagga Quest and the Sister City relationship on 2 different occasions, once with Leavenworth Rotary Club and another at the Sister City dinner. It was a fabulous opportunity to be able to share with Leavenworth, and enrich their knowledge and understanding of the city of Wagga Wagga that they are connected to on the other side of the world. We hope one day soon we get the opportunity to host Leavenworth citizens again, to show our reciprocation for the incredible hospitality we were shown and continue to strengthen this relationship. Thank you Leavenworth! From two very appreciative women, Miss Wagga Wagga 2023 Kate Pevere & Community Princess 2023 Haylee Burkinshaw |
Velika Hayes & Jess BarclayOur adventures throughout the year as Miss Wagga Wagga and Community Princess. Archives
October 2024
|
RSS Feed