Mayor Karen Wows Big Crowds

Mayor Karen Wows Big Crowds at Sensational Multi-Cultural FestivalRedland City Council Mayor Karen Williams was an entertainment delight at the sensational successful Multi-Cultural Festival on Macleay Island.The Festival was the brainchild of Macleay Island trio Yasoda Papp, his wife Lakshmi and Heather Billaney.Hundreds of people flocked to Macleay Island throughout the day to enjoy the blend of entertainment, food and excitement, promoted as rhythm, colour and taste.Visiting troupes, local schoolchildren and, in a huge surprise, Mayor Karen Williams, provided some outstanding entertainment to compliment the day.Brief occasional showers didn't keep the crowds away and the festival showed the potential for this event and others to be successfully held on our islands.The delightful surprise was our Mayor, Karen Williams, who brought her European heritage and her former career as a singer and an entertainer to the stage when she opened the Multicultural Festival.It could have been Maria Von Trapp and the Von Trapp family singers when Mayor Karen got on stage and demonstrated Austrian yodelling and brought a group of young island children to life who joined her in a wonderful glimpse of a former career that involved some Sound of Music fun. The children, all students at the Macleay Island State School, were terrific.Island children were involved with a number of activities on the day involving singing the national anthem with Patricia Ponting, as well as ballet and dance with the help of Rosalie McPhie.To say the Multicultural Festival was a success, would be an understatement.The entertainment was kept 'humming' thanks to MC Linda Dwyer.Yasoda Papp said the event could not have been the success it was without the help of so many people and the support received from groups that involved mainland communities. There were representatives and performances from countries such as Austria, India, Brazil, Hungary, Iran, Africa and England including the drummers from BurundiExhausted after the event, Yasoda said it was intended to make the Multicultural Festival an annual one."It was a big effort and I know I need a big rest," he said with a laugh."Lakshmi and I may have had many hours of dedicated hard work, vision and a dream, but let it be known that the 'team work makes the dream work', we would never have been able to make it happen on our own."We want to share and thank the following dedicated community groups and individuals, Redland City Council, Bay Island Community Services, Lions Club, SES, RSL, all our sponsors (big and small) every local performers and last but not least all the hard working volunteers," Yasoda said.The Multicultural Event provided the evidence that more island-created events and entertainment can be successful and are needed.The festival of cultures also proved that people from the mainland will come to our islands for such well planned and entertaining festivals and activities.