Last week a wonderous thing happened, and Gympie delivered, yet again. My work colleague Jemma bought her first house. Jemma’s story is somewhat reminiscent of my own, however, at just 22 she beat me to the housing market by two years.

In a world where the real estate market can feel out of reach to young, and older alike, Gympie is still turning up gems of opportunity as an entry point to the market.

Now, it would be remiss of me not to mention Jemma’s partner in this venture, her boyfriend Henry. Henry is a carpenter and they are in it together. They have bought a “fixer upper” and, just like Jody and I, they will potter along and fix it up. If they work hard and are careful with their expenditure on the property it will provide them with a springboard into the rest of their lives. Where else could provide such an opportunity to a young couple in such a brilliant location?

Some of our most active members in the Chamber are our local real estate agents. When you think about it, is there a more important group of ambassadors than our agents? Many of them report enquiry, and purchase, from out of town making up a large percentage of their sales. So, often, the first point of local contact for prospective Gympie residents is an agent. Once again, Gympie provides. Keep up the great work agents.

Last week also saw the Chamber’s Annual General Meeting. Around 50 ardent Chamber supporters braved a balmy afternoon to witness a very rare occurrence. For the first time in memory, there were more applicants for board positions than board positions available (by constitution). After a rousing speech from president Tony Goodman and a healthy treasurer’s report, a secret ballot was undertaken. After intense scrutineering, the 2019 board was returned unchanged with the addition of Petra Van Beek. On behalf of the board, I would like to thank everyone that put their hands up to help further our region.

Christmas is nearly upon us and 2020 is already shaping up to be a huge year for the Chamber. We have two elections, local and state that will affect our region. The Chamber remains A-political and will host a range of meetings and collectives (I hesitate to use the word debate) to help the public make their own decisions on the future of the Gympie region.

From all chamber board members; have a safe and wonderful Christmas and we will see you all in the new year.