Official Opening of the 100th Wondai Show

Members of our State and Federal Parliaments, Deb Frecklington, Jeff Seeney, Ken O’Dowd; our Mayor, Councillor Campbell, and Councillors; representatives of the Queensland Chamber of Agricultural Societies, and the Wondai Show Society; ladies and gentlemen, girls and boys. It is a great pleasure for Kaye and me to be in the magnificent South Burnett again, and to be at least the fifth Governor to open the Wondai Show – but certainly the only Governor to open the 100th Show!  

The first Show in 1911 coincided with the then Queensland Government’s purchase of the current Government House in Brisbane.

Government House celebrated that centenary some years ago, but the Wondai Show has had to wait longer to reach the magic ‘100’, as the Show was not held in some years because of drought, economic depression, or war.

Despite these setbacks, the community of Wondai remained determined to give the people of the district a means of showing off the productivity of the land that attracted European settlers here as early as the 1840s, of indulging in some friendly competition, and of having a good time.

Not surprisingly, the Show’s first decades were dominated by the then dominant dairy industry. Horses and horse riding skills also featured from the earliest days – and still do. 

The agricultural and pastoral mix in the area may have changed since those times, but Wondai’s pride in its land and people has not. This year’s show offers an impressive range of exhibitors from needlework to show jumping, from flowers to beef cattle.

I was delighted to learn of the special heritage themes in the pavilion sections, and interested to see the inclusion of a chainsaw competition where both chainsaw and competitor had to be over 50 years old.

I meet the age qualification, but Kaye would not let me anywhere near a chainsaw.

No Wondai Show could have happened without the hard work of a great many Show Society members since 1911.

I express our thanks to all those who have served the Wondai Show with such dedication over the decades.

I thank this year’s Show Society, and this year’s exhibitors, stewards, judges, volunteers, sponsors, and Show patrons, for making this 100th Show possible and memorable. 

I wish everyone a wonderful 2017 Show that, like its ninety-nine predecessors, is a testament to Wondai’s great community spirit.

And it is with great pleasure that I now declare the 100th Wondai Show officially open. Thank you.