ABC Weather and QCWA 2025 Calendar Launch

Presenter, ABC News Brisbane, Ms Jenny Woodward OAM; State President, Queensland Country Women’s Association, Ms Sheila Campbell; ABC staff and executives; distinguished guests; ladies and gentlemen.

I begin by acknowledging the Original Custodians of the lands around Brisbane, the Turrbal and Jagera people, and pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging, and to all First Nations people here today.

Graeme and I are delighted to be joining you this morning for the launch of the ABC and Queensland Country Women’s Association Weather Calendar, which represents a wonderful collaboration between two Queensland institutions.

I am, of course, referring to the QCWA and Ms Jenny Woodward OAM, to whom I had the honour of presenting the Medal of the Order of Australia just a few months ago!

Since its inception in 1922, the QCWA has been promoting the health and wellbeing needs of Queensland women, be that through providing recipes to feed their families and communities or advocating for more focus on issues of particular concern to women.

These issues include poverty and homelessness, the gender pay gap, inequity in education, the over-contribution by women in the care of children and other family members and the causes of mental illness and its impact on mature-aged women.

It is wonderful to see the QCWA continuing to advocate so strongly on behalf of Queensland women, and to witness the expansion of programs that you have put into place. Proceeds from this calendar will hopefully supercharge your efforts going forward.

Turning to Jenny, as she is known by those many Queenslanders who rely on the ABC for their news and who has cheerfully and professionally brought us forecasts, news of fair weather and foul (although mainly fair – it is Queensland, after all) and many other meteorological insights for an impressive run of years.

And I hazard to guess she is among a very few who can do so calmly and collectedly while surrounded by farm animals!

Imparting information under challenging circumstances to a broad, diverse and very discerning television audience is something I know a little about, but I have to say hats off to you, Jenny, for those Ekka broadcasts!

Jenny’s service to broadcast media, and especially the ABC, is but one part of her enormous contribution to our state.

Her other, less media-centric, credentials include:

• Australia Day ambassador
• author and public speaker
• Meals on Wheels volunteer of 20 years
• Patron of the Queensland Spinners and Weavers and Fibre Artists
• a Fellow of the University of Southern Queensland
• and a Rotary International Paul Harris Fellow

For all of this — and for your contributions to the QCWA through your involvement in this wonderful calendar — we thank you, Jenny.

Graeme is especially thankful, given you have included a photo he sent you, meaning he now wears yet another hat of ‘QCWA weather calendar contributor’!

We wish you all the best, now and into the future. Congratulations on this fabulous initiative and it gives me great delight to officially launch the ABC Weather and QCWA 2025 Calendar.

Thank you.