Helen Cooke and assistant 'Scooby'. (Inset) left: Meredith Walker, right: Dave Johnston.

 Helen Cooke (above) was recently interviewed by Mike Scott on Monday Morning's with Scotty. The main topic of conversation was the Sunshine Coast Reconciliation Group’s up-coming 'Shared History' seminar: Archaeology – Adding to Australia’s First Nation’s Stories, to be held on Thursday, 2 August. Attendees are set to be taken on a unique journey exploring how Australian archaeology has the opportunity to develop the foundations for a shared identity.

Event co-organisers Meredith Walker and Helen Cooke said Aboriginal Australians of our First Nations were not actively involved in the early research and excavations in Australia, but now Traditional Owners are encouraged to be involved in all aspects of fieldwork on Indigenous sites, more engaged in researching their community and completing degrees in archaeology.

“Our keynote speaker for this event, Dave Johnston is a trailblazer in this field being the first Indigenous Australian to gain a degree in archaeology and having worked on more than 2,000 heritage projects across eastern Australia,” said Ms Cooke.

“He is recognised as a world leader in the field of Australian Indigenous archaeology, has been instrumental in the development of the Australian Government’s guidelines for Indigenous heritage and has developed a code of ethics for the World Archaeological Congress.”

The 'Our Shared History' seminar: Archaeology – Adding to Australia’s First Nation’s Stories will be held on:

Thursday, 2 August - 9.00 am to 2.30 pm
Secondary Lecture Theatre
Matthew Finders Anglican College
1-47 Stringybark Road, Buderim

To find out more  visit https://exploringarchaeology.eventbrite.com.au
or contact Meredith Walker on scrg.sharedhistory@gmail.com or 0425 257 999.

Therase Burke had the enviable pleasure of chatting with Russell Morris last week on Friday Drive. When talking with an iconic Australian entertainer who has been preforming fairly consistently for over four decades (often on the Sunshine Coast), there is a lot to talk about, and where does one begin? I guess a good starting point might be his first big break, 'The Real Thing'.

Russell also talked about the success of his 2012 platinum album Sharkmouth, and the crucial role of community radio stations in that success.

Above image courtesy of Russell Morris website.

Casey and Taylor stepped up to the microphones last Thursday to help aunty Alison present her Thursady Drive program. And as you can hear from the selected audio bites below, I'm sure you'd agree, that both of Alison's guests are naturals on-air.

We are pleased to announce, that the band Bohemian Rogue with their entry 'Ode to Moffs' where voted the winners of the NOOSA FM 21 Summers Song Writing Competition.

And what a night the finalists concert was. Held at the J, a near packed concert hall of happy revellers where entertained by an exciting and diverse selection of local music.

The night started out with a tradition welcome to country from representatives the Gubbi Gubbi people. This included an entertaining and informative introduction to local indigenous culture and traditional perspectives, which was enjoyed by a very appreciative audience.

The evening was ably hosted by two of our NOOSA FM presenters, Therase Burke and Chris Lofven, who kept us entertained with their banter, especially during changeovers. The superlatives to describe the evening are endless with pretty well all of the 'fantastic night'  boxes being ticked.

The other awards on the night where: 2nd Place going to the family band First Bay and their song 'In Your Bones', and
3rd Place went to Stellerize with her composition, 'Be Your Babe'. There was also an Encouragement Award given out to 11 year old Indigo Walsh and her entry 'When The Sun Ain't Out'.