Emergency services were called to Moreton Drive, near the intersection of Airport Drive, shortly before 9:30pm on 22 June after reports that a motorcycle had crashed.
Police said the rider lost control of the motorcycle before colliding with a light pole.
The Brendale man suffered critical injuries and was declared dead at the scene.
The Forensic Crash Unit is investigating the circumstances surrounding the crash.
Investigators are urging anyone who was travelling in the area around the time of the incident, and who may have CCTV or dashcam footage, to come forward to assist with inquiries.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Policelink and quote reference number QP2601197509. Information can also be provided anonymously through Crime Stoppers.
Brendale boxer Jye Dixon’s Commonwealth Games selection marks the next step in a career built through years of training, travel and steady progress in the ring.
Born in Caboolture and raised in Brendale, Dixon has spent his boxing life at All Star Boxing Academy in Lawnton. What began with early bouts at 30kg has developed into a national and international amateur career, with the Queensland fighter now named in Australia’s boxing team for the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games.
Dixon is the only Queenslander in the eight-athlete Australian boxing squad, which is made up entirely of Commonwealth Games debutants. For him, the Glasgow call-up follows a long stretch of national titles, overseas tournaments and disciplined preparation.
From Brendale To The Boxing Ring
Dixon has been part of All Star Boxing Academy since the age of 12, growing through the same gym that has shaped his amateur career. Over time, he has built a record of 56 wins from 72 amateur fights, along with eight Queensland titles and seven Australian titles.
He is also the third All Star fighter, after Liam Pope and Liam Wilson, to win an Elite Australian title.
His current preparation reflects the level he has reached. Dixon trains 12 to 16 hours across five to six days each week as he works towards the Games and the international competitions leading into them.
International Experience Shapes Dixon’s Rise
Boxing has taken Dixon to 13 countries, giving him experience against opponents across major international tournaments.
He recently competed at the World Boxing Cup in Brazil, where he won two fights before a close loss to Asian Championship gold medallist Rui Yamaguchi. His overseas results also include silver at the 2025 Socikas Tournament in Kaunas, Lithuania, bronze at the 2024 USA Boxing International Tournament, and a belt win at the 2023 RIP City Boxing/Fall Classic Tournament in the United States.
Dixon has also represented Australia at major world-level events. He placed fifth at the Youth World Championships in Spain and later reached the quarterfinals at the elite World Championships. His honours also include a number 16 world ranking from the Elite World Title event in Liverpool, England in 2025.
In 2026, Dixon was awarded a Tier 2 Scholarship through the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Scholarship and Mentoring Program, recognising another step in his amateur career.
Glasgow Becomes The Next Milestone
The Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games will run from 23 July to 2 August, with boxing scheduled at the Scottish Event Campus from 24 July to 1 August.
Before then, Dixon is set for another demanding period of travel and competition. He will leave on 3 June for a World Boxing tournament in China, followed by a two-week training camp in Europe before heading to Glasgow.
The China tournament forms part of the pathway towards World Boxing finals and world championship selection, but Dixon’s immediate focus is the Commonwealth Games, where his aim is to pursue gold for Australia.
Turning professional remains his long-term goal, but Dixon is continuing to build his amateur career first. For now, the focus stays on Glasgow, where a boxer shaped by Brendale, Lawnton and years of international experience will step into the Commonwealth Games ring for the first time.
As winter sets in, the Brendale Evening VIEW Club is directing its local community efforts towards children and young people who need extra help to stay engaged at school.
The club is supporting The Smith Family’s 2026 Winter Appeal, which aims to raise almost $8 million by the end of June for education programs assisting students experiencing disadvantage. The appeal has identified 19,583 children in need of support this winter to help them keep up with their learning.
For Brendale Evening VIEW members, the campaign connects local fundraising and community involvement with a wider education challenge affecting young Australians. The group is encouraging residents to support the appeal, with donations helping provide access to learning programs, educational tools, mentoring and out-of-school assistance.
Brendale VIEW Club Connects Local Support With Education
VIEW stands for Voice, Interests and Education of Women. The organisation operates as a women’s volunteer and support network, with VIEW Clubs of Australia backing The Smith Family for more than 65 years.
The Brendale Evening VIEW Club’s involvement continues that link at a local level. Its members are using the winter appeal to encourage practical support for children and young people whose education may be affected by poverty, limited resources or disrupted learning opportunities.
The Smith Family’s education programs include literacy, numeracy, technology support, mentoring and Learning for Life. Its learning support and mentoring programs operate in 90 Australian communities, helping students access assistance beyond the classroom.
Photo Credit: The Smith Family
Appeal Highlights Pressure On Students
The Winter Appeal centres on the educational barriers faced by children and young people living with disadvantage. The Smith Family has stated that 1.2 million Australian children and young people are living in poverty, with disadvantaged students facing a 30 per cent lower Year 12 completion rate.
The appeal also points to the learning gap some students experience by secondary school, with children affected by disadvantage able to fall more than two years behind in reading and maths by Year 9.
Through its programs last year, The Smith Family supported 186,499 disadvantaged children and young people. A further 71,818 Australian students were supported through Learning for Life sponsorships.
Brendale Evening VIEW Club is also inviting women of all ages and backgrounds to join its local activities and become involved in its community work.
Its Coffee & Chat gathering is held on the first Saturday of each month from 10:00 am at The Kitchen Cove, Geebung RSL, 323 Newman Road, Geebung. Gwen is listed as the contact on 0419 768 031.
The club has also scheduled a morning tea on Friday, June 5, at Aspley Hornets Football Club, with bookings required one week before the event through Suzanne on 0417 022 996.
Its monthly dinner meeting will be held on Tuesday, June 16, with arrivals from 6:30 pm for a 7:00 pm start at Aspley Hornets Football Club, 50 Graham Road, Carseldine. Karen Curtis is scheduled as the guest speaker, with bookings also available through Suzanne.
As the Winter Appeal continues, Brendale Evening VIEW Club’s message remains focused on practical local support: helping children and young people access the extra learning assistance they need during a difficult time of year.
Hip Hops Brewers is heading to Japan, joining a Moreton Bay trade delegation bound for SusHi Tech Tokyo 2026, one of Asia’s largest global innovation conferences, armed with award-winning beer, a gold medal lager already known in Japan, and serious ambitions for what a small regional brewery can achieve on the world stage.
The timing is significant. The brewery won 19 medals at the recent Royal Queensland Beer Awards, its best result yet, including three gold, 11 silver and four bronze.
That haul arrives just as owner and director Shaun Reeves boards a flight to Tokyo Big Sight, where the three-day event runs from 27–29 April 2026 and draws city leaders from 49 countries, 750 startup exhibitors and more than 10,000 pre-arranged business meetings between organisations looking for international partners and collaborators.
For a brewery that opened inside The Sheds precinct in 2023 and took years to get off the ground through freight delays, construction holdups and licensing complexity, the invitation to join the Moreton Bay overseas trade mission is a meaningful chapter.
“If you look at our little brewery you might say we’re a fair way away from having this sort of capacity to be a major export player,” Reeves said. “But if we had niche collaborations, niche partnerships we could look at possibilities and take advantage.”
The Beer That Already Has a Fan in Japan
Hip Hops Brewers is not walking into Tokyo cold. The brewery already has a profile there, built around one of its most inventive recent creations.
Late last year, when a delegation from Sanyo-Onoda visited Moreton Bay to mark the region’s 33-year friendship city relationship with the Japanese city, Reeves was asked to create a commemorative beer for the occasion.
The result was Tomodachi Lager, which translates to “friendship beer,” a Japanese-style rice lager built around two locally sourced ingredients: sea lettuce grown by researchers at the University of the Sunshine Coast Moreton Bay campus and yuzu citrus from a farm in Gympie.
“I had an idea for a sushi beer,” Reeves said. “(We) used fresh Moreton Bay seaweed sea lettuce, produced by UniSC, balanced it with yuzu from a farm in Gympie and came up with a beer we were happy with.”
The beer went on to win gold in the Hybrid Beer section at this year’s Royal Queensland Beer Awards. Last week, the Mayor of Sanyo-Onoda sent Reeves a letter of congratulations. “Which made my day!” Reeves said.
What Tokyo Holds for a Regional Brewery
Moreton Bay is one of the confirmed city partners at SusHi Tech Tokyo 2026, running its own reverse pitch session at the event, essentially inviting Japanese startups and organisations to identify collaboration opportunities with Moreton Bay businesses.
It is a format designed for deal-making, not just networking, and it places the delegation, and Hip Hops Brewers alongside it, in front of exactly the kind of Japanese organisations the brewery could partner with.
Reeves is going in with two parallel lines of inquiry. Through connections the City of Moreton Bay holds with Sanyo-Onoda and other Japanese partners, he wants to explore whether niche collaboration, perhaps a contract brewing arrangement, a co-branded product or a distribution foothold, could create a genuine export pathway for a brewery of Hip Hops’ scale.
The second thread is about what to bring back. Reeves has flagged one particular ambition.
“Is there a way we can get Queensland’s first sake production going?” Reeves said.
The delegation is paying its own way. Reeves is clear-eyed about what the trip is and is not.
“This is certainly not a junket. It’s a great opportunity to go because it can open doors a business operator would not be able to open,” he said.
He has also been working with Trade and Investment Queensland ahead of the trip to explore specific opportunities, going to Tokyo with groundwork already laid rather than starting from scratch at the conference.
Beers Built from Local Stories
Back in Brendale, the Royal Queensland medal haul reflects a brewing programme that is deeply embedded in the geography and history of the region.
Reeves’ approach to naming his beers, built around alliteration, local history and a genuine love of a good backstory, has produced a range that reads like a map of the Moreton Bay and northern Brisbane area: Lakeside Lager, Samford Sessions, Redcliffe Red, Petrie Pilsner, Samsonvale Stout and Griffin Golden Ale among them.
One recent award winner carries a story worth telling. Brentdale Buddies, which won silver in the Amber Dark Ale category, was a collaboration with Buddy Brewing from Burpengary. Buddy Brewing proposed an Irish red ale, and Reeves went looking for the Irish heritage in South Pine Road’s history.
“It was from the Davis family that (developer) Bill Bowden bought land and named his horse stud Brendale,” Reeves said. “That was after the Davis family’s original property back in Ireland called Brentdale. So there’s no spelling mistake… Bill just shortened it to Brendale.”
Visit the Taproom
Hip Hops Brewers operates from The Sheds at 264 South Pine Road, Brendale, a converted truck workshop with 21 taps, an in-house kitchen, a beer garden, live music and a dog-friendly outdoor area. The brewery is family-friendly and open for walk-ins, with weekend bookings recommended to avoid disappointment. Surcharges apply on public holidays.
For bookings and enquiries, phone (07) 3448 9339 or message via the Hip Hops Brewers Facebook page. Follow the brewery on Instagram at @hiphopsbrewers for updates on the Tokyo trip and new seasonal releases.
Australia’s largest distributor of printable materials has opened a purpose-built Experience Hub at its Brendale site on French Avenue, giving print, sign, packaging and textile businesses across the Albany Creek and Brendale corridor hands-on access to the country’s most comprehensive range of production technologies under one roof.
Ball and Doggett launched the Experience Hub at an exclusive industry event on 18 March 2026, drawing more than 50 guests from the print, sign and graphics, packaging and textile sectors for an afternoon of live demonstrations, industry networking and technology exploration.
Designed to provide customers with a hands-on opportunity to explore, test and compare a wide range of print and finishing technologies, the Experience Hub represents Ball and Doggett’s commitment to innovation and customer support in the evolving sign, display and packaging markets.
The Brendale site on French Avenue sits squarely in the industrial heart of Brisbane’s northern growth corridor, a short drive from Albany Creek and surrounded by the manufacturing and trade businesses that line the Strathpine Road and South Pine Road precincts.
For the print and signage businesses operating throughout this part of Brisbane’s north, the Experience Hub removes a significant barrier: the need to travel interstate, attend a trade expo or rely on a sales brochure to evaluate high-value production equipment before committing to a purchase.
What the Experience Hub Offers
The Experience Hub currently carries a diverse line-up of equipment available for demonstrations, from wide-format printers and finishing equipment to CNC routers, lasers, DTF printers and heat presses. It also holds a selection of consumables and substrates, allowing visitors to experience full workflow demonstrations from print through to finishing.
The launch event showcased live demonstrations across wide-format printing, finishing, cutting, laser technology, CNC routing and garment decoration, with technologies on display from Roland DG, Mimaki, HP, Kongsberg, Kornit Digital, IECHO, Eclipse DTF and Impact CNC, alongside finishing and specialty production equipment.
The mezzanine level of the hub displays wide-format machines, and the space is configured as a working production environment rather than a showroom, meaning visitors see equipment running real jobs rather than standing idle behind glass.
Photo Credit: Ball and Doggett/Instagram
Rob Brussolo, Ball and Doggett’s general manager for Sign, Display and Digital, described the hub as a space where production challenges can be discussed openly and ideas can be tested in a live environment.
The hub’s design philosophy centres on bringing together technology partners, equipment specialists and customers in one place so they can work through problems together and explore possibilities beyond traditional markets, including diversification into new and emerging product categories.
A Company Built on Australian Print Industry Foundations
Ball and Doggett is Australia’s largest distributor of printable materials and consumables, and is part of the OVOL Japan Pulp and Paper Group. The company’s principal activities focus on the sale and distribution of paper products, printing inks, digital finishing equipment and wide-format equipment, and the supply of publication-grade papers to the web offset printing industry. Its Queensland operation is based at 7-9 French Avenue, Brendale, and services print and sign businesses across the state.
In addition to the equipment demonstrations, the Experience Hub carries a selection of consumables and substrates, and Ball and Doggett will continue adding equipment ahead of further programme milestones.
The hub will operate as an ongoing resource for the industry, hosting regular demonstrations, training sessions and industry events, with customers able to book visits to see specific equipment in action or work through a production challenge with the team’s equipment specialists.
Opportunities for TAFE and Vocational Training
Brendale’s French Avenue precinct serves as one of Brisbane’s key industrial hubs, housing trade suppliers, manufacturers and service businesses that underpin much of the northern suburbs’ commercial activity. The arrival of a dedicated equipment experience centre of this scale is a significant addition to that ecosystem, particularly for the small and medium print and sign businesses that make up the bulk of Ball and Doggett’s Queensland customer base.
For business owners across Albany Creek, Strathpine, Petrie and the broader Moreton Bay corridor, the Experience Hub closes a gap that has long pushed decision-making about major equipment purchases onto the floor of interstate trade expos or into the hands of catalogue-based sales calls. Being able to drive to Brendale, run a job on a machine, test a substrate and speak to a specialist on the spot changes the quality of those decisions, and ultimately the quality of the work those businesses can offer their own customers.
The hub also opens a practical pathway for TAFE and vocational training providers in the region. Representatives from TAFE Coomera attended the March launch event, signalling early interest in how the facility could support hands-on skills training for the next generation of print and sign technicians in Queensland.
Visiting the Experience Hub
The Ball and Doggett Experience Hub is located at 7-9 French Avenue, Brendale. Customers and industry partners can book a demonstration visit or enquire about upcoming events and training sessions by contacting their local Ball and Doggett representative or visiting ballanddoggett.com.au/the-experience-hub. General phone enquiries for the Queensland site can be directed to (07) 3490 5800.
A key step has been reached in a long-awaited road safety project, with expressions of interest now open for the duplication of the Linkfield Road overpass across Gympie Road, near Brendale.
The overpass will be widened to four lanes and rebuilt with a six-metre height clearance, up from the existing 4.7 metres. The change targets a known safety problem that has caused repeated disruptions along one of northern Brisbane’s most heavily used arterial roads.
Photo credit: TMR
Funded jointly to the tune of $176 million, with $125.5 million from federal and $50.5 million from the state, the project represents one of the most significant road investments in the region in recent years.
Expressions of interest for the overpass duplication have been combined with those for the nearby Beams Road and Gympie Road intersection upgrade into a single procurement process. Authorities say the combined approach will improve coordination, provide greater certainty for industry, and keep traffic moving throughout construction.
Photo credit: TMR
Bridge strikes have been a recurring problem at the Linkfield Road overpass, with trucks clipping the structure on multiple occasions in recent years and causing delays while safety inspections were carried out.
Lifting the clearance to six metres is expected to substantially reduce that risk. Transport authorities have described the location as a major arterial road, and the upgrade is expected to benefit both everyday commuters and freight operators moving goods through the broader South East Queensland network.
The EOI process is a standard early stage in procurement, allowing suitably qualified contractors to register their interest before a formal tender is issued. No construction start date has been confirmed.
Further updates are expected as the process moves forward, and project information is available through the Transport and Main Roads website.
The Carers Foundation Australia, in collaboration with Brendale businessman Mike Arieni and Solar Bollard Lighting, runs the Josh Arieni Legacy program to honour unpaid family and community carers by granting them an experience of their choice to rest, rejuvenate and feel genuinely appreciated for the work they do.
The program was established in 2023 in memory of Mike’s son Josh, who cared for his grandmother for several years before his death in a car accident in 2020. Josh Arieni was born in 1992 and was known for his kindness and compassion. Mike worked with The Carers Foundation to create a legacy that reflected those qualities, focusing on carers who give without recognition and rarely ask for help.
Photo Credit: The Carers Foundation
About The Carers Foundation Australia
The Carers Foundation Australia was established in 2015 under the leadership of founders Ronnie and Michael Benbow, delivering wellbeing programmes for unpaid family carers across Queensland and beyond. The organisation runs carer wellbeing retreats, wellness days and annual Christmas lunches across the Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast, Moreton Bay, Brisbane and beyond, with each event attended by approximately 80 or more carers. All carers at Christmas lunches receive gift bags, recognising that many will not receive gifts on the day due to their caring responsibilities.
Photo Credit: Rhubarb Photography
The Carers Foundation sits within a broader context of significant unpaid care across Australia. Hundreds of thousands of Australians provide full-time unpaid care for family members, saving the health system billions of dollars annually while receiving little to no government support. Young unpaid carers number in the hundreds of thousands, with some as young as eight caring for a sick parent or sibling.
What the Josh Arieni Legacy Program Does
Each year, Mike Arieni dedicates funding through Solar Bollard Lighting, alongside contributions from supporters, to grant a small number of carers an experience of their choice. Community members, family or support workers can nominate a carer they know, or carers can nominate themselves, through The Carers Foundation website. Recipients receive a fully funded experience tailored to what they most need.
Past recipients have included George, who cared for his ageing mother while managing his own health challenges and fulfilled a lifelong ambition to complete a camel trek through outback South Australia. Samantha, who cared for her mother and uncle around the clock and had reached a breaking point, attended a five-day writers retreat that allowed her to reconnect with a creative life she had set aside.
Louise, a sole carer for more than two decades for her son who lives with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, spent two nights at Hastings Street, Noosa, and enjoyed a pamper day at a day spa. Bob and Val, who have cared for their daughter for more than 55 years following her birth with significant disabilities, received a five-night stay at Golden Beach. Anne, the mother of two boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy both requiring 24-hour care seven days a week, fulfilled her dream of visiting Sea World and swimming with dolphins.
John and Anna, the couple referenced in the source article, are among those receiving a gift this year through the program — a weekend away to recharge, which John described as something the couple was unaccustomed to but deeply needed after years of balancing full-time work with full-time caring responsibilities.
How to Nominate or Support the Program
Nominations for the Josh Arieni Legacy program are open to the public. Community members wanting to nominate a carer can do so through the nomination form at thecarersfoundation.org/josh-arieni-legacy. Those wishing to contribute financially to the program can donate at the same address. Solar Bollard Lighting, Mike Arieni’s Brendale business and the program’s founding supporter, is at solarbollardlighting.com. Further information about The Carers Foundation Australia’s full range of carer wellbeing programmes is at thecarersfoundation.org.
Kim Lunt, Manager of Brendale-based Compassionate Funerals Queensland, is stepping into a very different kind of spotlight. The local community figure will take to the stage as the only Moreton Bay representative among this year’s Singing Heroes at the upcoming Unsung Heroes Gala, supporting the Carers Foundation and its Unsung Legacy Program.
The program is working to build long-term, sustainable support for Australia’s unpaid carers, including what would be the country’s first dedicated carers wellbeing centre, planned for the City of Moreton Bay.
Kim admits the invitation caught her off guard and frightened her. As someone who has never performed publicly and doesn’t consider herself a singer, she says the prospect was daunting, but insists the cause is far bigger than her fear.
Kim’s Campaign for the Unsung Heroes
Kim has set herself a fundraising goal of $20,000, with every dollar going directly toward the Carers Foundation’s Unsung Legacy Program. The program is focused on expanding respite services and establishing a dedicated wellbeing hub, a physical space where unpaid carers can access support, rest and connection, and one that would be the first of its kind in Australia.
She has less than six weeks to prepare for her performance, and in that time she’ll also be out across Moreton Bay meeting with local businesses and seeking sponsorships to help reach her target. It’s a big ask, but one she is committed to seeing through.
Kim believes that if the wellbeing hub is to become a reality locally, it will take the whole community standing together to make it happen. As for what she’ll be singing? That’s under wraps for now. She’s sworn to secrecy on the song choice, but has hinted at a touch of country charm and a little sparkle on the night.
Kim says that if carers can show up every single day for someone else, the least she can do is face her nerves on a stage for a few minutes. For her, courage comes down to saying yes when it would be far easier to say no.
A Career Built on Compassion
Photo credit: Compassionate Funerals Queensland
Kim has spent more than 25 years working alongside families during some of life’s hardest moments. As Manager of Compassionate Funerals Queensland, she has supported families with dignity and respect through some of their hardest chapters. The not-for-profit funeral service she leads donates all surplus funds to charity, and has already returned more than $7 million to community causes.
Through that work, she has seen firsthand how demanding and exhausting caring for others can be. Kim notes that unpaid carers shoulder a full-time responsibility that weighs heavily on them physically, mentally and emotionally, and that burnout and isolation are far too common among those in caring roles.
Rooted in the Moreton Bay Community
Beyond her professional life, Kim is thoroughly embedded in the fabric of this region. She’s a proud mum to Emily and Jaidyn, wife to Jarrod, and devoted owner of dogs Kingsley and Camilla. When she’s not at work, you’re likely to find her out on Moreton Bay with a fishing line in the water, at the beach, or cheering on her beloved Dolphins in the NRL and the Swans in the AFL.
That deep connection to the Moreton Bay community sits at the heart of why she put her hand up for this campaign. The wellbeing centre Kim is helping to fund wouldn’t just be a resource for carers across Australia — it would be right here, in the community she calls home. Kim has spoken about the quiet, relentless dedication of unpaid carers, and her belief that the broader community has a role to play in supporting them.
Kim’s fundraising page is live now, and locals are encouraged to get behind her before gala night. Whether it’s a small donation or sharing her page with family and friends, every bit of support counts toward building something lasting for carers right here in Moreton Bay.
As Christmas draws near, Brendale-based charity Nourish Street Inc is calling on locals to help deliver practical support to individuals and families doing it tough across Moreton Bay, Pine Rivers and Brisbane. The organisation has officially launched its 2025 Christmas Appeal, a major effort aimed at filling hundreds of hampers and serving more than 465 people through Christmas Day and weekly outreach meals.
The charity, known for its street support efforts and its bustling Nourish Street Emporium op shop in Brendale, is seeking donations of food, toiletries, small gifts and festive items to help residents in need. With in-date pantry staples, snacks, hygiene products, ready meals and toys high on the wishlist, the organisation encourages the community to give what they can before the final donation day on 19 December.
This year’s appeal will support Christmas meals and hamper distributions reaching: • 150 people at the charity’s Christmas Day BBQ at Suttons Beach • 150 people on its city outreach run • 120 people at Musgrave Park • 45 people in the Pine Rivers area
Nourish Street Inc is also seeking donations of 600 ml water bottles, Christmas cakes, pet food, BBQ supplies and gifts for children aged two to sixteen. Items may be delivered to the charity’s headquarters at Unit 9/37–39 Kremzow Road, Brendale, between 10am and 3pm, Monday to Saturday. Financial contributions are also welcomed and remain tax deductible for donations over $2, with all funds directed toward food, supplies and ongoing outreach.
About Nourish Street
Photo credit: nourishstreetinc.org
Nourish Street began as a small, self-funded family initiative. Brendale local Beau Haywood, together with his partner Jenny Ignacio and Beau’s sons Kane, Zion and Isaac, first began distributing meals and essential items to people doing it tough.
Beau, formerly a mechanical fitter and welder, spent years navigating unstable housing and addiction. After complications from carpal tunnel surgery left him unable to work for more than four years, he continued to meet people facing similar challenges. Now over 18 months clean after a 25-year methamphetamine addiction, he draws on his experience when working with people on outreach.
What began with Beau and Jenny preparing food and delivering it to people sleeping rough has since grown into a registered charity feeding more than 100 people, five days a week across Moreton Bay and Pine Rivers. Jenny helps pack meals and coordinate support, while Beau leads many of the outreach runs.
The charity shares surplus donations with partner organisations to extend the reach of support. As the 2025 Christmas Appeal gets underway, the charity is encouraging residents to support its work. Those wishing to donate, volunteer or learn more can visit the Nourish Street website.
The Cameron Smith Junior Classic (CSJC) is set for a major expansion in 2026, with the popular junior golf tournament at Wantima Country Club in Brendale moving to a three-day, 54-hole format.
Currently played over two days, the 10th edition will increase its player field to a record 256 under-18 golfers with GA handicaps. The new structure will feature shotgun starts across the opening rounds and a cut for the final day, bringing the competition in line with top-tier junior events.
Photo credit: James Clayton/Google Maps
The CSJC has grown significantly since its launch in 2017 as a one-day, 18-hole tournament for 132 players. It expanded to two days in 2022, when a separate nine-hole contest for under-14 golfers without a GA handicap was introduced. That event has also grown, with up to 72 spots available this year and again in 2026.
Backed by LIV Golf, Cameron Smith’s Ripper GC franchise, and sponsors including Qualia Wealth, the tournament is aiming to attract national and international players alongside strong local and state entries.
Origins of the CSJC
Cameron Smith (Photo credit: CC BY-SA 4.0/JazzyJoeyD/Wikimedia Commons)
The Cameron Smith Junior Classic was the brainchild of Ken McKay, long-time junior coordinator and Wantima member, who wanted to establish a premier event that showcased emerging golfing talent. Inspired by Cameron Smith’s ongoing support of Wantima’s junior program and his willingness to mentor young players when home in Brisbane, Ken began planning the tournament and later sought Smith’s endorsement to put his name to the event.
Since then, the CSJC has become a highlight on the junior golf calendar, providing opportunities for young boys and girls to test their skills and gain experience in a competitive setting.
Cameron Smith grew up in Bray Park and started his golfing journey at Wantima before turning professional in 2013. His career reached new heights in 2022 with victories at The Players Championship and the 150th Open Championship at St Andrews. He now competes on the LIV Golf Tour, where his team Ripper GC won the LIV Team title in 2024.
