
Ailsa wins culture award
THE FOOD van run by the Mary River Lions Club will be the first port of call for Ailsa Head today before she slips away to pick up her senior culture award.
The intrepid volunteer plans to return to her food van duties afterwards when her Australia Day gong will be on show.
“Other than it being a big surprise, it makes you feel proud and humble,” Ailsa said.
“When you do voluntary work, you don’t do it for awards. You do it because you enjoy it.
“Our pioneers and early settlers left us with a wonderful heritage here in Maryborough.”
Ailsa’s ongoing commitment to the community includes the sketching and cataloguing of historical records at the Brennan and Geraghty’s Store Museum, work with the Mary River Lions Club and Sandy Coast Volunteer Sea Rescue, fundraising for the Relay for Life, manning the counter at the City Hall Visitor Information Centre and helping out at local festivals.
She leads heritage walking tours of the city and Morning Tea With Mary and was awarded the Zonta Club of Maryborough’s 2009 Noela Bradshaw Memorial Award for her community service in 2009. She has also written books about the ships that visited Maryborough in its early days and the history of the City Hall.