Bloomhill Cancer Help will be opening the roller-doors of their Distribution Centre on Saturday, 5 March to hold one of the Sunshine Coast’s biggest Garage Sales.

Bloomhill President, Jenny Carroll said the garage sale was a great chance for people to pick up some really good quality items for a fraction of the cost, and at the same time support a worthy cause.

The garage sale is just the start of a huge week of Bloomhill savings. From Monday, 7 March to Saturday, 12 March, Bloomhill will host their End of Season Sale, offering up to 30% off at all six Bloomhill Op Shops across the Sunshine Coast.

“You will be able to find all sorts of items at the garage sale and op shops during this week from furniture to appliances and white goods, of course clothing, and even sporting equipment,” Jenny said.

“There will be huge savings with prices to be slashed even lower than our normal Op Shop prices,” Jenny said.

Bloomhill Cancer Help is a Sunshine Coast based charity and provides support and assistance to those affected by cancer. Operated by a team of dedicated staff and hundreds of volunteers, Bloomhill offers counselling, transport to appointments, respite care and a range of complementary therapies and other practical help.

“Bloomhill doesn’t receive any government funding, so we rely on the money raised through our OP shops, donations, grants and fundraising activities, for us to continue to provide our high level of care,” Jenny said.

“The services we provide at Bloomhill are only made possible by the open-hearted support we receive from the local community and businesses.”

The Garage Sale is open from 7am to 12pm and will be held at the Bloomhill Distribution Centre at 10 Endeavour Drive, Kunda Park. There will also be free hot dogs.

The Bloomhill Op Shops are located in Buderim (Main Street), Maroochydore (First Avenue), Mooloolaba (Brisbane Road), Nambour (opposite hospital), Caloundra (Bulcock Street) and Noosa (Rene Street).

“We have received overwhelming support from the Sunshine Coast community in the past and we are sure there will be a great turn out to support us this time as well, and we encourage everyone to come down and take a look, you never know what treasures you may find,” Jenny said.

To find out more about Bloomhill visit www.bloomhill.com.au or visit a Bloomhill Op Shop.

Leading Australian Internet marketing firm, Traffika, is breaking into the international market with a new licensed company launching in India to service South East Asia.

The new company, Traffika Asia, in Hyderabad, is a real coup for Traffika which has made a huge impression in the Australian market since its launch a little more than two years ago.

Traffika Australia’s Managing Director, Matt Forman said this new partnership would not only demonstrate the quality of their business, services and brand to a new market but would also provide Australian clients with the opportunity to extend their reach into Asia and vice versa.

Traffika Asia will service areas of South East Asia including India, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. The new team will be led by entrepreneur, Traffika Asia CEO, Dinesh Jain, a former Google employee with more than 5 years of Adwords and Google Analytics experience. Prior to joining Traffika Asia, Dinesh managed the Google Analytics Agency Partner program in the Asia Pacific region. Dinesh also holds a Masters of Business and IT from the University of Melbourne.

“With Dinesh’s experience working with digital agencies throughout the Asia Pacific region he understands what makes agencies successful and deliver superior client results,” Matt said.

Dinesh said he chose Traffika because they shared the same mission and values in business with Traffika’s focus on client results and service.

“Traffika’s systems and business model are ahead of the curve and set the standard for other agencies to follow”.

“Asia is an emerging market and  so there is a huge opportunity to help businesses find new customers and grow their business,” Dinesh said.

“Traffika Asia will start out as a team of six but we are anticipating that number will double by the end of the year,” he said.

Traffika specialises in helping businesses drive quality online traffic to their online presence, and convert that traffic to bottom line results. Since it’s launch in Queensland, Traffika Australia has grown to be considered one of the top digital marketing agencies in the nation, attracting large clients including Bond University, Lorna Jane, Alibaba.com and Sunsuper.

Traffika’s rapid growth in the industry could be due to its unique underlying business philosophy that achieves great results for their clients every time and for their strategic approach, which carefully measures the effectiveness of every tactic they use.

“At Traffika, we are ‘results driven’, motivated by the success created by the campaign and achieving results clients expect rather than focusing on increasing client spend and commissions,” Matt said.

“It is astonishing to see just how far the business has come, and once we are successful in Asia, who knows where we will set our sights next,” Matt said.

“I am confident that with Dinesh leading the Traffika Asia team, it will follow along the same success path of Traffika Australia,” he said.

Easter is traditionally at time when Australian families spend time reconnecting. Queensland has always been a popular destination at this time of year but recent weather events have hit the Queensland tourism industry hard.

Sunshine Coast mum and author of Kids Welcome guidebooks, Sarah Pye, says much of Queensland has not been affected, yet visitors are still cancelling their holidays.

“Queensland hotels and attractions are encouraging visitors through the door with remarkable specials and discounts at the moment, just in time for Easter,” Ms Pye says.

“There is always a flip side to any crisis and families can save heaps on their holidays, while helping the relief effort.”

Ms Pye is passionate about making it easier for families to explore this beautiful state. Her guidebook Kids Welcome to Queensland includes reviews of over 1000 activities, attractions, tours, places to eat, places to stay throughout the Sunshine State. Many of the items are free or low cost. Each review saves valuable planning time with contact details and suitability in three age-groups: preschool, primary and teen.

Ms Pye will be sharing some of her favourite Queensland destinations and activities on the stage at the Brisbane 4×4 Show on April 9 and 10. Her talk “School holidays made easy” is scheduled for at 10.30am each day and her talk “The grandkids are coming!” is schedules for 1.30pm each day. She will also have plenty of family-friendly prizes to give away.

Kids Welcome to Queensland (RRP $24.95) is endorsed by Tourism Queensland and Playgroup Queensland. It been called “a must for every glove box” and one of “five top travel books”.  It is available at most bookshops or online at www.kidswelcome.com.au. Sarah Pye’s next book, Kids Welcome to New South Wales & ACT will be available in June.

“Queensland needs your help to get back on its feet,” Ms Pye says, “What better way than planning your Easter holiday at home?”

The creative minds of writers across the Sunshine Coast will be put to the test once again for the 2011 Sunshine Coast Literary Association’s Annual Writers Competition.

President of the SCLA, Bryan Ward said the competition was fierce last year, demonstrating the amazing abilities of writers on the Sunshine Coast.

Entries to the Writers Competition are now open and close on Friday, 29 April. The competition is open to aspiring writers in the Sunshine Coast and Gympie area, with six entry categories including junior short story, junior poem, young adult short story, young adult poem, open short story and open poem.

“This year we hosted a Short Story Summer School on February 3 and 10, which aimed to prepare entrants for the competition and get their ‘writing juices flowing’,” Bryan said.

“The competition is designed to provide an outlet for talented writers to showcase their work to their peers and receive valuable feedback from professional and accomplished writers,” he said.

There are six categories in this year’s competition including:

• Category 1: Open Short Story, to a maximum of 2500 words.
• Category 2: Open Poem, to a maximum of 40 lines.
• Category 3: Young Adult (High School, Years 8-12) Short Story, to a maximum of 1500 words.
• Category 4: Young Adult (High School, Years 8-12) Poem, to a maximum of 40 lines.
• Category 5: Junior (Primary, Years 5-7) Short Story, to a maximum of 1000 words.
  • Category 6: Junior (Primary, Years 5-7) Poem, to a maximum of 20 lines.

There are some great prizes up for grabs with each category having a $200 first prize, $50 second prize, a $25 Sunshine Plaza voucher for the top highly commended entry.  All winners will also receive a certificate.

All category winners will receive$200, with second place with $50 and Highly Commended entries. A panel of experienced judges decide on the winners, which will be announced at the WARM Writing Competition Dinner on Thursday, 23 June. More details regarding the event will be available closer to the date.

The Sunshine Coast Literary Association is a not-for-profit association dedicated to nurturing, showcasing and celebrating literary talent throughout the Sunshine Coast region.

“The WARM Writing Competition was first held in 2007 and has been run every year since 2009 so it is becoming a key part of the Association’s character,” Bryan said.

“We encourage everyone to have a go, you never know, maybe they will discover a hidden talent,” Bryan said.

This year, the University of the Sunshine Coast is sponsoring the Young Adult Short Story category of the competition.  More sponsorship opportunities are available.  For more information email info@scliterary.org.

Each entry is $5 with a maximum of three entries per candidate. Entry forms and details are available online at the SCLA website, www.scliterary.org, or by emailing info@scliterary.org.   All entries must be received by 29^th April 2011.

Australia’s own Low-Fat Cookbook Queen, Annette Sym, is embarking on an adventure of a lifetime as she sets off on a trade mission to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The trade mission, organised by Dr Fiona Hill of Almanar Consultancy, is a landmark first of its kind expedition. Taking only a select group of women from across Australia, the purpose of the trip is to generate lasting business connections between Australia and the Middle East.

Award-winning author of internationally acclaimed low-fat cookbook series, Symply Too Good To Be True, Annette Sym said she is really looking forward to the mission and will be researching the possibility of creating an Arabic version of her cookbooks.

“My cookbooks in Australia and America feature healthy alternatives to traditionally high-fat foods that everyone loves such as burgers, lasagne and cheesecake, and I am hoping that by visiting these countries I will be able to develop low-fat versions of their favourite foods too,” Annette said.

“Almost half of Saudi Arabia are classified as obese including 66% of women and 18% of pre-school-aged children,” Annette said.

“But what motivates me the most, is to be able to help them as this region has the highest rate of type 2 diabetes in the world,” Annette said.

“I am really looking forward to meeting and working with as many local women as possible so I can do what I can to help reduce this,” she said.

During her trip, Annette will visit Abu Dhabi, Riyadh and Jeddah and plans to research their cuisine, recipes, cooking style and habits in relation to food and exercise. She will also be meeting with Trade Queensland, Chamber of Commerce and the Australia and Saudi Consulate as well as representatives of Saudi Universities.

Almanar Consultancy is an Australian business that facilitates Australia-Arab relations through training, education and specialised Arab country visits. Almanar specialises in providing advice, experiences and opportunities for Australian businesswomen in the fields of international trade, investment and cultural exchange.

“I will be wearing the Abaya and head scarf while I am there to show my respect for their culture and strict Muslim beliefs,” Annette said.

Selling more than 3 million copies due to their undeniable ability to help people lose weight, Annette Sym’s series, Symply Too Good To Be True are available at all leading newsagencies and Borders Bookstores nation-wide. Books 1,2,3,4 and 5 are $13.95 and the bumper-sized Book 6 with the weightloss MASTERCLASS DVD and 28-day meal plan is $28.

Visit the Symply Too Good website, www.symplytoogood.com.au, for great low-fat cooking tips and to see Annette cooking a new recipe each month.

The Buderim Foundation is once again on a mission to assist local families by distributing cash vouchers to schools and charities that will help with back-to-school expenses.

This is the seventh consecutive year the Foundation has assisted with the project and Buderim Foundation Director Dr Sarah Bird said it has become an annual event on the Foundation’s calendar.

The 125 vouchers, valued at $50 each, will be distributed by the schools and charities to families requiring assistance with their children’s back-to-school expenses. The vouchers can be spent at Target stores.

The vouchers, valued at $6,250, are provided to the Buderim Foundation by the Australia-wide Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal (FRRR) and the Sidney Myer Fund, which operates the 2011 Back to School Program that assists families in need of support with the start of the school year.

“The directors of the Buderim Foundation are pleased that the strong relationship with the program has resulted in Back to School vouchers for Buderim families. And we enjoy working with Buderim organisations to get the vouchers out there,” Dr Bird said.

“We have provided vouchers to several schools including Buderim Mountain State School, Mountain Creek Primary School and Chancellor State College, as well as half a dozen community organisations including St Vincent de Paul, SunnyKids, Community Solutions and the Cindy Mackenzie Breast Cancer Foundation.

“Working through these organisations ensures that the families and children in the greatest need obtain the most benefit from the program, whilst maintaining privacy for all involved.

“The Cindy Mackenzie Breast Cancer Foundation in particular has a strong connection to the Foundation,” Dr Bird said. “Cindy was a dear friend of mine and many others involved in the Buderim Foundation, so it is really great to be able to support them in this small way. The feedback we’ve received is that families are surprised and delighted by the vouchers… it’s definitely a win/win/win situation,” she said.

The 2011 Back to School Program is an initiative of the FRRR and the Sidney Myer Fund and supported by The Sidney Myer Fund, VISY, The Aussie Farmers Foundation, The Julian Flett Foundation, The Edward Wilson Trust, The Wyatt Benevolent Institution and Target.

More information on the Buderim Foundation can be obtained by visiting the Foundation’s website www.buderimfoundation.org.au, by contacting a Board member on info@buderimfoundation.org.au or writing to the Buderim Foundation, PO Box 1408, Buderim, QLD 4556.

Our latest documentary ‘Smiling for Smiddy- The Long Road’, which follows the journey of a group of friends raising money for cancer research in memory of their mate, Adam Smiddy, who died of cancer in 2006.

Through “The Long Road”, Adam’s mother, Maria, tells not only her own intensely personal story about losing her son but also the unforgettable legacy created by his friends to ensure Adam is never forgotten and that a cure is found for this insidious disease.

The documentary is set to premiere in Brisbane later this month in the UQ schonell Cinema on Tuesday, 22 February at 7pm.Tickets are $10 for adults of $4 for children. All funds raised will go towards Smiling for Smiddy’s fundraising efforts.

To purchase tickets go to http://www.materfoundation.org.au/Events-and-Campaigns/Current-Events/-The-Long-Road–Documentary-Premiere.aspx.

To view the trailer, see below. [vimeo]http://vimeo.com/19425498[/vimeo]

Our latest documentary ‘Smiling for Smiddy- The Long Road’, which follows the journey of a group of friends raising money for cancer research in memory of their mate, Adam Smiddy, who died of cancer in 2006.

Through “The Long Road”, Adam’s mother, Maria, tells not only her own intensely personal story about losing her son but also the unforgettable legacy created by his friends to ensure Adam is never forgotten and that a cure is found for this insidious disease.

To view the trailer, see below. [vimeo]http://vimeo.com/19425498[/vimeo]