Community
18 December, 2024
Mount Isa Show needs support from community: president
Anne Pittis says more sponsorship and helping hands are needed to ensure the iconic show remains a must-do event.
The Mount Isa Show will go ahead next year, but its long-term future will be determined by the level of support from the community, president Anne Pittis says.
Crowds were down at this year’s annual event, with the show suffering from the rising cost-of-living, plus a date clash with school holidays, sending many local families out of the North West.
“Our show will go ahead, but without funding to help us, the less money we have, and that means less entertainment we can bring to town,” Ms Pittis said.
“We’re always looking for sponsorship but we’re really looking for sponsorship to help us pay to bring more entertainment here because without the entertainment people have got nothing to come and look at.
“Because the show was during the school holidays this year, that has left the kitty a little bit lower than what we’d like to have put aside to pay for everything this year.”
The show society president praised the support of Mount Isa City Council, which not only kept its in-kind sponsorship of the event, but also made a cash commitment.
“The council has been awesome and they always send people around to make sure that the grounds are presented nicely for us,” Ms Pittis told North West Weekly.
While the traditional Australian show has changed over the years, Ms Pittis said they were still important to a town’s social fabric.
“I think it needs to be preserved because it’s the one show that showcases everything that we do in the community,” she said.
“We have the public holiday for the kids to be able to come and see the rides – you don’t have to go to the Brisbane Ekka or anybody else’s agricultural show because the rides are here.
“In the pavilion, we have all the arts and crafts and everything that the locals have actually done, the photos that they’ve taken, the paintings that they’ve painted and it’s showcasing what our community can do.
“It’s getting harder to get people to put those entries in because a lot of people just can’t be bothered these days. And I think it’s really sad because there’s some extremely talented people in this town that can do amazing things.”
Following the recent AGM, the Mount Isa Show also has some important jobs to be filled, namely the site coordinator.
“Any help we can get is appreciated but that is probably the big job we need filled,” the president said.
“But sponsorship is our biggest priority right now because that will determine what kind of entertainment we book for the show, which will be held on June 20 and 21.”