Every bear is going to be there

Children are invited to grab their favourite teddy bear and family and head to the annual Teddy Bears Picnic being held at the Somerset Civic Centre in Esk from 9am to 12pm on Thursday 19 September.

There will be plenty of free activities, with information stalls, a children’s disco, face painting, llamas and a teddy bear parade. 

The free event is hosted and organised by Somerset Regional Council.

A free sausage sizzle is also included. Prizes will be given for the best dressed and most loved bear.

Kilcoy sports and movie magic

As part of a host of school holiday activities, the Kilcoy Indoor Sports Centre will be a hive of activity on Tuesday, 24 September.

Organised by Somerset Regional Council, the free event will get underway at 3.30pm and include gymnastics, netball, basketball, sack and running races, a free sausage sizzle and wrap up with a screening of Horton Hears a Who.

The event is open to all ages however participants are encouraged to bring a chair, bean bag and blanket if staying to watch the movie.

For more information on this school holiday activity and others visit www.somerset.qld.gov.au/school-holiday-program or phone Council on 5424 4000.

Somerset Interschool Sports Cup a hit

The final day of the annual Somerset Interschool Sports Cup was held on Friday, 23 August with Kilcoy, Lowood and Toogoolawah State High Schools battling it out for a coveted trophy.

The event invites the three Somerset high schools to compete in junior and senior teams in four sports, including volleyball, soccer, touch football and netball, with the games played across two days throughout the year.

The overall winner for 2024 was Kilcoy State High School, who took out four of the eight sporting shields available for individual sports.

Toogoolawah State High School, who hosted the event, came away with two shields and Lowood State High School also received two shields.

Somerset Regional Council support the event by providing transport for travelling schools, the trophy and shields, as well as general event support.

Somerset Deputy Mayor, Helen Brieschke, was on hand to present the Somerset Sports Cup Trophy and Shields to the winning schools.

Family Field Day at The Condensery

Get creative at Somerset Regional Council’s regional art gallery, The Condensery, on Friday, 27 September.

Fun creative activities where nature meets art will form part of the free Family Field Day activity planned for 11am to 3pm.

The day will include art workshops, nature walks and creative fun for children and families on the grassed areas and the gallery spaces of The Condensery.

The Condensery’s Family Field Day workshops and activities have been funded by the Australian Government and Queensland Government under the Disaster Recovery Funding arrangements.

For more details about the event visit www.thecondensery.com.au

Acting Up in Esk

Somerset teenagers have the opportunity to learn advanced acting and performance skills with a low cost school holiday activity being held at Somerset Regional Council’s Somerset Civic Centre in Esk.

The program, Acting up in Esk, will see a series of workshops being held on Thursday, 26 September by professional actors from Grin and Tonic Theatre Troupe and BeXD Creative.

High school students with a passion for musical theatre, drama, comedy and singing are encouraged to participate.

Workshops go for 90 minutes with different workshops offered throughout the day.

Each workshop costs $10.

For more information phone the Somerset Civic Centre on 5424 2713 or book online at

www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1281406.

The workshops have been jointly funded by the Australian and Queensland governments under the Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements.

Award nomination for The Condensery’s community exhibition

Somerset Regional Council’s regional art gallery,The Condensery, has had a recent exhibition ‘Healing Garden’ named as a finalist in the 2024 Gallery and Museum Achievement Awards

Healing Garden at The Condensery was a site-responsive project created by the Somerset community, led by artists Jane Nicholson and Makiko Ramsay in collaboration with internationally renowned Japanese-Australian artist Hiromi Tango.

Over 700 people contributed to the exhibition.

Somerset Councillor and Arts and Culture Advisory Committee Chair, Kylee Isidro, said it was fantastic for the gallery to be recognised by its peers in the museums and galleries sector.

“This was a hugely successful and collaborative exhibition,” Cr Isidro said.

“Due to the engagement of 23 diverse community groups and schools over seven Somerset townships, the resulting exhibition created significant pride of place among residents.”