Young local netball star in the making

HERVEY Bay has produced some very strong netballers in recent years and the future looks bright with 11 year old Bella-Maree Latoa.

Bella is a Student Leader at Yarrilee State School and has been selected in the Wide Bay Schools Under 12 Netball Team to represent the region at the Queensland State Championships carnival in Caloundra from June 1st. This carnival will have some of the best 10-12 year old future netballers stars in the state competing over a four day carnival.

After playing in a two day Wide Bay Trials for the Hervey Bay Schools Netball representative team, she was selected for the Wide Bay team along with two other Hervey Bay team members – Luca Tomekovic and Emerson Frainey.

“She was just thrilled”, says her mum Delia Davis. “She has worked really hard and was so excited to be selected for the region.”

Bella plays for local club Bay Bullets in Division 7, and comes from a family of sporting talent. Her father has played rugby league and her older sisters also play representative netball for Hervey Bay.

The Yarrilee student has a very busy year ahead as Netball is not the only sport she excels at. She has a passion for many sports, recently trialling for the AFL Wide Bay representative team and was selected to play in the Possibles and Probables squad.

Bella also represented Hervey

Bay in Oztag at the QLD Junior State cup earlier this year and will be travelling to Townsville at the end of June to represent Hervey Bay Netball Association u12 at QLD Junior State Age. Hervey Bay continues to produce highly talented sports stars and Bella is another example of the talent our region has.

MARJORIE Doreen

Speedy’s journey began in the grazing town of Blackall, located in Central Western Queensland, back in 1960. Being the eldest sister of eight siblings, Marj (as she is better known) carried a significant amount of responsibility in her family. Unfortunately, tragedy struck when two of her brothers passed away, one at just two months old.

Marj takes great pride in her Aboriginal heritage. Her father’s side connects her to the Kooma Nation, situated near Bollon, along the banks of Wallam Creek. On her mother’s side, she is part of the Jarowair mob, hailing from Toowoomba. Embracing her dual heritage, Marj holds strong connections to both mobs.

During her childhood, Marj’s family frequently relocated as her father worked on mustering stations. This transient lifestyle meant attending various schools. Marj vividly recalls the hardships they faced during their time in Orange, where financial struggles were a daily reality. She remembers attending school with cardboard-soled shoes, a testament to the difficulties her family endured. In those days, many Aboriginal workers did not receive cash wages; instead, her father received a sheep as payment. Providing for and clothing eight children under such circumstances was an immense challenge. Marj cherished her primary school experience, but her enthusiasm waned when she reached high school.

Consequently, at the age of fourteen years and nine months, she legally left school midway through grade nine. Following her departure, Marj was sent to Mrs Weller’s Secretarial Coaching College in Toowoomba, a common path for Aboriginal girls at the time. It was there that she acquired valuable skills in shorthand and typing, skills that would prove useful throughout her life. Marj’s father was a hard worker but an alcoholic. He was the family’s primary breadwinner until her parent’s separation. Years later, a heart scare prompted her father to quit drinking for good. Despite their separation, her parents never divorced, and in later years, they expressed their love for each other following her

Simon Kuestenmacher

— A RISING STAR GLOBALLY IN THE FIELD OF DATA MANAGEMENT AND INSIGHT.

SIMON KUESTENMACHER IS A CO-FOUNDER OF THE DEMOGRAPHICS GROUP IN MELBOURNE, A RESPECTED DATA EXPERT AND SPEAKER.

He writes for The Australian and The New Daily, appears in media as a demographic expert, and briefs journalists. Simon holds geography degrees, co-founded The Demographics Group in 2017, and advises businesses on demographic trends.

He presents to various industries and has 300,000 social media followers, reaching over 25 million people monthly as a top influencer in data visualization. Follow him on Twitter for data-driven mother’s passing in 1999.

Marj’s mother was a trailblazer in her own right. She had Irish ancestry, along with fair skin, red hair, and freckles. She played an instrumental role in establishing the Aboriginal legal service and housing company in Toowoomba alongside other relatives.

In 1999, feeling exhausted and worn out from her life in Toowoomba, Marj and her two sons decided to embark on a fresh start. They randomly drew the name of a town from a hat, and fate led them to Hervey Bay. Thus, Marj and her sons packed up their belongings and embraced the new beginnings that awaited them in the coastal town.

Throughout her life, Marj has held various secretarial