Staging a worldof events

competitions, celebrations of local produce, arts and cultural activities, live music and concerts, to an array of family friendly and community events around the region, there is something for everyone to enjoy.

Many know some of the biggest and most-loved events on the Moreton Bay calendar include Jetty 2 Jetty, Redcliffe KiteFest and the Moreton Bay Food and Wine Festival.

But few would be aware of all the hard work that goes on behind the scenes to make them memorable for all the right reasons.

by Ashleigh Howarth

Meet Melissa Gooderham - the Events, Marketing and Sponsorship Manager at Moreton Bay Region Industry and Tourism (MBRIT).

Melissa has been working in this role for 10 years and loves being part of a team that brings so much joy and happiness to the Moreton Bay community.

“My core role is to oversee the events team, the delivery of the events calendar and liaise with Moreton Bay Regional Council to ensure all the components for community and tourism contracts are met,” Melissa says.

“I have eight people in my teamsix people in the major events team and two in the community events team - and they are responsible for looking after the 60-70 events we will be hosting this year.

“It is my job to ensure every single one of them becomes the best event managers they can be, so each of them will be the lead co-ordinator at their designated events.”

In addition to the events listed above, other highlights of this year’s events calendar include the well known.

Caboolture Festival, Movies in the Park, Music in the Park and Christmas Carols during the festive season. The team is also responsible for five business events, including the Moreton Bay Business and Innovation Awards, as well as working with Steve Butler from Innovate Moreton Bay to help him deliver several social gettogethers.

Some events can take months to plan, during which each person in the events team must work to a strict budget to book entertainers, artisan stall holders and food vendors. They must present their ideas and costings to management, who give the final stamp of approval ahead of the event.

“The Jetty2Jetty fun run and Moreton Bay Food and Wine Festival are two of our events that have the longest lead times,” Melissa says.

“They can take anywhere between eight to nine months to plan, so that means a lot of meetings.

“That’s what we are doing with Redcliffe KiteFest - we want people to hear the word Redcliffe and automatically think of KiteFest.

“Then there are the economic and financial benefits for the region and local businesses.

“They are all really big jobs, but having worked in this industry for a long time, it’s second nature now.”

Melissa says community events like the ones she and her team deliver are important for three reasons.

“Major community events are great for place making and ensuring a region is well known to both locals and visitors,” Melissa explains.

“When you look at other events like the Gympie Muster and the Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers, everyone knows when and where they will be held because they are so

“When we get thousands of people visiting our events, that has a positive flow on effect for local businesses.

“Lastly, there are the social benefits. In a world where more things are done online, these events are giving people an opportunity to get out of their homes and gather face-to-face for some fun.

“One of my favourite parts of the job is helping people create memories with their families, which is what these events do.”