Events Harvest Funding Via Community Grants

A family-friendly festival that draws thousands of people to Babinda is one of 18 recipients to share in almost $200,000 through the Community Partnerships Grant.

Cairns Regional Council approved $25,000 to support the annual Babinda Harvest Festival, which will be held on 16 September 2023.

The 59th annual festival is expected to bring more than 5000 residents and visitors together to celebrate and enjoy activities entertainment, arts, and culture.

A tractor pull, vintage cars and farm equipment will be on display at Bill Wakeham Park, while the Grand Street Parade, market stalls, and entertainment breathe life into Munro Street. Local businesses also decorate their premises as they vie for the prestigious Cane Knife Awards.

Mayor Bob Manning said the festival was a popular fixture in the city’s southern corridor.

The Babinda Harvest Festival is a wonderful opportunity to bring everyone together
to enjoy the community atmosphere.

“Council is also proud to support the Great Pyramid Race for another year, bringing our total contribution to this iconic event to almost $140,000 for this event since 2016,” Cr Manning said.

“In 2023, we have now provided $432,000 to 38 different community events, supporting a diverse range of sport, cultural and community groups that contribute to wellbeing in the region.”

The Cairns Italian Festival Inc has also received $25,000 in support for the 2023 event, which starts at the end of next month.

Now in its second year, the Festival was formed to celebrate the region’s rich Italian history and to provide an opportunity for the local Italian community to rethink how the Italian story is told in Cairns and the surrounding regions.  

This year, the Festival has been expanded to include the Innisfail Pasta and Sugo Festa and the Mareeba Moriconi-Bomben Football Cup. 

Held from 28 July to 6 August, a highlight of the Festival is La-Festa Food and Wine to be held at Fogarty Park on Saturday 29 July.

Community Partnership Grant recipients include: 

• Babinda Harvest Festival Inc. for the Babinda Harvest Festival on 16 September – $25,000
• Cairns Italian Festival Inc. for Family Night and La Festa – Food & Wine on 29 July – $25,000
• The Great Pyramid Race and Country Fair for The Great Pyramid Race on 5 August – $13,500
• Edge Hill United Football Club for First Nations Football Day on 2 July – 2,858 
• North Queensland International Motor Raceway Association Incorporated for Thunder in the Canefields on 8 to 15 July – $8,850
• Alliance Française de Cairns Inc for Bastille Day on 16 July – $1,000 
• Cairns Athletics Inc. for Coral Coast Athletics Competition on 29 to 30 July – $5,800
• Cairns Hindu Samaj Inc. for Ganeshotsav on 30 September – $5,000
• Cairns Judo Club Incorporated for 2023 Queensland State SAMBO Championships on 22 to 23 July – $2,300
• Senjo Cairns Inc for the Queensland Knockdown on 29 July – $6,000 
• FNQ Volunteers Inc for VEXPO 2023 on 30 July – $4,700
• Japanese Society of Cairns Inc. for Japan Bon Dance Festival 2023 on 12 August – $18,000
• Endeavour Foundation for Great Endeavour Rally on 31 August to 10 September $2,700  
• UMI Arts Limited for Big Talk One Fire Festival on 16 September – $16,800
• Cairns Multicultural Committee for Cairns CARMA Multicultural Festival on 23 September – $18,100
• Gimuy Walubara Yindinji Elder Corporation for Gimuy Cultural Festival on 30 September – $21,300
• Our Future Mentors Indigenous Corporation for Edor Carnival on 14 October – $14,000
• Redlynch Valley Community Group Inc. for Redlynch Halloween Tunnel of Terror on 31 October – $2,108.