Council Supports Ridgelands State School Centenary Celebrations

Published on 18 July 2024

The community is invited to celebrate Ridgelands State School's centenary this Saturday at a special event honouring the school's 100-year milestone.

The event, which is supported by Rockhampton Regional Council through a $2,000 contribution from its Community Assistance Program, will feature a range of fun activities including a bush dance for the whole family to enjoy.

Deputy Mayor and Communities and Heritage Councillor Drew Wickerson said it was wonderful to see the program assist the committee to host such an important date in the Ridgelands community calendar.

“The event is a wonderful chance to highlight the rich history of the school,” Cr Wickerson said.

“You could say Saturday’s celebrations have been 100 years in the making as it’s rather special to celebrate such an important milestone.

“The Community Assistance Program helps community groups with event costs, and I’m glad we can partner with the organisers to pull off an event that the whole Ridgelands community can be proud of.”

Divisional Councillor Cherie Rutherford said the whole event highlighted the strong sense of unity within the Ridgelands district.

“It’s a tight-knit community and this event captures that sentiment perfectly,” Cr Rutherford said.

“I particularly love how the organisers have been able to present the decades of schooling history in an interactive exhibition, which helps history live on.

“It is important for communities to have these stories so they can continue sharing them with future generations.”

Ridgelands State School P&C vice president Belinda Wilkes said the event is shaping up to be quite the celebration.

“The main focus of the day is a display we have set up in the Ridgelands Hall which tells the history of the school,” Ms Wilkes said.

“We purposely had the history specially printed so all the signage can go to the museum at the showgrounds following the event for display.

“We felt it was important for the display to live on after the event, to make the school’s history available for the whole community.

“Ridgelands State School is the last of the smaller community schools left in the area so the display is a legacy that allow the little schools to live on through Ridgelands.”

The day includes a Devonshire tea, a fashion parade of former school uniforms throughout the decades, games and activities for all ages and concluding with an old fashioned bush dance.

“We’ve got heaps of things happening throughout the day,” Ms Wilkes said.

“We’ll even have a magazine for sale, highlighting the decades of education at Ridgelands State School, telling stories and anecdotes from each era.

“The magazine was written by Jessica Geddes and Kathryn MacMaster and will be available for purchase for $30.”

Held at Ridgelands State School and starting from 10am, on Saturday 20 July, the day is gold coin entry with food and drink available for purchase.

The Ridgelands State School Centenary was one of 30 community events and programs to receive funding in Round 2 of the 2023/2024 Community Assistance Program.

In its most recent 2024/25 budget, Council invested $280,000 across the Community Assistance Program which supports year-round community development grants, regional and local events, and five major multiyear events held throughout the year.

For more information on the event, click here.