Joel and his family
Growing up in Far North Queensland, the Southside of Cairns was not such a foreign place to settle for my family and I. The hot summers, the milder (slightly) winters and the sound of raindrops on the roof makes FNQ the place to be. Playing footy, cricket or soccer in the backyard allowed me to have a clear mind. I loved my childhood and wouldn’t have liked to have grown up anywhere else.
After finishing my schooling years in Tully and Innisfail, I moved to Smithfield to attend James Cook Uni and my first experience of living away from home. New friends and new adventures were to come. I moved 5 times in 4 years – from Smithfield to Trinity Beach to Yorkey’s Knob to Gordonvale to Manunda. Life was hectic feeling as though I couldn’t call 4 walls my own. I was fortunate to land a teaching job at White Rock SS and my southside connection began. It wasn’t just a school but a community. You didn’t just work here. You are embraced as one of their own.
I met my wife and she moved up north to work at Bentley Park College. After a couple of years of apartment living, we looked for a place to call ‘ours’. We looked around and found a great house in Edmonton we could call home – a house with a backyard where we could start a family. I was lured away to a small school called Bellenden Ker SS for a while and even though I had a great time, the lure of the southside of Cairns called me back. I returned to White Rock SS as a Deputy Principal and have remained ever since. In 2020, during the midst of the COVID outbreak we welcomed our son Dominic into the world. He attends a fantastic day care on the southside of Cairns at Cairns South Early Learning. I am grateful to be a part of this wonderful community. We are settled here and look forward to being here for many more years.