The Constellations Project | Lockyer Valley Flood Appeal Calendar

Hi again everyone!

So many people have been emailing/calling me to say “oh, did somebody video the launch”, “I wish I could have been there”, “I heard that it was beautiful” etc.

I was going to do a big “launch round up” post, to fill everyone in on what a great day it was etc. BUT, after putting together the slideshow last night that you can see HERE, I instead, have opted to post the speeches that I made and the order of events of the day so that you can read along and really understand just how special the day was:

” For those who don’t know, I am Tan, the creator of The Constellations Project.

Where to begin?   I am going to read from what I have written in the calendar itself:

“Few natural disasters have affected me the way that the flash flooding of January 10 in The Lockyer Valley did. I was so deeply drawn in by the courage and the tenacity of those who lost not only their lives and their loved ones, but their livelihoods too.

A few nights after January 10, 2011, I was lying in my bed, thinking. Every cell in my body longed to do something to help these families.  It occurred to me, on many occasions, that as I lay there, comfortable, dry and knowing that each of my kids was safely tucked into their own bed, the reality for many other families at that precise moment was so, so different.

We have a large family and so, it had to be something that I could do around them.  It had to be something that I could do that could involve them too.  It had to be huge.  It had to make a difference.

I knew only one thing for certain, it would involve my camera.

Gradually, over the following week, the seed that I’d planted that night, began to grow into an idea that I thought not only had merit, but one which stirred great excitement within me as I realised what a difference it could make.   With my husband Steve encouraging the evolving concept and us bouncing ideas back and forth, we finally decided that “yes, we can do this!” And so, the idea of a beautiful wall calendar came into existence.

As I sat, trying to decide on a name for the calendar, I was drawn over and over to a Persian Proverb that I had once heard: “Only when it is dark enough, can you see the stars”.  I thought of the stars, and how they shine out through said darkness, giving hope to so many who view them.  I thought about how stars group together, and how the unity and strength of character shown by the people of The Lockyer Valley will be what pulls them through this dark time. It was then, that I knew, that the calendar, would become “The Constellations Project”.”

It is my greatest hope that through the imagery I have captured whilst creating this calendar, people will be able to share in the journey of recovery, courage and optimism that the people of The Lockyer Valley are experiencing right now.

I have VERY deliberately chosen each and every person that is in the calendar in a bid to represent every single facet that has contributed in some way or another to the recovery process.  The calendar includes images representing the “official” organisations such as the Army, SES, Bush Fire Brigade, Global Care etc.  It includes contributions by the “celebrity” sector with the visits of The Wiggles, Prince William etc being documented.  It shows images of volunteers that came from as far as Charleville and Dalby to pull on a pair of boots and show their support too.

And then, I have included images of the people of Grantham.  We see faces of children, long term residents and new.   Some who don’t live in the town but own businesses.  Some who are tenants, or who were just in the process of moving here. There are images of people who lost their homes,  and there are images of some who did not have water through their home, but all have, in some way been “affected”.

I have not discriminated in any way when I decided who to feature in the calendar. I make no apologies for who has or has not been included, as it was all a part of MY journey, as much as yours.  I followed the path that was presented to me, and I documented it in the best way that I could, in the time that I had.  I did so in such a way to always maintain the respect, diginity and privacy of those who were and still are grieving and struggling to get to grips on a tragedy that could not ever be understood or comprehended by any single person who was not here on that day, 10^th January 2011.

I truly wish only the brightest and most wonderful future for the people of The Lockyer Valley, and this calendar is a gift from my family to you.  It is our greatest hope that everybody who purchases a calendar doesn’t simply throw it in the bin after it is finished, but instead, places it in “a safe spot”, for many years to come so that future generations of little Aussies can learn this lesson of hope and courage too.

I would like to remind you all of the MANY, MANY businesses and individuals who have offered assistance to the calendar and to this launch today, and who, at some time during the past 4 months have made a sacrifice for no other reason than to help your community.  I have a lot of thank-yous to make, so please bear with me.

Thank-you to the following:

For the project itself – there is an AMAZING company in Victoria, called “Printgraphics”, and in particular a gentleman who works there named Nigel Quirk.  Through my work with a magazine known as Little ONE Baby, Nigel knew me, and had enough faith in my abilities as a photographer to be one of the first to put their hand up when I needed help.  They supplied me with a printing quote, and then another, and then ANOTHER.  Every time scraping off more and more from their cost price to try and get the cost of those calendars within our reach.  They convinced the paper supplier to supply the paper stock at cost price, further cutting out more costs.  Over and over again, they cut prices and even sent the boxes of calendars that I have here today via Express Post at a cost of over $400, paid for by themselves.  They pushed deadlines, and then pushed them again when my poorly completed artwork went balls up.  Then, when I discovered errors in the artwork that I had supplied, they pushed deadlines again, and the calendars LITERALLY arrived in my house yesterday, with not a moment to spare. There are not enough words in the world to express how above and beyond this company has gone to get this calendar here today.  I am forever indebted to Printrgraphics for what they have done for me and this project.

Webnovation – Webnovation are a small web-hosting company who I connected with through the online business and business mums network that we used to have.  I approached them about a website and and “identity” for the project and they didn’t hesitate.  I supplied them with a brief, and a concept and they created the website and The Constellations Project logo , again, within a ridiculous timeline, and completing thousands of dollars worth of work for nothing.

I mention both of these companies today as they were CRUCIAL in getting this project up and running and both are not even in Queensland.  The pain of the Lockyer Valley communities is felt, and supported far and wide.

Each month of the calendar was paid for through sponsorship from a variety of small businesses, again, from far and wide, but I would like to make extra special mention of a couple of them:

Quality Desserts – Toowoomba based, and knowing too well the flood affects themselves, they have been absolutely wonderful.  Julian, the Managing Director, is here today, and brought with him the delicious muffins (etc) that we have all been tucking into.  Again, this was provided for free, simply because they wanted to help.

Pets Galore, and Hydraulink Toowoomba – two more flood affected local businesses who simply wanted to help.

Susan and Martina – two ladies from the company that is “Mind Gardener”, again, who I have known through my network of business mums.  At a time when I was about to throw in the towel, and struggling to find enough sponsors to be able to go to print, they came to my rescue.  In 3 days, they found, signed up, and arranged payments from  5 sponsors to get us to print and meet deadlines.  They injected a breath of fresh air right when I needed it and for that I am forever thankful.

Queensland Rail – who is represented here today by Greg Hallam.  Not only did they sponsor a month in the calendar, not only have they been promoting the project to their 7000+ employees statewide, through their large social networking resources such as FB and twitter, but they arrived today with all of the refreshing water you have been sipping on this morning.  Again, for free, again, because they wanted to help.

Our absolutely beautiful cake was painstakingly created by Kate at Little Miss Cake Company. We have the lovely Kerryanne providing the music for the day, Cleo The Clown,  providing smiles and entertainment for the kids, and of course the wonderful Leesa Wilson from Picture Perfect Events who has created the decorations that give this event the celebratory feel that it deserves.

The deliciously warm, and very appreciated hot drinks you have been treated with have been provided by Matthew’s Espresso in Brisbane, again, who are here out of the goodness of their hearts.

Angela from Two Possums Photography who is photographing everything this morning as I am a little bit busy to do it myself. J

Thank-you to our BBQ team, especially Linda V for putting it all together when I had a meltdown and dropped the ball mid-week! And to Paul and the Armstrong family for letting us take over their shed today, and to Linda W for calling in lots of favours to make everything come together too.

I REALLY, REALLY hope that I haven’t forgotten anyone!

Finally, I get to you guys.  The people of a town who welcomed me in.  Who, during the darkest time of your lives, when there were cameras and microphones everywhere you turned, were able to somehow see something in me that allowed you to trust in what I was doing enough that I was allowed to stick yet another camera in your faces!

To those who let me sleep on their couches unannounced, eat yummy servings of sweet potato pasta, who always have a hug at the ready when things are “NOT GOOD”, and those who smile and wave when they see our polka dotted car floating around town.  To those whose doors I knocked on and five minutes later welcomed me into their home and spent hours sharing what they went through that day so that I had to phone my husband back in Brisbane yet again to beg for him to phone work and take another day off as I simply couldn’t draw myself away.  To the beautiful “Energizer Bunny”, T3, and the families in Postman’s Ridge whose hearts you hold in your hands. To the beautiful, AMAZING kids whose little hands I have held in mine as we chased chooks, danced with the Wiggles and snuck lollies when Mummy and Daddy weren’t looking, and who looked me in the eye and broke my heart when they told me of the friends that they will never see again.

Finally, to my husband and my own babies, who have barely seen their Mummy this year, and who so willingly go along on these crazy rollercoaster rides that I take, always behind me, always putting up with whatever crazy requests I make of them without even a whimper or a whine.  Who have grown up SO much through this, and matured beyond their years as they showed their understanding of the amazing thing that we, as a family, are trying to achieve.  Who, say to me almost every morning upon waking “mummy, do you have to go to da fwuds today, can’t you stay and pway wiv us?”

Thank-you to you all for being you, and for changing the lives of everyone that you have touched in some way during the past four months.

And now, before I put you all to sleep, this is Beau.  I am not going to say anything more to introduce him, as the words of his song tell it better than anything I could possibly say…

Beau, you quite literally rock!  Thanks so much for being here today!

So, tomorrow is Mother’s Day.  It is the first Mother’s Day that many of you will experience without your Mum, your sister, your wife, your best friend, your aunty, or your daughter.  And it will be tough.

BUT, I have something very special to share with you all.  Words from a very wise man, so far beyond his years.  This beautiful soul placed these words up on Facebook almost a year ago today.  If only he knew at the time how poignant they would become.  The man who wrote them, was Joshua Ross.

With blessing from Bess Fraser, and the Ross family, Josh’s cousin, Tanaya is going to read them to you:

“To all my friends who are Mums I hope you all have a special day tomorrow you are extraordinary people. Drs, teachers, carers…

“Happy Mother’s Day” means more

Than have a happy day.

Within those words lie lots of things

We never get to say.

It means I love you first of all,

Then thanks for all you do.

It means you mean a lot to me,

And that I honor you.

But most of all, I guess it means

That I am thinking of,

Your happiness on this, your day,

With pleasure and with love”

by Josh Adam Ross on Saturday, May 8, 2010 at 9:47am

Thanks so much Tanaya, and thank-you to Josh, my only regret is that I never had the opportunity to meet you myself.

The Constellations Project is a gift from my family to community, not just in The Lockyer but through-out Queensland.  However, we have another gift that we would like to present to you all now.  My sons Jaimyn and Keegan would like to explain it.:

Jaimyn:

A few weeks ago, Mum contacted the International Star Registry in Sydney, and with their help, I can now share with you that as of 10 January this year, Grantham has its very own star.  Every night, when you look up into the sky, no matter where you are in Australia, you will be able to know that The Grantham Star is above.

It is located within the constellation known as “Columba” and is visible all year round in the Southern Hemisphere.  The frame that I am holding, shows the precise astronomical location of The Grantham Star, and the one that my brother Keegan holds, is the certificate showing the formal naming and registration of it.

Keegan:

We hope, that this helps your town to really understand, that “Only when it is dark enough, can you see the stars”.  And that when you think of those who are no longer by your side, or you struggle through the day to day obstacles you face, each night, you can sit back, and look up and remember that they are with you always, in your hearts, and that one day, you will be able to shine again.

Another beautiful family who has The Lockyer Valley in their hearts is the Poli family.  Dad, Giuseppe is a very talented watercolour artist and has created a beautiful piece of art for the town, that has been titled “Hope On The Hill”.  The title is significant because now, as many of you will be moving “up the hill” with the land swap that is happening, you will be looking down over the area that was once your home, with hope in your hearts, and memories that will be with you for generations to come.  Giuseppe, did you have anything you wish to share?

It is our hope that these gifts to Grantham, will be able to find a home in the new Grantham Community Centre at the Butter Factory once it has been completed.

Now for the fun part!

I need some very special little helpers to do this, it is a job much too big for me to handle!  So, Mikey, Zarah and Jessica, I would like you to come and do the honours of cutting our beautiful cake.

And now, without further ado, I am very happy (and relieved) to finally announce that The Constellations Project is “open for business”!

Finally, we are so very very fortunate to have with us today, the amazingly talented musician, and Lowood girl Kate Cook.  Kate is going to say a few words and perform for us in a moment, but I’d just like to let you all know what is going to happen as she nears the end of her song.  My children and I will be releasing 25 butterflies, thanks to the lovely people at Butterfly Trees For Poverty.

There is one butterfly for each of the people who did not come home on January 10.  Not just in The Lockyer Valley, but in Toowoomba and Minden, and Dalby too.  Almost everybody here today, knew and loved somebody who is represented in one of these butterflies and we hope that you all take a moment to remember them as you watch them fly away.

Over to Kate.

(Thanks so much to Geoff Purton for the above video!)

Thank you so much Kate for being here today, and for your beautiful performance.  Please keep your ears to the ground guys as Kate’s song Survive will be released soon to remind everyone in the world that you are all survivors in one way or another.

And now, I am going to hand over to Kerryanne as we have some brekky, and sell some calendars.  They are $30 each for those who don’t know, with all of the proceeds going to Grantham, and also to the Postman’s Ridge/Murphy’s Creek areas.  Come and see Jaimyn, he will give you service with a smile! Please enjoy the rest of the morning and keep your fingers crossed that we can get all 9 pallets of calendars that are due to arrive in our garage next week sold as soon as possible.”

I hope this post makes you all truly feel as though you were there with us at our launch, it was a beautiful day!

tan.x.