International Women’s Day Breakfast 2023

Zonta Club of Hervey Bay Inc International Women’s Day Report              2023

Zonta report

The Zonta Club of Hervey Bay has had a signature event on IWD day for many years and this year was one of the most successful.

Due to generous support from Kingfisher Resort, Bunnings Hervey Bay, MUK, Wilsons, the Hervey Bay Boat Club and De Lorenzo, the tickets sold out very quickly with the maximum 140 achieved with a long waiting list.

This event attracts high attendance and celebrates the achievements of women. This year we continued to see a high attendance by men, with leadership from council and industry attendees. Organizations, including major employers also joined us, sponsoring tables for their staff to attend.

The theme of the early morning breakfast was one of Technology Embraces Equity.  The morning started very positively with a welcome to country from Butchella representative Karen Hall. Karen’s speech certainly inspired and educated us as we all felt grateful to be on Butchella land and learning about the roles of Aboriginal women in caring for country and community.

The Fraser Coast Regional Councilors Jade Wellings and David Lee spoke positively of the work of council to support women in our community.

This year we had a panel of experts in the fields of STEM, ably chaired by internationally renowned IT specialist, Dr Ann Moffatt with panelists Associate Professor Kathy Townsend, Marine Scientist at USC, Emma Conway, People and Culture Specialist from Hyne Timber and Geoff Augutis from Queensland Computers.

President Sara Faraj presented her message to the guests and launched the inaugural Hervey Bay Women in STEM scholarship.

The Hervey Bay Boat Club provided an excellent breakfast and the staff cared for us so well. The raffle prizes were the final excitement before we all left for our work, inspired, grateful and ready to apply the inspiration of the morning to our lives and work in Zonta.