Holey Moley

CLICK HERE TO WATCH VIDEO

Holey Moley winner christens our new putting greens

Mark Duncan, winner of Channel 7’s Holey Moley was a special guest at Halcyon Greens, where he talked about his experience winning $100,000 on the television show.

He also showed off his mini-golf skills, christening the new putting greens in the backyards of our new display homes. New homeowners joined Mark for morning tea on the Village Green where he spoke about his time on the show and the effect it has had on his life.

“We flew to Los Angeles to film the show and then four days later COVID happened and we had to get home,” Mark, who works in waste management, said. “Channel 7 ended up building the set not far from my home in Thornlands so it took me 15 hours to get the first set and then about three minutes to the next one.”

Mark, whose memorable beard made him a favourite with viewers and bookies who tipped him to win the show, defeated a professional golfer to take out the crown and the $100,000 prize. “I was the underdog on that night,” he said. “I was the amateur golfer, I wasn’t a pro. It was just me doing the job. “I just had a go, I had nothing to lose so I just went for it. Mark said Holey Moley had been a blessing, easing some financial pressure for his family and allowing him to buy himself a new Toyota Hi-lux and a new set of golf clubs. “Holey Moley changed my life and Halcyon Greens has changed the lives of the people who move here,” he said. “It’s an amazing community.”

Check out the putting greens installed in the backyards in our new display homes. Display homes are open Monday -Saturday 9am-4pm Call 1800 626 488 for more information

Darren from Dinky D’s Donuts Mark Duncan showing off his skills

Judy Wallis, Heather Yarker and Marion Calder

Ian and Heather Yarker

Rotary heroes head to Halcyon

Working couple Heather and Ian Yarker’s advice to people contemplating making the move to Halcyon is simple: Just do it!

The pair, who still work fulltime and are active volunteers for Rotary, have just become owners of Halcyon Greens 300th home and have settled in quickly, taking advantage of the lifestyle the community offers. “It’s not a retirement village, it’s a lifestyle community and it’s very, very different and you see that when you visit competitors,” Heather said. “When younger people visit they say ‘we want to be in here, we want these facilities, we want that friendship.’” Ian said the community was perfect for working people, as the lifestyle and facilities made it a pleasure to return to every evening, without the burden of any maintenance. “I just relax when I come through the beautiful entrance past the manicured landscape,” he said. “Then past the botanic gardens in front of the beautiful homes which have got proud owners who almost always come out and wave to you as you pass, it’s compelling.” “Just let it happen. Just do it. It will work for you, it will wrap itself around you and you become part of the fibre of Halcyon Greens.” The couple have both been awarded an Order of Australia Medal (OAM) for their volunteer work, which includes helping build school dormitories in Papua New Guinea, working with the World Health Organisation (WHO) to teach villagers malaria prevention, leading teams to assist in countries such as Fiji, Thailand, Solomon Islands and Indonesia and of course helping people here in Australia. Their nomadic volunteer lifestyle had led them to live in a caravan for the past seven years, spending time on their daughter’s Gold Coast hinterland property while also travelling around Australia and the world.

Heather, who earned the nickname “Hurricane Heather” from her husband for her energy and enthusiasm said they decided to move to Halcyon because they were ready for their “next adventure”. “We’d been to other resorts and had a look, but the facilities weren’t there that we thought we wanted to use together and enjoy together without going outside the community,” she said. Ian added: “You can feel the master planning when you walk around the community, especially if you’ve got any experience or background in that area and that for me is one of the most engaging aspects of the whole community here. “It’s not a commercial activity, it’s actually about people for people and the result is engaging without you realising that and I find it has exceeded our expectations. “We’re absolutely amazed at how enthusiastically and how quickly we’ve been welcomed and brought into the group that are already here, it really is something special.” Heather said their neighbour had delivered a batch of freshly baked cookies to their home the other night. “She dropped them off and said ‘you’re always working or out helping someone, next time I’m going to make you a dinner’.” “It really has been remarkable.”

On your bikes! MOFAH needs you

Words by Syd Leach

Carl Spencer, Syd Leach, Bob Marsh, Howard Cox and Noel Mason

Welcome to MOFAH at Lakeside. For those who don’t know that’s the Motorcycling Old Farts At Halcyon.

The group has five members (so far). Syd Leach: President (only because I was the founder). Howard Cox: Secretary (the only literate member). Bob Marsh: Treasurer (he said he could count). Noel Mason: Ridemaster (the only one worthy of this title). Carl Spencer: Marketing guru. What we lack in numbers we sure do make up for in experience. Our combined age is almost 300 and collectively we’ve owned 37 motorbikes - including many “longgone-broke names” like AJS, BSA, Francis Barnett, Norton, Panther, Velocette and Vincent. Our club motto is simple… ’The older I get the faster I was’. If we can find a sponsor, we’ll buy some club t-shirts with that slogan printed on. The group averages about three to four rides a month, each between 150 and 250 kilometres.

We no longer talk about the joys of riding with the wind in our hair ‘cos we no longer collectively have enough to trouble the wind anyway. We don’t do rain, and these days tyres tend to wear out in the middle and not on the sides like they used to some 50 years ago. What we do have however, in abundance, is an unquenchable passion for motorbikes that started many, many moons ago. Our current rides are:

Syd Leach: Royal Enfield Interceptor 650cc Howard Cox: Indian Scout 1133cc Bob Marsh: Suzuki V Strom 1000cc

Noel Mason: Kawasaki Versys 1000cc Carl Spencer: BMW R1250 GS Noel is a Sunshine Coast local who knows every motorcycle friendly road in the Coast Hinterland. He is the best ridemaster in the entire Halcyon empire, although of course, he is also the only one I know of. The club welcomes any riders from other Halcyon locations but would advise that Harley Davidson owners need board approval and must arrange their own return transport after breakdowns. If there are any other two-wheeled Mr Toads out there (remember Wind in the Willows) in the Halcyonosphere who want to join us, please email Syd Leach on syddyis@bigpond.com We look forward to hearing from you and all car drivers please remember what your wing mirrors are for.