150 Years of Boom Town Ballina
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Helen Gates then...
Helen Gates now.
Interview with Helen Gates
The role of organising the Miss Summerland Sun Day Girl Competitions was a vastly important one, particularly as the Surf Club relied on its success in continuing to provide a healthy income stream...
Not surprisingly, one of the key organisers of the 1964 Miss Summerland Competition – Helen Gates (nee Satchell) – had been awarded the title of Miss Northern Rivers in 1962 at the tender age of 18 (“nearly 19”). The Miss Northern Rivers Competition was the first stage of the Miss Australia Quest. Helen outlined that she entered simply “Because I was asked”.
With regard to organising the Miss Summerland Competition two years later, however, Helen did not take on the role of organiser alone. “At the time of the 1964 Miss Summerland Competition, I was engaged to my future husband, Bob”. Bob Gates was one of many strong Lismore swimmers to not only join the Surf Club, but to play an integral role in its successful development. Bob Gates went on to assume the role of Lismore Mayor from 1999 – 2003.
In relation to his role on the Surf Club Committee, Bob Gates is remembered for his forward thinking … his ability to ‘think outside the square’. Helen fondly recalls that she and Bob ran the 1964 Miss Summerland Competition as a great team and that due to Bob being a member of the Surf Club, she was to also become more closely involved in the Surf Club as a member of the Women’s Auxillary.
The Sunday Mail had run Beach Girl Competitions in Ballina and across Queensland throughout the 1950’s and up until 1963. In 1964, the local Surf Club decided that the competition would go on with the support of the local community. New sponsors, including 2LM and SKOL sunscreen came on board and competition organisers (Helen & Bob) were appointed.
“One of the big differences between the Sunday Mail Competition and the Miss Summerland Competition was the way in which we recruited the summergirl entrants”, Helen outlined. “With the Sunday Mail Competition, the lifesavers used to have to scan the beach for girls on the actual day of competition, whilst with Miss Summerland we placed a special call for nominations in the local paper in advance of the competition day”.
“There were three sections of the Miss Summerland Competition … Miss Summerland, Miss Teen and Miss Tiny Tot. Running the competition was a big job and a very important one as we raised a lot of money to support the Surf Club. The lifesavers used to pass a blanket around in the crowd during the competition and people would throw money onto it.”
