Paul Crebar, communications & events manager at Santos Organics, with posters for the launch of the poetry competition. Photo Jeff ‘Ode To The Bank’ Dawson
Have you ever waxed lyrical about this place in which you live? The beauty of the Byron Shire is to be immortalised by locals and visitors alike who have a chance to express their love of this land in 60 words or fewer.
Santos Organics has partnered with The Echo and Bay FM and is requesting people to create a ‘ballad of beauty’ to answer the question ‘Why do you treasure this land of the Byron Shire?’
‘The poem competition was inspired by our commitment to the care and protection of Byron Shire’s magnificent ecology and landscapes,’ said Paul Crebar, communications & events manager at Santos Organics.
‘We thought it would be a great joy for others to also express their gratitude by creating short and joyous “ballads of beauty” that will no doubt become iconic pieces of poetry for the Byron Shire community long into the future.’
The winning ballads will then officially launch Mullumbimby’s first community mini-library and free book exchange to be installed at Santos Organics in Mullumbimby on October 10. The ballads will be enlarged and displayed in the Burringbar Street windows as well broadcast on Bay FM.
Donations of books prior to the opening of the free mini-library can be dropped into Santos in Mullum, and after that you can just pop donations onto the book shelves.
And how do you borrow? Simply take the book you want, then you can return it or pass it on – that’s up to you.
Categories for the poetry competition include under 12 and 12–18, winners receiving a $100 bookshop voucher and 19–30 and 30+ winners receiving $250 Santos Organics vouchers. Entry forms can be collected at all Santos Organics stores and must be returned by 5pm on August 31.
Finalists will be read out on Bay FM from September 18 to 29, with the winners announced on October 2.
