So which city is it? It is not Singapore nor Rio de Janiero. They came in second and third respectively. It is the central Queensland coastal city of Gladstone, Australia. According to the Gladstone Observer ” A total of $14.9 billion was pumped in to the harbour city from overseas in 2010. This was almost entirely due to the $US16 billion invested in the Santos owned LNG pipeline by Malaysian company Petronas. With three similarly sized LNG projects on the cards, there is more to come.”
http://www.gladstoneobserver.com.au/story/2011/06/25/foreign-money-pours-in-direct-investment-lng/
This means there are many international families living in Gladstone and many about to relocate to Gladstone. http://www.gladstoneregion.info/
On July 5, while co-author Kathryn Tonges was visiting her sister Julie Charles in Gladstone she was invited to speak about ‘Slurping Soup’ at the Women’s Intercultural Network (WIN) meeting . A vibrant and growing group led by Natalia Muszkat. Many of the people at the meeting related to the challenges faced by international children and families and enjoyed hearing about the stories and the activities’ positive potential for supporting their children. The book is now available for purchase via Natalia at WIN.
Some of the enthusiastic women at the Gladstone WIN presentation of Slurping Soup. L to R: Nayda Hernandez, Olive Nargas, Chetna Dave, Maria Birnoza, Kathryn Tonges, Fei Matheson, Natalia Muszkat.
Kathryn was also invited to display the resource at a ‘Welcome to Gladstone’ morning tea held at the Botanical Gardens where she met many new international families. The event is organised monthly by the Gladstone Regional Council. http://www.gladstone.qld.gov.au
Here Kathryn met the Gladstone Regional Council Mayor, Gail Sellers. A former teacher librarian, Mayor Sellers enthusiastically supported the benefits of ‘Slurping Soup’ for international families and purchased copies for the council.
Supportive Gladstone Regional Council Mayor, Gail Sellers, with her 'Slurping Soup' purchases and co-author Kathryn Tonges.
Gladstone Women's Intercultural Network coordinator Natalia Muszcat checks out 'Slurping Soup' with Kathryn Tonges and her sister Julie Charles a WIN volunteer.