WITH a little under 1,500 residents - according to the latest Census data - Bowen Mountain’s population is smaller than most of its neighbouring suburbs.
The small town’s close-knit community is brought together on a regular basis by the nine-member Bowen Mountain Association, which just received a Hawkesbury Australia Day Award for 2016 Community Association of the Year.
During its 40 years, the Association has produced cook books, bushwalking guides and newsletters, improved the community hall and called for better road safety in the area.
One of its biggest achievements is its growing calendar of events, attracting not only locals to the Mountain, but also ex-residents who miss the place and city folk who simply want to join in the fun.
“We feel like we are reaching the four corners of the earth - and we like to think that,” Alison Kerr, Association secretary and 30-year Bowen Mountain resident, told the Gazette.
The Bowen Mountain Park and on-site Community Hall form the hub for events, which this year include a Sustainability Fair in March, the Bowen Mountain Arts Festival in May, a Winter Musical Interlude in June, and Halloween in October.
“Halloween has become extremely popular here on the mountain. For the last few years we’ve had children trick-or-treating, so this year we’re going to make the hall into a haunted house, providing all sorts of haunted activities and food for the residents,” said Kerr.
“We try to provide as many low-cost or free activities for our local community as possible. We also have a Community Care Committee which assists residents who might be ill, making sure they have supplies and food, and getting them to doctor appointments.
“We also have the social committee which is another sub-group of the Association which helps run the events, as well as a roads and safety committee which regularly cleans up the roads and makes recommendations to the council.”
