Sparky’s Carnival
Sparky’s Carnival is where it all started for my business Sparky Do Dah.
The truth is, I had been happy as a remedial massage therapist for the 5 years previous, until the negative effects of prolonged exposure to mould (in the walls and floor of the rental where I was living at the time) knocked me flat. Without going into detail, I really thought my days were numbered. It was that bad.
I had recently started a relationship where my partner had a 4yo daughter, (who I still believe to be the angel in my life that got me through), and she was the light in my life. I would muster all the strength I could and we would all go on adventures to get me out of the house.
But good health and quality connection was now the focus of my life, and I quickly became disappointed by community events as they all seemed to offer children the ‘fairy floss, face painter and jumping castle’ combo. We would line up for her to get her face painted, then she would eat fairy floss, then we would watch her jump around for 10 minutes before she crashing from the sugar rush and we would go home. It was terrible! She got nothing from it, and I got nothing from it.
I had no ability to earn money, and I was throwing my savings at anyone who suggested they could help me. They couldn’t. I was forced onto benefits, but after 1 week I joined the NEIS program. It’s a Certificate 4 in Small Business Management, and you don’t have to look for work while you do it. And that was the setup for everything to follow.
“If my days are numbered, how do I want to spend them?” And the greatest joy in my life at the time was connecting with those close to me in a healthy and developmental way. So I started thinking about what would be the perfect community event… and realised that I had to be the change I wanted to see. Believe me when I say there were some days I couldn’t move. I was sick-sick for over 3 years, and I am actually still healing (and have reluctantly accepted I’ll never get back to where I want to be…) But I’m smiling – and that is everything.
Creating an event, and a business, from scratch, by yourself, with no funds, and limited physical and mental capacity wasn’t easy. But having a desire and a passion to create something amazing for the community (which I thought would be my legacy) ended up being a greater force than the challenges I faced.
The Evolution of Sparky’s Carnival
I dreamed of a community event that only offered healthy, engaging and developmental activities. After a year of planning and preparation, and with the help of family and friends, Sparky’s Carnival #1 opened its doors for the first time July 2012 at the Tallebudgera Community Hall. The community hall and adjoining parklands came alive with a day full of magical activities and performance.
Sparky’s Carnival #2 happened in September of 2012 at the Varsity Lakes Community Centre.
There were more activities and performers spread throughout the day, offering even more variety and fun for those in attendance.
We activated the hall, parklands, and nearby community gardens.
It was a welcomed community celebration, with many returning from the first carnival, and many new people discoving us for the first time.
Sparky’s Carnival #3 in December of 2012 was a game changer. The Active and Healthy team at City of Gold Coast caught wind of what I was up to and jumped on board to offer some amazing and invaluable support. The event, at the Albert Waterways Community Hall in Broadbeach was used to launch ‘The Summer 2012 School Holiday Program’. We had an even greater range of activity providers and more performers. (The Active and Healthy team are still my biggest supporters till this very day!)
The 4th Sparky’s Carnival happened in August of 2013. As I lay to sleep that night, for the first time I truly felt I had achieved what I had originally set out to do.
For 6 months, I had planned Superheroes Unleashed! because I thought the young, and young at heart would enjoy coming in a Super-Hero or Super-Villain costume to add to the fun-filled atmosphere. Luckily for me, a new super hero ride had just opened at Movie World and there was a new super hero movie opening at the cinema. Superheroes were the flavour of the month! When journalist Andrew Potts arranged to meet with me for a chat I was thrilled to think I was getting a small article tucked away in the ‘What’s On’ guide. When mum called to tell me I was on the front cover, I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face for a week!
It was my greatest exposure to date – landing the front cover of the North and South editions of the Gold Coast Sun newspaper. The support article inside the paper gave full details on the event, and my intentions behind the Creative Arts Carnival series I had created. Not only was it a tremendous boost to numbers at that event, it boosted my profile as event organiser. ABC Radio even called for a chat in the lead up. We were all so busy on the day; we didn’t have much of a chance to film most of the activities!
Sparky’s Carnival #5 was geared as a safe and healthy Halloween Spooktacular! It was held in early November 2013. The Upper Coomera Community Centre was transformed into a ghastly hall of Halloween delight, with interactive, hands-on, creative arts and performances that allowed the little ones to explore their creative expression and imagination. Again, I wanted an event parents enjoyed, so there was free herbal tea tasting, massage and healthy tasty treats just for them.
Now Sparky Do Dah was growing in profile and exposure, I was also starting to do event work for Gold Coast Council and other organisations. Anyone who has organised events will tell you they can be taxing, and it all became too much for my health. I literally walked around this carnival like a zombie – but not by choice. The wheels fell off my buggy. I didn’t even have the capacity to film any of it – but there are some photos below.
Carnival #5 was the last dedicated creative arts carnival I held in this fashion. I had somewhat achieved what I had set out to, and my passion waivered as the event work I was doing was so much more financially rewarding when comparing the hours put in to organising my own event.
So for the next while, instead of organising amazing performers and collaborators for a one time blast, I started to focus more on developing my own kit that I could re-use easily as needed. I had always loved design, carpentry and crafting, and without the pressure of events, I could potter in the workshop and be more considerate to my health.
A Temporary Permanent Home
For the next year and a half, I explored all the joys of developing my activity kit and working at events that others had organised. I really felt refreshed.
I then heard that the NightQuarter Markets planned to open in Helensvale and made contact. We signed a joint partnership and I was to be responsible for the children’s area. After 6 months of dedicated preparation, Sparky’s Carnival had a residency in the markets over the 2015 Summer Holidays.
We opened every Friday and Saturday night, and I gathered an amazing bunch of staff to help engage and entertain thousands of kids (and quite a few fun-loving parents).
The ‘Interactive Family Playground’ was contained within a fenced area, which had ticketed entry and limited capacity. Again, I got to explore a whole new aspect of event work, and what I wanted to offer to the community.
It was truly a unique environment on the Gold Coast for parents and children to play, explore, learn and unleash their creative spirit.
Unfortunately there were a few hurdles placed in front of me that I couldn’t jump, and it came to an end with a crash.
We don’t look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things, because we’re curious… and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths. – Walt Disney
And that was the last hoorah for Sparky’s Carnival. I discovered Nature Play and Forest School and continued to enjoy the freedom and benefits of event work. I expanded to work for 5 regional councils, provide activities for schools, activities for shopping centres and food truck events. I am continually connecting with an ever-growing number of amazing kids in different and rewarding ways.
I’ll never say it has gone forever, for who knows what the future holds, but for now, I love what I am doing, so I’ll keep skipping down this path a little longer.
