Local schoolboy Otis James Brown has got a taste of the fun planned for kids his age after winning the Youth and Community Centre (YACC) Beaudesert jellybean counting competition.
Otis, 9, had the closest guess of 1654 jellybeans when YACC ran the competition at Beaudesert’s Carols in the Park to raise awareness of their ongoing progress toward a PCYC in Beaudesert.
Otis, who was gearing up to share his spoils with his classmates, was thrilled with the win.
“I gathered from a hint it was between 1000 and 2000. I was originally going to pick 1054 but I quickly realised it was not a big enough number, so I changed that zero to a six and here I am,” he said.
YACC President John Powell said the competition, which attracted 72 entries, was a good opportunity to engage with families and children like Otis, who would ultimately benefit from a Beaudesert PCYC when it comes to fruition.
Senior Sergeant Ken Murray said things were progressing well toward a PCYC.
“It’s really positive, it’s going good places and I’m so happy the Council is supporting us,” he said.
“Everyone is happy, PCYC are very approving and it’s just a matter of time. Support is what we need, it keeps us going, it’s what matters and without support we can’t get to where we need to be – and thankfully we’ve always had that.”
Mr Powell said enthusiasm was strong for a PCYC locally, particularly amid projected population growth.
“A lot of people did say, if I handed them a YACC brochure, ‘please tell me it’s going to happen’, or ‘when’s it going to happen?’ so the community’s got an expectation now,” he said.
“We’ve been on this for two and a half years now and the community rightly have an expectation that we need more facilities here for young people.”
Alice Warby from the YACC Fundraising Committee said it was about engaging children now to make the most of the future PCYC.
“The aim is to get the kids engaged age 10 and take them through,” she said.
