When you meet Trish Scott there’s a good chance she’ll come bearing a gift.
“My love language is giving,” she told me, handing me a special New Zealand chocolate.
Giving is at the heart of everything she does on Tamborine Mountain.
Trish moved to the mountain in 2004 with her daughter, Hanna, who was 10 at the time, from Taupo in the north island of New Zealand.
“We came here for a change of lifestyle,” she said, having friends here already.
“It was one of those things where you meet someone talking about Tamborine Mountain and think, that’s nice and the next thing you know you’re living here.
“I fell in love instantly; the sense of community, more than anything else, being close enough to the coast to have that lifestyle but come home to the peace and quiet of this community.”
For a while she tried her hand at many jobs including working as a housekeeper at a bed and breakfast and then starting a gardening business with a friend called the Maintenance Gurlz.
After selling that business she began working at the Tamborine Mountain Auto Clinic where she continued to focus her energy on giving back to the community at every opportunity.
“We used to donate blood as a team and supported a family through a serious car accident, helping them rebuild,” she recalled.
Her passion for helping comes from a strong sense of gratitude and understanding that many of us live privileged lives.
“There are some things in our lives we can’t do anything about, such as wars and famine. I can help locally and that’s very important to me and always has been,” Trish explained.
Last year she established The Berlei Support Sisterhood.
“When I found out we had homeless and disadvantaged and survivors of domestic violence on the mountain that made me want to cry,” she shared.
“There are couple of anonymous guardian angels on the mountain who have their finger on the situation and through The Berlei Support Sisterhood we support them.”
Trish, who now works as a real estate agent, dedicates a portion of every sale into an account for guardian angels to use.
“We are all minutes away from being in a very difficult situation financially,” she said.
“It makes me feel empowered to be able to make a difference, no matter how big or small.
“The beauty is that you just don’t know what your contribution can achieve or for whom – that in itself makes me feel that I am adding to our community in a positive way.”
Her work is done quietly, and she never knows how many people or who she has supported.
At Christmas she helped coordinate putting together 45 laundry baskets full of food and gift vouchers for people in need in conjunction with the Presbyterian Church for people in need.
“There is a whole community of people who work together up here, including many local businesses,” Trish said.
The need for help is increasing as the price of everything increases.
In 2021 she became a real estate agent after being a full-time live in carer for her in-laws and was approached with the opportunity to embark on a change.
Three years ago, she began working as an independent agent through @realty.
“It was not an occupation I envisioned for myself. Becoming an independent allowed me to bring my own sense of core values to my business practices,” Trish explained.
“My money goes to local businesses, and all my settlement gifts come from local businesses.”
She also joined Toastmasters after hearing about the new club being formed in the Scenic Rim and became a charter member, then president.
Now she is Area 24 director, coordinating with the five clubs in the area.
“It’s a club you join just for you and your own goals. It’s about gaining confidence through speech improvement.
“I have made some amazing friendships along the way.”
Through Toastmasters she is proud to have been invited to MC at the Tamborine Village Remembrance Day and ANZAC Day dawn services for the past few years.
Relaxing at home means gardening and making sourdough.
Sunday mornings are spent labouring over her sourdough – often with a guest who has come along to learn.
“It’s a real labour of love, taking anywhere from 12-36 hours. I make a beautiful fruit sourdough,” Trish said.
“I love to gift my sourdough, which is a real giving of myself. I’m often cooking at 11pm at night.”
“By the time I fit in work, Toastmasters, gardening and sourdough there aren’t many more hours in the day.”
When asked if she is workaholic, she said she doesn’t do labels: “let’s leave the labels for jam,” she laughed.
“But I do believe in living one’s life with a sense of gratitude.”
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