LOVING LIFE ON THE GO
ACTIVE SCHEDULE: An always- busy Gerard Byrne has no plans to retire or leave Townsville. “I FORGOT the Gerard Byrne said.
“Most people after an hour with me need Panadol. It’s a massive information overload.”
Gerard is currently a facilitator and adviser, supporting the transition to the National Disability Insurance Scheme in North Queensland.
But he’s worked in business, government, community organisations and Defence both in Australia and overseas.
Gerard is involved with the Chamber of Commerce, Townsville Enterprise, the Institute of Leadership and Management, JCU – the list goes on – and he also holds the role of CPA Australia’s state president, the first person from outside Brisbane to do so. Panadol,”
“A lot of my contemporaries like going on cruises or gardening. I like getting out and meeting people and making things happen,” he says.
He is interested in innovation and while he’s excited about the “sugar hit” of jobs about to come to the city, Gerard is concerned about futureproofing the economy too.
“I’m passionate about homegrown talent and how we keep it here,” he said.
Gerard has tried to retire, but when you have the energy he has, jobs just seem to keep coming up.
An accountant by profession, when asked why he has his finger in so many pies he says he’s a devotee of the “geek economy”.
“I take on short- term, parttime work and things keep popping up so I work my way through them,” Gerard said.
“Ultimately, relationships and integrity are fundamental.” Gerard came to Townsville a teenager and went to as school at Ignatius Park College before completing a degree from James Cook University.
His first job was riding a pushbike as a postie, aged 15, and he remembers barking dogs chasing him down Palmer St.
He travelled across Australia working in different managerial positions in government and finally came back to Townsville in 2000.
“I couldn’t handle the cold anywhere else,” he says.
“I went from Canberra to Darwin then back to Canberra then to Melbourne and Sydney.”
Gerard had early ambitions to be a journalist and his passion for motorsport led to him writing a column in the Townsville Bulletin.
“I often wanted to meet the editor of a newspaper and after 40 years I’ve finally managed to meet one.
“I’ve a debt of gratitude to the Bulletin. I’m probably one of the paper’s most avid readers. To me, the print media is vital.”
Gerard has no plans to leave Townsville and says the scale of the city is just right.
“It’s big enough to be big and small enough to be small,” he said.
> Editor Jenna Cairney is on a quest to meet Bulletin readers and hear their stories and learn what they love about living in North Queensland. To take part in the 100 readers in 100 dayS series, email jenna. cairney@ news. com. au