Sharon Timms WOD
Women of Douglas: Meet Sharon Timms
WORDS by Roy Weavers
Published Friday 13 May 2016
Sharon grew up in Port Douglas, with her childhood memories revolving around her Dad teaching her to swim in Spring Creek and playing ‘hide and seek’ in the Cane Fields with the other local ‘Valley kids (no one mentioned taipans!).
Schooled at St Augustine’s in Mossman, she was then one of the first round of students at the new Port Douglas State School, and then went off to boarding school in Herberton.
On completing university in Brisbane, she set about travelling the world. But on arriving in Ireland she found it hard to leave. She went for 6 weeks and didn’t get away for two and half years (much to her mother’s simultaneous joy and worried despair). She travelled extensively throughout Ireland and the UK and even picked up, according to her friends, a rather strong Irish accent.
Her most vivid memories come from a sailing town called Kinsale, which she describes as very like Port Douglas only cooler (as in colder)! Working in a Michelin-listed restaurant and guest house owned by a couple that were truly in the hospitality business for art, wine but mostly love was where Sharon also found her calling in peddling luxury.
She returned to Port Douglas to see Mum and Dad, Daphne and Arthur and her brothers Stephen and Ben for Christmas and then on a whim flew to Sydney to visit friends for the Big Day Out music festival. 13 years later, she was still there!
Through travel and her time spent in Sydney, Sharon carved out a strong and successful career within the hospitality and tourism industry, connecting people, places, events and venues through her savvy networking and marketing skills. Even though she smiles when she recalls the adventures she enjoyed and friends she made in Sydney, she decided to come back to Port Douglas permanently for a lifestyle change when landing a role with the Taste Port Douglas Food & Wine Festival, and also with QT Resorts as their PR and Promotions Executive. Accompanied by her (almost) 3yr old daughter Evie (Eva Mae) who she describes as a ‘threenager’ she relished the opportunity and the lifestyle Far North Queensland offered.
Secret indulgences in the form of shaved coconut with banana and honey, which she gets as often as she can at the Port Douglas market. Sounds great, I’ll probably see you and maybe even Sharon down there next weekend!!
Also important was the time to focus on her daughter Evie. “I need to concentrate on her development. I want to make sure she understands simplicity just as her Grandad does. Life throws enough challenges at you as it is, so accept it and embrace the simple life”.
She describes herself as verbose. She’s working on being more in the present. She runs her life at a million miles an hour and finds stopping a challenge. Having said that, live music – especially the vibrant scene here in the tropical north – is one of the few things she relishes stopping in the moment for.
She says the person she most admires is her dad. “He has mastered the art of being really simply happy.” She adds, “There are many other people who have come in and out of my life who have that similar quality of contentment. That is, don’t chase money, do what you love. That way you really don’t have to work and I can’t think of a better place to do that than here.”
