There are many stories of goodwill and community assistance during these troubled times and in many cases, enterprising and innovative ideas were employed for businesses to stay alive.

One such example is HiTide/Peninsula Boutique Hotel, who, when given the green light to use their kitchen, they capitalised using their staff to keep busy and cook for the community.

Head chef David Recht said since the beginning of Covid19, when the lockdown shut down our town, “my kitchen team and I were given the green light to use the kitchen to cook for the community to keep us busy and keep cooking while being on jobKeeper.

“For the last three months we have been cooking weekly around 40 meals that we deliver hot to the Elder's Justice Network in Mossman and then get delivered to the families in need that they are in contact with,” said Recht.

What has been a bonus for Recht and his team are the generous donations they have received.

“Our donators truly deserve attention for generously donating during these difficult times.

“All our donations come from Scomazzon Farm, Mossman butcher, Yum yums and Michael the gardener at the Mossman community centre.

“Without them we would not have been to do much. My team and I were really touched by their generosity and we have been very happy to give some of our time and use our skills to give back to our community,” he said.

Recht outlined the donations: Mossman Butchering Co. is providing sausages or mince, depending on their stock levels; Scomazzon farms give us seasonal vegetables we can pair with the meat; YumYums have vegetables to spare as well and Michael the gardener, from the community center in Mossman, is giving us all the fresh herbs you could ever dream of.

Recht said the Elders Justice Network has been of great assistance.

“The Elder's Justice Network offered to be the centre point of the donations and then distribute the meals to families, and then distribute among people they knew.

“We decided we would cook fresh and deliver to the Elder's network hot meals as soon as they are packed and ready for consumption,” he said.

This exercise and its success has enabled Recht to learn a lot that impacts one daily.

“It made me realise how generous the locals and local businesses can be, despite their size and their weight in the local economy; often the less they have the more they share.

“But also how fragile the local economy is, and how fragile businesses can be when they rely so heavily on the same source of income: the tourism industry.

“Without the donations this project would stop. After the initial excitement of the first few weeks, I was relieved our donators were happy to keep on giving and without asking for any contributions. I'd like to really thank them for they effort, warm welcome, understanding and their contributions,” he said.