Nestled between Dawson River and Castle Creek in central Queensland, the town of Theodore offers more than just stunning river views.
For generations, the residents have banded together creating a unique care model to bring vital services to the area.
The early childhood centre and retirement village are both run by a committee of volunteers, with staff hired to manage the day-to-day operations, while governance is done by locals for locals.
It's a popular model of operation in the rural community, about 350 kilometres west of Bundaberg. Up until recently, even the pub was run in a similar way.
Essential services
The Theodore Council on the Ageing first met in May 1977, with the group deciding they wanted an organisation so that residents did not need to leave the area as they aged.
Chair of the council board, Meredith Barrett said the centre opened in 1981.
"People don't want to leave their friends and family when they become older," she said.
"They like to stay connected and have a community surrounding them."
The founding council members built the first six units using community donations.
In the decades following, more units have been added as well as staff accommodation, a home and community centre, and a six-bed hostel for residents who are no longer fully independent.
The Theodore Early Childhood Association does not have as many years under its belt, but 2024 marks its 20th year of operation.
It was founded on the same principle with the community deciding to fill a gap in the town's services.
Association president Lauren McDonald said it provided an essential service for the town.
"Parents need to work," she said.
"Sometimes they don't have the option for a lot of care, so we're fortunate to be able to offer that."
Isolated Children's Parents' Association (ICPA) Queensland president Wendy Henning said rural childcare was necessary for not only parents but the children themselves.
"Having access to childcare allows those children the opportunity to socialise as they're coming through their younger years," she said.
The kindergarten runs Monday and Tuesday and on alternate Wednesdays, with 19 children enrolled while the rest of the week the daycare operates with 20 children and a waiting list for each day.
The facility operates on money fundraised from community and businesses, government grants, and fees.
Bottle Theodore's essence
Keeping these vital services running is not without its challenges, especially in a town with only 451 people.
Both the early childhood centre and retirement village have struggled to find staff over the years and the retirement village was inundated in the 2010 floods.
"That meant a large amount of rebuilding and cleaning up after the floods," Ms Barrett said.
National Seniors chief executive Chris Grice said care models like the one in Theodore could be incredibly difficult to maintain with people having less time to volunteer.
"It appears that the calibre of the people there are very much the heart in this process and they want to make it work," he said.
Mr Grice said local governments and groups running aged care services across Australia struggled to find funding and manage administration and governance.
He believed the Theodore model worked so well because the community put the needs of the residents first.
"Other towns have got to bottle that essence," Mr Grice said.
"If they can get that to work, the other parts can look after themselves."
Ms Barrett said their council was run as a business to ensure it was sustainable into the future.
Ms Henning thought the Theodore model could work for early childhood centres in other rural Queensland communities.
"There's always lots of steps to overcome," she said.
"With an active community and communication with the relevant departments or suppliers, anything is achievable."
Ms McDonald said there were no plans to slow down at the early childhood centre, especially now that kindergarten is free in Queensland.
She said over the years their focus had been on creating a "beautiful outdoor learning environment" but now they're planning upgrades for the inside space.