Change In Plans Leads The Quaifes To Toowoomba

Peter and Brenda Quaife’s house on Tamborine Mountain wasn’t even on the market when they had an offer on it and sold it a day later. “We were approached and asked if we would sell it. We hadn’t really thought about it seriously but as we were thinking of moving the next year anyway, said ‘yes’ pretty much immediately,” Brenda said. The sale meant the couple quickly signed a contract for a home at Seachange Riverside Coomera after falling in love with the area and the facilities available in the resort.

However, plans changed when they were offered a house in Toowoomba by the team at Seachange. “We were told there was a house in Toowoomba which was only two weeks from being finished,” Peter said. “We came up to see it, we liked it and now here we are here. “We had decided a long time ago that if we had to move from Tamborine Mountain, we would probably go to Toowoomba but thought it might be a little cool for us. “When we looked at Riverside Coomera, we found it very appealing, however, after coming up here and seeing the facilities and the house, we were quite happy.”

The move to Toowoomba three months ago has brought them closer to their paramedic son, who lives an hour away in Dalby, and also means they are close to the hospital for Peter’s health needs. “I had a diagnosis that requires making regular trips to a hospital. On the Gold Coast it’s a good three-quarters of an hour drive but here the hospital is only five minutes away,” he said. While the couple have been busy unpacking and settling in to their two-bedroom plus multi-purpose room Kensington house, Brenda has already joined several groups at Seachange Toowoomba and is enjoying an active social life. This includes weekly ukulele jamming sessions, bowls, Qi Gong, and Sing Australia. “We also go to Friday get-togethers where we bring a plate, have a little wine and get to know everyone. It’s fantastic,” she said. “Peter is in remission and plays pool weekly. I’m also trying to get him into the gym.

“We are both very, very happy here. The people are amazing and there is a lot of laughter and a lot of joy around. “It’s truly beautiful and the house is just gorgeous. We get all the northern sun in winter and it has ducted air conditioning for those cooler days.” She said the couple were enjoying spending more time with their son, looking forward to making new friends and making use of all the Seachange Toowoomba facilities which include a Summer House, Clubhouse, bowling green, woodwork shop, heated pool, gym and tennis court. “Everything we need, in terms of shops and the hospital, is only five to seven minutes’ drive away too,” Brenda said.

Peter said apart from taking part in all the activities the resort had to offer, he was looking forward to exploring the Toowoomba area. “We went to the annual Carnival of Flowers which was lovely. There are a lot of things around the area to do and we can use Toowoomba as our base,” he said.