Wednesday, 15 April 2009: Yorke Peninsula Country Times
Ardrossan was certainly the place to be over Easter, with plenty to see and do for the area’s many visitors.
Helpers Brooke Ottey and Brad Ottey with Michael Angelakis and Easter Bunny.The recently-completed Foodland Plaza was a hive of activity with extra special guests dropping in to entertain the crowd.
Michael Angelakis arrived, fresh from a radio interview with his “Out of the Blue” TV show partner Mike Keelan, to find a large crowd had assembled to sample his delicious seafood creation, fresh Atlantic salmon wrapped in prosciutto.
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Assisting with the cooking were John and Dylan Sandercock from Ardrossan Foodland, who supplied the seafood for the tastings. John and Dylan were kept busy doing most of the cooking, while Michael happily signed copies of his “Out of the Blue 3” cook book, posed for photos, and collected more than his fair share of kisses and hugs from his many fans.
Angels
Linda Coleman and Jen Correll, from the Ardrossan Angels, distributed the tastings in return for a gold coin donation. The Ardrossan Angels are a small, local group which actively fundraises throughout the year for The Cancer Council’s Relay for Life. Most of their money is raised through catering for various functions.
The Angels recently completed the relay at Santos Stadium, where they walked non-stop around the track for 19 hours after having raised more than $16,000 to The Cancer Council.
Michael signs one of his “Out of the Blue 3” recipe books.Michael Angelakis, a cancer survivor himself, was thrilled to have the Ardrossan Angels assisting, although he did want them to be known as “Michael’s Angels” for the day.
Michael says he was touched by the genuine warmth and appreciation shown by the crowd and the generosity of their donations to the Ardrossan Angels.
“I’m not sure if it was the perfect holiday weather or the fact people are holidaying a little closer to home, but we enjoyed record numbers through our store over the Easter week and, importantly, record sales,” said Ardrossan Foodland CEO John Sandercock.
“I’m sure Michael’s visit on Saturday brought a lot of extras to the town. We are fortunate to have people like Michael who don’t just regularly holiday in the area, but become an important part of our community.”
Easter Bunny dropped in and was kept busy handing out Easter eggs, assisted by special helpers Brooke and Brad Ottey. After making sure all of the children were taken care of up and down the street, Easter Bunny visited patients, residents and staff at Ardrossan Community Hospital and the Dinham Wing.
Foodland Plaza was also the site for a successful trading table to raise funds for the Ardrossan Sport and Recreation group, which is in the final stages of its major project of relocating the netball, basketball and tennis courts to adjacent the football oval. This project has required significant investment and hard work by the clubs, and will be of major benefit to future generations.