Life begins at 50

Celebrating a very Halcyon Christmas

23 November 2018 | by Halcyon

Carol and Max Dahler at Halcyon Landing

Favourite Christmas carol?  Jingle Bells

Favourite Christmas tradition?  We say a prayer around the Christmas lunch table.
Another tradition was when we lived on our 50-acre property and the whole family would go out searching for a Christmas tree to chop down. We can’t do that this year, so we’ve planted a NSW Christmas Bush in our new garden as a way of keeping that tradition alive. We won’t be chopping that one down!

Where will you be this Christmas? It’s our first Christmas at ...

Halcyon wins two peak Industry Awards in a day

23 November 2018 | by Halcyon

Halcyon has notched up a winning double after taking out two prestigious development and construction industry awards for its lifestyle communities on the same day.

Halcyon Lakeside at Bli Bli won Queensland’s Best Seniors Living at the 2018 UDIA Qld Awards for Excellence while Halcyon Glades at Caboolture north picked up the Queensland Housing Industry Association’s (HIA) accolade for Specialised Housing.

It is seventh time that a Halcyon community has earned a Seniors Living title from the peak development industry body; with Parks, Waters (three), Landing, and Vision by Halcyon all previous winners.

Not to be outdone, Halcyon Glades’ win came after Halcyon ...

Tasmanians snare the downsizing dream

23 November 2018 | by Halcyon

Downsizing is different for everyone. For Halcyon Glades home owners Ian and Susan Snare, it was three massive garage sales, time living apart, and an epic 2,200km move to sub-tropical Brisbane from chilly Tasmania.

Although it was a challenging proposition, the recently retired couple was ready to go.

“We had a large family home on a large block with a huge veggie garden and an enormous work shed,” Ian said.

“There was an enormous amount of stuff to offload and we had to let go of things we’d had for 30 or 40 years, so it was a massive downsizing experience.

“It was cathartic ...

Life's grand with Nan and Pop

23 November 2018 | by Halcyon

"What children need most are the essentials that grandparents provide in abundance. They give unconditional love, kindness, patience, humour, comfort, lessons in life. And, most importantly, cookies." – Rudy Giuliani, former Mayor of New York City

As modern family life becomes more hectic and demanding, grandparents are playing a bigger and more central role in the lives of their grandchildren. Halcyon recently paid tribute to this precious and irreplaceable relationship during National Grandparents Day celebrations across its communities. We spoke to three Halcyon couples about their grandkids.

Whether it’s finding a Harry Potter costume for Book Week, whipping up a ...

Halcyon life is 'sweet as' for Lakeside BeeKeepers

23 November 2018 | by Halcyon

Home owners Kerrin Cook and Helen Jillett are creating quite the buzz in the Halcyon Lakeside community.

Their industrious and successful beekeeping has brought homemade honey to their neighbours’ doorsteps, much to the delight of Lakeside sweet tooths.

Every few months, the community’s home owners can get their hands on the pure raw bush honey produced by the thousands of bees in Kerrin and Helen’s hives.

Lakeside’s honey ‘industry’ started earlier in the year when the couple conducted their first ‘raid’ on the hives that they set up just after moving into the community last year.

That late summer harvest yielded 75kg of sweet ...

Hollywood comes to Halcyon

23 November 2018 | by Halcyon

It’s lights, camera, action at Halcyon Waters this summer after the Hope Island community won a role in an upcoming Foxtel drama series.

Halcyon Waters is one of a handful of Gold Coast locations to be chosen as the backdrop for the 10-episode series being produced for Foxtel and Sky UK by Academy Award-winning See-Saw Films. Best known for their work on six-time Academy Award nominated ‘Lion’, The King’s speech and multi- award wining ‘Top of the lake’.

Filming began in November and involves several shoots inside two homes, the pool and Leisure Club, the library, Lakehouse, Celebration Park and the Secret ...

Daphnee taking Home Owners' health to new heights

23 November 2018 | by Halcyon

Personal trainer Daphnee Bernard loves witnessing the life-changing impact of fitness on the home owners she works with each week at Halcyon Parks.

The former dancer and cross-country runner gave up event planning to become a personal trainer several years ago.  She ran boot camps and high intensity interval training sessions before her parents inspired her to change her focus.

“I started training them – Dad is 74 and Mum is 65 - and it was great seeing the improvement in their lifestyle with exercise, and how much more confident and independent they felt,” she said.

“I made the decision to work with ...

Music maestro joins the Halcyon band

23 November 2018 | by Halcyon

After an international music and entertainment career spanning decades and continents, Keith van Geyzel is happy to be playing to a more laidback beat on the Gold Coast.

The musician and prolific composer’s decision to retire and move to Vision by Halcyon with wife Karin 18 months ago has changed their lives “exceptionally”.

It allowed Keith to turn the page on the relentless pressure of his long and varied music career and to finally have the time to engage more personally with his lifelong passion: the piano.

A globetrotting musical career meant he and Karin lived for years in the United Kingdom, Europe, ...

Glades green thumbs sowing the seeds of blooming orchids

23 November 2018 | by Halcyon

Groups that feed the passions and interests of our home owners are always popping up at Halcyon.

From cooking and veggie growing to pickleball and cycling, home owners are discovering fun, friendship, fitness and fulfilment in a wide range of interest groups.

One of the latest to evolve at Halcyon Glades is blooming – literally - after three orchid-loving home owners planted the seed of the idea.

Tony Kellerman, Andre De Bats and Clive Stephan started the Halcyon Glades Orchid Group a few months ago and were overwhelmed by the response.

Interested home owners - aka ‘orchid-teers’ - are flocking to the group’s friendly ...

Cooking up a comfy home away from home

23 November 2018 | by Halcyon

Halcyon home owners love putting their heart and soul into a good cause and their huge support for Ronald McDonald House (RMH) at Herston is a testament to this.

The three-level complex right next to the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital provides comfortable accommodation and support services for seriously ill or injured children and their families.

It is one of three such facilities run by Ronald McDonald House Charities South East Queensland (RMHC SEQ) with two others at South Brisbane, where one is within the Queensland Children’s Hospital (QCH) and the other located opposite the QCH and Mater Mothers’ Hospital.

The organisation also ...