William ‘Hey Bill’ Watson truly is a Noosa icon. With his signature red quad bike and trailers parked beside Noosa Surf Club, Hey Bill can be found laughing and joking with the dozens of children waiting for a snow cone.
Now a thriving business, Hey Bill started with nothing more than a hessian bag of oranges and a dream to live in paradise
.
With his car offering beachside accommodation, Hey Bill sold oranges to beachgoers at Tea Tree and Alexandria Bay throughout the summer.
“There were more people there than Main Beach in those days,” he explained.
Today, Hey Bill and his bevvy of beauties can be found travelling between Noosa Surf Club and the river mouth offering ice-creams, drinks and snow cones.
This Tuesday marked the 44th year of business for the man Noosa MP Glen Elmes described as “a Noosa institution”.
But Hey Bill’s connection to the Noosa community runs deeper than quenching the thirsts of holiday-makers and locals.
“A couple of years ago I was sitting on the beach, wondering what I could do for the community,” he said.
“I just sat there and sat there and then I thought it might be a good idea to get a quad for the Police department because they probably needed it.”
So, more than two years ago, Hey Bill began to put aside 50 cents from every drink sold with the aim of raising $7,000 to purchase a much-needed quad bike for local police.
And last Thursday, Hey Bill’s dream finally came true.
“It’s taken a couple of years to get the money together. And the community really bought it itself,” he said.
Last week Hey Bill handed Mr Elmes the keys of an all-terrain vehicle (ATV), fully decked out with lights and siren, ready to begin Police patrols.
The ATV will help the Police patrol a larger area in less time as well as gain easier access to the beach and tough terrain.
Not one to ever give up Hey Bill said he now plans to raise funds to buy an ATV for the Tewantin Police beat.
He said he will once again enlist the help of the community in his fundraising efforts.
“We can help them (the Police), so they can help us,” he said.
