THE daughter of Mary Valley Heritage Railway’s general manager Jim Walker has made a heartfelt plea to the Gympie community to help save the town’s biggest tourist attraction.

Emily Walker said the railway’s management had been doing all it could to stay afloat, but three tough years battling the economic downturn, the Aussie dollar and the weather, had taken their toll.

She said the State Government’s focus on rebuilding Queensland had made it unlikely the railway would secure any funding soon.

“Funnily enough, Dad is more worried about hardworking employees of the railway who stand to lose their jobs,” Miss Walker said.

“He’s not sure people in the wider community understand, or worse even care, that if the numbers don’t pick up they might have to close.

“There either needs to be a government grant or a dramatic increase in numbers by more bums on seats to get MVHR out of the red.”

Miss Walker said Gympie regional residents either needed to stand up, participate and be counted, or wave goodbye to the railway.

She encouraged every

one to grab their family, friends and kids and go for a ride. To the rest of Queensland, she asked people to visit Gympie and make a weekend of it.

“Stay in a B&B, enjoy a night at one of our great local pubs, ride the Rattler and go for a swim at Noosa on your way home,” she said.

“Take your employees and book the whole train out. Turn it into a team-building exercise they will never forget.”

Mr Walker and the railway’s team have fought many battles over the years and past months, most of which had not been made public.

Negative press during the past six weeks has been damaging for the railway, with Mr Walker saying the controversy over railway track maintenance had discouraged tourists from riding the Rattler.

“I’m not sure Dad and the team have the stamina or drive to continue through this without some help from the wider community, friends and family,” Miss Walker said.

“We can sit back, gossip and watch the Rattler run her last journey – which will be a very sad day indeed.

“Or we can do anything in our power to stop that from happening.”

Join the MVHR support group on Facebook and/or become a member of the Rattler team by downloading an application from Valley Rattler website.