Our founder Ruth Davis was Kingaroy born and bred. She loved to welcome new visitors to our area and show them how to get the most from their visit to the South Burnett - and she was always proud to show off our great country town.

At her own expense, Ruth often used to print up free town maps to show visitors how to find local attractions. She also created free "I'm a Visitor" badges to raise local awareness of tourism and - in many ways - pioneered the whole concept of tourism services in our part of the world.

So when tourism began to be officially recognised as the major industry it is today (about 20 years after Ruth first saw it) The Peanut Van started to receive a lot of awards for this pioneering work.

For example, we were the inaugural winners of the Fraser Coast South Burnett Tourism Awards in the Tourism Retailing category in 1991 - and we took out the same award again in 1992 and 1993. And we're now a member of the Fraser Coast South Burnett Tourism Hall Of Fame.

Ruth also won the Applied Enthusiasm Award from Suncorp in 1992 for her contributions to Tourism. And we've been a finalist in the Queensland Tourism Awards as well.

We also take an active role in the Kingaroy Peanut Festival and have helped organise the increasingly famous Peanut Thresher Pull since 2001. And Robbie even took a turn as president of the Kingaroy Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the mid-2000s to help it become the largest organisation of its kind in the South Burnett.

All the same, we really do think - and always will think - that the very best awards come from our customers.

The simple, heartfelt comments that come in to us every week on letters, postcards and orders are the ones that really brighten our day!

And that's why we treasure these particular "awards" above all others.