As Australians ramp up their assistance for our struggling farmers, so do the surf lifesavers of NSW. An update on the Buy A Bale campaign reveals generous donations by surf clubs spanning the entire NSW coastline.
We’ve far exceeded our initial goal of one semi-trailer load with the amount of $9,500 and are now hoping to double the amount with just $2,012 (9am, 9/8/18) remaining.
Two of the smaller clubs in the state have lead the way with significant donations. North Palm Beach SLSC has just 30 patrol members yet leads the way with a massive 10 bale donation! They are closely followed by the Illawarra club Coledale with 70 members.
Clubs have been donating online since the 2018 Surf Life Saving NSW State Conference two weeks ago, where Woolgoolga president Les Pepper challenge every club to donate a single bale of hay each (valued at $120).
“You know the farmers and those in agriculture out west, they’re our own people,” said newly elected North Palm Beach president Geoff Raper. “These are the families, the men and women and children who spend their whole lives working to put fresh food on our tables. Natural disasters, like this drought send a lot of them to the wall.
“The supermarkets and butchers won’t reflect the devastation in their prices and they’re just really suffering,” Geoff continued. “If we can help out just a little, we will because that’s what we do as lifesavers and Aussies. We sent out an email hoping to raise enough for one bale and we ended up with enough for ten.”
Similarly, Coledale SLSC’s Anthony O’Donoghue sent around the call to his tight group of patrolling members. “We run the camping ground at our club site and we raise money for the Lions Club and local community organisations. We thought it would be great to chip in to this great cause. We just wanted to try to put in whatever we could really. It’s heartbreaking turning on the News and seeing the state that our farmers are living in and battling.”
And as the drought shows no sign of breaking anytime soon, both Geoff and Anthony encourage every club to continue to dig deep. “Maybe we can even have a convoy!,” said SLSNSW CEO Steven Pearce.
Wednesday 8 August, 2018
