A collection of pet supplies was arranged in early March to assist the people in the flood affected regions of NSW – predominately the Lismore area after hearing how they were desperate for pet food.
The Ballarat showgrounds main pavilion was made available free of charge for us to use as a collection point and with banners and table set up, we were ready to go.
Media releases were sent to all local media and live interviews were held with ABC radio, 3BA and Power FM. The Ballarat Courier and Ballarat Times provided great coverage with half page articles and our Facebook page came to life with interactions with our followers wanting to help. Snippers Barbers came to our backup offering for people to drop donations there if they were unable to come during our limited collection times. A carload of items was collected by Snippers. The City of Ballarat posted on their page and Wendouree Breakfast Rotary club put a trailer in the Bridge Mall for a collection day and it was delivered to us full of pet food.
Pet Stock were great supporters providing 5 pallets of pet supplies, animal beds and vet supplies, the Ballarat Animal shelter came onboard donating pet beds and leads and the donations from members of the public were constantly rolling in.
With such great media coverage, we were getting donations from a lot of different organisations – Ballarat Health Services staff, Ballarat North Primary School kids arranged a collection at school, Day procedure Unit, Ballarat Veterinary clinic, Western Ag, Buninyong Childcare centre and 2 pallets full of boxes of ‘out of date’ medical supplies were donated for the pets in the rescue centres needing assistance.
Ararat Rotary Club put the call out for donations via their local newspaper, The Advocate, and were very happy to deliver a ‘ute’ load of goods to the collection centre. Bayside Geelong also visited with a carload and with members of Ballarat East and Friends of Rotary assisting us with manning the collection centre, it really was a District combined clubs’ effort.
Another call for donations was put out at DG John’s District conference in Port Fairy. Welcome donations came in from clubs around the district.
After contacting several collection points in the Lismore region, a distribution centre in Evans Head was identified as the best option to freight the collected goods to.
Buninyong Football Club came to our call donating the hire of 2 Avis covered trucks and 4 drivers and we managed to pack them full of pallets, 18 refurbed bikes donated by YMCA, and over 100 pet beds, kennels, and cages. Terry Allan from Maryborough Rotary Club donated the use of his flatbed truck and his time, and loaded up with 16 pallets, headed off to Evans Head and Ballina.
Collection ran for 7 days over 3 weeks - 18 bikes, over 100 kennels and pet beds and cages, 2 pallets of stock feed, 23 pallets of dry and canned dog, cat, rabbit, and bird feed, bug spray, cleaning aids, toast spreads, dog leads, bowls, dog coats, toys, balls and even a pet stroller and handmade teddies were sent in the first despatch. Some items even had special messages on them to cheer up the people at the other end.
Early April – another call-out for assistance when the people of Lismore were once again out of dog and cat food.
We only had use of the Showgrounds for 4 days so with more media coverage (every hour on the news on 3BA) another collection was arranged.
Hewitt and Whitty donated 2 pallets of horse supplements and with donations a bit slower this time, we managed only 2 pallets of dog and cat food. 65 out of date first aid kits were donated from the City of Ballarat (dirty outside but clean on the inside), along with personal donations of gum boots, shoe racks, coats, sleeping bag, doona, a magnifier for someone visually impaired, and some handmade pet beds were all taken up by donated freight by local company, Quicks Freight.
The next project
Having had regular contact with Darren from the distribution centre and Mark O’Toole (the Lismore resident who is now their unofficial spokesperson, it didn’t take long before word got around that we were a ‘club of action’ and we were asked to look at another opportunity to assist with housing the displaced residents.
A local Ballarat company has offered emergency housing pods for $33,000.00 to get a roof over people’s head, but due to so many people being uninsured, there is no money for them to get ahead. Some people are eligible for resilience grants for up to $20,000.00 and with a $10,000.00 gap, Rotary has been asked to step in with assistance.
12 of these pods are not far from being available, and after checking with RAWCS, we set up a new District project to assist with this shortfall. The manufacture has secured corporates to donate but without a conduit, they are at a loss. Rotary is now that conduit.
A District 9780 RAWCS project was set up – ‘Housing pods for flood victims’ Project number 65-2021-22, has now provided funding for 2 pods with another 10 to start in the next week. With donations so far of $25,715.00 and RAWCS putting in $120,000.00, the next 10 pods are already covered with the possibility of more to come. The pods are allowing families who are currently living in tents, cars, caravans, and empty shells of destroyed homes, a warm, waterproof temporary home fitted with an ensuite, double bed and a set of bunks.
Since starting this project, 4 Rotarians from the Alfredton Rotary Club, drove a bus, full of donated computers (from an accounting firm in Warrnambool), refurbed bikes (from YMCA), beds and household items, and toys (collected by Beaufort Primary School children) to Lismore seeing firsthand, the devastation the floods have caused. After spending a week in Lismore, touring the outer areas of Bungawalbin, Coraki and other flooded areas near Lismore, visiting 5 distribution centres and talking with the locals of how this flood has stripped them of over 1000 businesses with each person recounting their own experiences, the stress of the locals was very evident.
The devastation was widespread beyond what we imagined here in Victoria. Many were stranded on the roof of their home, ferried in by a ‘local in a tinnie’ as they describe the rescue effort undertaken by anyone who had an available boat. Many people in Coraki are still using the temporary toilets, showers and a laundry set up in the street as services have still not been restored and houses are still waiting to be repaired. Many are still waiting on funding options, if they are eligible, as after the 2017 floods, insurance was not available to many people. Obstacles such as not having identification, as it was swept away in their wallets or handbags, not having a computer to apply for any funding, and the lack of housing available to use as a temporary measure, has taken its toll on many residents, with mental health now becoming a huge issue in the area. A lot of homes still have no power, with a few having only one double power point in their home to use with no refrigeration now the norm.
The Lismore region has left our TV screens here in Victoria, but for the residents it is still a daily struggle, and now with Winter setting in, the problem of keeping warm now joins the many issues facing these people who have no other choice than to live in what they can, with what little they have been donated. A hot water bottle is now a luxury.
Returning with a phone full of photos, we did a Facebook post on the Alfredton Rotary Club site – ‘Lismore through our eyes’ – this post has now had 73,434 views and 570 shares, proving that social media can reach many people and get the Rotary name out into the public eye with not a lot of effort.