Mobility Scooters Project
The Rotary Scooters Project on the Gold Coast provides mobility scooters to those in our local community suffering restriction in their movements as a result of illness, advancing age or disability.
Without the financial means to hire or purchase a scooter, the only alternative is a wheelchair. This results in many becoming unnecessarily housebound, as wheelchairs typically lack outdoor versatility and cannot be powered for long by the physically weak.
Through the Rotary Scooters Project, many have found new freedom, confidence and independence by being able to get out and about under their own steam, running errands and taking part in normal social activities. Each mobility scooter costs the club up to $5000, but are provided to users for a minimum of $1 per annum.
We have raised a total of $118,000 in grants from Queensland Government Gambling Community Benefit Funds and other sources, plus our regular Club fundraising provides the funds for the ongoing costs of annual Insurance and servicing the fleet . Hence Project Officer, David Ungar is kept very busy looking after all the participants scooters with maintenance requirements nad delivering and collecting scooters!
The latest grant of $32,000 we received in October 2018,has enabled us to purchase 5 new scooters plus an additional 5 are on order for delivery in February 2019, all to replace our older fleet.
International Service: RAWCS and DIK Volunteering at Brisbane Depot to load containers.
Our Club regularly volunteers to load shipping containers with used educational and hospital equipment and general goods that are desperately needed in the Pacific countries, PNG and Timor-Leste. Our Project Officer, Bren Milsom works tirelessly, constantly sourcing these goods on the Gold Coast from schools, aged care homes etc and regularly goes up to the Brisbane depot to store the goods before packing in the shipping containers.
Donations of STEM Early Reader Series Books to local primary Schools
Following an initiative by our District in collaboration with Griffith University, our Club is very proud to donate one set each of Suzie the Scientist and Millie the Mathematician books to three local primary schools, Burleigh Heads, Caningeraba and Merrimac. These amazing books were developed by Professor Richard John to fill a need for quality books to teach young children very important subjects for their future- Science and Mathematics! We are proud to say that former District Governor Michael Irving, who attends many of our meetings as a Burleigh local, lead the committee and our very own PDG Ross Smith, was on the committee that instigated this project for our District.
International Service: Renovation of St. Teresinha's Junior High School,Ossu, Timor Leste
This project, lead by Bren Milsom, was to fund and send volunteers to assist in the improvement of drainage,water supply & electrical systems in a renovation and refurbishment of the roof,classrooms,toilets and other facilities of this school, a major project with a total cost of $USD177,700 of which Rotary contributed $57,500 worth of roofing elements,tanks etc. In addition two shipping containers have been sent with equipment and supplies for the school and others from the RAWC's depot in Brisbane and our Club participated in loading these containers.
