The gift of giving
The gift of giving has put big smiles on many faces at Round 26 of Community Fund Donation presentations held at the Nerang RSL and Memorial Club recently, recognising the range of sponsorships and donations made by the Nerang RSL to the local community.
The Community Fund Donation program supports community groups and individuals of all backgrounds and has done so since the Nerang RSL established the initiative in 1996.
The program has also enabled the Nerang RSL to further strengthen ties with the local community and forge new relationships with groups like the Gold Coast Volleyball Club.
The Volleyball Club approached the Nerang RSL seeking a major sponsor and, to help the club continue its contribution to the community, the Nerang RSL gifted the club with a $5000 sponsorship at the recent Community Fund presentations.
The Gold Coast Volleyball Club, established in 2017, has over 200 members and provides an opportunity for all people, regardless of age or skill, to get involved through skill development and social competitions. It also has an Elite Athlete Program in place to assist athletes in the transition to a national and international level of competition.
Gold Coast Volleyball Club President Brett Bennett said the club, which is entirely run by volunteers, is extremely thankful for the sponsorship.
“The Gold Coast Volleyball Club is ecstatic to receive this donation from the Nerang RSL and it will greatly assist to get our coaches, who are all volunteers, upgraded to Level 3 accreditations,” said Brett.
“It’s quite expensive to do and often, coaches have to cover their own expenses on top of what they already pay for in terms of travelling for coaching and competitions not only locally but state wide.
“We’re very lucky to have amazing coaches which is a major benefit to our club and players, so it’s very important to support these people to be the best they can be.”
Brett said the Gold Coast Volleyball Club also looks forwardto having the Nerang RSL as its official ‘home base.’
“We’ve supported the Nerang RSL and held presentations at the RSL before, so we’re grateful to have formed this new relationship and have the RSL as a home base and somewhere we can come back to after training or competitions, and for awards nights and social nights,” he said.
“This sponsorship by the Nerang RSL ultimately enables us to continue to grow our Club and it’s nice to see community groups supporting each other.”
Also among the list of donation recipients was Nerang State School, which received $4823 to assist with the purchase of 13 ipads and headphones for use by the Year 3 cohort.
The purchases will increase the equipment available to facilitate purposeful engagement of students in the digital world and will enable all students to adequately participate in programs like online NAPLAN.
Young local and Nerang Pony Club’s Nathan Moynihan was also presented with a $250 donation to assist with travelling to Sydney and representing Queensland at a five day event involving dressage, show jumping and cross country.
In the spirit of Christmas, the Nerang RSL, alongside Councillor Peter Young, has supported the Nerang Celebrates Committee for numerous years – with 2019 being no exception.
The RSL presented the committee with a $3300 donation to assist with the annual Christmas Carols at Bischof Park held by the committee each year, bringing the local community together for a fun afternoon of food, rides, stage performances from young artists and singers, and much more.
The donation assisted the Committee to purchase prizes for an Art Competition run in conjunction with the Christmas Carols, which encourages local school children to submit an artwork themed ‘What Christmas means to you.’
In the past, the art competition has received over 600 entries and the donation by the Nerang RSL will assist with prizes across junior and senior school categories.
