The first month of the new Rotary year has seen our club hit the ground running. The zest and enthusiasm of our new President, Ken, is invigorating and exciting. Along with the new Board, he has exciting projects in the pipeline which will benefit our Buderim community. Watch this space…
Our July activities have been touched with nostalgia as we refurbish a piece of equipment which has been an integral part of our community service for the past 14 years. In the early days, the Club purchased a caravan fitted with a BBQ plate and annex. It was named the “Hey Van” in honour of Past President John Hey and used to serve the public and generate funds at events like the Maroochydore Aerodrome Air Show and a celebration at the opening of Chancellor Park. In 2010 the “Hey Van” was replaced by a BBQ trailer built by charter member, Graeme Ensoll & Len Bidstrup. It has been used on numerous occasions by the Club to help generate funds and there are not many locals who would not have seen our Big Blue BBQ Trailer at Buderim events.
With the trailer looking a tad worse for wear, the blokes in the club, with a little help from the Men’s Shed, donned their ‘Bob the Builder’ personas and tallied forth to rejuvenate the old girl. Graeme Ensoll was on hand to assist, and no doubt found it very rewarding to see the obvious signs of a well-used BBQ. We suspect it was these same ‘obvious signs of a well-used BBQ’ that prompted the suggestion that perhaps the old girl could do with a make-over. The Club is very grateful to the Ensoll family for allowing us to store the trailer on their property after we lost our previous storage facility. It’s likely they’ll be relieved when, after her rejuvenation and a spiffy Buderim Rotary tarp, she will be a ‘sight to behold’ rather than a ‘sight for sore eyes’.
The guys giving a much-needed make-over to the old girl!
The 2024/25 Rotary theme is ‘The Magic of Rotary’, a very apt theme as apart from the ‘Magic’ Rotary performs world-wide, we can proudly say we ‘wield the wand’ here in Buderim. Most people are aware of our support for the Maroochy Neighborhood Centre as they help those in our community who are struggling. Recently they put out a call for donations to help them install a new commercial rangehood in their kitchen to enable them to continue cooking up the delicious meals they provide for the needy. Within days Buderim Rotary was there with a cheque for $2000 as well as a bucket-load of groceries for their pantry, once again demonstrating ‘The Magic of Rotary’.
Handing over a cheque & groceries to MNC manager, Mark.
Buderim Mountain State School is very proud of their Circuit Crew, who made it through to the recent Asia Pacific Championships. These kids are amazing, and our club was proud to sponsor them in their endeavors. The school is such an integral part of the Buderim community, and our members happily assist with their Breakfast Club each week and sponsor our Story Dogs which are proving so beneficial as an adjunct to the literacy program, particularly for those students who struggle in this area.
The fabulous BMSS Circuit Crew Ken, cooking toast
Scary to think that we are now starting our planning for our Club’s premier yearly event, Buderim Australia Day Picnic in The Park! The new format has proven to be very popular with this year’s event building on the success of 2023 and drawing an even bigger crowd of locals wanting to celebrate our great country. Who can forget local soprano Michelle Bull’s rousing rendition of our national anthem followed by, arguably, the best fireworks on the Sunny Coast calendar. And as the saying goes, we are aiming for 2025 to be ‘even bigger and better’. Mark your calendars!
