[adrotate group=”7″]
By HARRY CLARKE
MONTHS of hard work by a group of Tara’s elderly residents will benefit one of the district’s most valued organisations by providing them essential new equipment when it’s needed most.
Tara Senior Citizens, a recreation, social and fundraising club for aged residents, generated $1,200 through raffle tickets sales to purchase two chainsaws and a water pump for the Bennett Rural Fire Brigade.
The fundraising project was a rewarding and proud display of community spirit in Tara, said Senior Citizens secretary Thelma Baker, with raffle prizes donated by Tara businesses and tickets purchased exclusively by locals.
“We, the old people, are here for the community,” Baker said.
“We raise money, we run bingo, we run events, we take groups to the zoo, we just do things in the community to get our aged residents outside so that they’re not cooped up.
“We decided to hold a fundraiser and we approached the Bennett Rural Fire Brigade to ask how we could assist and what tools they need. These people do a marvellous job. They’ve done a marvellous job over the last 20 years.
“We dropped off letters around the town explaining to the community what we were doing, and who it was for, and everyone got behind us.”
[adrotate group=”7″]
Local businesses including hardware store True Value, rural supplies store CRT, the Commercial Hotel, Foodworks, Big W Dalby and Harmony Crystals & Gifts donated a total of 70 gifts for a raffle. Some gifts were also donated by members of Tara Senior Citizens.
Tara Senior Citizens then spent three months selling $2 tickets from a stall on Fry St, generating enough money to purchase two chainsaws and a water pump for the Bennett Rural Fire Brigade.
“For a small town, the community is marvellous,” Baker said.
“We have done many fundraisers, we’ve done (fundraisers for) Angel Flight, cancer research and the Ronald MacDonald House, and the community has always come to the party.”
Rosemarie Olsson, Tara Senior Citizens treasurer Lyn Punton, entertainment officer Laura Byron and secretary Thelma Baker, and Bennett Rural Fire Brigade first officer Greg Olsson. IMAGE: Country Caller
Bennett Rural Fire Brigade first officer Greg Olsson said the generosity of Tara Senior Citizens and the broader Tara community was greatly appreciated, and that the new equipment would be of huge assistance with their operations.
“It is terrific. It’s amazing what they’ve done and the amount of hard work they’ve put in. The support of the town is amazing,” Olsson said.
“A couple of years ago one of our fire sheds was broken into and we had everything stolen from it. We lost everything – even the tea towels and the curtains off the walls.
“So for the last two years we’ve been trying to rebuild that shed and this is really going to help.
“We put in containment lines and trees fall over them. We have to clear those trees so we can get in and fight the fires, so having chainsaws is essential.
“We do have one water pump but it’s huge. With this smaller pump we can fit it onto our truck.”
[adrotate group=”7″]
The Bennett Rural Fire Brigade was among several rural fire brigades across the Western Downs region kept extremely busy throughout the last bushfire season.
Fires included several in the Wieambilla forest which investigators believed were deliberately lit. The Bennett brigade was also tasked with tending to the fires lit during the police shooting at Wieambilla last December.
“We are still getting two to three fires a week. This year has been strange. Usually in winter you can’t light grass but this year the grass is burning,” Olsson said.
“The problem is a lot of people wait until winter to burn their stacks on their properties and most of the time they light their stacks and the grass doesn’t burn. This year they’re lighting their stacks and they’re losing control, and we’ve got to come in and try and slow it down.
“We’d like to say a huge thank you to the Tara Senior Citizens and to the people of Tara.”