FRIENDS OF THE ROTARY CLUB OF RICHMOND

The Friends of Rotary now have their own distinct badge, and meet from time to time for their own activities. They are most welcome at any meeting or function held by the Rotary Club.

Please obtain regular information from www.rotaryrichmond.org.au or ring Sue Bolton, Secretary on 9571 9613 if you need a copy of the Club Bulletin posted regularly.

Jenny List - Chair of Friends of RCR

Clean Up Australia Day 2009

If the clean up of Australia was undertaken on Sunday 1st March –Clean Up Australia Day - with as much enthusiasm, energy and enterprise as the 70 plus volunteers gave to the clean up of Burnley Oval/Burnley Park, Richmond, and surrounds, then our nation must be gleaming! Those environmentally friendly volunteers represented Richmond Rotary Club, Friends of Burnley Park, Richmond Historical Society, Melbourne Girls’ College’s Environment Green Team students, Principle and 3 staff members; Yarra Council and the Richmond community.

From an early Sunday start thru to mid-morning, volunteers of all ages registered, donned gloves and set off with a ‘hessian’ style bag to fill with assorted rubbish and another for recyclables. 48 volunteers registered under Richmond Rotary’s site name – Burnley Oval. Others with Burnley Park and the Friends of Burnley Park. A few chose to just not register at all. Never-the-less we all worked and cleaned-up productively in conjunction with each other.

Under the direction of Richmond Rotary’s Clean Up Australia Day Project Co- Coordinators’, Rotarian David Langdon and Annie Wysham, Friend of RCR, and the four designated site supervisors’ - Phil, Sandy, Johannes and Judy – our ‘clean up crews’ were bussed to 3 satellite sites around the oval. Firstly, the south side of the Burnley Rail Line along Madden Grove, secondly the Yarra Boulevard from the Monash Freeway to the Rail Bridge, then the bike track from the Fenix Café to the Bridge Road Rail Bridge. The community bus was provided by the City of Yarra and our driver Darryl gave his time on his day off! A fourth team scoured the oval and park vegetation areas.

Compliments and comments of mainly, ‘You’re all doing a great job! Good on yu!’ were directed towards the volunteers as people walked, jogged, ran or cycled past as they worked along the Yarra Boulevard areas. Others stopped, registered and joined in! Bless them. It was heart warming! One Rotarian’s wife found a bra in the bushes! “What size is it?” was the chorus from the other women! (Reuse! Recycle?) Another lucky volunteer picked up an antique glass milk bottle, much to his glee! It has now been added to his own bottle collection. (Finders’ keepers!)

Honesty was definitely the policy for another who handed in a $10 note, stating it was to go to the Richmond Rotary Club’s coffers.

From late morning free sausages in bread ‘hit the mark’ with the hungry volunteers, thanks to Michael and Sally O’Sullivan, ‘Keepers of the BBQ Tongs’!

Almost 100 bags in total were collected! City of Yarra’s Waste Management Department crews did the pickup and disposal of the contents appropriately next morning.

The usual litter items were predominant; along with the discarded shopping trolleys, household effects, dumped garden and hard waste, used bags of dog poo and endless cigarette butts! But not one needle thank goodness! In true Clean Up Australia Day spirit we helped ‘clean up, fix up and conserve the environment’!

At the Club meeting prior to the event, Stan Vermeerin, Litter Action Officer, Metropolitan Waste Management Group, was guest speaker with the eye-opening topic – ‘The Cost of Litter to the Community’

Richmond Rotary has vowed to make this an annual event, as have our CUA partners on the day and our wonderful sponsors and donors. Keen participation certainly helped us to make a real ‘litter difference’ - a positive community experience all round.

Next Clean Up Australia Day is Sunday 7th March 2010 th – it’s in the Club diary already! It will herald CUA’s 21st anniversary year.

Our Sponsors and Donors:
City of Yarra and Yarra Council’s Engineering Operations Department (Waste Management); Home Hardware, Richmond; McDonald’s Family Restaurants’ Headquarters and McDonald’s Family Restaurant, Church Street, Richmond; Balwyn Newsagency; Bertie the Butcher, Richmond; Bread Street Bakery, Mont Albert.

A Richmond Rotary Club 'PS' from David and Annie -