Rotary funds used to beautify park

The Rotary District of 9700 (the District incorporating Young) last year donated $6000 and on Tuesday night, Chris Edwards from the Rotary Club of Hall (Canberra) travelled to the meeting of the Young Rotary Club to present a cheque for $5000.  

“The Rotary Club of Hall runs the Capital Region Farmers Market at the Epic Showgrounds in Canberra. The club founded the markets nine years ago and now have over 200 registered stallholders with around 100 selling seasonal produce on any given Saturday morning,” Chris said. 

“A few years ago the club made a decision to donate a proportion of the profits from the market to the areas our stallholders come from. This has led to considerable donations in the last few years to projects in places such as West Wyalong, Crookwell and Batlow. 

“Today it is Young’s turn and we are delighted to partner with the Rotary Club of Young to the tune of $5000 toward this ‘whole of community’ project for the beautification of Rotaract Park.

“We have seven primary producers from the Young area that sell their seasonal produce at our market and I stress that we are helping to support this project as a direct result of our desire to give back to the areas our stallholders call home. So please don’t thank me, you can thank your local producers by buying local.  

“On behalf of our club I wish you all the best with this project and we look forward to seeing it completed soon.”  Chris said.

President Jenny Somerset, on thanking Chris for the cheque said she is delighted to receive such a generous amount.  

“This amount, together with the donation from District and coupled with the Rotary Club of Young’s own contribution, totals $16,000 towards the project,” she said.

“As Rotary is famous for its barbecues, the amount is specifically targeted towards the barbecue area of the plan.  This includes a double hot plate, stand alone electric  barbecue and shelter on a concrete slab.”

Argyle Community Housing are the movers and shakers behind the project along with Compact, an organisation that links community, schools and business.  

Last year, the Young High School secured a $15,000, National Australia Bank (NAB) grant to build a Covered Outdoor Learning Area (COLA) with the purpose of holding outdoor classes where it is thought appropriate.

“Argyle in collaboration with Young Shire Council and Young High School have already made headway in transforming the park with the building of a tiered amphitheatre and laying of new turf,” representative of Argyle Community Housing Sheryn Payne said.

Work on the COLA and barbecue structures is expected to start within the next week or so, and all the partners on this project are delighted with the support they have received from the Young community.  

Following the completion of the first stage of the garden beds by students from Young High School, Rotaract Park will provide a great outdoor facility for residents. 

This is the first time that the neighbourhood has had an attractive recreational space that can be enjoyed by families, children and the elderly.  

Just as important is that residents have seen how willingly organisations like the Rotary Club have offered such generous support to improve their community.  

This in turn has given them a greater sense of belonging to a much wider community”

Rotaract Park will be a work in progress as they continue to build on the great work completed to date.