Torquay Lions Club fundraising activities have ceased because of COVID restrictions, but its members have moved to lift their community service activities.
The Club’s emphasis this month has switched from fundraising to wood gathering and collecting old plastic plant guards abandoned in the Moonah Woodlands at the east end of The Esplanade.
Club President Neil Roche has care of the environment as one of his projects for this year.
“I believe caring for our fragile environment is critical today to ensure it’s OK for future generations,” he said.
“Liaising with Surf Coast Shire officers, we offered to help clean up the Moonah Woodlands, collecting long abandoned stakes and plastic left lying about in this wonderful native reservation.
“Our environment project has become also a recycling project as the wooden stakes and some of the plastic guards will be recycled for use in future plantings,” Lion Neil advised.
In their morning spent in the Woodlands, the Torquay Lions collected hundreds of old stakes and numerous bags of disintegrating plastic.

Photograph:
Volunteers (from left) Lions Bill Ferguson, Gayle Roche, Lion Peter McMahon, and Club President Neil Roche gather stakes and plastic from the bush.

Working hand in hand with the Great Ocean Road Coast and Parks Authority (GORCAPA), Torquay Lions Club gave their analemmatic sundial a 25-year rejuvenation. GORCAPA removed weeds, cleared congested plants and shrubs and guided the Lions on how best to rejuvenate the sundial’s surrounds with seedlings provided by the Authority. The chilly, windy morning did not deter the Lions from their tasks. Here, Lion Brian Keane and Terena Lane plant and water in seedlings with their fellow Lions

Torquay Lions Club President Neil Roche and wife Gail, plant seedlings at the Lions’ popular analemmatic sundial undergoing a 25-year rejuvenation.

Torquay Lions Club recently presented 12 Lions Comfort Koalas to Victoria Police members at the local station.
Police and other organisations use the Lions Comfort Koalas to assist young children caught up in stressful situations.
During the past 35 Years with the support of Lions clubs throughout Victoria, and now nationally, Lions Crimewatch has distributed over 53,000 Lions Comfort Koalas.
Torquay Lions President Neil Roche, pointed out local Lions had been part of “Lions Operation Comfort Koalas” for some years.
“The Koalas are handed out to kids at motor vehicle accident sites, at courts, at house and bush fires, in domestic violence homes, hospitals, children’s cancer units and on myriad occasions where children might be distressed,” Lion Neil shared.
“With Lions clubs ongoing support of “Lions Operation Comfort Koalas”, jointly we continue to supply bears to Police, SES, CFA and others where children might become anxious and stressed,” he said.
Distributing Comfort Koalas is only one way the Torquay Lions help support people in our local community.

Torquay Lions President Neil Roche (right) and Leadership Chairman Lion Colin Bellis handover Teddy Bears to Sergeant Peter Christo at Torquay police station

Torquay Lion Trevor Secombe and his wife Nicky were recently farewelled at the Torquay Lions May Dinner Meeting. Lion Trevor had recently decided to resign from Lions after many year's service. Trevor, a Past President, has been a greatly valued member, respected for his wise counsel and mentoring of many members. Trevor was also instrumental in the success of the Charity Bowls Days which raised many thousands of dollars for local causes. We will miss him.

Congratulations to all the walkers in this year’s Surf Coast Trek, for getting to the finish line and for raising funds for two great Geelong charities - the Give Where You Live Foundation, and the Kids Plus Foundation. Torquay Lions Club were pleased to be involved at the finish line with our BBQ.

After a quieter than usual year for the Lions BBQ trailer (we look forward to Cowrie markets returning later in 2021 for our BBQ and our train!) President Elect Neil Roche organised Surf Coast Shire’s Environmental Health Officer, Rhonda Gambetta, to check that the Lions trailer and its volunteer workers continue to meet today’s critical health standards. A brush-up on safe food handling never goes astray.
When the next sausages and onion come from the Lions BBQ trailer, patrons can be assured that, from unpacking the ingredients to handover of magnificently cooked sausages to the customer, everything will be managed in an environmentally healthy way.

There were many Lions out rattling a tin on Good Friday to raise much needed funds for the Royal Children’s Hospital. This year represents 90 years of giving. Lion Peter McMahon spearheaded operations and over $6,500 was raised, a fantastic effort.

Torquay Lions Club members and their partners recently were invited to share a meal at Foundation 61 at its Mt Duneed facility.
Torquay Lions Club have contributed $50,000 to the local drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre over the past 5 years, and have established a strong relationship with the foundation.
In the photograph Program Director Rob Lytzki is speaking to the assembled guests.

A $5000 Surfcoast Shire grant to Torquay Lions has helped them deliver hundreds of meals to those in need every week.
As the key delivery service for Feed Me Surfcoast, the Lions have delivered more than 3000 meals to addresses throughout the Surfcoast region in the past 9 months.
About 30 Lions have been rostered over the past 9 months as delivery drivers for Feed me Surfcoast.
Co-ordinator of the Torquay Lions providing support, Lion Peter McMahon, has ensured sufficient drivers have been available each week to help deliver to those in need.
“This a great project for the Torquay Lions Club” he declared.
“Not only did it provide our club with a community project, during COVID, but it also fired up our Lions to continue helping Feed Me Surfcoast, post-COVID.
“We are now old hands at delivering to addresses spread throughout the Surfcoast region, but receiving the Shire’s $5000 goes a long way to offsetting costs of Lions using their own vehicles for deliveries.
“Feed Me Surfcoast is an eye-opener. Although its primary mission is to help those in need, it has also diverted about 400 tonnes of food from landfill,” Lion Peter pointed out.

The third Torquay Lions Club Duck Race has been run and won. The Duck Race was held early on Australia Day at Fishermans Beach. Due to overnight rain the creek was running well which made for a fast race course. The results are as follows.
1st Place. Duck Number 71
Prize: A Ripcurl S/ Men’s tracksuit pants valued at $119.99
2nd Place. Duck Number 198
Prize: A Bunnings voucher valued at $50
3rd Place. Duck Number 171
Prize: A IGA voucher valued at $20
We will be in contact with the winners soon to arrange the delivery of their prizes.
Thank you very much for everyone who purchased (adopted) our ducks in this our third Duck Race for this year.
And thank you to Ripcurl, Bunnings and IGA for your generous donations of prizes.
Click on the following link to see short video of some of the heats and the final.
More details: https://vimeo.com/504670519

Torquay Lions cleaning rubbish along Torquay’s foreshore from dawn on New Year’s Day were disappointed at the amount of broken glass they gathered.
According to Lions President Bill Ferguson, there was more broken glass scattered around than in 2019 or 2020.
“It concerns us greatly that the careless actions of a few counter those who mainly did the right thing,” Lion Bill declared.
“We recovered more broken glass among the usual bottles, drink cartons and other general rubbish.
“Our Lions swept the foreshore from the Torquay Surf Club to Zeally Bay Road and accumulated dozens of bags of rubbish.
“And there were other people doing their bit in removing some rubbish from the lawns, as we checked the beaches, lawns and bushes,” he said.
Torquay Lions Club has cleaned the foreshore and surrounds for a number of years.
They start at 6.00 am as the sun rises and have the job done for the early morning walkers by 7.00 to 7.30 am.
The Lions leave their collected rubbish in bags alongside GORCAPA bins which are cleared as the Lions finish their task.
“We don’t want visitors to Torquay to experience dirty and dangerous foreshore and beaches, which leaves a bad impression of our delightful beachfront and environs,” President Bill stated.
He also thanked his team of Lions who fronted the task so early after New Year’s Eve.
“However,” he declared over a coffee at Third Wave Kiosk after the work was done, “Glass is our biggest enemy. It is difficult to spot in grassy areas, tedious to remove and always concerns us that we might miss some shards which can cause severe gashes in feet”.
Photograph
Torquay Lions (from left) Colin Bellis, Bill Ferguson, Brian Keane and Darryl Stewart, pause during their New Year’s Day clean up of Torquay’s beaches and foreshore, with bags of rubbish to be gathered later when the bins are emptied.

Torquay Lions Club held its first face to face dinner meeting recently (26/11) following easing of COVID restrictions.
Lion President Bill Ferguson chaired the meeting which was held both on the Torquay Foreshore and at Bomboras in their marquee.
During the foreshore gathering, Lions International Zone Chairman Les Cropley, presented badges and certificates recognising more than 180 years of community service performed by just five Torquay Lions.
Photograph
Zone Chairman Les Cropley (Third from left) joins (from left) Lions Alan Young, Robert Grubb, Harvey Price, Theo Reyntjes and Allen Osman following his presentation of well-deserved awards for years of community service.

Despite COVID restrictions, Torquay Lions Club’s Immediate Past President John Bell (left), was determined to present his award to the Lion of the Year for 2019 – 2020, John Wilson. Among his other Lions duties, John Wilson was the Club’s Roster Master, an onerous task at any time, but John managed rosters for several BBQ sites in Torquay willingly and efficiently despite the many changes which occur because of family or other commitments which clash with roster times.

Torquay Lions Club earned $500 for the Australian Lions Foundation by serving bacon and egg rolls at the grand opening of Haymes Paint Shop recently (20/1).
Up bright and early, the Lions were set up and prepared to serve breakfast rolls to local tradespeople visiting the new venture.
A trickle of painters and decorators in and out of the paint shop stopped to enjoy the Lions’ fare before heading off to their work sites breakfast.
All appeared to enjoy the unexpected tasty rolls through the morning.
According to Torquay Lions Club President Bill Ferguson, the early morning project was only one in a number of projects designed to raise funds for community projects.
“This assistance to the Haymes Paint Shop earned $500 for the Australian Lions Foundation,” Bill said.
“In this time of COVID, fundraising has been limited, but our activities are slowly earning revenue for the various community projects in which Australian Lions are involved”.
When disaster strike, the Australian Lions Foundation is among the first to offer disaster relief.
The Foundation continues to be one of the first organisations on the ground providing financial assistance and support to local communities in times of need.
Australian Lions Foundation continues to be where their support is needed, not only in Australia and Papua New Guinea, but also internationally where our emergency relief and community welfare projects contribute to global understanding and cooperation.
Personal gifts to the Australian Lions Foundation are welcomed. Gifts of $2.00 or more are tax deductible. To donate, send donations to: Chairperson, David Triffett, PO Box 465, Glenorchy, Tasmania, 7010.
Photograph
Torquay Lion Colin Bellis hands a bacon and egg roll to Danny Clifford of Point Danger Painting (white top) watched by Tim Dwyer, Store Manager of the Haymes Paint Shop Torquay, and Lion Brian Fuller. The Lions served breakfast rolls to tradespeople attending the grand opening of the Haymes Paint Shop in Cylinders Dve. Torquay. The activity earned $500 from Haymes Paints for the Australian Lions Foundation.

When he and his wife, Sylvia arrived in Torquay in 1975, John Peck did not think he would still be involved in community service 45 years later.
“A few years after we moved to Torquay, I was recruited into the Torquay Apex Club as my first move into community service,” said John.
Better known over the past 35 years as Lion John Peck of the Torquay Lions Club, Lion John has now retired, not because he wanted to, but because a long-time medical condition was curtailing his involvement in Lions International.
“Serving one’s local community and even helping others nationally and internationally is a wonderful opportunity for men and women”, he said.
Lion John had risen to President of the Torquay Apex Club by 1982, but left the club in 1983 because he had reached the maximum age of members.
Ten years after becoming a Torquay resident, John Peck joined the Torquay Lions Club.
From 1985 until early last month, Lion John had served on the club committee in every executive position including President in 1990.
Because of his medical condition, Lion John left the Lions Club for a few years until he became well enough to re-join and in 2008 was a key member of the Lions Village Project team which oversaw the construction of the award-winning Torquay Lions Village in Kooringa Place.
Always interested in the development of young people as young Australians, Lion John managed the Lions International Youth of the Year Torquay contest for three years as its planner and co-ordinator.
Torquay Lions well-known BBQ trailer, designed and built locally, involved Lion John heavily involved in the team designing and overseeing the project until the colourful vehicle hit the streets.
Torquay Lions Club President, Bill Ferguson, admired Lion John’s service to his community.
“When a job was there to be done, John was usually one of the first Lions to volunteer”, he said.
“Lions International has awarded John with its highest award, the Melvin Jones Fellowship, for his dedication to service over many years.
“We will miss him from the Club, but we hope to see him and Sylvia back at our dinners, whenever the current Coronavirus restrictions are lifted,” Mr Ferguson declared.
Photograph
John and Sylvia Peck prepare John’s well-worn Lions shirt for retention as a memento of his many years of community service following his retirement from the Torquay Lions Club.

Bunnings sausage sizzles have returned to Torquay, but under strictly supervised COVID restrictions. Not only are they popular with shoppers at the store, but they are a sought-after source of funds for the Torquay Lions Club enabling the club to build its monies to meet needy causes and local, national and international projects.

To ensure social distancing, Torquay’s Lions greeter Bill Ryan guided people along ‘the yellow brick road’ referring to the yellow distance markers entering the sausage sizzle precinct

The inaugural Torquay Lions Club Dusk Race has been run and won.
The results are as follows.
1st Duck Number 87 wins a Bunnings $50 voucher.
2nd Duck Number 117 wins a $30 Torquay Bookstore voucher.
3rd Duck Number 42 wins a IGA $20 voucher.
We will be in contact with the winners soon to arrange the delivery of their vouchers.
Please copy and paste the link below into your Browser to view a short video of todays Duck Race. Or go to the Events pull down menu and click the same link.
https://vimeo.com/464425460
Once again thank you very much for everyone's participation in our Duck Race.
And thanks to Bunnings, Torquay Books and IGA for your generous donations of vouchers.

Lions famous traditional Christmas cakes are now available for sale.
The 1.5 Kg Cakes sell for $17
The cakes will be available for sale at the Saturday Farmers' Market outside the Surf Coast Shire's Offices on Merrijig Drive North Torquay.
They are also available from our Online Store by clicking on the link.

This week, for the first time, the Torquay Farmers' Market welcomed the Torquay Lions Club selling Lions Cakes and tickets for the Lions' November Duck Race. On the Saturday morning, the Lions sold 14 Christmas cakes and 26 tickets in the Beached Ducks Race.
Here, customer Philip Thomas, chats about the cakes with Lions Theo
Reyntjes (left) and Bill Ferguson before ordering 40 cakes for distribution to his clients and staff for Christmas. He bought two ducks for the Lions Duck Race as well

Members of the Torquay Lions Club new Global Action Team, lead by Incoming President, Bill Ferguson, were recently enticed to a meeting at the rotunda in Taylor Park with the promise, from Bill, of a Boston Bun and a coffee
Fine weather and social distancing requirements, due to the COVID19 restrictions, made the venue an ideal meeting place.
Photograph
Discussing future club activities are (from left) Lions Bill Ferguson, Ken Farrow, Colin Bellis, Brian Keane and Neil Roche.