Archive for May, 2009

Ringwood Bowls Club 2009 AGM

Published by Alex Makin on Wednesday 20th of May, 2009

This evening the Ringwood Bowls Club, located in Loughnan Road Ringwood, held its Annual General Meeting to elect its committee for the following year.

The Club, which was founded in 1928 has had a long association with Ringwood. In recent years the Club developed a strong emphasis on sustainability and has invested in water tanks and a reclamation facility to reduce its water consumption.

The Club is now planning to examine its two grass greens with plans to potentially convert them to other grass types to further reduce their water usage.

The club is complementing its environmental sustainability focus with community initiatives to increase participation in lawn bowls.

The Ringwood Bowls Club will be launching a Friday social bowls program and is working with other organisations, such as Eastern Volunteers, to encourage volunteer participation.

With an ongoing emphasis on environmental and social sustainability the Ringwood Bowls Club will continue to have a successful future and I congratulate the board and its members for their vision and dedication.

For further information on the Ringwood Bowls Club please visit www.ringwoodbowls.asn.au.

Croydon Hills Primary – Drawing Competition Presentation

Published by Alex Makin on Tuesday 19th of May, 2009

The Maroondah Community Wellbeing Plan is currently being developed by Council to enhance the health, safety and wellbeing of the municipality.

One of the key challenges in formulating a plan is ensuring that all sections of the community are able to provide feedback. In this regard, council launched a drawing competition for Maroondah’s primary school students to encourage them to discuss what they like within the municipality.

Four schools participated in the drawing competition and this evening I was invited to attend Croydon Hills Primary’s Art Exhibition and announce the winners from the school.

As the Chair of the Maroondah Wellbeing Committee I judged the drawing competition in April, with each school being judged separately.

All students who participated in the competition received a certificate, as well as a prize to acknowledge their hard work and I would like to congratulate each of the entrants for showcasing their drawing talents.

Delegates’ Report: Celebrating volunteering, the environment and social inclusion

Published by Alex Makin on Monday 18th of May, 2009

There has been a variety of events that I have attended over the past month and I would like to discuss a few of those in further detail:

On the 25th of April I attended the Anzac Day Dawn Service and each year it is encouraging to see the crowds increase. The Ringwood RSL needs to be commended for holding such a sincere service and for their hospitality to the local community.

On the 27th of April I had the pleasure of speaking to Grade 5 and 6 students from Our Lady of Perpetual Help Primary in Ringwood. The students are undertaking a unit of study on government and sustainability and I discussed the role of Council and the importance of environment and working together to mitigate climate change.

The school has a sincere and genuine commitment to sustainability and is currently planning to organise a range of school activities, such as tree plantings, to further encourage the students to take an interest in the environment.

On the 7th of May I had the pleasure of speaking to participants of the Maroondah Young Leaders Program. The program is a week-long course involving approximately twenty year 10 students who learn team-building skills, public speaking and leadership qualities. I was invited to speak to the students about my role as a Councillor and discuss the need for younger people to remain active within our community.

The presentation evening for the students was held on the 8th of May and this was where the participants were able to display the skills they developed over the course of the week. The calibre of the participants was excellent and Maroondah’s Youth Services at EV’s Youth Centre must be congratulated for another wonderful job.

This year, the students will be encouraged to utilise their skills to develop and implement a community project of their choosing. This ensures that the participants are able to practice and further develop their skills within the community and not simply forget about what they have learned. The participants have begun meeting to discuss the community project and I am certain we will hear further in coming months.

Last week marked National Volunteers Week and I spent the week with a variety of different groups, including Meals on Wheels last Tuesday on the 12th of May. Meals on Wheels is a council program operated by volunteers who provide a tremendous service to our community. The social interaction between volunteers and participants is just as important as the meals themselves and it is wonderful to see Maroondah’s caring and compassionate community first-hand.

A compassionate and caring community was also on display this afternoon on the 18th of May where I attended the 30th anniversary of the Ringwood Uniting Day Care service. This service, provides social interaction and inclusion for Maroondah’s older citizens, with some participants well into the nineties. While there is now a number of similar programs available, the service was truly an innovation when it was formed 30 years ago.

It was wonderful to see several of the original volunteers still contributing their time to this very worthwhile cause and to witness the warmth and enjoyment gained by this valuable community service.

Ringwood Uniting Church Adult Day Care – 30th Anniversary

Published by Alex Makin on Monday 18th of May, 2009

The Ringwood Uniting Church is located in Greenwood Avenue, Ringwood and offers an Adult Day Care service to provide social outings and activities for older residents.

This afternoon the Centre celebrated its 30th anniversary, with three of the current volunteers being founding members of the group.

When the service was launched in 1979, the notion of adult day care was an innovative concept and thirty years the service still continues strongly. The friendliness and warmth of the volunteers, combined with participants who were clearly enjoying the proceedings, was exceptional and fulfils an increasing need within our community.

The Ringwood Uniting Church Adult Day Care Centre is another example of the dedication and commitment provided by volunteers. I would like to congratulate the Church and the volunteers for reaching this 30 year milestone.

2009 Melbourne Comedy Festival Roadshow

Published by Alex Makin on Sunday 17th of May, 2009

The Karralyka Centre is Maroondah’s premiere conference and theatrical venue, delivering a diverse theatre season for the enjoyment of Melbourne’s outer eastern suburbs.

This evening I attended the Melbourne Comedy Festival Roadshow, which showcased the talents of several comedians that performed as part of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.

The show was most enjoyable, with the comedians performing to a full venue. The calibre of the 2009 theatre season demonstrates the increasing significance of Karralyka within Melbourne’s arts and theatrical scene.

For further information on the 2009 Karralyka Theatre Season please visit www.karralyka.com.au

Maroondah Combined Probus Club

Published by Alex Makin on Friday 15th of May, 2009

Probus Clubs, which are initiated through the support of a local Rotary club, provides an organisation for retired or semi-retired community members.

The Maroondah Combined Probus Club is one of the largest within the municipality and meets at the Ringwood RSL. The club organises a range of speakers to cater to the diverse interests of its members.

This morning I was invited to speak to the Combined Probus Club members to discuss the vision for Ringwood, as well as the need for public transport improvements.

I discussed the plans for the redevelopment of Eastland, which will result in the creation of a new town square and park, to assist in restoring a sense of community into Ringwood. I also spoke about the current plans for the Ringwood Station and the need for further funding so that the station itself can be redeveloped into an accessible, safe and integrated transport facility.

While work is expected to commence on the station forecourt and bus interchange during the course of next year, there is still need for a State Government commitment to redevelop the station itself. Ringwood Station currently fails disability compliance standards and as a result the station is not accessible and is in fact avoided by many people in our community.

The redevelopment of Eastland is also expected to commence next year and I spoke about the transformation of Ringwood into a vibrant urban centre. While this development will bring positive changes to Ringwood, there is a need to ensure that community facilities are enhanced to meet the growing needs of our municipality.

I have requested that council undertake a management plan for Jubilee Park so that we can develop a vision and strategy for the sporting clubs within the municipality. Likewise, there is a need for similar strategies in regard to community space, cultural facilities and green open space.

The town centre within the middle of Ringwood will be complemented by a park and play equipment in Nelson Street, providing additional open space for the community and catering to the young families that are moving into Ringwood.

Public transport improvements, such as the Ringwood to Frankston SmartBus have enhanced the mobility of our community and I discussed the need for further improvements to provide transport choice for our residents.

More frequent, accessible and readily available public transport services will provide our community with alternatives to car travel and I congratulated the Probus Club for its strong interest in public transport and attendance at the bus review workshops that were held in February.

Eastern Community Legal Centre – Volunteers Dinner

Published by Alex Makin on Thursday 14th of May, 2009

The Eastern Community Legal Centre, offers free legal assistance through its offices in Box Hill and Boronia, with a priority for people experiencing disadvantage.

In addition, the centre also has an emphasis on community development and empowerment, with the organisation’s volunteers dinner serving as a fundraiser for communities affected by the recent bushfires.

The dinner raised funds for Cameron House, a service that provides medical facilities for the Yarra Glen, which had been without a doctor since 2007.

The keynote speaker for the evening was Christine Nixon, Victoria’s former Police Commissioner and now Head of the Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority. Christine spoke about the challenges facing the Authority, including the need to rebuild the communities that were devastated by the bushfires.

While the Eastern Community Legal Centre does not have a direct presence within Maroondah, the organisation does provide services for Maroondah residents.

For more information on the Eastern Community Legal Centre please visit www.eclc.org.au.

Inaugural Eastern Volunteers Community Conference – Day Two

Published by Alex Makin on Thursday 14th of May, 2009

The second day of the Eastern Volunteers Community conference explored the themes of managing volunteers, volunteering diversity, as well as supporting people with mental illness and engaging community engagement.

The conference opened with an address by the Victorian Council of Social Services, which explored the challenges in creating social inclusion during economic uncertainty. The presentation highlighted the difficulties the community sector is facing, particularly in regard to ensuring funding certainty and maintaining a focus on the core vision of an organisation.

I delivered a plenary session focused on harnessing the changing times faced by community organisations through embracing technology and building capacity through governance and professional development.

There is a need for strong governance and consistent policies that are supported through the adherence of procedures. All levels of government, as well as many philanthropic organisations, are expecting increasing levels of governance and accountability from the not-for-profit sector.

Strong governance is critical to creating an environment that harnesses the potential of an organisation and fosters its development. This creates a positive environment for volunteers, as well as staff and board members.

Data compiled by the Australian Bureau of Statistics demonstrates that less are volunteering on a per capita basis and that they are volunteering less of their time. In addition, there is a substantial gap between the rate of volunteering within rural areas versus our capital cities, with volunteering being less common in urban centres.

This demonstrates the strength of community identity, which is more commonplace within rural areas. Given that establishing this sense of community is more difficult within largely homogeneous urban centres, there is a need for innovation.

This is where community organisations need to explore the use of technology, such as interactive websites, using Web 2.0 technology like blogs and Facebook, to establish a new sense of community. Virtual communities are particularly useful in recruiting younger volunteers, who are often seeking opportunities to further their experiences within particular projects.

Younger people tend to be project focused rather than organisational focused and as a result community organisations need to tailor the way they attempt to recruit volunteers.

Technology such as wikis, which allows editable content, can be utilised to retain knowledge within an organisation through encouraging staff and volunteers to document their experiences and freely share information.

The use of technology should not increase the workload of an organisation, but instead should help automate some tasks. As an example, web based content management systems, can replicate web-content onto social networking tools such as Facebook, encouraging interactivity without requiring duplication or increasing workloads.

The conference concluded with positive feedback and a desire from participants for further events. There is strong interest in the sharing of knowledge and it was great that the participants found the conference to be informative and useful.

I have recently formed a consultancy service to assist organisations in meeting the challenges of these changes times. For a copy of the presentation I delivered at the Eastern Volunteers Community Conference please visit my consultancy site at www.alexmakin.org.

North Ringwood Community House 2009 Committee of Management meeting

Published by Alex Makin on Thursday 14th of May, 2009

The North Ringwood Community House, located at 120 Oban Road, Ringwood North, is a community owned and managed centre which provides a diverse range of courses and educational opportunities for our community.

One of the strengths of the house is the provision of accredited TAFE courses within a supportive, friendly and nurturing environment. The community house also provides a creche and occasional care.

The Committee of Management oversees the development of the community house and establishes a strategic direction for the facility. I have been a member of the committee since 2007.

The main priority for the committee and staff is to find a new location so that the community house can continue to provide a range of courses and services for the local community.

Media Release: Maroondah's volunteers celebrated

Published by Alex Makin on Wednesday 13th of May, 2009

Two Maroondah councillors marked National Volunteer Week with a ‘hands-on’ taste of life as a volunteer when they assisted with Meals on Wheels deliveries on Tuesday 12 May.

Councillors Paul Macdonald and Alex Makin joined the morning run of Maroondah’s two Meals on Wheels services – based in Ringwood and Croydon – to deliver food throughout the municipality.

“Each year two Maroondah councillors hit the road with our dedicated Meals on Wheels volunteers to help distribute meals during National Volunteer Week and show our appreciation for the work they do,” Cr Macdonald said.

“While we understand that promotion is something some volunteers may shy away from, we believe it is important to recognise the vital role they play behind the scenes of community life,” Cr Macdonald said.

“National Volunteer Week is a fitting occasion to thank all of our volunteers for donating their time to help others,” Cr Macdonald said.

Cr Alex Makin said around 220 volunteers made it possible to provide the Meals on Wheels service to Maroondah residents each year.

“Meals on Wheels is a Council-run Home and Community Care service and its viability depends very much on the volunteers who cheerfully and willingly keep the service running,” Cr Makin said.

“An average of 1100 meals are made and delivered under the program each week. These are delivered to people in the community who are having difficulty in preparing and cooking their own meals,” Cr Makin said.

National Volunteer Week (Monday 11 to Sunday 17 May) is the largest celebration of volunteerism in Australia. It provides an opportunity to highlight the role of volunteers in our community and to say ‘thank-you’ to the more than five million Australians who give their time for the benefit of others.

To find out how you can make a difference in the lives of others by volunteering in Maroondah, visit www.maroondah.vic.gov.au/Volunteering.aspx