Denise Orr
Plans are underway for the celebration of the Community Centre’s 25th anniversary which will take place later in the year.
With all volunteer staff and Community Centre members to be invited, it’s going to be one heck of a party!
With so many new members joining up recently, President Jed Elmer sees this as an opportunity to promote the centre’s suitability as a hub for a variety of exciting activities:
-
Private celebrations such as birthdays and anniversaries
-
Fundraising events for charities
-
Movie Nights
-
Workshops and training
-
Trivia Nights
-
Recreational activities
Jed acknowledges that the work of the wonderful volunteers and enthusiastic members are what keeps the fun and community engagement ticking over and they deserve a celebration worthy of their efforts over the years.
More details on the celebrations will be forthcoming in due course.
There is some interesting history of the Community Centre and the resource services journey over the last quarter of a century.
Long time resident and volunteer Fiona Hawthorne recalls the association’s humble beginnings.
Back in the nineties, not everyone in Rainbow had a landline phone, let alone the internet or computers. There was no local newspaper for Rainbow Beach residents, Fiona recalls.
Until 1999, most people got their information from other residents or word of mouth. The doctor situation was part-time and there was certainly no mental health or auxiliary services coming into town.
That’s why in 1999, a group of concerned citizens pooled their skills and professional connections to form the Community Information and Resource Service - CIRS. They became an incorporated association in 2000.
They found support in the elected representatives at local, State and Federal level, and soon rented out a small shopfront in Rainbow Beach Road (where the hardware store was until this year). They received grants for computers, and that’s how Fiona got involved because they didn’t have many people with word processing or computer skills.
The idea was to be a contact point for all the human service providers in the area in the hopes of getting outreach programs down here for Rainbow Beach residents.
We got a Medicare Kiosk which was basically a mini phone booth with a direct phone and fax line to Medicare, so that patients could get their refund without having to drive into Gympie. It would seem incomprehensible to younger people now, but that’s how life was in Rainbow Beach back then.
The CIRS (Community Centre) became a hub where people could seek information, find out what their options for assistance were, and use our technology, expertise, and facilities for all their various needs.
Over the years the Community Centre has been extremely thankful to have received wonderful support from local businesses in the area. The Community Centre as a wholly volunteer-run organisation relies on the generosity of local businesses to continue this valuable service.
One of those is the Rainbow Beach Hotel, who have kindly offered opportunities to raise much needed funding to keep the centre afloat. A recently held raffle at the pub brought in over $300 in revenue, and another raffle took place on 8 June to coincide with the pub's Live Elvis Tribute. The ‘hot dog for a gold coin donation’ promotion recently held at the first State of Origin screening in the pub was also a wonderful boost to the centre’s coffers.
If your business would like to contribute in some way to assist with fund raising, contact the Community Centre or call in Monday to Friday from 9am.
