Point Lonsdale VIEW Club

Recently our Members gathered for a delightful Christmas luncheon, celebrating the season with joy, laughter, and camaraderie.

The event capped a hugely successful year for our Club, with several successful fundraisers, a growth in membership and we now support more students with their educational aspirations than ever before.

At the Business meeting before our Christmas luncheon, Alicia, our Club President, presented Jenny R with a Make A Difference award, for her tireless efforts in organising large events to raise much needed funds for The Smith Family.

On Monday 16th December the Point Lonsdale VIEW Club Committee and many of the wonderful Activity Leaders met together for a Christmas break-up dinner at the Portarlington Golf Club. It was a thoroughly enjoyable evening of laughter and conversation as everyone relaxed and discussed the year just gone.

One of the main reasons we were there was to draw the winner of the Christmas Wheelbarrow raffle. We raised over $6,000! A massive effort everyone!  We are so grateful to the Bellarine Peninsula community who supported this raffle wholeheartedly and enabled us to achieve this fantastic result.

a Point Lonsdale VIEW Club Member, Jillian G. Jillian was so delighted with the prize which she will share with her extended family.

Accompanying photo shows Jillian accepting her prize.

Anne G is well known in the Point Lonsdale VIEW Club as a bit of a mover and shaker. She has invested herself and her love of the outdoors into her activity groups – a walking group, a fitness group and a riding group. Anne is a great one for organising short trips away for our Members, both locally and overseas. In fact, she is away at the moment with a group, exploring South Australia by foot and by boat.

Congratulations Anne on being given the Making A Difference award. We appreciate all you do for our members and our Club.  

Oaks Day is a highlight of the spring racing season, and this year’s celebrations were truly something special by our Members. From stunning fashion to the excitement of the Oaks Day race, it was an event to remember for all who attended. For those who enjoy a day out in style, it was a chance to dress up, indulge in delicious food, and have some fun with friends, new and old.

Of course, no celebration is complete without great food, and Oaks Day was no exception. Members were treated to a sumptuous afternoon tea featuring a range of beautiful treats. The food was a perfect complement to the day’s festivities.

Oaks Day is more than just a race day; it’s an opportunity to celebrate style, community, and the simple joy of being together. 

It was a day that brought smiles and laughter to everyone. We look forward to next year’s celebration, where we can once again raise a glass to friendship, fashion, and fabulous food.
 

Another great result from our second Bunnings Sausage Sizzle! The sun shone on us, lovely Bunnings customers purchased our sausages and happily munched away as they continued shopping. And we made over $1900! 

A big thank you to the wonderful team that worked tirelessly throughout the day to ensure this fabulous result!

Fundraisers are a huge success!

Our recent Bunnings Sausage Sizzle fundraiser was a huge success. The team worked tirelessly to cook those sausages for the very hungry Bunnings shoppers. At one stage they ran out of sausages and had to send foragers off to find more!

A big thank you to all who volunteered to be on the roster and serve sausages. Almost $1700 was raised for The Smith Family

We are so grateful for the continued support of Kaz from Kouture by the Sea. Kaz coordinated all the ensembles worn by our models, including all the shoes and jewellery.

The Fashion Parade is one of our major fundraisers for The Smith Family and once again, raised important funds for them. $1150 was the amount raised. A thrilling result!

Happy birthday to us!  We had a wonderful day of celebrating our 4th birthday at 360Q. With over 90 members and guests attending, it really was a time of celebration.

Once again, we were served a delicious lunch, including a glass of bubbles and birthday cake from Barry and his team at 360Q. A wonderful way to celebrate our birthday!

Wendy from Creaky Moves Theatre group was our guest speaker. Her story was enjoyable but also inspiring: a journey of dance, cruise ships, international locations, sandwich boards as costumes, feathers, high heels and rejection that developed and refined resilience, and the surprising joy of inclusivity, diversity and community.

Wendy led a surprising number of volunteers through a dance workshop improvisation. Not only was it enjoyable and fun to watch, those involved really were focused on the movements and produced a first work of quality. Wendy also leads ‘Swing Fit’ classes all over the Bellarine Peninsula and Geelong.

Collage photo shows Members getting in the groove

Barry’s passion for food has meant he has availed himself of opportunities to expand and try new ventures. Many of the restaurants he’s owned have won awards and he himself has been awarded several accolades as a chef and restauranteur. He has worked locally, interstate and internationally, turning over millions of dollars in revenue and managing hundreds of staff. During this time, Barry decided it was time to give back into the community and he worked hard to raise monies for charities like Very Special Kids, Kidney Foundation, Skinny Duck and Skinny Duck flies South.

In 2016 he opened the restaurant 360Q at the Queenscliff Marina and managed to keep all his staff employed during the Covid years; an amazing feat. In keeping with Barry’s mantra of giving to others he began supporting the three VIEW clubs with generous donations from his special focus nights at 360Q. He also established Queenscliff Partners in 2022 with the focus on teaching and mentoring others in the hospitality/restaurant business. They now own Wharf Street Pantry and The Shelter Shed in Queenscliff.

Barry is a family man and adores his three daughters and six grandchildren. He says his daughters are his best friends.

After meeting members from Ocean Grove VIEW Club in 2016 I asked what they were raising money for. That is when I decided to donate $10 from each ticket to a special event to assist in the education of children. We need to invest in education. It is really important to give back to our community. I will continue to do so until I can no longer do so, and I hope to be able to inspire others to do the same.

We are so grateful for Barry’s continuing generosity towards VIEW and The Smith Family.