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Nov 26, 2021
Local organisation: Fairy Meadow Surf Life Saving Club
Some of Fairy Meadow Surf Life Saving Club president Bill Kuiper's fondest memories as a patrolling member were simply standing on the water's edge and watching the families enjoy themselves. Having joined in the '80s with a mate and feeling welcomed immediately, he went on to have his own children involved in the club. One is still involved remotely today. Here's the story of the Fairy Meadow SLSC, which started in 1950 and has become an integral part of the community. How important is the club to the local Fairy Meadow community today? As with all surf clubs, we are a community based group of people. Surf life saving is very family orientated and has members starting from the age of six years. I believe Fairy Meadow SLSC offers the community a safe place to swim where families can come down to the beach and be assured they can relax and enjoy what Fairy Meadow Beach and its surrounding recreational areas have to offer. When did you decide to join the club and why have you stayed? I joined back in the early 1980s with a mate. We both were scuba divers and spent a lot of time being in and around the ocean. We were settling down and had moved into the area. He was in another surf club and never felt part of that club. He asked if I wanted to join and Fairy Meadow was my local beach. When we went down to check out the club, the people at Fairy Meadow made us feel very welcome and got us involved early. First as boat rowers which I did for eight years and he moved on to R&R. Competitions back then was every weekend - Saturdays local and Sundays in Sydney. As we had children they too joined the club. Both my children stayed for many years in the club until work started taking up their free time. My son, has held club positions - from the age of 16 he was the youngest club captain. Today he lives out of area, working as a paramedic and is the clubs chief training officer, and social media office. Today’s technology allows him to communicate with us from there. Some of my fondest memories as a patrolling member is simply standing on the water’s edge and watching the families enjoy themselves. How has the Fairy Meadow Surf Life Saving Club changed over the years? What sort of developments have you seen? The club, as with most clubs, struggle with a lack of members. Teenagers today work their weekends, and life in general is so much busier. I remember Christmas would see all the club families come to the beach and spend Christmas afternoons there. Competition was so much stronger and you could go to one of our 17 patrolled beaches and watch a surf carnival and have crowds of people lining the foreshore, listening to the bagpipes being played, and all the clubs proudly displaying their flags. I think that is something lost in surf lifesaving. Fairy Meadow Beach for many years held the Junior McDonald’s Carnival with the sponsorship of the local McDonald’s restaurant. It was a big local carnival with lots of volunteer work needed and it attracted hundreds of people. Development in surf lifesaving has seen an ongoing improvement in rescue techniques and equipment. Surf lifesaving is part of emergency services. If an emergency situation occurs out of hours or during patrolling times, the response time today happens within minutes from all services. How will this season differ from previous seasons? What has the club had to do to adapt to COVID 19? As a surf club, we are always trying to attract new members. We have new committee members, which means new ideas. Knowing that the past committee is still there to support and offer help to the newer and younger members is great. Surf clubs today need to understand and use technology to communicate, record information and due to COVID we learnt to hold online meetings and training. Our social media is a big part of keeping members involved in the club when they couldn’t come down to the beach. Now, with COVID 19 being a part of day-to-day living, we have had to adopt safe operating procedures and maintain that documentation. As far as being in a situation of rescuing a swimmer, it still takes high priority. As president, what are your plans for the club this season? As president I would like to see the club make better contact with the community and see growth in membership. We are in the early stages in redeveloping our building to better house our equipment and offer more to our members. In what ways can people get involved in the club? And why would you encourage others to join? Surf lifesaving offers many levels of involvement these days. If they believe they have something to offer in administration and want to be part of the club administration, you don’t need to have been a patrolling member. There are also dry duties for members who just want to be a radio operator or first aider on the beach. As well as a bronze holder and being part of the rescue team on our beach, there are now call out teams being part of a higher level of rescue and emergency support, working with IRBs and jet skis. We have a new IRB coming soon. What message do you want to give those looking to come to the beach this summer? People need to only come to the beach to enjoy themselves. Don’t be afraid to ask the life savers questions about the conditions and why the flags are where they are. Most importantly, swim between the flags and follow the directions given by the life savers. We would also like to thank the sponsorship of the IMB, and the local businesses supporting the club and community. Fairy Meadow is spoilt with the surrounding beautiful recreational areas. Learn more about the Fairy Meadow Surf Life Saving Club via their website. Are you ready to discuss buying, selling or leasing a home in the Fairy Meadow or surrounding suburbs? Contact Joanne on (02) 4285 7400. If you or a loved one is considering moving into aged care, register for our short course to right size your home when moving into aged care.
Oct 29, 2021
Local organisation: Illawarra Woodworkers Group in Fairy Meadow
From meeting in members' garages to setting up their own space, the Illawarra Woodworkers Group has grown since it began with just a handful of members in 1988. Treasurer William Perry joined the group because he had a passion for fine woodcraft and enjoyed the relaxed environment at the workshop. Over the years he and the other members have had the opportunity to make everything from simple projects like small boxes, to more unusual items like jousting sticks. Here's why you might want to become a member... When and how did the Illawarra Woodworkers form? The group was formed in 1988 by a small group of men who had a shared interest in woodworking. They met in each other's garages for a while and later held meetings at the Wollongong University as the group grew bigger. They then moved to rented space in Corrimal. How has the group developed and how many members do you now have? We moved to the current location at the Fairy Meadow Demonstration School in 2001 when an old amenities block that was due to be demolished was offered as a base. The group then renovated it as a workshop. It has been extended twice since, with help from the NSW Government Communities grants. The workshop facilities and machinery have been acquired over many years through fund raising efforts by the members. We have about 25 members total at present. Why is the group based in Fairy Meadow? What’s appealing about that location? It's historically been based around the Fairy Meadow/Corrimal area where it first started, but we have members that come from Oak Flats to Thirroul. The location on the school grounds is also a great benefit. What projects have you worked on as a group? What have been some of the highlights? We've mainly done small projects for the school or members of the public in repairs or building one-off items. We mostly get requests for things that are a bit different. A few years ago we made a 1m long auctioneers gavel for a local real estate agent’s annual awards night. There was a group that does jousting, and we made four or five jousting sticks for them. We have also made and donated toys and a model semi-trailer truck for the Wollongong Hospital children's ward, as well as another truck for Camp Quality. We also run a small group each week with the school for students. The students are guided by members in constructing their own tool boxes, pencil box and bird feeder. For the past couple of years we’ve also created kits that use what we do with the Fairy Meadow School to give to the Para Meadows special education school. The students don’t like a lot of change, so we’ve put the kits together, and then trained up the teachers to use them. They've since come back to us to get more kits made. We make a few items such as turned bowls, small boxes, cutting boards and other wooden craft items for sale at local exhibitions. This is one of the few fundraising things we do to sustain the group. If it’s community based, then we just ask that they cover the cost of the materials and we’ll make it. For other projects, we ask to cover the cost of materials and a small donation to go towards our group. What plans do you have for Illawarra Woodworkers? Hopefully expand and to maintain the traditional skills of woodworking in a relaxed and friendly environment. Do you need to have woodwork skills to join? And how can someone get involved? We always welcome new members. There’s no experience necessary, but we don't run any formal classes. It is more that they have a go at projects (their own or assist with club projects) with guidance from other group members. We have a monthly meeting on the second Saturday from about 9am. We also have a workshop on Saturday mornings from about 8.30am to noon, and Thursday from about 8.30am. Anyone interested can drop in at any of the workshop times or contact us with our email info (at) illawarrawoodworkers.org.au. All of the info is also posted on our website illawarrawoodworkers.org.au. Anything else you’d like to add? We are often confused with being a Men's Shed, but we don't have any links to that organisation. We are an independent community group that is quite a bit older and welcome all comers to the group. We have a number of female members that are quite active in the group. Are you ready to discuss buying, selling or leasing a home in the Fairy Meadow or surrounding suburbs? Contact Joanne on (02) 4285 7400. If you or a loved one is considering moving into aged care, register for our short course to right size your home when moving into aged care.
Oct 1, 2021
Local business: Capri By Fleur E Scent in Balgownie
Lauren Basi was running a successful wedding and events floristry business, Fleur E Scent, when COVID hit. With a decrease in events, it prompted her to open up Capri By Fleur E Scent, a Balgownie gift shop. Now, the founder and creative director has never been busier. How did the two businesses start? We originally started with weddings and events about four years ago, so that's always been our main business. We've always focused on the weddings, events, christenings, baptisms, birthdays - all the celebratory types. Because I had little ones, I wanted the business to work with family life. Over the years, it got busier and busier. Last year in lockdown we had to adjust, because the weddings and events just stopped. So we were starting to send out bouquets to people and started our website, and were seeing success with that. People were wanting to send flowers and gifts, so I said “OK, I think it's time we open the shop. The kids are all older now. They're all at school.” We looked for a space and we found one, and that's why we decided to open in Balgownie. It was a natural progression. I always wanted to open the shop, but it was going to tie me down too much with the little ones. Now that they're all at school, it's so much easier. When did the shop Capri By Fleur E Scent open? We opened the shop on the weekend of Mother's Day. Of course, we weren’t open for very long because of lockdowns. But that’s been another good thing. It's given me the time to spend on the website and pushing social media. That has been really important for us to survive. If weddings and events were on in full force, I wouldn't have had that time to invest. It's really good that I've been able to have the time to push social media and that people are going online to buy. So when the shop does reopen, we’ll still manage orders coming through online and over the phone. What’s your background and has that involved floristry? Where did your passion stem from? I was working in financial services for 14 years. So I was in superannuation and the corporate world. I've always wanted to do it. Before my oldest son, now 13, was born, I said to my husband, “I want to really do this floristry course”, but it was a bit of an investment to do it. And with the little ones, I just couldn't. But the corporate world just wasn’t flexible enough for me with the little ones. One day I’d just had enough and I said, “no, I'm going to go and pursue the course up in Sydney at Pearsons School of Floristry” and never looked back. It's sort of just boomed from there. I left where I was working. I did overlap a little bit, doing my studying and working. But when I was ready, I left and just went straight into the floristry and it’s boomed since, so I’ve been pretty lucky. What attracted you to Balgownie? What do you like about working in Balgownie? Our warehouse for Fleur E Scent is in Fairy Meadow. We need the space to store all our sundries, vases and wedding and event items, so I needed somewhere that was close enough to Fairy Meadow and I did want that village vibe as well. Balgownie has that. It’s a beautiful community, there’s a lot of foot traffic there and the people are beautiful and welcoming. That’s what really attracted me to Balgownie for Capri By Fleur E Scent. Where do you source your products from and how did that develop for you? When I started floristry, I was going to the Flemington Markets every single week to build my relationships with all different growers. I've got my specific flower suppliers that I deal with on the weekly. I send him my orders every week and obviously due to COVID I can’t go up there, so now I have a flower courier who goes up there and picks up for me from all my different growers. He then delivers them straight to my door at the warehouse. We refresh everything, we cut all the stems and then put them in fresh water and straight into the cool room. Look, if it wasn't for COVID, we’d be doing the trips two to three times a week getting fresh flowers in the early hours of the morning. So it's actually been nice not to have to get up early! But, you know, we're still on the phone and on email, messaging all our growers at all hours of the night to source our flowers. It’s a bit harder, but I don’t miss the early mornings. What are the most popular items you sell? Especially during COVID, people are wanting the bright, beautiful bunches. Obviously because we can’t go out and buy gifts, a lot of people are wanting to add on. So candles have been popular and lots of body products, which were always popular in the Capri By Fleur E Scent shop. Another thing that’s been popular in lockdown has been the cocktail mixes. They’ve been a sellout pretty much every week so far. People are going crazy for them. It's just a pre-mix cocktail, but you need to add in your own alcohol. That's been great with the younger ones who want to send a gift to their girlfriends or just a bunch of flowers and a cocktail mix. It's a perfect gift. If there’s anything that’s most popular at the moment, it’s the cocktail mixes and the flowers as a combo. That's something we created for the lockdown. We’ve also been doing balloon packages, which is another thing that's been really popular. We teamed up with Balloon Expressions, which we deal with a lot with our events, and we thought it was a great idea to do something different and support each other during the lockdown and try and spread the love in other ways. Usually we buy gifts for anniversaries and birthdays, but have you noticed that people are buying gifts just because they want to brighten someone's day? Yes. A lot of the card messages we're seeing - some of which are quite sad - say “I’m thinking of you” and “we’ll get through this” and “just wanting to brighten up your day”. We're getting lots and lots of that. Other than the standard birthdays, that's seen a huge increase in those kinds of gifts being sent out, for sure. We always love to spend time with our customers on the phone anyway, but every phone call with people now is that little bit longer because people want to talk to each other. We’ve lost that interaction. So even the customer service side of things has changed as well. We're creating different conversations now, we’re more understanding of each other and we’re all asking each other how the other is. So there is definitely that shift from a customer service perspective. Anything else you’d like to share with us? Capri By Fleur E Scent is closed up in Balgownie, but all my girls have been continuing to work in our warehouse. We closed the doors because we want to keep our staff safe, but the community as well. The good thing is we’ve been very lucky that we’ve still been able to employ the girls and keep jobs. It’s not full time capacity - it's not the same as it was before - but just that interaction with my staff and having them come to work and having that relationship, it really lifts our spirits a lot. It's hard because we've got the two businesses and one of them has just completely come to a holt. But the fact that we've got the shop, it was a blessing, really. Because otherwise it would have been as easy to survive. To learn more about visit Capri By Fleur E Scent. Are you ready to discuss buying, selling or leasing a home in the Fairy Meadow or surrounding suburbs? Contact Joanne on (02) 4285 7400. Considering how you can Right Size Your Home as you move into Aged Care? Register for this short course and learn how to best right size your home when moving into aged care.
Sep 1, 2021
Local organisation: Fairy Meadow Rotary Club
A strong family involvement in Rotary, led Fairy Meadow Rotary Club past president and current new generations director Kerrie Guillaume to join the local club herself 20 years ago. Kerrie, who is also assistant governor of South Illawarra and the District Interact chair, has loved seeing how projects have brought school students through to business owners together within the Fairy Meadow community. She said it was particularly heartening to see during times when locals most needed extra support. When was the Fairy Meadow Rotary Club formed? The club was chartered on 2nd October 1967 and charter night was 1st December 1967. Then the first community service project was in April 1968, which was the planting of 28 trees supplied by Wollongong Council in the gardens at Fairy Meadow Demonstration School. A recently completed project of ours was to refurbish the Peace Garden at Fairy Meadow Demonstration School. This was a Rotary Australia Centenary Project requiring the donation of a Peace Pole and three benches and plants (pictured). Each year on the UN International Day of Peace in September, a celebration assembly near the pole will be held with Rotarians in attendance. The Pole has the wording “May Peace Prevail on Earth” in four different languages chosen by the students at the school. One of which is Dharawal, our local Indigenous language. We have also donated Peace Poles to Towradgi and Cringila public schools. Why did you decide to join Rotary? I have been a Rotarian for 20 years; my father was in Rotary from when I was 5 years old. My husband and sister are also Rotarians. The Rotary family means a great deal to me and through the Rotary network we can respond to national and international disasters in a timely and effective way. For example, drought and bushfire relief was given directly to the towns and more recently during COVID, providing support to local families. At the Fairy Meadow Rotary Club, we really are like family. What are some of your key projects you’ve worked on? There are so many projects we're part of. Some of those include: Life Education A recently deceased club member Ken Bishop was nominated by Ted Noffs to initiate Life Education in the Illawarra and he became the chairman. This led to a project supported by the club to supply a van to the Life Education program and our club has supported this annually for the past 40 years. Young People New Generations is an avenue of Service we have supported since charter. This includes numerous youth exchanges to or from countries such as USA, Finland, Germany, Brazil, Austria and France since 1971. The: Rotary Youth Program of Enrichment for 14-16 years (RYPEN), Rotary Youth Leadership Award for 19-24 years (RYLA) and Model United Nations Assembly (MUNA) have seen many young people develop leadership skills and confidence to enhance their life skills. SCARF (Strategic Community Assistance to Refugee Families) We have supported SCARF since its early years and now have a Memorandum of Understanding which supports individuals and families. Dolly Parton Imagination Library An age-related book is posted every month to children 0-5 years. We support this program through both an Illawarra Clubs project and through 25 SCARF families. Rotaract A service club for over 18s. We have sponsored the Illawarra Rotaract Club which is a community-based club with vibrant members committed to Making a Difference locally and internationally. Living Classrooms We have been involved with multiple schools for the last five years. The Living Classroom Program supports seven schools and is a classroom in the garden. During the COVID 19 lockdown, schools planted up to 400 seedlings in their vegetable gardens and created videos to help their students who were learning remotely grow winter crops in their own backyards. Indigenous Scholars through Australian Rotary Health Supports Indigenous University students throughout their course and we also connect with them personally in the years they are studying. Fairy Meadow Business Network Unfortunately, the lockdowns have slowed this process, but the plan is to establish a network and connect businesses through activities, promotions and projects. What do you have planned for the Fairy Meadow Rotary Club in the coming year? We’re going to do a Mental Health Challenge in October (2021). It’s called Lift the Lid through the Australian Rotary Health. We’re going to promote it through Fairy Meadow and the Rotaracts will promote it too. We’re going to try and do a calendar of challenges. For example, do meditation today, have a virtual cup of coffee with someone, create a healthy meal, and things like that. You can learn more about Lift The Lid on Mental Illness on our Facebook page and Instagram account. Why is the club so important to the local Fairy Meadow community? Looking at Fairy Meadow, it’s developing into a nice little village. It has a village feel about it. Getting involved with more of the businesses, as we have in the last year especially when we did our online raffle, has been wonderful. It’s a great promotion for Fairy Meadow, showing there’s a two-way communication between a community club and businesses. It’s fitting, considering the club was founded by a group of businesses in Fairy Meadow. Why would you encourage others to be part of the club? Fairy Meadow Rotary Club members joined to give back and make a difference. Service Above Self is Rotary International’s motto. It also promotes personal development, leadership skills, public speaking, project planning and working in a team environment. There are 1.2 million members, 35,000 clubs in over 200 countries and territories worldwide. Our District 9675 has 59 clubs from Sydney to Kiama. The networking is efficient and sustainable. For example, we recently were asked to assist a Girls Home in Northern India to acquire two laptops and a printer for home schooling by a local Illawarra group. Through a local Rotary Club contact near the school, we were able to achieve a successful outcome. Polio Plus was started by an Australian in 1982 to eradicate Polio worldwide. The vaccination program is supported by the Australian Government, Bill Gates Foundation and the World Health Organisation and Rotarians worldwide. The recent cases were one in Pakistan and one in Afghanistan. It has been eradicated in India and Africa as well as the rest of the world. It's an enormous achievement to see Polio eradicated in my lifetime. Lastly, The Rotary Foundation (our charity) is the most transparent in the world and many of our supporters are confident that 100% of funds we raise goes directly to the cause. Learn more about becoming a member of the Rotary Club of Fairy Meadow. Are you ready to discuss buying, selling or leasing a home in the Fairy Meadow or surrounding suburbs? Contact Joanne on (02) 4285 7400. Considering how you can Right Size Your Home as you move into Aged Care? Register for this short course and learn how to best right size your home when moving into aged care.
Jul 30, 2021
Local places: Illawarra Rhododendron Gardens
The Illawarra Rhododendron Gardens at Mount Pleasant, with its wandering pathways and blooming flowers underneath magnificent Mount Kiera, is often the picture-perfect spot for weddings and quaint parties. However, the site also has a fascinating history with Bill Mearns, Don Stanton and others having started it in the '60s. Mr Mearns was a former curator of the Wollongong Botanic Gardens. Mr Stanton was manager at Australian Iron and Steel (BHP Port Kembla) and first experimented with growing rhododendrons in his home garden in the 1950s. He travelled to many gardens around the world to create what is now regarded as a world-class rhododendron garden. Booking officer and secretary Colleen Kilendienst said the gardens, which spanned 13 hectares (32 acres), had operated as a charity since 1968, without government funding or financial support. Mrs Kilendienst said it was now managed by a small group of volunteers, including Mr Stanton’s son, David. It also received in-kind contributions from local contractors and businesses. When and how did the Illawarra Rhododendron Gardens start? In 1968 it was started by a few people that were keen to have a rhodo garden here, including the former curator of the gardens, Bill Mearns. He was Scottish and involved in Wollongong’s Botanic Gardens. He, Don Stanton and a few others wanted to start the gardens and they managed to acquire the land in 1968 and from there it grew. Those gentlemen have now passed away. The land was owned by Australian Iron and Steel. The general manager at the time, AA Parish, gave the land to the gardens on a peppercorn lease, which means they were able to get it so they pay no rent and it’s forever. As long as we can maintain it, we have the lease on that land. Australian Iron and Steel owned all of the escarpment at that point, but have since given it to NSW National Parks and Wildlife. So we’re actually tenants of National Parks, but they can’t evict us unless we do something terrible. Who's responsible for the gardens now? It’s run by a small committee of volunteers - I mean really small. There’s less than 10 of us - there’s eight of us right now. When we first started in the 1960s and ‘70s, we had so many volunteers we had to roster them on. Apparently they would turn up and there were just too many, so they rostered people on. But in recent times, there’s just not as many people that are available for volunteering anymore. With only eight volunteers working at the gardens, does that mean members are a concern for you? Yes, dreadfully so. It’s more about having enough workers. I mow the lawns, do the bookings and secretary tasks. David (Stanton) and wife Pat are there every single day weeding and planting. We’ve brought on two new members in the past six months who have been fabulous. We consider them young, because they’re in their early 50s. People are time poor these days and we appreciate any help we can get. We have a young man and his daughter. He’s a stay at home dad, and they come in on Tuesdays. He and his little girl weed for a couple of hours. What can people see in the gardens? What are some of the highlights? We generate money from takings at the gate, so we charge $5 per car to come in. We have weddings in the gardens, so we charge for that as well. That money goes back into the gardens. One of the things we did was put a fence through the middle of the gardens. There’s not enough of us to maintain it all, so we put a $10,000 fence through the middle. On one side we have “back to nature” and rainforest. There are bush walks and things in there. So apart from the tracks, we don’t maintain those gardens anymore. On our side, on the eastern side, we have our pond area (pictured). Right now we’re into magnolia seasons, so have magnolias and daffodils. Give it a month and the rhododendrons will nearly start and then the azaleas. There’s always something on our end and always something foliage wise to enjoy. The duck pond is a big drawcard for most people. Usually in Spring and onwards there are little ducklings. We have one echidna there too and the birds. What sort of feedback do you get from visitors? It’s always positive. Last year when we were closed for a bit of COVID and opened in June again, the amount of people that came down from Sydney to look at the rhodos and just explore the gardens was amazing. We don’t have a coffee shop or anything like that - it’s only toilets. So people are positive about how lovely it is and how they can sit and have a picnic. What plans do you have for the gardens? One of our plans for the Illawarra Rhododendron Gardens is to finish the service road. Every time we get a little bit of money, we’re planning to put it towards doing up our service road that goes up the middle of the gardens. It makes it easier for people to get around. We’ve been fortunate over the years with groups that have given time or money. Like Rotary, Lions or Bluescope. Bluescope gave us the money for a gazebo, which we put up. Bunnings donated a heap of tools and equipment, because they were doing some work for a charity. They do a lot of charity work. They had all the tools left over from that charity event. So they donated all the tools, which were shovels, rakes and that sort of thing. They donated it all to us, which saved us a fortune. I don’t think people realise how much those companies do. One of our plans is to build a sensory garden for the kids to enjoy. We do have tracks into the different gardens, but we try and keep people on the tracks because we don’t want them to go further afield and trash it or the escarpment. We have lots of paths and picnic spots. People have birthday parties there. We only take one booking a day, so if you book a wedding, you’ll be the only wedding there. With COVID, we’ve actually been having funerals there, which we’ve never done. We can close the gates and they can be limited on how many people are in there because it’s outdoors. How have the gardens and what you offer changed? We used to sell rhododendrons, but we just don’t have the people to do that now. The gardens are still beautiful. We don’t care if people know, because we may be the best kept secret in Wollongong. But we would love it if we had more volunteers. It can be someone who wants to just sweep some paths. The jobs we have are not necessarily cleaning the toilets, but making sure there’s toilet paper in there. It’s a nice group of people. As I mentioned, we had two new members come on six months ago and the energy they’ve brought to the group was great. Our oldest volunteer retired last year. She did all our bookings and weeded every Tuesday and Saturday. That’s the days we volunteer - every Tuesday and Saturday mornings - if anyone wants to become a volunteer. We can open on other days if someone couldn’t come during those times. We’re an ageing population. To learn more about the Illawarra Rhododendron Gardens or to become a volunteer, contact Colleen on 0490 069 360. Are you ready to discuss buying, selling or leasing a home in Mount Pleasant, Fairy Meadow or surrounding suburbs? Contact Joanne on (02) 4285 7400. Considering how you can Right Size Your Home as you move into Aged Care? Register for this short course and learn how to best right size your home when moving into aged care.
Jul 2, 2021
Local business: Fraternity Club steeped in history
Started by a group of Italian migrants, the Italian traditions and culture has been a key element of the Fraternity Club in Fairy Meadow’s success. It’s why it’s important for the club to continue to give back to the local community. Today it holds the annual Castagne Day in May with up to 15,000 people and three and four generations of Italians. We spoke to marketing manager Kane Baker about how celebrating the Fairy Meadow venue’s history has paved the way for its success... Why did the Fraternity Club start and who was instrumental in it being launched? It was started in 1952 by a group of European migrant families that came over. A group of mates came over and they wanted a place where all the fellow Italians could come together and socialise. From that, they found a building, which is where we are today. The bricks that were laid for the club are in our hallways downstairs here. On 29th of August 1953, the club was officially opened. We’re very family focused from that and the club still has strong ties to the Italian community. It’s really grown and flourishes over the past 68 years. What were those first years of the Club like? What memories do the local Fairy Meadow people have of the club when it first started? From what I understand, it was pretty much a place where you’d put on your Sunday best. The gentleman would come around and play bocce, relax, have a few drinks and eat food. Women would do their hair up nice and come on down to a different area. Things were more segregated in those days. There were famous dance nights at the club. People would come together on a Friday or Saturday night to pick up new relationships or to relax and dance with friends. There are stories of current members who met their partners 67 years ago on those dance nights. Years later kids would also come along to dance at the disco and the parents would be downstairs. It was very much the social aspect that drove the club. Food, friends and family are strong in Italian culture. Why is it important to the Fairy Meadow community in particular? Wollongong does have a strong Italian community as a whole. But because we have a lot of foundation members who are Italians, it’s kept that community strongly tied to the Fraternity Club. The foundation members have a lunch at Christmas every year - the men and their partners have lunch on us. They’re the real reason the place started. Within the club, they’ve embedded how important that history, tradition and the culture are. We’re known as the Italian club and that’s the lane we’ve stayed in. What type of events do you run at the club? Our biggest is Castagne Day. Traditionally, before COVID, it was our biggest day of the year. We’d get 10,000 to 15,000 people here. It’s all about roasting chestnuts, basically. They’re a traditional Italian thing when the change of season happens. You either roast them or they go out of date. From that event, it’s grown into a massive festival and family fun day. This year we only had the chestnut roasting and we still sold 900kg of chestnuts. That’s when we see the big generations of families come together. You see the nonnas right down to the grandkids - three or four generations coming together to celebrate the traditional Italian day. We’ve also got strong ties with the football (or soccer) community - being Italians. Anything to do with soccer and the Italian national teams, we pack out the club at all times of the day. There can be 500 people here. What else sets the Fraternity Club apart from other clubs in the region, do you think? What differentiates us is our food and beverage. Most clubs steer towards games. They put lots of energy into the games. Not counting last year because of COVID, but 2018-19 and this year, we’re going to have more revenue from our food and beverage than gaming, which is unheard of in club history. It shows that part of the reason we’re so successful is because we’ve invested so much into the venue itself. It’s not unheard of for us to have bookings of 20-30-40 people at a time. That’s when the real family and community feel comes together. They can sit back in a nice relaxed area and enjoy a few hours at the club with family. Our pizzas, I would say, are up there in the top 3 in the area (I’m trying not to be biased, but I’ve tried a few around town). I’ve heard that from other people too. We’ve got a wood fired oven and three Italian pizza chefs who were all trained in Italy, so they bring that experience, knowledge and passion. In the bistro (our Fairy Meadow Italian restaurant) our pastas are huge. Like any Italians, they’re bigger portions than most. That love and passion for food has translated into our dishes. What plans do you have for the club for the coming years as far as development and growth? There are a few renovations in the works. We’re looking to jazz up the function spaces a bit better to attract more commercial functions. We’ve got one of the biggest spaces in the area that sits 500-600 people. So that’s a way for us to attract and hold bigger events, like wedding, engagement parties... We’ve also recently been trying to get more live music. That’s been a bit more challenging with artists and bands the last 12 months not doing much due to COVID. But we want to.show our support for live music and bring bigger acts to the area. And the renovations that we’ve got in the pipeline are to make it bigger. From Thursday to Sunday we sometimes haven’t got enough space to fit people in, so we want to make it more spacious. We’ve come from a traditional background and that’s remained at the forefront of what we do - we are always looking at ways to give back to the local community. We support sports teams and charities with club grants. Mainly we look for ways to give back and reinvest into the club and the local people. Are you ready to discuss buying, selling or leasing a home in Fairy Meadow or surrounding suburbs? Contact Joanne on (02) 4285 7400. Considering how you can Right Size Your Home and perhaps move into Aged Care? Register for this short course and learn how to best right size your home when moving into aged care.
May 28, 2021
Local people: Donald Street, Fairy Meadow resident Vicki Smede
Vicki Smede has a life long love for the Fairy Meadow area. She’s lived most of her life in the seaside located Donald Street in Fairy Meadow and is the first of three generations of the Smede family to attend Towradgi Public School. She spoke to us about her early memories of the area, how it’s changed and why she loves the location so much. You were born and raised in Donald Street, Fairy Meadow and continue to live there. What’s kept you in that same street? I was born at the southern end of Donald Street at No. 45. Mum and Dad moved down from Lithgow and lived with friends in McGrath Street while it was being built. We no longer have it now. Mum and Dad moved away years ago. We moved out for 12 months and then bought back into Donald Street. I’ve been there 68 of my 69 years. I only had a year away. We moved back into Donald Street, because I just knew it was convenient to everything. With wanting a family, the Towradgi School was around the corner. I went to Towradgi School, my five kids went and four of my grandchildren all went to Towradgi Public School. The bus was there for high school, because I used to catch the bus to Wollongong High. A girlfriend and I would come out of our house and look up the street, and if we could see the bus we’d run through the lane and catch it in Storey Street. All the homes were built as two-bedroom Fibro houses. Most people would extend out the back with an enclosed verandah, but you were only allowed to build out nine feet, which is 3 metres. We’ve added on twice or three times. They’re a good size block. What are your memories of the street growing up? I can remember the street getting tarred, because it was a dirt road. We’d ride our bikes in the street. The family only needed one car because we walked or had the bus service. Although, I love it now because I take the grandchildren on the free bus to Bellmore Basin or we go into the library or movies (in Wollongong). When I grew up, Donald Street had the creek and there used to be tadpoles. The creek has all been concreted now. It used to be a cul-de-sac with a tennis court at the end of it, before the units went in. Everybody in the street knew each other, so we had some great families that always worked together. You felt safe with the children walking home with their friends and we had the convenience of the beach and the train. Fairy Meadow Beach wasn't as popular back then, because the surfers preferred Corrimal and Towradgi. We also have the Princes Highway and the back road. So while it’s a really old area, it really was a street that provided a lot of convenience. How else has it changed over the years? One man owned all that land - Donald St and Storey St as well. You only had two plans - the U-shaped frontage or the L-shaped frontage. Mum and Dad built with the U-Shaped frontage. Where Dalton Park is now, that used to be horse riding. Where Champs is - Towradgi Beach Hotel - that used to be a garage in Carters Lane, where Pioneer Sands is now. My Dad had a coal truck, so he used to go there. Then over where the Towradgi Leisure Centre is, there used to be a roller skating rink. Every Sunday you’d hear the music playing. We also had Puckeys (Estate Reserve), which made for a beautiful walk through there. I love the fact they opened that all up for people to walk through. There’s also an old house in there, which is interesting to go and have a look at. He (Courtney Puckey) used to do salt works in there. If you walk through Puckeys, you can come across the remains of the old house, which was owned by Mr Puckey where he did the salt desalination. He used to row his boat across the creek to go to work. It was also lovely to walk with the kids up to the nursery, which is where the Fraternity Club and its car park is now. There was a butcher’s shop on Elliott's Road on the other side of the railway station. All your shops and transport were all there for you. Now we’ve got Coles, Woolies and Aldis, dress shops and sports shops all within walking distance. We had 55 Parrots (furniture shop), which became a huge fruit and vegetable shop and then it became Cabbage Tree Meats. They would even deliver meat to the locals. There used to be a garage. We had a baby health clinic and library, plus another park and tennis courts for the children. Coats and Kahler Chemists are still here. They delivered in those days. There was always a variety in the restaurants - Thai, Japanese, Chinese. There’s been a lot of changes and improvements. Even the railway has changed from having the gate, to having the hump and now they even have a lift there. When the babies were crying, we’d walk up to the highway to get the kids to go to sleep. It would take 10-15 minutes. We have another two members in the street who are originals. One has lived there since he was married and the other’s parents were originals. She moved away, but then returned to look after her parents. You’ve had 3 generations go through Towradgi Public School - you, your children and grandchildren. Was there a particular reason for choosing that school for each generation? The grandkids went to Towradgi too because I have a son and his family who moved into Donald Street as well. Towradgi School was the closest school for us. A few of the kids started at Fairy Meadow Demonstration School, because it’s like 120 years old. Towradgi was a very new school when I started there. What are your memories of the school in the early days? When I attended Towradgi Public School there were 400-500 students, because we had Fairy Meadow hostels. The buildings haven’t really changed. That’s why we had so many classrooms, because we had so many students there. The school opened in 1953 and they had their 60-year celebration in 2013. I remember it always being very friendly. You’d go and play at the park every afternoon in Squires Way. One of the ladies didn’t like children playing in the park, so she got council to erect a huge fence. She didn’t like the balls and everything else going into her yard. Up the street, on Carters Lane, there was a corner shop. Everyone called into the corner shop on their way home. And we always had a corner shop on the corner of Donald Street and Holder Street. My mother wouldn't let them sell me Choo Choo bars. Having the five children there, I was associated with the school for 22 years. I did attend the P&C and worked on canteen. My husband and I helped out a lot with sport and transporting the children. And I even taught knitting there - mobile knitting it was called. Ian Moora was the principal. The children were going on an excursion and were all catching the train. The numbers of students at the school were dwindling. He said to the other parents, “Now, come on, our numbers are dwindling. We need more numbers. We need more people like Mrs Smede. Have a look at her.” And here I was, with four kids at the school and eight months pregnant! My husband installed the electric bell at Towradgi School because they had the old bell and he was the honorary sports master down there too. One day a parachuter landed in the school grounds when the gates were locked. So there was no way for him to get out. I had to go and unlock the gates to let him out or he would have been stuck there. How has the school changed over the years? The buildings haven’t changed, except for a beautiful mural that was done by Jeremy Westblade... who lives in Donald Street. There's always been special needs classes at the school. And they’ve always been integrated into the mainstream classes. I can remember a race - because we had a lot of students from Vietnam at one time - and one of the boys had a bad leg. I can remember all these children clapping and cheering him on during this race, even though he was coming last. It was lovely to see. One student, Lyn McClusky who started at Towradgi with me in 1957, went through Towradgi as a student and then retired from the school as a teacher. The school has always had such a good reputation and the teachers were always warm and approachable. Mr David Worthington was a teacher there and he passed away after starting the school booklet. So I decided to help put that together. I’m glad to have done it all. They always had a community language centre there for people in the community to come in on a Saturday morning. The Wollongong Spinners and Weavers were there from 1985 to 1993. They were always involved in the community. What do you love about living in Fairy Meadow? And why would you recommend it to others? It’s fairly quiet and has easy access to Wollongong and Sydney. You’ve got all the shopping areas. There’s a nice mixture of young families and old families. We’ve also got the cycleway. That got built under the Red Scheme with Council. Council employed people that were unemployed under the Red Scheme and they built the cycleway. And you've got Park Run. You’ve also got the Fraternity Club, which is so family friendly. I remember the little kitchen they started off with. We’ve been members there about 50 years. Really, it's the convenience and friendliness of the people that makes Fairy Meadow such a great area. If you'd like to discuss buying or selling in Donald Street, Fairy Meadow or other streets in the area, contact Joanne on (02) 4285 7400. Considering how you can Right Size your Home and perhaps move into Aged Care? Register for this short course and learn how to best right size your home when moving into aged care.
Apr 30, 2021
Local business: farewell to Hilary's Boutique
One of Fairy Meadow’s iconic fashion businesses, Hilary’s Boutique, closed its doors in April. We spoke to Lynne Marshall about the Fairy Meadow business, it’s history, why it was so important to the community and how it’s changed over the years... Hilary’s Boutique has been an iconic store in Fairy Meadow. Why did you decide to buy it? I’ve owned it for 14 years and it’s been around for 20-odd years. It was at Figtree before that and then it moved to Fairy Meadow. I bought it off Hilary DeJong 14 years ago. Hilary wanted to retire. My husband retired and I couldn’t think of anything worse, so we bought it. I’d worked there six or seven years before I bought it. Why was the business moved from Figtree to Fairy Meadow? It was moved to Figtree to get out of the shopping centre rents, which were just exorbitant. Fairy Meadow was starting to become a bit of a destination. Other businesses were moving out there. What do you remember of the early days of the business? I put my own slant on things when I bought it. I wanted to do certain things and have different styles. Things have changed over the years as people started to travel a lot more. There was a lot more cruising and those types of holidays. Joseph Robkoff would have been my main label. It was a Canadian label and it fitted the real woman. It was a great label, and they were wonderful to work with. They were a great company that looked after us. There were lots of other ones in between and some that we stocked before they came to Australia and were stocked in-house. Every season is different and so you look at the fashion and look at what customers you have. I had very loyal customers who I had for many years. I’m a hairdresser by trade and was in Sydney for many years. Then we moved down here, because my husband was in construction. I decided I wanted to do something different. So I worked in a bank and then this come up with Hilary’s and thought, that will be different - let’s try it. And I loved every minute of it. What are some memorable moments or highlights from throughout the history of the Fairy Meadow business? The friendships I made over the years. I enjoyed styling and dressing people for occasions. I used to say you could pay for stylists or you can come to me and I’ll do it for nothing at Hilary's Boutique. I enjoy dressing people and I enjoy suggesting things and making sure people are stepping out of the square sometimes. I found that really rewarding. How has the business changed over the years? COVID was the only thing we had to shift with. Other than that, it seemed to roll along nicely. I used to thoroughly enjoy the buying and going to Sydney or to expos. It was my hobby. That’s how I looked at it - it was my baby and my identity really. I got to put my own stamp on it and I was really proud of myself for that. If you enjoy what you’re doing, you usually succeed. I met some very nice people. I like the one on one with people - I think that’s my forte in life is to chat with people and get to know them. What appealed to people about Hilary's? People were drawn to the labels but also the service. It became a personal thing. I gave everybody my all. People would always thank me for dressing me or for suggesting things they may not normally wear. People would come from Sydney, from down the coast and from the local Fairy Meadow area. Fairy Meadow became a destination once it grew with coffee shops. So people would have a day out there. At one stage we had about six dress shops - everyone was moving there. You could come out and enjoy a coffee or people would come into the store to chat. If they had a wedding on or an event, they’d come in. KC’s Shoes came and then Hilary’s, so people started to think “oh, well, there must be something in the air there”. So a few more businesses came to try it. You know, it takes a few. And I think people want to get out of shopping centres. What did you love about working within the Fairy Meadow community? Why would you recommend the area to others? It’s a wonderful area with very friendly and helpful people. We were a community. That showed when I left, Different businesses came through with best wishes and presents. Everybody knows everybody, so there’s definitely a strong community there. It supports everybody. What prompted you to retire? I survived COVID quite well. I had been trying to sell before then. I thought it was time, especially at my age. My husband wanted to do a bit more travelling and be with the grandchildren. COVID did change my direction and my perception on life. I was doing the strategy plan for the shop and I thought “Oh, do I really need this?” I re-evaluated everything and knew I had to make a decision. I thought I’ve got to do it in between seasons. Winter is always a tough season anyway. So I made the call and that was it. It was a very hard decision, I must say. It was very hard to hand the keys over to the agent. That was very emotional. It’s the end of an era, really. I rang Hilary and said “well, it’s the end of Hilary’s”. I still keep in touch with her and we do breakfasts with all the girls we used to work with. We’re all still friends.. So what am I going to do with myself? Well, play golf, I suppose (laughs). I’m going to miss everybody. Everyone who used to pass by and call in, or they’d say hellos as they walked by. Everyone was so friendly. So now I’ll be going into town to have coffee with everyone and annoying them (laughs). Let us know if you have a Fairy Meadow business or local people story to share as part of the series. And if you’re looking to relocate to Fairy Meadow, buy in the area, have a well loved Fairy Meadow home you’re looking to sell or want to know more about our Fairy Meadow businesses and community, call Joanne on 0426 264 771.