Directors Report May 2024

Since I joined the Workers’ Club Board in 2020, one of the things I’ve enjoyed most is being the liaison director for my sub clubs.

The sub clubs are the sporting and social groups who wear our colours and represent us in activities like soccer, netball, cricket and swimming. There are also clubs centred around non-sporting pursuits like gardening.

Some of the sub clubs are older than the Workers’ Club itself – many of the 240 foundation members came from local sporting clubs like soccer, cricket and golf, and brought those clubs into the Workers’ when it was founded in 1962. In many registered clubs, the directors have little to do with their sub clubs. Relations between the club and sub club are managed by staff. The sub clubs rarely, if ever, hear from a member of the board let alone see a director at one of their meetings.

At the Workers’ each director is assigned several sub clubs. I look after the Netball, Men’s Golf, Little Athletics and Revesby
Writers sub clubs. Directors are expected to meet with the sub clubs regularly and provide a conduit between the board and the sub club members. This keeps the concerns of the sub clubs front and centre for the board.

There are so many sub clubs in the Workers’ that you can pretty much pick any sport and we have a sub club for you. But one area where we might be lacking a bit is in the arts.

We have our wonderful Revesby Writers who meet on the first Saturday of every month. Every meeting each member brings a new piece, usually on an assigned theme, to read to the group. It’s a great way for local writers to keep going and get feedback on their writing.

When I was a kid we had a Revesby Workers’ Youth Drama Club. Run by Noelene and her husband, there was a junior kids and senior kids classes on weekends. The students would learn acting and confidence skills and build towards a performance in the school holidays. Once or twice a year they put on a pantomime that was on every day for a week
during the holidays. These were extremely popular with parents struggling for holiday activities (and the kids loved them too).

I’d love to see more arts groups come to the club. Acting, music, reading, painting, film, book clubs – I’m open to any
ideas. Communities can’t live on sports alone – we need more places where members whose interests lay elsewhere can find other like-minded people.

They can start small – many of our sub clubs are just a group of people meeting once a month in a room to talk about their common interest. But if enough people join, the club
has many ways of supporting and helping groups grow. I’d love to see the Club with as many arts based sub clubs as we have wonderful sports sub clubs.

If you have any ideas, please email me at badenk@rwc.org.au.

Baden Kirgan, Director

Hard to believe we are now in May, what a start to 2024.

It’s now been 7 months since being elected as a Director at Revesby Workers’ Club and I still pinch myself and feel extremely honoured to represent such an iconic brand, an Organisation that has members and staff at the forefront of every decision that is made.

One of my first official events was the Seniors Christmas Concert held in the Auditorium on the 12^th December 2023. What a great afternoon joined by over 400 members with first-class entertainment in what was one of the last events in the Auditorium as we once knew it.

With all function rooms being closed for most of the year due to major renovation and refurbishment we are looking forward to the new look with works due for completion in October 2024.

2024 has seen many great community initiatives take place either by our Revesby Workers’ staff or some of our Sub Club that are all run by dedicated volunteers.

Congratulations to Christine Butters President of Revesby Workers Little Athletics and the team of volunteers on the opening of their new facility at Kelso North a venue that will serve for many years to come.

As many of our Summer Sports wrap up our Winter sports are in full flight Revesby Workers, Netball, and Football (Soccer) just to name a couple.

Revesby Workers Football Club which I’m the Liaison Director has teamed up with Sydney FC to run a Program dedicated to Girls 12 to 15.  The program (She Can) is not all about Football it also covers many topics that face young women and provides them with guidance and skills in Communication, Leadership and Confidence.

I joined Club Staff recently attending a Club Wide Meeting lead by our Executive Manager, People & Culture Sharyn Buhagiar who provided key updates with the team and some refresher compliance training.

Thank you to everybody that visited the Club and attended our ceremony to pay respects on ANZAC Day it was truly a fantastic turnout and one of my favourite events on the calendar.

This issue of the Journal covers so many great events happening throughout the club. I’m looking forward to continuing to catch up with members around the club over the coming months.

Daniel Kurtz, Director

Director Reports November 2023

A year has flown by since I had the honour to be elected to the Board of our club. Having been involved in Revesby Workers since a young age in Cricket and Snooker, and being a long-term member, I have taken great pleasure in seeing first hand that past values and thinking remain at the forefront of decision making.

I have enjoyed catching up with the various sub-clubs through the year, and am looking forward to building these relationships and providing support wherever possible. These clubs provide a special means for community connection and friendship amongst our members and often represent a significant part of people’s lives, sometimes from generation to generation within families.

As a Director I am also thankful to see in detail the significant level of past and ongoing commitment of the Board to providing substantial funds to the wider community. Every member who has been involved in Charity related activities deserve congratulations.

In the words of the modern philosopher Taylor Swift “This is a new year. A new beginning. And things will change.” We are all of course subject to the impacts of change, and there is certainly a fair bit of it in the air; Whether an increasingly digital world, changes in regulation affecting the industry, or evolving social expectations and demands. The Board will be alert in preparing to meet the challenges ahead, and I find it hard to imagine a better equipped team with respect to our excellent Staff and Management under the leadership of CEO Scott.

I, along with hopefully all members, am looking forward to exciting developments ahead, including the renovated auditorium. A new caterer has come on board at the newly named Sports Club at Spence Street from mid-October; members might check it out and even combine a meal with a dabble of twilight lawn bowls on Friday afternoons.

As the year comes towards an end, special thoughts go out to the families, friends and co-workers who have lost a loved one during the year.

I wish everyone a happy and healthy Christmas and New Year.

David Raper, Director

I would like to take the opportunity to congratulate all the HSC students (and their parents) who have completed their studies and are waiting expectantly for their exam and ATAR results and are taking the first steps to enter exciting new career paths, training and study options.

The Revesby Workers’ Club has for many years supported local students to achieve their goals through its Tertiary Scholarship Program and I urge all current HSC students whose parents are RWC members to take advantage of the opportunity to apply for one of our scholarships.  Applications open 1 December 2023 and close on 31 January 2023. Application packs can be requested from the Club’s Executive Assistant via email at tenielles@rwc.org.au.

To all other students I wish them a great holiday and rest over the holidays (Wednesday 20 December to Monday 29 January 2024) so that they can be ready for the new school year. The Club has a range of activities available for younger people during their holidays such as Zone Bowling and Flip Out located upstairs from the Brett Street entrance.

Revesby Workers’ Club continues to offer the Christmas activities as it did last year, including:

• Christmas Day Lunches, including a ‘At Home’ option
• Santa, Pet and Sensitive Photos sessions
• Workers’ Giving Tree and Health Mates Food Drive, support Padstow Community Care
• Christmas Toy and Ham & Pork Raffles

I would like to wish everyone a safe Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Linda Downey, Director

Dear Members,

With the end of financial year now behind us, we look towards the second half of the calendar year with many of us starting the countdown towards the Christmas break.  We are happy to report that Revesby Workers’ Club recorded a profit of $xx, detail of which is outlined in the Financial Report, but more importantly that this enables our Club to continue to provide funding to our sub-clubs, invest in education through our school subsidy and scholarship program, consider sponsorships for charities and fundraising events and community projects to really give back to our members and wider Community.

Vale William Pearce (Foundation Member #68)

It is great sadness that we advise our members of the passing of Foundation Member William “Bill” Pearce on 3 July 2023 aged 97. Bill was one of the Club’s 8 remaining Foundation Members and living local, he still frequented the Club when he was able.

As a young married man having moved into Sphinx Avenue with his wife Jean, both Bill and Jean established themselves in the community where Bill became a member of the Workers Club.  He enjoyed socialising in the Sports Bar, playing snooker and darts and always had a bet on a Saturday with friends. When Bill reached retirement age, he celebrated with his family in the old dining room upstairs in the Club as you can see highlighted in the photo below. Upon losing his wife Jean in 1991, Bill became a regular golfer and with that came beers after each game in the Sports Bar with his golf buddies. The Club became such a great support for Bill in his later years since becoming a widow.

Bill was always very proud of the Revesby Workers’ Club, acknowledging the work within the community that it did and he always sang the praises of the staff and Directors and felt very proud to be part of the history and day to day life of such a great Community Club.

Bill’s retirement dinner with family in 1981. Bill is seated on the right side, far back, age 55. 

Vale Marijana Projcheski

31/10/1986 – 10/7/2023
A new mother, beloved wife and friend to many.

It is with heavy heart that we inform our Revesby Community of the sudden passing of Marijana Projcheski.

Many would remember her welcoming face as she greeted and farewelled you as part of our Guest Relations Team.

She will be remembered fondly and sadly leaves behind her husband Nick and month-old twin boys, Hunter and Hayden.

Marijana with her twin boys.

Notice of General Meeting – 3 October 2023 (BY-ELECTION)

Included in this Journal, members will find a Notice of General Meeting.

Under Rule 63 of the Revesby Workers’ Club Constitution, the Board of Directors call for a General Meeting to be held on Tuesday, 3 October 2023 for the purposes of undertaking a By-Election to fill the casual vacancy on the Board of Revesby Workers’ Club following the resignation of previous Director Kylie Wilkinson.

Auditorium And Functions Renovations

As briefly mentioned in our previous Executive Report, the Board of Directors were reviewing a proposal for a much-needed renovation to our Auditorium and Functions area.  We can confirm that this proposal has since been approved and that these renovations are due to commence in January 2024.

Due to the volume of works being undertaken, the renovations are expected to take approximately 9 months meaning the Whitlam Theatre, Waratah, Acacia and Grevillia rooms will be unavailable from January through to September 2024.

We understand a closure of the functions area for such an extended period will put strain on the remaining function spaces within the Club and while our functions team will endeavour to look after as many bookings as possible, we appreciate your understanding during this time is appreciated.

We are excited to share the concept images below to give members an idea of our vision and to share what we believe will be a state of the art, modern, future focussed area for our members to enjoy in the future.

2023 ClubGRANTS

2023 Canterbury Bankstown Council run ClubGRANTS (Category 1) were open for applications from Tuesday 14 March 2023 and closed on Friday 21 April 2023.

163 applications were received and reviewed by the ClubGRANTS Committee with 21 being wholly or partly funded by Revesby Workers’ Club. These organisations include:

• Bankstown City Aged Care – Creating a home like environment in aged care
• Bankstown District Uniting Church – English Second Language Classes for Refugees and Asylum Seekers
• Bankstown Koori Elders Group – Ceramic and Aboriginal cultural projects
• Biyani House – Revesby Women’s Shelter – Operations Support
• Broderick Gillawarna School – Smell, touch, look and listen – Sensory Garden
• Caroline Chisholm School – Outdoor pool shade cover structure
• Chester Hill Neighbourhood Centre – Resources for family on-line cooking classes
• Coolaburoo Neighbourhood Centre – Let’s extend the Counselling support to Family and DV Victims
• Headway Adult Development Program Inc – Serving Canterbury Bankstown for 40 years (Cooling for Life Edition)
• Mercy Works Ltd – Mercy Connect – Mentoring Program for Refugee and Asylum Seeker Students
• Morris Children’s Fund Inc – Music Therapy at 3 schools that cater for children with a disability
• Nanghami Ngallia Aboriginal Corporation – Nanghami Ngallia Outreach Program
• Our National Heart Pty Ltd – Heart of the Nation Communities
• Revesby Uniting Church – Kidsplay @ Revesby
• Richmond PRA – Headspace Hangout
• St Luke the Evangelist Parish Church Revesby – The Perfect Blend
• St Vincent De Paul Society – Vinnies Bankstown Support Centre (New Freezer for food provisions)
• The Multicultural Network – Seniors Aged Care Program
• The Potters House Revesby – Revesby 180
• Whitlam Institute – Civics and Citizenship for Young Australians
• Women’s Justice Network – My Way Youth Mentoring

All organisations who were successful in receiving whole or part funding have been invited to attend a ClubGRANTS presentation ceremony at Bankstown Sports Club on Friday, 4 August 2023.

Annual General Meeting

A copy of the 2023 Notice of Annual General Meeting also included within.  Please note our AGM is scheduled for Sunday, 29 October 2022 at 10am and will be held on the Club’s premises.

If you have any questions for the AGM, please ensure they are received in writing 7 business days prior to the meeting.

We look forward to our members’ attendance in support of the Club.