Your Club steps up to support the flood recovery
In times of disaster and hardship, the North Queensland community has an uncanny knack for pulling together – it’s something about our enduring spirit, always ready to stand together when the time calls for it. The Townsville Floods of 2019 have been no exception – through challenging circumstances, our great community has been determined to come back stronger than ever.
For the Cowboys Leagues Club, our Mission Statement has always been Our People, Our Team, Our Community and this has certainly resonated in recent times. Almost every member of the community has been affected in some way, shape or form by the recent floods, and your Club has been no exception. Whilst we were lucky enough to not sustain substantial building damage, numerous members of our incredible team of staff and loyal members have endured severe flooding in their homes.
For General Manager Clint Williams, this was a catalyst in ensuring that the Club continued to strive in supporting the community that has always supported us.
“The Townsville Floods have not only hit our community hard, but also our own work “family” –many of whom have been severely affected by this major weather event. Moving forward, we will be trying to support our team members and all members of the North Queensland community as much as we can,” Clint stated.
Part of these efforts has already involved a special partnership with Team Rubicon Australia, a veteran-led disaster response organization who have been helping to clean houses, fix roofs, move furniture and complete damage assessments of flood affected residents as part of Operation Gordon.
Team Rubicon reached out to the Club shortly after the flood event in the hope of attracting more volunteers in their ranks to assist with the cleanup. It only took one appeal for help distributed online to all staff and members to result in an incredible show of community spirit on Saturday 23rd February. Scores of staff and members of the Cowboys Leagues Club arrived at the Team Rubicon base ready to help out with whatever mission they were given. From collecting rubbish moved by the flood waters, to assisting with cleaning flood damaged homes and to helping local businesses and organisations, all staff and members put in an incredible day of volunteering work.
“Our members and staff were proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with our veterans and Team Rubicon volunteers … cleaning houses, fixing roofs, moving furniture and damage assessment. I am extremely proud of the service we provided to the community on that day,” Clint said.
Long serving Club receptionist, Tania Rooney, was also grateful for the opportunity to help support the North Queensland community and Team Rubicon.
“I was absolutely in awe of the incredible work being done by Team Rubicon throughout Townsville after the floods, and it was a real honour to work alongside these dedicated volunteers, veterans and first responders. I love our members and being a Townsville born and bred local I’m just glad I could give back something to the community in such challenging times,” Tania said.
In addition to the Team Rubicon partnership, the Club is also offering a discounted membership option, with all proceeds directly towards the Townsville flood recovery. Operations Coordinator Jennifer Unwin is urging members to spread the word.
“We encourage all of our members let their friends and family know about this great deal, and play a small role in helping put our community back together again. Every little bit helps, and we have even had pre-existing members simply offer to donate money in order to play their part. It’s amazing to see that despite such adversity, our community can achieve amazing things,” Jennifer said.