AFTER decades at number five Raglan Street South, Ballarat Legacy House has been renovated, ready to support veteran families for generations to come.<\/p>\n
Billmac Building\u2019s Joel Dodd refreshed the home base of Ballarat Legacy over four to five months, before it was officially reopened last Thursday, 25 March by Rick Cranna, the chair of Legacy Australia.<\/p>\n
Ballarat Legacy president Jeremy Bannister said the former run-down House has been transformed, previously \u201cdesperate for a spruce-up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Only one wall has been moved, yet the space feels larger and more inviting.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve ended up with a much lighter, brighter and friendlier space with an enormous amount of storage,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cFive Raglan Street south has been the home of Ballarat Legacy for the last 60 years, and has done an admirable job in that time, providing a central, easily accessible base for our Legacy families, and of course, legatees.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut unfortunately, its 1920s layout and d\u00e9cor were well and truly beginning to show their age. It was dark, cold in winter, draughty, hot in summer, and had an odd layout… so the builders have brought it into the 21st century.\u201d<\/p>\n
He added that the Lillingston Charitable Trust has been \u201cexceedingly generous\u201d during the process.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Trust made a large welfare donation three years ago, and now funds that we\u2019ve specified for these capital works. We are very grateful for their support,\u201d Mr Bannister said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have a much more pleasant meeting place for our families and Legatees, and our hardworking staff now have a wonderful working space.\u201d<\/p>\n
Morgan Murphy is a trustee of the late Irene and Les Lillingston\u2019s Trust. Mr Lillingston was a Rat of Tobruk.<\/p>\n
\u201cKnowing of the support that Legacy provided for Irene after Les died, we looked at what we could do to help Legacy,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe discussed the conditions they were working in at Raglan Street, and looked further into how we could bring a little bit more new life to Legacy. We\u2019re very pleased that we\u2019ve been able to make a contribution to bring it to this stage.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope it means a lot more younger people will get involved, because the need is still there. The establishment you have here is welcoming to anyone that wants to come and participate. It\u2019s amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Cranna was honoured to reopen the \u201cbeautiful renovations,\u201d travelling down from Sydney to be at the event.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis building now reflects and recognises the professional organisation Ballarat Legacy is, and has been over almost 100 years, from their inception in February, 1926,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a poignant reminder to the Ballarat community that Ballarat Legacy stands ready to support our veteran families now, and well into the future.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe club was first established to provide funding for work for diggers that had returned from the First World War, and has been a major influence and leader in the development of Legacy in Australia.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Laurel Club community was founded within Ballarat Legacy, which led to the \u201cmost important\u201d Widows\u2019 Clubs.<\/p>\n
Ballarat Legacy was the first group to help children of deceased ex-servicepeople. They launched the first camps for boys of Legacy families, and started the girls\u2019 Legacy Club movement.<\/p>\n
\u201cJunior legatee development is a very important part of the work that Ballarat Legacy does, and has done for almost 100 years, so I\u2019m pleased that we at Legacy Australia have been able to help with some of the funding in the last few years, and that will continue,\u201d Mr Cranna said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
AFTER decades at number five Raglan Street South, Ballarat Legacy House has been renovated, ready to support veteran families for generations to come. Billmac Building\u2019s Joel Dodd refreshed the home base of Ballarat Legacy over four to five months, before it was officially reopened last Thursday, 25 March by Rick Cranna, the chair of Legacy […]<\/p>\n