Community spirit shines at Bellarine Springs Retirement Village

RESIDENTS at the Bellarine Springs Retirement Village have rallied around the Drysdale Family Support Foodbank, donating more than $4,000 to those in need.

Funds were raised by silent auction and raffle, with several local businesses contributing items valued at more than $1,400 to ensure the event’s success.

Now in its third year, the Foodbank fundraiser has become an annual occurrence at the village.

Event organiser and Bellarine Springs resident Alan Nettley said it had always been important to him to give back to the community.

“A lot of people need help, and we love giving it,” he said.

He said he was grateful for the ongoing support of local businesses, particularly with many also doing it tough this year.

Residents Geoff Turner and Judith Jones have also been organising an annual food collection around the village for the past four years.

Mr Turner said that three car loads worth of food had been donated to the Foodbank this year, totalling approximately $3,000.

“It’s all come the village. It makes you proud to live here,” he said.

Ms Jones said it wasn’t just food that the residents had donated with the village’s craft group also contributing knitted teddy bears to accompany weekly food hampers distributed by the Foodbank.

Drysdale Foodbank co-ordinator Jake Hogendoorn said the donation from Bellarine Springs Retirement Village had really made a difference.

“It really does mean a lot to us.

“[This donation] helps us in two ways. It’s helps us put more food on the shelf at Christmas time and it helps us put our Christmas hampers together.”

Pastor Hogendoorn said the Foodbank had seen an 18 per cent increase in requests for help over the past year, with new families seeking support every week.

“We’ve seen probably five or six more families every week this year to what we were seeing last year.”

“We operate about 50 weeks of the year and we’re had about 65 new families through.”

But, he said, while many more people in the community were doing it tough at the moment, “it’s like the tough times are bringing out the best in people”.

“As people become more and more aware that there are people out there doing it tough, there are more and more people who actually want to get in and do something about it and that’s what we’re seeing.

“We’ve had a lot of our clients just lately in tears because of what we’re able to give them.”

If you’d like to make a donation to the Drysdale Family Support Foodbank, head to dcchurch.org.au/family-support.