{"id":34276,"date":"2020-08-27T00:25:01","date_gmt":"2020-08-26T14:25:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/bellarinetimes\/?p=34276"},"modified":"2020-08-31T09:33:18","modified_gmt":"2020-08-30T23:33:18","slug":"operator-overwhelmed-by-support","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/bellarinetimes\/news\/operator-overwhelmed-by-support\/","title":{"rendered":"The Blues Train operator overwhelmed by community support"},"content":{"rendered":"

A FUNDRAISING campaign to save The Blues Train from possible extinction has this week topped $30,000 on the way to a $70,000 target.
\nBlues Train operator Hugo T. Armstrong said he had been heartened by the support he received from local people and businesses after making what he said was a \u201ctough decision\u2019\u2019 to go public with the GoFundMe campaign<\/a> and ask for help, but the response had been \u201cpretty special.\u2019\u2019
\n\u201cIt\u2019s been an overwhelming result – last Thursday with the publicity in the Bellarine Times<\/em> was our biggest day of donations,\u2019\u2019 he said this week.
\n\u201cWe even had a donation from a business here in Queenscliff that I know has been hit hard as a result of COVID-19 – they benefit from visitors when The Blues Train is running.\u2019\u2019
\nMr Armstrong said he was working through the process of applying for various government grants and support packages, which he described as a \u201ccomplex and difficult\u2019\u2019 task.
\n\u201cAll the grants are competitive and are not hardship-based.
\n\u201cThey are capped and it\u2019s a bit of a lucky dip.\u2019\u2019
\nDespite the state of flux and with no fixed timeline for a possible return to the rails, Mr Armstrong said he and his team were working through a re-engagement strategy to keep people connected while restrictions are still in place.
\n\u201cWe\u2019ve had to use a little bit of crystal ball… given that we are all still unsure about the possibility of gatherings at Christmas it\u2019s safe to assume that February or March next year might be the earliest we could get up and running again.
\n\u201cWe\u2019ve been lucky to have had so many messages of support from people who have previously been on The Blues Train, but also from people who had it on their bucket list before COVID-19 hit.
\n\u201cTo hear from those people who want to make sure they can take part in the experience for the first time in the future has been amazing.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A FUNDRAISING campaign to save The Blues Train from possible extinction has this week topped $30,000 on the way to a $70,000 target. Blues Train operator Hugo T. Armstrong said he had been heartened by the support he received from local people and businesses after making what he said was a \u201ctough decision\u2019\u2019 to go […]<\/p>\n

Read More…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":156,"featured_media":34277,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-34276","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe Blues Train operator overwhelmed by community support - Bellarine Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/bellarinetimes\/news\/operator-overwhelmed-by-support\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Blues Train operator overwhelmed by community support - Bellarine Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A FUNDRAISING campaign to save The Blues Train from possible extinction has this week topped $30,000 on the way to a $70,000 target. 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