Mullumbimby golfer Matthew Laverty receives OAM after helping raise $50 million for charities

PROFESSIONAL golfer Matthew Laverty has always believed in giving back, but the importance of that commitment became even clearer when his brother Peter was involved in a near-fatal accident.

The incident inspired the creation of the annual Laverty Family Charity Golf Day at Mullumbimby Golf Club, which raises money for the Brunswick Valley Rescue Squad that helped save Peter’s life.

It is one of countless charitable initiatives the long-time Mullumbimby local has supported over the past 25 years, a contribution that has earned him an Order of Australia Medal (OAM) for service to the community through charitable initiatives in the 2026 King’s Birthday Honours.

“It’s certainly a great honour,” the 57-year-old said. “It’s something that you never aspire to but when you get it it’s a nice feeling.”

Laverty and his business partner Gary Dawson founded The Charity Challenge in 2003 after identifying a need for a platform that would allow individuals and corporations to participate in golf events at some of Australia’s premier courses while raising money for worthy causes.

Over the past two decades, the organisation has raised around $50m, often focusing on lesser-known charities where donations can have a greater impact than they might at larger, more established organisations.

Laverty is also the founder and managing director of Laverty Golf, which delivers corporate golf events, golf tours and VIP golf experiences throughout the country, and an ambassador for Leukodystrophy Australia after becoming involved through colleague Earl Schonberger, whose daughter Jess lives with the disease that attacks the body’s central nervous system.

“It’s a terrible, terrible disease,” Laverty said. “Jess hasn’t moved in 20 years but every night when they put her to bed she smiles.”

Laverty often works closely with high-profile sporting identities including former Australian cricketer Mark ‘Tubby’ Taylor, founder of the Sporting Chance Cancer Foundation, and rugby league great and Wests Tigers coach Benji Marshall, a keen golfer who has supported the organisation for many years.

“I’m so proud of Matthew for achieving this award for his contributions to multiple charities,” Marshall said. “He’s invited me to a lot of their events and to see what they do week in week out to change people’s lives is pretty phenomenal.”

Community service runs in the family. Laverty’s grandmother, Dot Mules, was awarded an OAM for her outstanding contribution to the Far North Coast, including her pioneering work introducing Meals on Wheels to the region.

His mother, Gae Laverty, continued the tradition through more than 30 years of service with Meals on Wheels in the Brunswick Heads area, including a stint as president of the organisation.

His grandfather, Bob Mules, served as Byron Shire president and played an important role in local government during a period of significant growth and development in the 1970s.

For Laverty, helping others has never been about recognition.

But after decades of quietly supporting causes large and small, the honour acknowledges a lifetime spent making a difference in the community.