Friendship and support at heart of VIEW club milestone

TWIN Towns Day VIEW Club celebrated 58 years of friendship, fundraising and community support at South Tweed Sports Club recently, with members joined by national president of VIEW Clubs of Australia Lorraine Thomson for the occasion.

The club marked the milestone by reflecting on nearly six decades of community connection and fundraising support for disadvantaged students through The Smith Family, alongside a performance by entertainer George Harvey.

Speaking at the event, Thomson said she felt proud to represent the organisation nationally, with members from other local VIEW clubs also attending the celebration.

“I feel very proud,” she said.

“I represent 13,000 ladies across Australia with 265 VIEW clubs.

“And there are four VIEW clubs here today.”

VIEW, which stands for Voice, Interests and Education of Women, is one of the largest community supporters of The Smith Family, raising funds to assist disadvantaged students through the Learning for Life program, which provides long-term educational sponsorship.

“VIEW Clubs of Australia is the largest community supporter of The Smith Family,” Thomson said.

 

“There are corporate, obviously, areas, but VIEW Clubs of Australia is the largest of the community support.

“And we fundraise and sponsor disadvantaged students in education.”

Thomson said the support provided through The Smith Family extended beyond school-based learning.

“That support is three-pronged,” she said.

“So, it’s support for their education, it’s support for the families and a learning area outside the school as well.”

She said one of the organisation’s challenges moving forward is attracting younger women to join clubs across Australia.

“Change is a big thing with ladies,” Thomson said.

“And the issue that we have across the board, across Australia, of course, is the age factor.

“And can I just say, we are vibrant as aged ladies, but the change, of course, is encouraging younger ladies to come in.”

Thomson said economic pressures had made it more difficult for younger women to participate.

“Of course, the issue with that is the economy,” she said.

“Ladies work longer. They babysit now.”

“So, it’s difficult to encourage that younger group.”

 

Despite the challenges, Thomson said VIEW clubs continued to play an important role in fostering friendship and connection within communities.

“It’s important to be welcoming,” she said.

“When anybody arrives at a VIEW Club, the welcoming and the respect is just so important.”

Twin Towns Day VIEW Club president Lorraine Gilkison said the club also played an important role as a social and welfare support network for women in the community.

“With the ladies, a lot of them are on their own and so by coming and being part of the club, they’re absorbed into the club and they form friendships,” she said.

Gilkison said the club maintained a strong welfare network, with members regularly checking in on one another during periods of illness or hospitalisation.

“We have a welfare officer who keeps in touch with everyone,” she said.

“So from time to time people have operations and medical things that they have to deal with, and she contacts them and we sign cards and send them out to the members.

“We make sure they know they’re being thought of and supported while they recover.”