Lennox expo to connect community groups with volunteers

A NEW community expo will aim to revive Ballina Shire community groups in desperate need of volunteers.

The Lennox Head Community Connections Expo will focus on groups who are looking to recruit new members.

It will be held at the Lennox Head Cultural Centre on Saturday, February 8.

It is the brainchild of Ballina Shire B ward councillors Michelle Bailey, Kiri Dicker and Eva Ramsey.

The event comes after the local Country Women’s Association branch at Lennox Head disbanded last year.

The Christmas carols at Williams Reserve were also cancelled, with a lack of volunteers cited as one of the main reasons.

“A lot of these groups are starting to run out of volunteers,” Cr Ramsey said.

“This is a chance for people to come down and see what’s out there.

We have a lot of new people that have moved to the area; they simply might not know how much is out there.”

The local choir, community gardens, land care, heritage committee, and a variety of sports clubs will be at the event.

More groups are being encouraged to register for a stall.

They can bring props and equipment to showcase what they have to offer.

Groups can be from service organisations, special interest clubs, sport, residents’ associations, and chambers of commerce.

The return of the Christmas carols is expected to be one of the major talking points.

“That’s a big one, hopefully we get some conversations going towards bringing that back,” Cr Ramsey said.

“Another big thing is communication and how we can be kept in the loop with what’s going on.

Some of the groups can be difficult to get in contact with.

It just might be that positions in the club have changed and the new group has not updated the contact details.

We’re reaching out to find out what these groups offer and what we can do to assist.”

The free event runs from 9am to noon, with registration forms available on the expo’s Facebook page.