OPENING DAY & VERY SPECIAL KIDS DAY 2023
With the benefit of the Paky Dome and some help from the weather Gods, play continued throughout winter at the Pakenham Bowls Club – nevertheless, the commencement of the new 2023-2024 season was marked on Saturday 2 September with the traditional opening day. For the second year, this event was conducted in conjunction with the annual charity day held in support of Very Special Kids (VSK).
VSK was established in 1985 to help care for children with life threatening conditions by providing a hospice and a range of family support services to sick children and their families. The assistance provided includes counselling and other professional services, sibling support (very important when an ill child requires much of the parents’ time) and importantly, the provision of respite care and is available along the entire journey from diagnosis through to recovery or (sadly) bereavement. The charity currently assists over 1000 Victorian families annually, including several in the Pakenham area.
Although VSK is now partially Government funded, it nevertheless relies heavily on donations and other fund raising activities to provide approximately three quarters of the finances it requires annually in order to maintain its services. Any increases in government funding are quickly swallowed up as the service expands to include more families who previously would not have received assistance. The VSK Day held at Pakenham Bowls Club is intended to be a fun social tournament which helps in a small way to raise funds for this very important and valuable service.
As has been the case since the first VSK Day, the charity was represented by dedicated volunteer, Sharon King who despite being otherwise engaged in full time employment, makes the time to spend the best part of a day at the club, informing members of the important work done by VSK, selling their small range of merchandise and generally joining in the fun, although this year she did not dress up in her “Peppa Pig” outfit. However she did arrange for the iconic giant pink piggy bank to be parked at the club for the day. Sharon now lives in Sheparton and drove all the way down to Pakenham for the event – how’s that for dedication?
Prior to the commencement of proceedings, Club Bowls President Gian Pianezzola delivered the obligatory speech during which he acknowledged the continued/continuing service of club stalwart and Life Member Gary Crowley who was awarded the honour of delivering the first bowl of the new season. Play then commenced, generally in a light hearted manner, although the odd measure came out from time to time. It was pleasing to see that quite a few of our new bowlers took part, generally acquitting themselves well, with one of the “newbies” actually playing in the winning side (the selectors had mixed the teams up as far as possible).
As is now customary, there were no monetary prizes awarded, winners from the early years having established a worthwhile precedent by generously donating their prize money back to the cause. However the winners’ names are listed on the club’s electronic honour/awards board. The top team this year was Gary “Crow” Crowley, Vince Bevilacqua, David Saint and Geoff Anderson.
Despite a little under fifty players taking part on the day, the club was proud to raise $2000 for VSK from a combination of donations, entry fees, the B-B-Q, proceeds from the raffle (with many prizes generously donated by members), and the contents of the big pink pig which sits on the bar, where it grows fat on patrons’ small change and wrong bias penalties.
All in all, it was another enjoyable day in support of a very worthy cause – a great job done by the organisers and the many volunteers who helped make it happen.
Des Leigh (Grizzly)