John Gibbs posted on May 30, 2011 14:52
DRUG ARM is a non-profit, non-government, specialist community with a record of service back to 1849 and provides a range of prevention, rehabilitation and management interventions to support individuals, families and communities to reduce the harm associated with alcohol and other drug use.
For the last 9 years, the Rotary Club of Liverpool West has split the proceeds with Drug Arm that it receives from the annual fundraising event, built around ‘The Children’s Circus Spectacular’ which sees up to 14,000 children and or persons from disadvantaged groups attend free in April each year with the kind support of the Liverpool Catholic Club, who provide the grounds at no charge.
More than 100,000 tickets have been issued to the circus over this time and at a Rotary Club of Liverpool West dinner meeting in the Garden Room of the Liverpool Catholic Club on Tuesday 24 May the President Peter Beadle presented a cheque to Drug Arm’s National Fundraising & Marketing Manager Jane Thompson for $63,671.65, with funds over the 9 year period from the Club of $602,876.14 going extensively for the Fairfield Liverpool Street Outreach Service program.
Jane Thompson, a very passionate advocate, accentuated the outreach program relies on funding from the community for its operational expenses and that if the program had not have received the funding from the Rotary Club of Liverpool West afforded over the past 9 years their would be a very large gap between funding and expenses and that it is then possible or even likely the NSW part of their operation might not have survived. Jane assured us that the funding really is that important and that our relationship is highly valued and appreciated.
Louise Smith, the NSW Operations Manager for Drug Arm was also on hand and to the delight of members was inducted as a member of our club on the same night.
The Rotary Club of Liverpool West’s charitable expenditure into the community over the same period is than in excess of $1.5 million excluding the cost of putting on the free circus with the staging of this event currently costing approximately $100,000.00 annually. The fundraising built up around the circus is shared with Drug Arm and their members are on hand to help out at the Circus each year.