Supporting our community
EXODUS FOUNDATION APPEAL

As we come out the other side of the global economic crisis most Australian’s can breath a sigh of relief having ridden it out relatively unscathed. However, there are many people who have been hit hard, and over the last 12-months my Exodus Foundation has experienced a huge rise in demand for our services as a result.
As you can imagine, it’s been really hard for us as we struggled to raise enough money to help all these people. We were facing declining income at the very time when demand for our services started skyrocketing.
Help from all our supporters has been essential, and it’s still critical to our ongoing survival.
Even though unemployment figures are stabilising, many people still cannot find a job. And even more people have had their hours reduced, slashing their family income.
Each day in our Loaves & Fishes Free Restaurant more of these people come for a meal – sometimes it’s so busy they are forced to push up next to each other just to make room at the tables. We have begun serving hot evening meals to the homeless each night in the Domain, and they are always gratefully received. In total we’re now serving about 900 meals a day, and giving away over 1,000 food parcels each month!
When I look at many of the people we assist I can’t help but wonder what would have happened to them if someone had given them a second chance earlier in life. Surely preventing social isolation and dislocation is better than curing it? That’s why it’s so important to attack the root cause of problems like homelessness, hunger and unemployment.
At The Exodus Foundation we are doing just that, with our Literacy Tutorial Centres and Exodus Youth programme.
In our Tutorial Centres we teach reading and writing to primary students in years 5 and 6. With reading ages far below their peers, these kids are at risk of dropping out of school – and life. So far over 1,500 youngsters have received this intensive help to stave off the future problems that arise from poor literacy. It’s not just the skills they learn, but their new sense of purpose that really opens up their horizons.
A number of former students have finished high school and gone on to university!
Then there’s Exodus Youth – our education and training programme giving a second chance to early school leavers aged 15 to 19. When you’ve experienced homelessness or abuse, it’s that much harder to get ahead.
The aim of Exodus Youth is giving teens in these kinds of traumatic situations the knowledge, skills and attitudes they need to succeed.
It works because unlike normal school, students learn at their own pace in a safe environment, and also receive training in independence skills like cooking and budgeting. Once again, we’re privileged to watch as these young people take their first steps towards much happier, more productive lives.
As a compassionate society I think it is our duty to support people in their time of need and help kids avoid the difficulties that lead so many adults to our doors. Surely this is the very essence of the Aussie ‘fair go’. With the economic storm clouds receding we have an opportunity to make a real change in the lives of so many, and everyone can help in their own way to make it happen.

 This year’s Wests Ashfield Leagues Community Art Competition showcased extraordinary talent with over 100 entries from six different primary schools. The theme for this year’s competition was ‘Festive’ and submitted entries were on display for two weeks in a temporary Wests Ashfield Leagues Art Gallery set up in the foyer.
The quality of the work made the judges decision very hard but in the end there could only be one winner.
Wests Ashfield Leagues would like to Congratulate Lina Bang from Haberfield Public School as the winner of this year’s competition. Lina received a prize valued at $2000 including a course of 20 private art classes with Jules François the Director of The Red Door Gallery at Summer Hill and art supplies. Lina’s artwork also features on the cover of our current magazine and will be used in our festive displays throughout the Club from November 2009.

The other four finalists were:
Alison Loveday Summer Hill Public School
Peter Elliott Summer Hill Public School
Kevin Zhu Burwood Public School
Jenny Jung Harcourt Public School
They each received an art supplies pack valued at $250. All finalists, including Lina, also received a $250 donation to their school. Wests Ashfield Leagues would also like to Congratulate this year ’s winning school, Summer Hill Public School, receiving a $2000 donation.

A few hours after the event we received this lovely email from Kevin Zhu, one of the finalists.
‘Dear Wests Ashfield Leagues,
Would you please kindly send me photos of this afternoon’s art award ceremony at Wests Ashfield. Thank you Wests for giving me this wonderful opportunity.
Regards, Kevin Zhu -4B Burwood Public School’. 

Community Initiative - Funding assistance totalling $749,666 donated to our local community

This year, Wests Ashfield Leagues hosted the annual Community Development and Support Expenditure presentation at The Infants’ Home, 17 Henry Street, Ashfield. This presentation was held in the wonderful garden setting of The Infants’ Home and Mike Bailey was the MC for this event.
The Board of Directors of Wests Ashfield Leagues had agreed that one of its major recipients of CDSE funds this year would be The Infants’ Home who would be presented with a total of three cheques for three separate programmes they had initiated. The Infants’ Home is a great institution that provides not only long day care to the residents of the Ashfield municipality but also other assistance programmes for families and children. The Club has had a long history of supporting this great institution.
The details of the amounts and the programmes funded by CDSE Category One funds from Wests Ashfield Leagues this year are as follows:
$5,000 for their Family Day Care programme which consists of self-employed, small business entrepreneurs who operate from their own homes. These small business entrepreneurs offer varied hours of care to children from 6 weeks of age to 12 years. Through this service, The Infants’ Home, as a sponsor of Family Day Care, will provide 15 business opportunities over a 12 month period. They originally sought a total of $7,800 and Wests Ashfield Leagues provided $5,000 towards this programme.
$5,000 towards The Infants’ Home “support speech therapy programme” within the transdisciplinary model at The Infants’ Home.
$10,000 towards the varied costs for The Infants’ Home to provide family support to disadvantaged families where pre-school aged children attending the Home, are from families who are homeless and/or currently experiencing domestic violence, etc. The Infants’ Home originally sought $28,863 in total for this programme and Wests Ashfield Leagues provided $10,000 towards it.
The Community Development and Support Expenditure Scheme (CDSE) is a State-wide initiative recognising the important financial support of all clubs for projects and services contributing to their local community. This year, Wests Ashfield Leagues received a total of 85 applications (totalling $749,666) directly, from charities and organisations seeking funding assistance and the task of identifying those most worthy, is a complex one. Thanks must go to Director, Russell Smith and Christina Brooks, Executive Secretary, who both attend the meetings held at the Ashfield Local CDSE Committee which was set up to establish the priorities in the Local Government Area.
This Local CDSE Committee also comprises of representatives from the other three local clubs in the Ashfield area, with Wests Ashfield Leagues being the major contributor.
Some worthy recipients of the CDSE Category One funds this year included FRANS, Vision Australia, Westpac Life Saver Rescue Helicopter Service, Wests Tigers as well as The Infants’ Home.
To quote Andy Timbs, CEO of Wests Ashfield Leagues, “the CDSE scheme is a very important part of this Club’s community focus with the Club also providing funding well in excess of the mandatory amount required under the Government’s CDSE Guidelines.” He went on to say that he was sure everyone in the local area would agree that all the organisations listed who received funding from Wests Ashfield Leagues, were invaluable for the support they provided to the community of the Inner West.
This CDSE Presentation was attended by representatives from all the organisations listed,which included our Local Member, Virginia Judge, who together with Peter Hardgrove, Chairman of Wests Ashfield Leagues, presented some of the cheques. Other attendees were the Deputy Mayor, Morris Mansour, from Ashfield Municipal Council as well as many other local dignatories and representatives from all the charities and sportsmen of note. Great music at the event was provided by Ashfield Boys’ High School as well as Burwood Girls High School.

Wests Tigers:
The CDSE grant will contribute to the ‘It’s Not Cool To Be Cruel’ program which is aimed at stamping out bullying in primary and high schools and raising awareness to students about the dangers it can have on a person’s life.
The Program was written and developed by Year 11 student Nathan Cassar, who is proudly supported by Wests Tigers and presented in schools by Anti Violence Movement, Enough is Enough. The funds will provide students in the Ashfield Municipality an opportunity to have the Program in their school.

Pictured: Wests Ashfield Leagues' Chairman Mr Peter Hardgrove with Wests Tigers Player Blake Lazarus

FRANS:
Thanks to the generous funding from Wests Ashfield Leagues, FRANS has developed a Fitness Club for people with disabilities to engage in, and plan for, regular and appropriate physical exercise.
The Fitness Club and FRANS United give people with a disability a supportive and social environment to engage in sports that are often beyond their reach in the community. Programs such as this receive little in the way of government funding and FRANS relies on generous donors such as Wests Ashfield Leagues to continue making things happen for people with disabilities in Sydney.

Pictured: Representatives from FRANS with Wests Ashfield Leagues' Chairman Mr Peter Hardgrove and Hon Virginia Judge MP

Vision Australia is grateful for the generous CDSE grant provided by Wests Ashfield Leagues. The funding will enable the nation’s leading provider of blindness and low vision services to offer Ashfield residents free sight assessments and ongoing support.
Vision Australia’s specialists will provide advice, tools and practical solutions that enable people living with low vision to undertake daily living tasks so they can remain independent as well as empowered to actively participate in every part of life they choose.

Pictured: A Representative from Vision Australia with Wests Ashfield Leagues' Chairman Mr Peter Hardgrove and Hon Virginia Judge MP

The funding received from Wests Ashfield Leagues will assist in the refurbishment of the 1992 BK117 helicopter tail boom. The tail boom is an integral part of the fuselage which attaches the tail rotor to the main frame. Due to the corrosive saltwater environment the aircraft operates in, it has become necessary to re-skin the tail boom in order to remove corrosion.
The refurbishment will maintain structural integrity of the aircraft and keep the tail boom airworthy for approximately ten years under the environment and conditions it operates at present. As the Westpac Life Saver Rescue Helicopter Service provides an emergency helicopter response service, this refurbishment is imperative. Without the tail boom, local communities up and down the coast in the Sydney region would be without air cover for their beaches, cliffs and coastal walks. With the quickest response time, this service is the quickest airborne asset to reach remote areas of the coastline that can only be patrolled by helicopter.

Pictured: Representatives from Westpac Life Saver Rescue Helicopter Service with Wests Ashfield Leagues' Chairman Mr Peter Hardgrove and Hon Virginia Judge MP

In conjunction with the 2009 Community Citizenship Awards presentation, we announced the winner of the
2008 Junior Development Award

This award was established in 2003 and the Board of Directors invite various sporting associations and high schools to nominate a member (aged 12-17 years) for an outstanding performance, selection in a representative team or who achieved notable commendation during the previous calendar year. The Club received a record total of 18 nominations!
Just before the 2008 nominees were acknowledged, all those in attendance were treated to an inspirational talk from non other than our Wests Ashfield Leagues’ 2009 Ambassador and wheelchair athletics champion, Mr Kurt Fearnley. Kurt was in awe of the amazing community work carried out by all of the students present and was delighted to be a part of an enjoyable afternoon. The winning finalist was Michael Auprince; in his field of Wheelchair Basketball & Swimming.
Wests Ashfield Leagues Chairman, Mr Peter Hardgrove and recipient of the 2007 Magpie Award, Mr Kurt Fearnley, presented Michael with a trophy and a $2,000 cheque. Michael was nominated by Wheelchair Sports NSW - as the nominating sporting association they were also honoured with a $1,000 cheque.
The year 2008 saw Michael end his season by achieving all Australian Age records (50m and 100m) for Backstroke. He also holds the Australian Age record 13 and 14 years (50m and 100m) for Breastroke as well as the Open 200m Breaststroke record. At the Pacific School Games in December 2008, Michael won a total of eight medals – outstanding!
For Wheelchair Basketball, Michael was selected into the Australian U23 Squad as well as the Talented Athletes programme, a combined programme with Wheelchair Sports NSW and the NSW Institute of Sport.
He was a pivotal member of the NSW Junior Team. He was also a member of the NSW Junior Wheelchair Basketball Team at the 2008 Pacific School Games where the team won gold and Michael was named in the All Star 5 Team in the presentations.
Well done Michael and we look forward to hearing more of your great achievements in the near future!

Pictured: 2008 Junior Development Award Winner Michael Auprice with Kurt Fearnley wheelchair Athlete and 2009 Wests Ashfield Leagues Ambassador

Wests Magpies Hall of Fame and
Centenary Medals Gala Presentation
The Lounge at Wests Ashfield Leagues
Thursday 24 September 2009

1908 Foundation Club, Western Suburbs Magpies held a Gala Presentation Night at Wests Ashfield Leagues on 24 September 2009 where approximately 300 people were in attendance. At this historic event, the Magpies honoured the 1063 players who had played First Grade from 1908 until 1999 when the Magpies joined with Balmain to form Wests Tigers from Season 2000.
The Magpies struck a specially numbered medal for each of its former First Grade players and those 230 players or their representatives in attendance were presented with their medal and a specially prepared Certificate.
At this Event, Wests Magpies also honoured more of the Club’s “greats” by inducting a further 14 stalwarts into its “Hall of Fame”. Those inducted were former players Frank McMillan, Alan Ridley, Cliff Pearce, Harry Wells, Vic Hey, Kel O’Shea, Ed “Tedda” Courtney, Bill Carson, Neville Charlton, John “Dallas” Donnelly, Les Boyd, John Dorahy and Arthur Clues together with former great coach and now sports writer, Roy Masters. They joined former players Noel Kelly, Keith Holman, Peter Dimond, Arthur Summons, Tom Raudonikis and Jim Abercrombie (the Club’s first international), who previously had been inducted into the “Hall of Fame”.