By Jed Lanyon
Healesville Bowls Club has held a fundraiser to help support Mallacoota Inlet Bowls Club that suffered when devastating bushfires hit the region.
Thankfully the bowls club building survived the fires, but suffered damage from smoke. However the greens were destroyed by falling embers as well as a surrounding fence.
Healesville Bowls Club decided to donate the funds raised from a recent corporate bowls night, totalling $1500.
A cheque was presented to Mallacoota Inlet Bowls Club president Allan Dobbin, who had travelled to Healesville to participate in the club’s Thursday social bowls on 27 February.
“The greens are completely gone,” Mr Dobbin said.
He said the costs to replace the greens exceeded $150,000 and that the club’s insurance would not cover the full amount.
Mr Dobbin is a former Yarra Glen and Launching Place resident as well as a real estate agent in Lilydale. He said he was happy with how the bowls community had rallied to support their club.
“We’ve had that many clubs reach out. Cranbourne Bowling Club gave us $5000, Mooney Valley gave us $5000. Places like Lord Howe Island and Boneo Island donated. We’ve had people send us $1000 from everywhere.”
Mr Dobbin and wife Gayl were in Mallacoota throughout the worst of the fires, choosing not to evacuate.
“If we’re going to die, we’re going to die in our house,” he told Healesville Bowls Club members.
Mr Dobbin recalls his experience seeing a navy ship and helicopters flying through the area in the evacuation efforts.
“We thought we were in the Vietnam War or something. It was a very frightening thing.”
He said that he had only been able to leave the Mallacoota area about a fortnight ago and that power had finally been restored to the town.
Healesville Bowls Club member Faye Mays said, “We wanted to play our part, be it a very small part, but every bit helps.”
“Those at the corporate bowls night all were putting their hand in their pocket and just adding more and more money … We’re all bowlers and we understand the importance of people getting together.”
Despite being located inside Victoria a short distance from New South Wales, Mallacoota Inlet Bowls Club play their competitions north of the border.
“We are the only Victorian club ever to make the New South Wales state finals,“ he joked.
