Dream realised
After a 10-year wait the Goomalibee and Upotipotpon CFA will soon have somewhere to put their feet up thanks to the Volunteer Emergency Services Equipment Program (VESEP).
The brigade recently received a $69 000 grant to build a meeting room adjoining the CFA shed.
Glad to see the project finally making headway Captain Peter Bailey said he could not be happier.
‘‘It’s really good,’’ Capt Bailey said.
‘‘We’ve been really focused on it for the last 10 years and getting hit on the head all the time.
‘‘In the last 12 months it’s been flat tack trying to get enough money to fund it, so we could have our deposit.’’
The meeting room, complete with kitchen and toilets, will be used as a staging area during emergencies.
Capt Bailey said it would be a great benefit for the volunteers.
‘‘In the summer time we spend a lot of time here,’’ he said.
‘‘On total fire ban days I have a crew down here, we sit on and off all day in the heat, we do have an airconditioner, but it doesn’t work real good in a tin shed.
‘‘When there are floods we have a base we can work from here.
‘‘It’ll be nice to come back and have somewhere we can sit down and put our feet up and be cool.’’
It may be a CFA shed, but it will also become a community hub for Goomalibee.
‘‘It’s all for the community,’’ Capt Bailey said.
‘‘Goomalibee is a really close-knit brigade, we’ve got a good crew.
‘‘We have about 300 people here at Christmas time, Australia Day awards is another one we started this year. ‘‘It will get a lot of use.’’ The build is expected to begin around Christmas and will be completed before next winter.
But with the project expected to come in at $108 000, Capt Bailey said they were still a bit short.
‘‘We’ve done fundraising and the CFA is putting in for the toilets,’’ he said.
‘‘If anyone out there would like to donate or help out they can.’’
The Warrenbayne CFA also received a $1575 VESEP grant, which will be used to purchase a defibrillator.
Labor Upper House Member for Northern Victoria, Jaclyn Symes said she was proud to see local CFA brigades receive funding from the important government program.
‘‘These grants will prove a welcome boost to volunteer CFA brigades helping them buy the equipment they need to keep country homes and property safe,’’ Ms Symes said.
‘‘We all know the importance of CFA volunteers to their communities in protecting properties during bushfires, floods and road accidents, that is why the Labor Government is ensuring they have the tools they need to do their work safely and efficiently.’’