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The
RETURNED & SERVICES LEAGUE of
AUSTRALIA OUR PROGRAMS
COMMEMORATIVE,
SOCIAL & HEALTH PROGRAMS The
Sub-Branch offers its membership a wide and attractive range of activities
throughout the year. A balanced
calendar of social events provides ongoing opportunities for members, partners
and the widows/widowers of past members to interact with others of similar
backgrounds in an enjoyable and friendly environment. The following events are held in the modern facilities of the
Canberra Southern Cross Club at Phillip:
The
Sub-Branch fully subsidises the cost of the Widows’/Widowers’ Lunch and
Welfare Workers’ Lunch, whilst the cost to members of attending the other
functions is kept to a minimum. Those
unable to attend the ANZAC Dawn Service and Remembrance Day Service at the
Australian War Memorial are most welcome to attend the Sub-Branch services
conducted at the Southern Cross Club’s Bowling Green commemorative area in
Irving Street, Phillip. The ANZAC
Dawn Service commences at 5:30am each year on 25 April with the Remembrance Day
Service commencing at 8:00 am on 11 November each year.
The
Sub-Branch also provides opportunities for its membership to participate in a
structured health and fitness program. Since
the program’s launch in 1998, participants have had their attendance costs
subsidised by the Sub-Branch. Run
in conjunction with the Southern Cross Health Club, Irving Street, Phillip, the
program offers a facility for people with different fitness levels to
participate in needs-based and supervised activities aimed at developing or
maintaining their general fitness levels. Participants
aged fifty years and over will require a medical clearance before joining the
program. Further details on the
medial clearance and the program can be obtained by contacting the Health Club
on (02) 6283 7340 or emailing www.southerncrosshealthclub.com.au.
The Eddison Day Club
Who are We? Sponsored by
the Woden Valley Sub-branch of the RSL and supported by the Department of
Veterans’ Affairs, the Eddison Day Club is for sub-branch members, spouses,
widows and other members of the community who might be
aged, frail, lonely or isolated (membership criteria apply). It meets every Friday throughout the year, except for Good Friday, from
10am to 2pm at The Irish Club, Parkinson Street, Weston Creek. Of the more than
100 members about 65 to 70 attend each week. The Eddison Day Club has been
extremely successful in its first three years of operation. So much so, that
several regular attendees have made comments such as “This has changed my
life”. and “I look forward to day club on Fridays more than anything
else.” What is a Day Club? A Day Club
provides social and activity opportunities for older people who are mostly still
living at home, but who are unable to attend other more active programs offered
in their local community. Clubs meet weekly and all who attend pay a nominal
daily fee which includes lunch. Club volunteers conduct the daily activities and
assist with transporting members to and from the venue. A Brief History. Day clubs were
established in NSW in 1977 as a joint venture between the NSW Department of
Veterans’ Affairs and the NSW Branch of the Returned and Services League of
Australia. There are now 70 clubs in metropolitan and country areas of NSW and
the ACT. Although sponsored by an RSL sub-branch and supported by DVA, each club
is open to any interested person, not just ex-service people. Eddison was the
first of only two such day clubs in the ACT. What happens at the Eddison Day Club? 10am
Arrival and welcome
2pm
Close More than 20 volunteers to conduct the Day Club have been recruited from among Sub-Branch members and
their spouses. They participated in a three - day training course in January
2004 conducted by Day Club Consultants from the Department of Veterans’
Affairs in Sydney. Refresher courses have been held in January 2005 and February
2007. Our volunteers provide transport to and from the day club for people who
need it. The Eddison Day Club takes its name
from the family who farmed the Yamba area of Woden Valley. Three sons of the
Eddison family – two air force and one army – did not return from overseas
service during World War 2. The name ‘Eddison’ is also given to the park
where a Peace and ANZAC Ceremony is conducted annually for school children by
the Woden Valley Sub-branch of the RSL. Enquiries about joining the
Eddison Club should be directed in the first instance by phoning the Woden
Valley Sub-branch office on 6285 1931 between 10am and 2pm, Tuesday to Thursday,
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