Community
1 August, 2024
Lions welcome Delaney to top job
SIMON Delaney has taken the reigns at the Terang and District Lions Club as members eye a big project at the former site of Hampden Specialist School.
Last Wednesday Mr Delaney was named club president, taking over from Wayne Saunders.
He was inducted in to the position by visiting Lion Alister Lumsden, the zone chairman from Koroit Lion Club.
The Terang and District Lions Club executive for 2024-2025 includes Chris O’Connor as treasurer and John Keane and Kerrin McKenzie as joint secretaries.
Mr Delaney becomes the 42nd president in the history of the club, which since its charter in 1982 has maintained one of the highest levels of memberships in Victoria.
With the induction of five new members over the past 12 months, the record continues to be maintained.
The club continued to strengthen its younger membership with Paul Humphrey, Chris Hammond, John Keogh, Wayne Cole and Julian Coburn inducted as new members.
Mr Delaney congratulated Wayne Saunders on the success the club had experienced over the past year during his presidency.
“Our principal activity as a club is the maintenance and improvement of the community caravan park, which requires a high level of physical activity,” he said.
“Over recent years we have established the comfortable, well-equipped Camp Kitchen which always figures in complimentary comments of visiting campers.
“The free dump point adjacent to the park also gets good social media comments.
“In the year under review the club modernised the toilet block, improved the plumbing, installed solar panels and painted numbers on all the sites.
“Our park manager Stephen Cook is popular with visiting campers because of his friendly approach, and under the supervision of Lion Mick Lee we are currently in the process of replacing the boundary fence at the rear of the park.”
While the caravan park has grown from strength to strength over the years, Mr Delaney said the club was looking at one of its biggest projects yet – a potential expansion.
“In conjunction with Corangamite Shire we are investigating the possibility of establishing camp units on the site of the now disused Hampden Specialist School, which has been relocated to Terang College,” he said.
“This will expand our capacity and be valuable during busy holiday periods.”
The club also stayed busy with additional commitments, including another successful Noorat to Terang Fun Run and Walk.
“Our members continue to deliver meals from the local hospital,” Mr Delaney said.
“The club also continues to run its highly successful fun run and walk, and has done so annually for 42 years.
“Another project requiring considerable volunteer work is the maintenance of the Lions Walk Track, which circles the dry lake bed.
“The club also successfully obtained funding for the erection of the volcanic stone gateway at the Western Entrance to Terang on the highway, which is near completion.”
Mr Delaney said he was looking forward to leading a service club which is highly regarded in the local community for their high level of volunteer work.
The guest speaker at the changeover was local sporting identity Bernie Harris, in conversation with Mr O’Connor.
Mr Harris played 107 games in the V/AFL for Fitzroy, Brisbane Bears and St Kilda between 1984 and 1990.
The outstanding sporting achievements of he and his brother Leon, a 186-gamer turned Lions recruiting ace, who both played at the elite AFL level.
Mr Harris, 61, still plays cricket and in the last season scored a century playing for a local premiership team.