February 2020
2020 is in full swing and our team is back working hard planning and organising another big year full of fundraising and family events to support our Police Legacy family. We have some changes in our team, with Leisa Doherty taking up the role of Community Support Manager, and we are actively recruiting a new Community Support Officer. Leisa’s role in 2020 will be coordinating all our support services for our legatees, with a further focus on developing services for our young legatees.
I had the privilege of spending some time at the January adventure camp in Berry. Thanks to the hard work of camp leader Paul Martin and all the rest of the camp supervisors, the kids had a wonderful time. It was great to see three of our Directors in this supervisory role, immersing themselves in what Police Legacy does. I spent two days at camp, including at the Jamberoo water park, where I particularly enjoyed watching the younger legatees challenging their own fears. By the end of the day, they were conquering them with ease.
I saw the kids off at the airport on their way home, and it was evident that all had strong bonds with each other and were sad to say goodbye to their mates. This certainly reinforced for me the importance of what we do and the true value the kids gain from going on these camps. I look forward to their next adventure in July, with the 12 – 18 year olds going to Kakadu. What an experience that will be!
It is not long now until we have our first significant fundraising event for the year, the 2020 Remembrance Bicycle Ride from Sydney to Canberra, with our riders leaving on Friday 8 May. This year we are very fortunate to have Deputy Commissioner Mal Lanyon as our Ride Ambassador. Mr Lanyon, being a great advocate for NSWPL, will be riding with us promoting the ride as we go. While Mr Lanyon will be up the front leading the way, I will be trailing at the back. This year we will also have some of our legatees ride with us, which will be a great experience for all.
In October this year we will participate in the first National Police Legacy Camp for our 18 – 25 year olds. The camp will trace the WWI Western Battle Fields of France where we will be tracking nearly 200km of the actual tracks our diggers used during WWI. This will be such a pinnacle experience for our legatees.
The popularity of doing the Kokoda Trek has also increased, with the number of applications from our legatees and Police setting a new record. The 2020 trekkers are well into their training program now and are full of anticipation. We wish them all the best of luck on their trek and can’t wait to hear about their experience on their return.
While we will have a busy year with family and fundraising events, we will also continue to focus on our strategic direction of growing the services we offer. I look forward to catching up with as many of our legatees during the year as possible, and will continue to do road trips to regional areas to ensure this happens.
