On Friday the 14th of January the Seven Hills RSL Anglers Club held a special raffle to raise money for the people of Cobargo who lost their homes after devastating bushfires ravaged their small town.
The Fisho’s would like to thank Seven Hills RSL Management and Members for supporting the raffle, and give special thanks Century 21 Seven Hills, Seven Hills RSL Snooker & Billiards Club and Seven Hills RSL Swimming Club for their generous donations.
 The Seven Hills RSL Anglers Club Bushfire Raffle at Seven Hills RSL |
 Maddy & Kathy presenting the donation from Penny of Century 21, Seven Hills |
The Anglers Club raised a total of $2000 and one of our members, Mick Frost, travelled to Cobargo to assess who to allocate the donation to, as everybody in Cobargo have suffered from the bush fires and subsequent floods.
Mick was directed to Anne Holub the president of the Cobargo Country Women’s Association. Please see her report below.
Report from Ann Holub President of the Cobargo Country Women’s Association
We gave your generous donations to these five people, Liz, who lost her beautiful two-story brick stone and cedar home and everything else on her property. She is a single woman who works part of each year consulting with new nurses at the Bega hospital whilst looking after native animals and birds.
She had built a Wombat enclosure which enabled them to return to the forest when they can and nursed many baby Echinacea’s until they were off their bottle feeds every four hours.
She attended Cobargo CWA meetings when she could and helped at a soup kitchen in Bega. She had food and water for all the animals all around her property and while living at the show grounds after the fires went back to refill them.
Liz lost her home shed and gardens completely and has been living in her bus since the New Year’s fire, with her Rottweiler by her side at all times. Sadly, she also lost her two horses. She will go back to her property when she acquires a structure to shelter in and the power and water is on. Somehow, she can still smile and is kind and thoughtful to all who meet her.
Andy is also a single woman who has been on her property for 12 years building it up from bare land. She had built a home in a container and a large Orchard and garden. Andy has lived in a very old caravan at the Cobargo Show grounds since the fire and has renovated it to become more comfortable. She also lost everything in the fire but seems able to keep up a happy disposition and smiles every time I meet her.
She also cares for the native animals and birds and collected food and takes it to them every day. She was very excited when she found some of her fruit trees had sprouted, she will go back and rebuild her home and garden as soon as there is power and water available.
Spud and his wife lost their shed home very close to the Show Grounds and everything they owned. He is a member of CRABS (South Coast motor Bike Club that goes to all the pubs selling raffle tickets to support cancer research) always helping out at the many fund-raising events they hold.
We saw him out at a farm helping a farmer build a new fence the day after we had given him the money.
Denise and Peter had built a beautiful new home and constructed many out buildings, which included a container with a bathroom for guests and the fowl house renamed the ‘Taj Mahal’ when it was finished, fabulous big enclosed area with everything a chook could want to lay many eggs which they sold around Cobargo.
They built the house 10 years ago but had the property for longer. They both worked, Denise at the Cobargo Chemist and other shops that are not there anymore due to the fires, Pete worked at Narooma. Denise told me that she was going to replace a bronze kettle, a Christmas present this year and was very fond of, also a toaster to match. They were delighted with a share of your kind donation. Sadly, all was lost at their property as Mick will show in the photo.
Julie and Larry are both well-known identities who have lived in or close to the area all their lives. Julie was the local Hairdresser at Cobargo for many years now a Red Cross lady and Larry just helps wherever and whenever he can, an active member of the Men’s Shed at Quaama. Both always happy and welcomed us to their home on many occasions. Larry firing up the pizza oven and producing lovely pizzas and Julie making nibbles and the famous ‘Julie’s Rocky Road’ her signature dish that she readily shared at every occasion. Love it!
Larry always keeps us entertained with one joke after another, most suitable for adults only. He was a collector and I think will continue to be; he had an enormous collection of all sorts of memorability which was all lost in the fire. A shed didn’t burn, and a vintage sports car and a pool table was saved. Always a generous couple that’s contributed a lot to the community and they say they are going to stay around.
Sadly, all five that we shared with your donation with lost their home, we feel that the choices we made to share your generous donations with them was greatly appreciated by them all, we hope you do too. Not easy to decide as you know many lost everything too, but from their grateful reactions we feel that with Mick and Maureen’s help, we had made good choices.
Kind thoughts,
Eddie and Ann Holub
Bermagui fishing Club
So, as you can see from the above report, our donation was not a lot of money but may have bought some joy to people who are down on their luck. Just to know that they not alone and we are thinking of them helps a little.
Regards,
Roger Covel
Seven Hills RSL Anglers Club