Hundreds of Central Coast tradies donated a day of their time on Friday, August 26, to help people in need in the community who can’t afford essential repairs and maintenance for their homes.
Free Trade Day is an annual event run by Lions volunteers which brings together trades people and suppliers to deliver services to people who have fallen on hard times in the community.
Founder and Lions volunteer, Ryan Wilson, said since launching the initiative in 2017 there has been growing demand for support in the community and a strong appetite from tradies to make a difference.
“As tradespeople, we see some terrible situations,” he said.
“Families struggling to make ends meet, the elderly alone in their homes with limited financial resources, our neighbours struggling to complete essential maintenance repairs to their homes.
“Free Trade Day is a great opportunity for the trade community to come together and lend a helping hand and tool to those who unfortunately cannot afford to have important repairs and maintenance done on their homes.
“We launched Free Trade Day on the Central Coast in 2017.
“Since then our country has had some truly challenging times from fires to floods and a health pandemic.
“Thanks to the many tradies who signed up, suppliers who provided materials and also members of the public who made donations, over 60 jobs were done across the Central Coast on the day.
“Over $48,000 worth of labour, materials and donations were raised for the Central Coast jobs.”
The Central Coast event was coordinated by Terrigal Wamberal Lions Club, whose members worked hard behind the scenes organising and fundraising for the event.
Lions volunteers were out and about in the community on the day helping out with projects, keeping some of the nominees company while the work was being done and hosting a barbecue for the tradies and nominees.
“We are hoping to have Lions Clubs all over the country participating next year and giving tradies and more people in the community an opportunity to benefit from the Free Trade Day initiative,” Wilson said.
Lions Clubs promote youth, support medical research, provide aid to people with disability, community service, environmental work and disaster relief.
For more information on Free Trade Day visit https://freetradeday.com.au.
Primary source: Media release, Sep 1, 2022, Free Trade Day