A massive and heartfelt lifeline for a local RSL has been donated in an earnest gesture that will pave the way to vital work for veterans in the outer east of Melbourne.
Upwey RSL has received a large donation by a friend to the organisation this month that will make a huge difference to the lives of veterans in the area for now and for years to come.
Business owner John O’Connor, who is connected to the Upwey RSL through resident of the Hills and Vietnam Veteran Iain Findlay has made a huge donation of nearly 80,000 dollars and also committed to ongoing support for the organisation.
Mr Findlay said the support is incredible.
“I can’t thank this guy enough for what he’s done for our little RSL,” he said.
RSL President Fred Schmager was thrilled with the news.
“It’s absolutely great,” he said.
Gathered in the spring sunshine, Mr O’Connor came to meet with the President and members of the committee to officiate the donation, offering the chance for all to thank him and contemplate the positive news.
Mr O’Connor’s regular donations will be well placed, and are planned to go towards the heart of the RSL’s function, which is to support its veterans, young and old.
The money will reboot regular veteran lunches at Upwey once again on a monthly basis, providing a vital connection point for veterans.
“It’s connection, they chat a bit differently, about different things, but a lot of memories come back,” said Mr Findlay.
“That’s what the role of the RSL is, that’s why we’re here,” said Mr Tuplin.
Connected with Mr Findlay through a love of sports, with both men members of the same coterie football organisation who later became good friends, Mr O’Connor said that he learned that the Upwey RSL was in a bit of financial trouble around 12 months ago.
“I was lucky enough not to be called up back in the Vietnam days,” he said.
“It was a great relief to my mum, because her uncle died in the First World War as a young 19 year old.”
Connected to the ethos of the RSL within his own family history, Mr O’Connor said he has previously visited the grave of his great Uncle in Belgium in what was a profound experience.
“It was an experience finding it, I hired a car driving the Northern France roads,” he said.
Mr O’Connor was quite struck with the differences between the Commonwealth and German cemeteries.
“Our Commonwealth ones were beautifully manicured, I’ll never forget it,” he said.
Mr Findlay said the influence of wars is long lasting and one of his best died and he still walks every year in St Kilda, but knows that connection for local veterans is vital.
“So on the walk, I ring his wife, and I’ll say he’s still marching,” he said.
“One of our veterans, he saw active service in the Gulf and Afghanistan as a warrant officer.”
Connecting with Anthony Stewart at the Veterans Advocacy Centre in Boronia, Upwey RSL is encouraging younger veterans to come and spend some time with them in the hills.
“We want to be the hub of the of the older veterans and the younger veterans,” said Mr Tuplin.
Upwey RSL Treasurer Mr Graeme Tuplin said that the lump sum has made a huge difference and that there will now be ongoing support provided for two years.
“John has delivered this lump sum of 76,000 dollars to us and has committed another 4,000 dollars a month for the next two years,” he said.
The RSL had been struggling for some time, after their former treasurer stole nearly 30,000 dollars some time ago in November 2010 to August 2013.
The member made around 80 fraudulent payments to their own bank account, later serving four months in jail in 2017.
“That would closed us, we would have been insolvent,” said Mr Tuplin.
Gaining a 200,000 dollar loan from RSL Victoria, the RSL has been very slowly gaining ground but the recent donation of what will become a total of 172 thousand dollars will make a huge difference.
“This one check alone has put us 18 years in front of where our payments would be,” said Mr Tuplin.
“The problem for us is that, because we didn’t have money, we had to pull back a bit on veteran support services – we weren’t able to provide them because of the debt that was incurred,”he said.
Mr Tuplin said the RSL will continue to expand and said they need to support their veterans, young and old now more then ever – particularly after the Royal Commission report on Defence and Veteran Suicide was handed down last year.
“The funding allows us to do is get more proactive in that space and actually start some additional programs,” he said.
“We’re trying to get the younger ones in and get the word out,” said Mr Findlay.
There has been a slow growing support in the greater for the RSL, particularly after December 2022 when it seemed closure was imminent, with donations and volunteers stepping forward, but consistency is vital to keep things going.
The regular ANZAC Day ceremony has huge community attendance and earlier this year the South Belgrave Football Netball Club pledged donations at a special footy match, where they wore custom ANZAC Day jerseys when they took on Beaconsfield.
Upwey RSL is unique to so many other RSLs as it is a non-gaming venue, with no pokies in sight, and also host to one of the largest Military Museums in Victoria, the Running Rabbit Museum.
“We have a new chef, so we have actually almost reinvigorated ourselves, we want to get more members and we need more bums on seats,” said Mr Tuplin.
“It’s family friendly, no pokies, which is nice, come in and sit down if you want to have a chat or just sit and have a quiet drink, that’s fine, but we’re here if you want,” said Mr Findlay.
