Riding On Report Winter 2018

I have previously made mention of a pre-owned Stephen Dearnley Honda Forza scooter, that was kindly donated to the club’s preferred charity of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) research. The intent of the UCARF donation is to raise funds for RA research and I thank the Purvis family for their kind gesture.

Stephen would be very pleased to know his pre-loved scooter was heading in the charitable direction that he created. The family liaison is club member Alex Purvis, Stephen’s son-in-law and the last owner of the scooter was Stephen’s granddaughter, Bronwyn. The scooter has not been used or registered for a few years and therefore required restoration to be roadworthy for re-registration.

That restoration is complete, the vehicle was worked on at Vecey Moto Services at Minto in south west Sydney. I picked up the scooter at the admin office a few weeks ago and delivered it to the mechanic who is highly regarded and recommended by Macarthur Branch members. Prior to delivery I travelled to the Vecey workshop to not only check it out, but to explain the background and the charitable purpose of the pre-owned Dearnley scooter. Young Steve, the owner of the business, showed interest and I was hopeful of a good outcome. The locals tell me Vecey Moto Services have the best service costs value around the district.

 The following donations have been gratefully received since the last published recognitions in the Autumn 2018 edition of Riding On. In no particular order these most generous contributions are as follows:

Albury Wodonga Branch $555.00, Sunshine Coast Branch $500.00, Capricornia Branch $500.00, Sydney Branch $1,500.00, Orange Branch $1,100.00, Redcliffe Branch $1,000.00, Upper Hunter Branch $250.00, Sydney mid-week Riders Group $280.00, Ulysses RV Group Victoria $140.00, Torrens Valley Branch $360.65, Fraser Coast Branch $1,000.00, Central Highlands Branch $300.00,\  Newcastle Lower Hunter Branch $2,200.00, Hills Branch $3,282.43, Nepean Branch $300.00.

 Fraser Coast Branch and the Wide Bay Rodders conducted a Christmas Party Charity Ride on the 10th December 2017. There was a huge turnout of 110 motorcycles, 50 cars and many more people. The ride was led from Maryborough to Hervey Bay by the local head of the Traffic Branch, Snr. Sgt Terry Parker. Money was raised through a monster raffle for which there were 47 prizes, all donated by local businesses.

The prizes ranged from a set of glasses to bar stools, whale watching tours and accommodation. Bay Central Tavern hosted the end of the ride and provided excellent support with advertising and a great band for entertainment. Funds raised on the day amounted to $3,800.00 and the branch topped it off with another $200.00. This allowed the four charities identified as recipients, QCWA Rural Crisis Fund, Children’s Hospital Charity, Policy Legacy and UCARF with $1000.00 each.

Former national president, Rick Bedford, who is the coordinator of the Ulysses Members RV Group, made contact regarding a UCARF donation. The Victorian branch of the RV Group donated $140.00 as a result of their Hamilton rally in February. The courtesy is from Marilyn and Richard Flinders and the direct deposit was made by Rick. I have made personal contact to thank the Victorian RV Group.

The monthly social meeting of the Sydney Branch took place on Tuesday 6th February where I was invited, once again, to chair the branch AGM election. This request I considered to be an honour. On completion of the election and very much to my surprise I was called back to the front of the meeting and presented with a very generous donation of $1,500.00 for UCARF. I thank returning branch president John Robertson, the branch committee and the members for their funding and moral support of UCARF.At the social meeting of Nepean Branch on Tuesday 20^th.

March I was pleasantly surprised to be presented with another donation cheque for UCARF. What made the experience more meaningful for me is that Nepean is my original home branch at which I started in the Ulysses Club 25 years ago. It is most comforting knowing how much Nepean support this research. The next evening, Wednesday 21st March, on an invitation as the UCARF coordinator, I was presented with a handsome donation cheque for $3,282.43 at the social meeting of the Hills Branch. The Sydney-based Hills Branch has a long history of UCARF support for which the club is most grateful. The funds raised are due to the annual 2017 Show and Shine event held on the 17th September at Bunnings Warehouse at Rydalmere in Sydney. Supporting Hills were Northern Beaches, Hornsby and Sydney Branches, an acknowledgement most worthy.

National President Jen Woods accepted a cheque for$2,200.00 on behalf of UCARF whilst on a visit at the most recent Newcastle Lower Hunter Branch social meeting. A very good donation indeed and thanks Jen.

The club has honoured its 2018 financial sponsorship commitment to research institutes at Monash University and Sutton Laboratories IBJR. Monash University received $40,000.00 for the sponsorship of researcher Dr.Sarah Jones and Sutton Laboratories received $30,000.00 for the sponsorship of Dr. Haiyan Lin. Professor Chris Jackson, Head of Sutton Laboratories, has been approached to possibly identify a rheumatoid arthritis research project that the Ulysses Club may consider for sponsorship. Planning for the Ulysses Club 2019 National Biennial Raffle will commence immediately after this year’s AGM event.

Kim Kennerson
UCARF Coordinator,
#6929 L.M. 14.