A multi-club project for Rotarians in southern New Zealand has proved a great way to bring people together, while raising more than $100,000 for good causes.
When Dunedin's iconic Carisbrook rugby ground was dis-established and sold to local construction firm Calder Stewart, a fantastic opportunity arose for the city's 500 Rotarians.
Rather than simply bulldozing the stadium, the owners of Calder Stewart agreed to allow Rotary Clubs to remove the seats, turnstyles, goal posts, turf and other fittings from the ground to sell. Time was tight, with everything having to be removed in just three weeks before demolition got underway in August.
The nine Rotary Clubs in Dunedin and Mosgiel, Rotaractors, and the Rotary Club of Milton got stuck in with a will, working together over three weekends to complete the mammoth task.
Dunedin-based District Governor 9980 Gary Williams was delighted at the response from local Rotarians to the project.
``This is a great opportunity for Rotarians across the city to work together on a project that will benefit everyone,'' Gary emphasised.
Carisbrook Rotary Project Chairman Brendon Bearman, of the Rotary Club of Milton, was also pleased with the high profile of the project and the eagerness of clubs to be involved.
``This is the project of a lifetime - we will never see it's like again,'' Brendon commented. ``It has brought a lot of Rotarians from various clubs together - a lot of excellent contacts have been made''.
Now that the deconstruction phase of the project is complete, the sale of seats and memorabilia items from the historic rugby ground - known across New Zealand as ``The House of Pain'' - continues. The goal posts went very quickly, for $5,000 each, and the seats have been sold to schools and sports grounds across the country.
Other items, such as monogrammed chopping boards made from some of Carisbrook's rimu seats, continue to sell well through internet auction site TradeMe.
So far, the Carisbrook Rotary Project has raised more than $100,000 for club projects and organisers have their sights set on a $200,000 target.
Brendon thanked Calder Stewart for their generosity in allowing the clubs to use the dismantling of Carisbrook as ``a fantastic fundraising opportunity''.
Article by Brenda Harwood, Rotary Club of Dunedin, New Zealand
