By JOYCE MARSH
WHEN a sequence of events touches your heart it makes one realise there are so many charitable people in our midst.
One such sequence of events started when the Cunningham Highway was cut and the traffic was diverted to the Mt Lindesay Road and so was the driver Lew Cooper (OAM) who decided that late at night he could drive no further than Woodenbong.
He knocked on the door of the Woodenbong Hotel with his story and asked for help.
The licensee Tony Neylon welcomed him, arranged a room and after a chat realised Lew had not eaten dinner and so he and Melissa cooked him some food even though the kitchen was long closed. Hospitality at its best.
During his stay he told his story of how he was a retired cricket player and is the president of the Wanderers Queensland Club.
Today he still loves cricket and along with other players raises funds and runs “Cricket to Bush” coaching tours for kids in many NSW and Queensland towns, with the belief of giving the young and disadvantaged a sporting chance.
These tours have been going on since the mid-1970s.
As pub conservations go, Tony told Lew how Woodenbong holds the Australia Day City versus Country cricket match every year – and the offer was made, firstly to bring some players down to join in our game in 2014 and for the future to plan a coaching tour for Woodenbong kids.
Sure enough on Australia Day weekend the boys arrived, played cricket and joined in the local celebrations. Lew came equipped with a fantastic and valuable cricket bat that was signed by the Australian and West Indies teams of 2009.
This bat was offered to the Woodenbong Rural Fire Brigade to help fund-raise for new radios that were badly needed. By night’s end they had raised the necessary $600 by way of selling raffle tickets and the lucky winner was local Michael Smith of M.J. Smith Ground Preparation, of Woodenbong.
The announcement after the raffle draw drew everyone’s attention to the plight of Urbenville local, Troy Hill who had been badly injured in a forestry accident and that locals were to plan a cricket match, cum fund-raiser day, in February.
At this point Michael Smith re-appeared and donated the won cricket bat back for this new cause. A champion indeed.
By the time of the match, Urbenville Progress Association had joined with huge efforts to hold a charity auction and many raffles. It was a very successful day to help Troy and thus the cricket bat was auctioned and bought for $700.
All this goodness came from one fated event in time. ‘Paths that crossed in the night’ as the saying goes.
It makes you feel good to be associated with such generous and wonderful people.
Now Woodenbong looks forward to Australia Day 2015 when our kids will be treated with a cricket coaching session by our hero, Lew and the cricketers who will accompany him.
