New bus link from charity dinner

A NEW community bus will service Lang Lang and Kooweerup, thanks to the Cardinia Foundation and the Lang Lang Community Bank.
A $50,000 donation by the bank and the announcement by foundation chairman Don Welsh that the two organisations would jointly buy a 14seat bus to service the two townships were highlights of the third annual Cardinia Foundation Charity Dinner.
Held recently at the Cardinia Cultural Centre in Pakenham, the event attracted more than 450 guests who helped raise $160,000 for charity work.
The Cardinia Foundation is an independent local charity administered voluntarily by a board of directors and the staff of Cardinia Shire Council.
It makes regular gifts to preserve Cardinia’s environment, promote the arts, assist local people in times of crisis, and help with the work of other local charity organisations. Money raised by the foundation stays within the shire.
The foundation also announced another round of grant recipients, giving $10,000 to Windermere’s Kids Becoming Champions program and $5,000 to South East Palliative Care. Further grants will be announced shortly.
The funds were raised from the auction of a variety of donated items included bottles of Penfold’s Grange and Scotch whiskey, Swiss watches, diamond jewellery, holidays, sporting memorabilia including a Valentino Rossi signed helmet, and mountain bikes.
Mr Welsh said he was again impressed by the generosity of local businesspeople.
“It’s overwhelming to see the many thousands of dollars worth of goods and services donated, all with the goal of strengthening the Cardinia community,” he said.
“I particularly look forward to seeing people from the most needy areas in our shire put the new community bus to good use.”