General News
19 April, 2024
Beyond Bank gives generously
SOUTH West Healthcare’s Camperdown Residential Aged Care Appeal is powering along thanks to the generosity of various donors, with Beyond Bank contributing to the cause.
On Thursday, Beyond Bank’s community development manager Grant Howland presented appeal manager Suzan Morey and aged care redevelopment manager Janine Dureau-Finn with a cheque for $5000.
Ms Morey said the donation from Beyond Bank means the appeal is $22,000 away from hitting the half-way mark, with an end goal of $562,000 to furnish the new Merindah Lodge facility.
“It’s five weeks to the day since we launched our appeal to help furnish and equip this wonderful new facility we’re building for some of the most vulnerable members of our community to live their best lives in, and we’re so happy with how it’s going,” she said.
“Additional to Beyond Bank’s very generous $5000 gift, other wonderful donations we’ve recently received include $2000 from Warrnambool’s Timor Street SUPA IGA, $1000 from Camperdown’s Neville Wilson and $443 from the money made by Merindah Lodge’s Easter Egg Raffle.”
Beyond Bank’s $5000 donation will go towards equipping and furnishing one of the 36 ensuited bedrooms.
At a cost of $9200 each, eight of the 34 ensuited bedrooms are now fully funded by donors.
The two special purpose bedrooms when required $15,200 each to be fully equipped and furnished have also been donor-funded.
South West Healthcare has between now and mid next year when it opens the new $39.6m facility to raise the remaining $330,000.
Mr Howland said, as one of Australia’s largest customer-owned banks, Beyond Bank was “so pleased” to be supporting an appeal which connects closely with their key values.
“As a customer-owned bank focused on strengthening the communities we operate in, we’re delighted to throw our support behind South West Healthcare’s appeal,” he said.
“This facility will no doubt enrich the wellbeing of our local community members in aged care.”
Being built alongside South West Healthcare’s Camperdown Hospital, the new Camperdown Residential Aged Care facility will replace the existing 48-year-old Merindah Lodge, officially opened in 1976.
The new facility has 36 bedrooms with ensuites, including special purpose, disability compliant, and rooms for couples, grouped in small households to create home-like environments.
Incorporating best practice, evidence-based aged care design underpinned by dementia-friendly principles, there will be multiple resident and family living and dining spaces including discreet and quiet indoor, outdoor and activity-dedicated areas.
Inside, there will be a community café, a gym, a reflection space, and a hair and nail salon.
Outside, extensive landscaping will promote physical and mental wellbeing and encourage social interaction via a kitchen garden, a purpose-built aged care persons’ exercise circuit and multiple spaces for families and friends to come together.
The architecture maximises the views towards the lakes and craters Camperdown is known for.
Ms Morey is now working towards obtaining the $4850 needed to stock the hair and nail salon.
She is looking for 50 people to each donate $97 to achieve this and is also searching for a donor to gift the final $428 needed to pay for 34 toilet chairs worth $2890.
Ms Morey said she would love to hear from local sports clubs which might want to hold some fundraising events for the $9000 needed for the indoor gym, for a piece of gym equipment and a TV.
“The support of our local communities is critical to this appeal,” she said.
“We’re hoping businesses, clubs, groups, workplaces, schools, churches, families and individuals will help us raise the money we need to equip and furnish this stunning facility, inside and out.”
Ms Dureau-Finn said decent weather in recent weeks had enabled good progression of the construction works.
“The in-ground works are nearing completion, allowing for the pouring of the concrete slabs, and the stage-one lift and stairwell works are completed,” she said
