Photos: Supplied.
CONTRIBUTED BY BILL SIMPSON PHF, ROTARY CLUB OF WYNNUM AND MANLY
Last year, the Rotary Club of Wynnum and Manly ran out of its iconic Santas due to unprecedented demand. As a result, the club has teamed up with the Wynnum Manly and Districts Men’s Shed to manufacture new Rotary Santas.
The Santas have been part of the bayside Christmas spirit for over 40 years. Originally an Apex Club initiative, Rotary took over the installation of Santas as a fundraising program in 1996.
Last Christmas, 95 Santas were rented. Last year also saw the introduction of corflute Santas for commercial premises’ windows, which allowed for another 18 Santas to be installed in shopfronts. The Rotary Santas are installed from Tingalpa in the north to Wynnum, Manly, and Capalaba in the south.
Many older Santas are over 30 years old and manufactured from Masonite or Burnie board. This made them heavy and difficult to install, and the reason they have been replaced.
The Rotary Club needed assistance with the replacement program, so we collaborated with The Men’s Shed to manufacture new lightweight marine ply models. Bunnings Warehouse and Taubmans Paints also supported the Santa replacement program.
Over the past few months, many Rotarians, their partners and friends have been involved, in conjunction with the Men’s Shed members, in the production of 80 new Santas for this festive season. It is estimated that more than 1500 volunteer hours will be put into getting the Santas ready this year.
The Santas have ascended to iconic status in the local area as new generations of children look forward to seeing them on walls, verandahs, high-rise apartments and roofs in the bayside suburbs.
All funds raised from the Santa project support the many community projects Rotary runs during the year.
This year, Santas are available for rent and come in three forms:
- Iconic Rooftop Santa
- Iconic Fence/Wall-mounted Santa
- Corflute Window-mounted Santa
If you are not on our current Santa renter list and would like one for this festive season, please contact the club secretary by email at [email protected].
