When Barry and Lynne’s son joined the Federal Police, he was a single man always on duty over the major holidays. Police policy was where possible to allow married men and women to celebrate Christmas, Easter etc. with their families.
With this in mind, Barry approached his club Rosebud-Rye Rotary to fund a bar-be-que meal for the Police Officers on duty on New Years Eve. With the club’s blessing a small group of Rotarians and family met at the Police station and prepared a meal for 100 to 120 Police Officers on duty New Years.
Initially fully funded by the Rotary club, the Rosebud and Rye Community started to offset the costs by supporting the club with discounts on food and drinks. Now in it’s eighth year the members of the community fully support the dinner. Manager Michael Patterson from Woolworths Rye, donates all the sausages, pasta and coleslaw salad, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, and drinks as well as condiments. From Rosebud, Owner Greg Goss from Greg’s family Gourmet Butchers donates all the meat.
On New Years Eve, Doug Helleren OAM, Bernard and Doris Wong, Darren and Kate McGrath with Barry and Lynne Irving cook and serve a bar-be-que and salad meal for all on duty as well as leaving meals for the night shift.
The menu consists of: Hamburger, sausage, egg, pasta and coleslaw, salad, pineapple, beetroot, cheese and a dinner roll and well as soft drink or water.
This year the Police superintendent invited the Rotary team and the community supporters to a breakfast cooked by police officers. Each of the team were presented with a framed certificate of appreciation acknowledging their support and thanking all for their ongoing support of the Police working on New Years Eve.
We will do it all again in 2022.
