COMMUNITY radio station Apple FM will next month relocate to a new studio at the Montessori School in Gisborne Road, after Moorabool Council sold the Bacchus Marsh site the station has operated from for the past decade.
Station president Terry Ryan and other members met the council last Friday to lobby for a continuation of the remuneration they received from council for rent and bills over the past
few years.
But the council will not continue to fund the station. The decision was made after the council sold the former visitors’ information centre in Main Street. Apple FM had used the building as its base for 10 years.
“We’ll apply to the Community Broadcasting Foundation for some relocation grants and, of course, any donations would be gratefully received,” Mr Ryan said. “We’re very lucky for the generosity of council over the past few years, though, so we can’t complain. This will force us to get our strategic plan into shape and get more sponsors on board.”
Speaking during National Volunteer Week, Mr Ryan said volunteers continued to be the lifeblood of the organisation. He said he was initially reluctant about getting involved with the volunteer-based station.
The Bacchus Marsh resident had recently retired and was looking forward to playing with his grandchildren, reading and indulging in sport. His wife, Kathy Hughes, had a penchant for chatter and joined the station as a presenter about six years ago. Mr Ryan was soon lured in, becoming a station member and later being elected vice-president. “It all snowballed from there,” he said.
Now president of the station, he said the role brought him plenty of enjoyment. “It’s hard to manage a group of people with different personalities, especially when they’re all volunteers. But I do find it rewarding to watch the presenters have so much fun. They can get a lot of information across to a broad range of people.”
This week, more than six million volunteers around the country are being recognised as part of National Volunteer Week.
“Volunteers contribute more than 700million hours a year in fields like sport, welfare, education, justice, conservation, art and emergency services. It’s difficult to imagine how we would cope as a nation without this extraordinary effort,” Volunteering Australia spokesman Peter Cocks said.
