Member for Tamworth, Kevin Anderson, visited Yallambee on Tuesday morning in order to officially open the ‘Yallambee Facility Meter Board Upgrade Project’ which saw the installation of 15kw of solar panels at Yallambee.
Yallambee board secretary, Owen Hasler, welcomed both residents and special guests, including former long term board members Margaret Dodd and Judy and Brian Lenton, and Gunnedah Shire Council’s Marie Low, to the event before explaining the background.
“As has been the case since Yallambee opened in 1963, it has been the objective of the board to keep the accommodation affordable and this has meant that we have had to seek other means of funding like grants, donations and sponsorship in order to upgrade and maintain our facilities,” Mr Hasler said.
“In this case we applied for and received $40,000 in funding from the NSW Government through its Community Building Partnership Fund 2023 program which has allowed us to install solar panels with the object of reducing our power usage from the grid.
“Our next objective is to identify funding in order to install solar batteries which will allow the storage of excess power generated by the solar panels for use at night and for possible sale,” continued Mr Hasler, “and we look forward to Mr Anderson’s ongoing support in that regard.”
Board chairperson Colleen Fuller, officially welcomed Mr Anderson to Yallambee and stated how grateful residents and board members were for his ongoing support and advocacy of the Yallambee facility.
“Kevin has visited Yallambee a number of times in order to witness our facility and see projects that have been undertaken and we are very thankful for this and his knowledge and advocacy of the role we play in our community,” Ms Fuller said.
Undertaking the official opening Kevin Anderson, MP, stated:
“Yallambee is a much loved asset that has served the Gunnedah community well for over 60 years.
“While generations of Gunnedah locals have made Yallambee their home, it’s important that we continue to do everything we can to bring the facilities and the creature comforts up to the very best in modern standards.’
“That’s why I was thrilled to help the organisation win a $40,000 grant to begin transitioning to solar electricity, which will ultimately cut costs.”
“I want to congratulate the hard working board led by chair Colleen Fuller for their outstanding work on behalf of the residents of Yallambee, and the community.”
The official opening was followed by morning tea prepared by Yallambee supervisor, Tania Keath, and staff.
Colleen Fuller and Amanda Cooper look on while Kevin examines a photo album depicting Yallambee’s history.
To order photos from this page click here
