The Riding for the Disabled Association in Richmond has recently received a grant from Endeavour Energy which helped them restore their grounds from the damage caused by continual flooding.
After having to cancel important lessons due to the state of the arena and paddocks, Richmond RDA has now been able to resume their usual operations.
The Richmond RDA received $8,000 through the Powering Communities grant to fix the water damage to the centre. Their land is an old Clydesdale stud on the University of Western Sydney Hawkesbury Campus and is an old premises.
Ian Travers, Riding for the Disabled Richmond’s President, says that they had installed recycling water tanks to reduce their usage of city water and because they were unable to use the dam recycled water due to the pollution by fruit bats. Ian says the three tanks were installed incorrectly and when they were filling up, they were flooding over the top and pouring in the side of the arena.
This was then made worse when strong winds came and blew all the spilled water throughout the whole of the arena. The grounds then became unusable and during a week of particularly heavy rain lessons had to be cancelled for the whole week, leaving the riders disappointed.
The RDA offer therapeutic horse-riding services to people living with a disability and pride themselves on “being able to put bums in saddles and smiles on faces” and the cancelled lessons meant many riders missing out on their favourite time of the week.
The $8,000 grant that Ian applied for and received was able to pay for new gutters, pipes and underground drainage pipes. It also facilitated a new drainage system, a new pump for a sprinkler system and a horse wash area to be able to hose the horses down in the summer without it flooding the fields.
Ian says how the grant impacted the Richmond RDA. “Yes, it was important, and it makes a big difference to the way we operate”. Endeavour Energy even got hands on, in what Ian calls a giving back day. They had staff volunteer to come down and help out at the Richmond RDA.
Leanne Pickering, Endeavour Energy’s Chief Customer and Strategy Office, says “We know that our customers are doing it tough right now with cost-of-living pressures, and our Powering Communities grants program is needed more than ever”.
The Powering Communities grant invites community groups, schools and not-for-profit organisations to apply for grants ranging from $2,000 to $15,000. They are offering these oneoff grants across four categories: STEM and education, community resilience, environmental leadership and social inclusion.
Applications are currently open and close Sunday 20th of October 2024. For more information on the Powering Communities program and to apply visit: www.endeavourenergy.com.au/poweringcommunities Richmond
Riding for the Disabled Association is always open and looking for volunteers. If anyone is interested, you can contact them via their Facebook page – Riding for the Disabled Richmond.
