Ringpull plus Rogers turn trash into charity cash

Jolly Rogers Fishing Club joins forces with Ringpull Association to donate wheelchairs, walking frames, run taxi service

RICH PICKINGS: Wayne Hayes of Ringpull with Rachel, Declan and James from Parkhurst State School. Picture: Jann Houley

Two local charities are pulling together to turn trash into treasure for Rockhampton people in need.

Ringpull Association Inc. has recently expanded its recycling efforts to include the 10-cent refund from Containers for Change, and has paired with the "fit, young” volunteers from Jolly Rogers Fishing Club.

"We've divvied up the local clubs to save picking over the same venues twice,” Ringpull President Wayne Hayes said.

"One of us will take the Heritage and the Great Western, the other the Criterion and Oxford.”

Wayne Hayes of Ringpull Assoc., Stephanie Foote and Neil Xavier of Jolly Rogers Fishing Club. Picture: Jann Houley

The two clubs realised they shared the same goal of keeping trash out of the local waterways and making some cash to support locals in need.

Mr Hayes lists 12 wheelchairs, 23 iPADs, two walking frames, crutches and appliances among the spoils they've given away.

"And the Jolly Rogers Fishing Club donated 180 blankets to homeless people this past year so we knew we have a similar mission.”

Dave St Henry, who teaches music at Parkhurst State School, said the students there began collecting for Ringpull about eights years ago.

"The tradition started as they bought a walking frame for my daughter who has cerebral palsy,” he said.

Sue and Blair from Zebra Metals receive kilos of ring-pulls collected by Gormans Removals. Picture: Jann Houley

"Every year now the Parkhurst school community do their bit, bringing in their ringpulls, and at the end of the year it gets collected by Wayne and the gang.”

Mr Hayes said that, with the addition of the Container exchange income, the association made a whopping $1900 in just five days this month.

"Some venues stockpiles their cans and ringpulls for months until we pick them up and now we can also take away plastic bottles, glass bottles and scrap metal.”

The association also makes money hauling disused fridges, washing machines and building materials and stripping them down to sell as scrap.

"Those Jolly Rogers volunteers are a bit younger than us older Ringpull members and a fair bit more fit,” Mr Hayes said.

"They have about 60 members who have about 300 family members around town of whom we've identified six people who have mobility issues,” he said.

"Between the two organisations, we can also afford to run a second-hand taxi to ferry people between medical appointments and to take good care of them.”

Originally published as Ringpull plus Rogers turn trash into charity cash