I WRITE in response to Mr Mark Kellam’s letter in last week’s paper re “Appalled by Invictus snub”.
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Firstly, the Oberon RSL Sub-Branch have not snubbed the Invictus Games. Members have elected not to go out onto the streets of Oberon and ask the citizens of Oberon to make donations to the games which are to be held in Sydney later this year. The facts are that in early 2017, Prince Harry announced that the Invictus Games would be held in Sydney in 2018, the RSL of NSW Branch announced that they would be one of the major sponsors of the games, and the Oberon RSL Sub-Branch resolved to make donation to RSL NSW Branch for the Invictus Games, as did most sub-branches throughout NSW.
In August 2017, the decision was made by NSW RSL State Council to cease all fundraising by RSL sub-branches. This is a statewide decision that was not discussed with sub-branches before being enacted and is due in main to the problems currently being experienced by RSL NSW State Branch. For some of the smaller sub-branches, with no other source of income, this decision is devastating. Nine months later we are still under this ban from RSL NSW State Council.
RSL NSW State Council has now made a directive to the more affluent sub-branches that they have to make donation to the smaller sub-branches to prevent them from closing. Not only that, but RSL NSW State Council has stipulated how much money each sub-branch has to donate. Now most sub-branches don’t normally have a problem with helping out another sub-branch but they get their back up when being told what they can and can’t do with their money.
Now, while still unable to fund the operations of the sub-branches, Anzac Day services, commemorations, welfare services, etc, etc, RSL NSW State Council has now made an exemption to the fundraising ban for sub-branches to raise funds to support the Games, but they can’t raise money to support their own operations. This is why the Oberon RSL Sub-Branch, in conjunction with approximately 70 per cent of sub-branches in NSW, has decided not to do any fundraising for the Invictus Games. It is not that we have snubbed the injured, wounded and disabled veterans; the snub is to RSL NSW State Branch.
I am very perplexed as to why Mr Kellam is suddenly so appalled about reading of this decision in your paper on April 19. So appalled that he has to go public with his own opinion on the matter in your paper. As Mr Kellam stated in his letter, he is a member of the Oberon RSL Sub-Branch. If he attended a meeting of the sub-branch he would have known of these facts and of this decision in February of this year. He would have had the opportunity to voice his opinion at that time in the correct forum. If he ever read the minutes of meetings sent to him, he would have known of this decision in early March of this year and had ample opportunity since then to discuss this issue with the executive of the sub-branch.
I note that Mr Kellam stated in his letter that this decision “makes a mockery of our Anzac ceremonies and traditions”, yet I also noticed that only last Wednesday he proudly stood beside myself and other veterans and members of the sub branch at Anzac services, but not once did he raise the subject of the Invictus Games with me or the president.