April 8, 2025
A bequest by a Kilkivan woman has boosted efforts by the not-for-profit Kilkivan & District Community Care Association (KDCCAI) to implement its Rise & Shine Ageing-in-Place Project.
For years, the KDCCAI has worked towards its dream of providing accessible rental homes and a share house for seniors in Kilkivan.
KDCCAI already runs Kilkivan Care, which co-ordinates home care packages using local support workers for clients in Kilkivan, Tansey, Woolooga and Goomeri.
In 2024, it bought the deconsecrated Catholic Church building in Kilkivan with the view of creating a community centre in town.
At last Wednesday’s Seniors’ Social Hub get-together, KDCCAI member Di Wade announced that the late Jan Farrar had left a bequest from her estate to the charity. Her Kilkivan property will be auctioned within weeks.
Ms Wade provided a short overview of Jan’s life and their friendship at the meeting.
Ms Farrar lived in Kilkivan for more than 25 years, and was a community volunteer with a number of organisations. More recently her home care package was co-ordinated by Kilkivan Care.
She had no children and was a strong supporter of the KDCCAI’s efforts to help residents across the district remain living well in their home territory for as long as feasible.
“I was really overwhelmed by her generosity and am glad I was able to tell her how valuable her bequest would be for our registered charity,” KDCCAI president Rosie Fitzgerald said.
“This is our very first bequest, so she was a trailblazer! We pledge as an organisation to be prudent in how we use the funds and will ensure that she is memorialised appropriately It’s an awesome contribution to the Rise & Shine Project that we will never forget.”
Ms Fitzgerald said she wanted to thank solicitor John Joyce who had been instrumental in having the group registered as a charity.
“John did this pro bono work in 2022 and helped set us up to be able to responsibly attract and accept such significant donations. We are very grateful to him for this contribution,” she said.
Ms Fitzgerald also announced three other recent donations to the organisation:
- A $1000 donation by the Everald Compton Charitable Trust towards the remaining loan on the purchase of the former Catholic Church building,
- Confirmation that a local property owner is covering the cost of repainting the former church exterior, and
- The donation of a small car by a non-local contact of treasurer Lynda Sempf.
Ms Fitzgerald said the announcement of the bequest came at what the KDCCAI regarded as an “interesting” time for the five-year-old organisation with the imminent introduction of the new Federal Government “Support At Home” program on July 1.
“Luckily most of the current Kilkivan Care clients are Home Care Package ‘grandparented’ holders, so will have the comfort of a ‘no worse off’ assurance under the changed program,” Ms Fitzgerald said.
Related articles:
- ‘Ruby’ Raises Much-Needed Funds
- Aged Care Adds Up, Says Group
- Group Gets Keys To Old Church
- Community Aims To Raise $100,000
- Major Boost For Kilkivan Project
- Lodge Sale Helps Community Groups
