Next Wednesday’s Volvo RUPA Awards 20th Anniversary Lunch represents a wonderful opportunity to recognise the success of our members, both on and off the field.
The Community Service Award, presented by Hall Chadwick, is awarded to the player who has made extraordinary service to the community through charity events, appearances, promotion of a community or not-for-profit cause or initiative.
Finalists are put forward by the RUPA Player Development Managers, and the winner is decided by the RUPA Board. In 2014, Henry Speight (Brumbies) and Pat McCutcheon (Waratahs, now Australian Men’s Rugby Sevens) were the joint winners.
RUPA 2015 Community Award Finalists
Ben Daley – Reds
If you were new to Super Rugby in 2015, the first thing you would have noticed when watching the Reds play was the iconic headgear sported by prop Ben Daley.
Ben supported a different charity every round of the Super Rugby competition through an initiative he created named ‘Be Great, Do Good’. Ben used his unique headgear to raise awareness and funds for each separate charity’s cause.
Outside of the ‘Be Great, Do Good’ campaign, Ben has also been an outstanding role model for the Reds in 2015 with regular appearances at local registration and promotional days, organising phone calls at the Channel 9 Telethon for the Brisbane Children’s Hospital and dedicating his spare time to commentating Brisbane Premier Grade fixtures.
Tim Metcher – Rebels
In his first year as a professional player, Rebels prop Tim Metcher moved to Melbourne from Sydney and volunteered countless hours for a number of different organisations.
As an ambassador for Australia Post, Tim has spoken to large groups of employees on a number of separate occasions. Following in the footsteps of his parents, Tim has also been visibly active at a multitude of Salvation Army events in Melbourne, offering time and support for those in need.
Since getting injured in Round One of the NRC, Tim has been assisting former Wallaby prop Nic Henderson with the selection and coaching of front rowers for the Rebels U20s side.
Paddy Ryan - Waratahs
In 2015, Paddy gave many hours back to the community in various appearances such as coaching clinics, Macquarie Bank appearances and charity work with the Starlight foundation.
To add yet another string to his bow, Paddy supports Batyr, a social enterprise that focuses on preventative education in the area of young people’s mental health.
A long-time advocate for breaking down the stigmas associated with depression and mental health, Paddy has been instrumental in raising awareness for this unspoken illness in recent years and was selected to represent RUPA and all of its members at the world’s leading forum for social impact, Good Pitch Australia, where he took centre stage in discussing the film proposal ‘Happy Sad Man’.
Jordan Smiler - Brumbies
Kiwi-born Brumbies back rower Jordan Smiler was extremely generous with the time he dedicated to community service in 2015.
Jordan has spent time reading books at the National Simultaneous Storytime event, was involved in numerous school visits and happily and willingly attended local Junior Rugby finals to encourage the next batch of future Brumbies!
He has also given his time to offer guidance and support to adolescents in his area at weekly leadership sessions among his Church’s youth group on a Wednesday night, and has been involved with the promotion of the Brumbies’ ‘silence is deadly’ initiative with Menslink.
Joe Tomane - Brumbies
Wallaby and Brumbies star Joe Tomane’s smiling face was seen at a number of community events in 2015, including functions for organisations such as A4L (Athletes for Life).
Joe attended conferences and workshops to help teens and athletes learn how to deal with troublesome situations that could occur, with bible readings and athlete testimonies.
Joe is an Ambassador for Lifeline and regularly can be seen attending awareness raising-functions such as fun runs and gala dinners.
