Community Cheer: Respect Celebrates Wattleglen Resident Linda with Charity Donation

Last month we shared the news that our home in Sale, Victoria (which recently joined Respect from Royal Freemasons) had changed it’s name to Wattleglen, as the result of a public vote. 

This followed extensive community consultation, including a special prize to the first individual to suggest the name eventually chosen by the community. As part of the competition, Respect committed to awarding the winner with a $2,500 cash prize as well as a $2,500 donation to a local charity of their choice.  

And we’re pleased to announce Wattleglen’s resident Linda Wilkins as the winner of the competition, after she provided the inspiration for the home’s well-received new name. 

A resident of the home for more than six years, Linda says ‘Wattleglen’ initially came to mind when she was thinking of “names that had a good ring to them”, but it was only when she spoke with others in the community that further connections became clear. 

“I found out that the surrounding area of our home used to be called ‘Glenhaven Estate’. Then, when I was talking with someone in the café about local flowers, they mentioned Sale used to be a great place for wattle to grow, with heaps of it historically found around the region,” she says. “So glen and wattle just seemed to fit after all!” 

‘Wattleglen’ was shared back to the community via a survey with several other options, and collected the most votes, including more than 40 per cent of current residents. 

Linda nominated Marley Street Community Hub as her charity of choice, and Respect was proud to recognise the organisation’s vital work in the community with a donation. 

Representatives of the charity recently joined our Wattleglen community (including Linda and GM Michael Filon, pictured) to receive the cheque, and share their gratitude to Respect for the wonderful show of generosity, which they say will positively impact local families. 

Marley St Community Hub supports local families in Sale by addressing social isolation, hardship, inequity, and disadvantage by providing emergency relief, increasing community participation and providing support services.  

Peter Witton, President at Marley St Community Hub, says Respect and Linda’s “wonderful show of generosity” will have a direct impact on local families. 

“Marley St Community Hub supports over 2,000 foodbank recipients every year,” Mr Witton says. “This donation means that the Hub can continue to meet the ever-increasing demand as the community struggles with high cost of living. There are many people accessing foodbank who have never needed to before. Making ends meet is getting much harder and Marley St Community Hub provides free services to anyone in the community who needs help.  

“We are a not-for-profit charity, so it’s valuable donations like these that allow us to keep supporting the community, even as food security requirements increase. The entire local community will now be beneficiaries of Linda’s nomination and Respect’s generous donation.” 

Jason Binder, Managing Director and CEO of Respect, acknowledged everyone across Sale who participated in Wattleglen’s name change process, and recognised resident Linda’s contribution to the home’s ongoing legacy. 

“At its core, the whole name-change process was about connecting with the community and putting them at the forefront of leading any change,” Mr Binder says. “So how great to have one of our beloved residents in Linda providing the inspiration behind what was voted by the community as our home’s new name.  

“As an organisation, we are proud to recognise her for this contribution, including sharing our support with the Marley Street Community Hub. They provide such important services to local families currently doing it tough in Sale, so it’s a pleasure to donate to their work.”