Jands’ CrewCare Charity Golf Day raises funds for Support Act

Australia’s stage and production sector has united to raise over $18,000 for Support Act’s CrewCare initiative through the inaugural Jands CrewCare Charity Golf Day.

Going down at Brisbane’s St. Lucia Golf Links course on Wednesday June 16, the game saw a number of production industry heavyweights unite for a 19-hole game, with 108 golfers partaking in the charity event.

The game was organised by NW Group’s Queensland general manager Ray Moss, with pro-audio and staging distributors Jands coming on as major sponsors for the game.

Participants involved in the game included members of DW Sound, Technical Audio Group, Marsh Entertainment Insurance, JLX, Dreamweavers, Iceworks and ShowTechnology, as well The Brag Media, Lemon Tree Music (Tones & I, Tash Sultana) and Fortitude Music Hall and The Triffid’s John ‘JC’ Collins (bassist for Powderfinger).

A number of fundraising enticements were held over the course of the day, including a chipping competition, Mulligans, closest to hole and extra meterage, which raised an additional $4,817, while a $1 million donation by Jands was offered in the event of a hole-in-one.

After 19 holes, the game was won by Clifton Productions’ Team Mince, who brought their own trophy to the event in anticipation of their win.

By the end of play, the CrewCare Charity Golf Day raised over $22,000, with $18,000 being donated directly to Support Act’s Crew Fund initiative to assist out-of-work stage techs and road crew.

CrewCare’s co-founding director Tony Moran said that the event marked a “watershed moment for the live production industry”.

“In a highly competitive industry, it’s pleasing to see so many businesses coming together for a single cause and an encouraging step towards our sector presenting a united voice. Let’s keep these conversations going,” Moran said.

“In a time where many of you are doing it so hard yourselves, it’s humbling to see you put your crew first and acknowledge they are the ones hurting most.”

Since introducing CrewKeeper cash grants in March, Support Act has provided over $700,000 in crisis relief to 313 crew members around Australia, with more than 700 applications being lodged in the past fortnight alone.