MAAA Wingspan

18 19 MAAALogo. FEBRUARY WING SPAN LARCS open day 2021 Loganholme Aeromodellers Radio Control Society (LARCS) is a club that keeps bouncing back from adversity. Having suffered devastation from floods five years ago, the Club has rebuilt to have some of the best facilities in Australia including dedicated fixed wing, rotary wing and control line areas, 240v power and shaded pit areas, workshop and clubhouse. It has produced some of Australia’s most talented aeromodellers and is home to hundreds of members. Unfortunately, having great facilities and a keen group of members is not always enough to guarantee the future of our clubs. LARCS occupies land owned by the Logan City Council and adjoins the Loganholme waste water treatment plant. Planned expansion of the water treatment plant saw the Club being told that it would no longer be able to utilise the land from February 2021, so the LARCS committee swung into action to formulate a plan to save the Club. Long standing former Club President, David Butler tells the story. “Normally, our first port of call would have been to speak to our local councillor, unfortunately, the Logan City Council was sacked in 2019 and an administrator was installed by the State Government. We just couldn’t get anyone in power to recognise the value that we provided to the community. Fortunately, that all changed in March 2020, with the election of a new council including Division 10 Councillor Mi ri am Stemp, who was very keen to hear about the Club, our members, and what we do in the community. We have over 200members or all ages, fromall walks of life, and with diverse interests in aeromodelling. Most importantly, the Club provides somewhere for members tomeet, have a chat and a coffee, and enjoy their shared passion of model aeroplanes.” Councillor Stemp has thrown her support behind the Club and advocated on its behalf. The future is now looking very positive with access during the water treatment plant upgrade and plans of a new lease. To celebrate the good news and to showcase LARCS, the Club hosted a fly-in on 30 January 2021, with Councillor Stemp in attendance to experience first-hand what they do. There were over 100 aeromodellers in attendance with all facets of the sport on display. Models ranged from small foamies to large composite scalemodels – but everyone shared the same passion and enjoyed the day immensely. The Club plans to do regular fly-ins in the future to showcase its facilities, bring its members together and promote aeromodelling to the broader community. The experience of LARCS is a great example of why our clubs need to be proactive in engaging with their community and stakeholders. Very often, they are content to keep their “lamp under a bushel”. The MAAQ has allocatedmoneys for grants to clubs who are interested in running events that promote aeromodelling to the broader community and foster interaction amongst existing aeromodellers. Running an open day or fly-in does not need to be complicated, it’s simply about opening your club up to visitors and the community to enjoy your facilities and to see what you do, as well as attract potential newmembers. If you are interested in having an open day or fly-in at your club get in touch with the MAAQ PRO – pro@maaq.org . Pictured: Councillor M i riam Stemp at the LARCS Club.