Last night our wonderful kitchen team cooked up dozens of hot meals for SES volunteers who were in the elements, assisting the Bendigo community in high-risk flood areas.

Our kitchen staff stayed late to ensure volunteers had adequate amounts of food to keep them going well into the night.

With many local restaurants and businesses closing due to the wet conditions and staffing problems, Red Energy Arena Head Chef Naomi Johnson switched into gear as soon as the news came through that the SES volunteers needed meals.

“I’m lucky to have a dedicated team who love what they do and know the impact that they can have,” said Naomi. “I’m really proud of what we achieved last night and the high number of meals we prepared for our volunteers.”

When tough times happen, our team knows that support means everything. When our Corporate Services Manager, Anita Harrington received emergency alerts, it become clear that we needed to step up and do something to support the volunteers out there who are keeping people safe.

“My phone was buzzing with emergency service notifications and my heart immediately went out to all the volunteers who give up their time to help us out,” said Anita.

“I made a quick call to Naomi to see if the team had any produce that could be whipped up to feed the SES volunteers and she immediately replied with – how many are we feeding and when do we need it by?

“The team stayed back and worked together when their shift had finished to create this. This is culture, this is leadership.”

Thank you to our staff who were able to stay back to assist: Naomi Johnson, Karen Tresize, Jenny Carolan, Kelly Hazel and Felix Johnston.

Thank you and good luck to the crews of the SES in Bendigo – we hope we helped to keep you going last night!