One of the newest Rotary Clubs in Tasmania is proving that volunteering is part and parcel of a community and its sense of belonging as it celebrates its first birthday this month.
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The Rotary Club of Legana - which began in July last year - congratulated its members on the first 12 months of its journey of "helping Legana find its identity".
For its modest seven members - each of whom completed more than 100 hours of volunteer work throughout the year - the birthday let them reflect on early accomplishments and where they hoped to head in the future.
The acting co-president, Wendy Robinson, said the Club was a mirror of Legana's desires - a place that has undergone exponential growth in the last decade - and how its people are "looking to build their community".
Legana is often considered one of the fastest-growing areas in the state, according to the West Tamar Council.
"For a lot of our members, being in a Rotary Club is about feeling a sense of belonging," Ms Robinson said.
"But it's also about doing things for our community, and in a place like Legana, which is still forging its identity as a young place for families, that's extremely important to be a part of.
"What kind of place do we want to be?"
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Founded in sponsorship from the Rotary Club of Launceston, the Legana group was born to fill the void of community service groups in the locality, and it soon found its passionate members who were eager to do so.
What was a challenge, though - and not simply a challenge for the Legana iteration of the Club - was how Rotary could forge a new identity in a new, younger place.
That's where the Club's "online Rotary" approach came in.
Traditionally, Rotarians meet in person for monthly meetings. Still, with the busy, time-poor life of the modern adult, and a growing work-from-home culture, Legana was formed as an "online Rotary", meeting virtually instead of in person.
For its young group of avid community members, it's been a perfect match, and once its logistical side was worked out, the Club moved on to confirm its focus.
"There are a whole lot of new families living in Legana," Ms Robinson said.
"So we thought: why don't we get activities that will give that demographic a connective community?"
Although it has run several community engagement projects since - like creating garden beds at Regis Aged Care Facility, amongst others - its most popular has been establishing an annual event.
One week before Easter this year, the Rotary Club of Legana collaborated with the local cricket club. It co-hosted a free Easter egg hunt at the Legana Cricket Oval - over 250 children attended, searching for thousands of eggs.
"What was the best part for us was that those families came along, and they hadn't met other people in the community before," Ms Robinson said.
"I overheard someone introducing themselves and saying, 'Oh, we'll catch up for coffee',; and that summed up what we want this Club to be able to do for Rotary.
"If that's our first year's legacy, we're going to go from strength to strength."
Events like the Easter egg hunt earned the Club a place in the West Tamar Council Volunteer Group of the Year award as a finalist, alongside its other various projects - which it only plans to do more of.
"The volunteering we've done, and people's willingness to do it, shows how there's a want to build community in Legana," she said.
The Club has a series of plans in the works, including working with the Legana School once it's built in coming years, and in the mental health space, as well as with Legana's large migrant community.
"You never know how an event can affect a community and what it becomes known for, what kind of effects it has on business and people," Ms Robinson said.
"We're all excited for what the future holds for Legana."
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