Who’s Who in 2022, Community: Ronnie Benbow

Ronnie Benbow from The Carer’s Foundation has spent countless hours organising community events to help raise money, so her not-for-profit charity can move to a bigger location.

Presently based in Samford, The Carer’s Foundation has outgrown its existing facility and must relocate so it can offer more support and wellness retreats to the thousands of unpaid carers needing support and respite.

About Ronnie Benbow

Ronnie Benbow is one of the Founding Directors of The Carer’s Foundation, which she started in 2015 with her husband Michael.

Based in Samford, The Carer’s Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation that provides unique wellness programs, retreats and respite to support the emotional, physical and mental wellbeing of unpaid carers across the country.

Being a registered nurse with a Degree in Health Science, Ronnie has seen firsthand how hard the role of an unpaid carer can be and the debilitating stress they endure every day.

Ronnie said: “there are more than 540,000 unpaid carers in Queensland alone, with more than 100,000 of them being carers who are under the age of 25”.

With more people than ever reaching out for help and support, Ronnie told Moreton Daily in May the organisation had simply outgrown its existing facility and would need to find a bigger location.

The larger location will serve three purposes; Not only will it be a safe space where carers can come any time for respite, but it will also be utilised as a training centre where Ronnie can train the volunteers who help run retreats.

It also means they can become a social enterprise which will allow The Carer’s Foundation to do paid corporate retreats.

Ronnie says this option will give them “more long-term sustainability as we are limited with the funding we receive. Since we are not government funded, we are reliant on grants, gifts, donations and fundraisers”.

Throughout the year, Ronnie has spent countless hours organising community fundraisers to help them get the funds they need to move.

In June, she organised a community luncheon at the Victoria Park Golf Complex, which included several guest speakers, including former Olympic swimmer Libby Trickett.

Then in October, the foundation held its inaugural Unsung Heroes gala event at Rydges South Bank.

This new signature fundraising campaign saw local business leaders and celebrities take to the stage to reveal their musical talents and raise funds for unpaid carers – the real unsung heroes in our communities.

Every participant will now have a year to practice their musical talent before performing their routine at the next official event in October 23.

During that time period, each unsung hero will need to raise $20,000.

The Carer’s Foundation was also recognised in 2022 for the incredible work it does in the community by being named as a finalist in the SRJ Walker Wayland Award for Not-For-Profit Excellence category at the 2022 Moreton Bay Business and Innovation Awards.