Free Clinic Bus received new Staria vehicle after long wait Myall Coast Myall Coast by News Of The Area - Modern Media - August 30, 2023 Jan Peeters (right) with some of the drivers on Sunday morning. DRIVERS of the local Free Clinic Bus get to break in a new steed as they welcomed the new vehicle at Hawks Nest Golf Club on Sunday, 27 August. Delivered on 25 August after many months’ anticipation, the new bus is a long-awaited Hyundai Staria, which has been funded by multiple donations from several local community fundraisers and service groups. Advertise with News of The Area today. It’s worth it for your business. Message us. Phone us – (02) 4981 8882. Email us – media@newsofthearea.com.au It will replace the existing vehicle as soon as the external signage is applied by local signwriter Glen Henry. Under a summery clear-weather morning sky, a dozen of the Free Clinic Bus’ 25 volunteer drivers turned out to welcome the latest addition to the much-needed and loved local service. The volunteer force of drivers come from all walks of life, including several ex-truckies and former bus drivers, who are applying their careers’ worth of experience to safely deliver medical patients from all around town. “Our passengers always pour accolades on the drivers, say how lovely they are – which is really needed when you may be on your way to a concerning medical appointment,” Jan Peeters, a Co-Ordinator of the Free Clinic Bus for the last seven years, told NOTA. A day for the drivers, they closely inspected their new elegantly spacious 8-seater Staria, its latest safety and next-generation technology, not to mention a futuristic design. “To date this year, we have carried close to 270 people to appointments in Raymond Terrace, Maitland and Newcastle,” fellow Co-Ordinator Anne Fowler, who has been with the Bus for 20 years, told NOTA. The Free Clinic Bus picks up medical welfare patients from Hawks Nest, Tea Gardens, North Arm Cove, Bundabah, Pindimar and Karuah, who mainly have restricted licenses, or are not well enough to drive long distances outside of town, taking them to X-rays and other scans and procedures that are not available locally. The Free Clinic Bus is a charity service that has been operating since 1985, and survives on donations from local clubs and organisations, being run and operated by volunteers. By Thomas O’KEEFE The drivers see how much room there is for medical welfare passengers to use the free service Volunteer drivers get acquainted with the new Staria. A dozen volunteer drivers came to welcome the new vehicle to the Free Clinic Bus service.
