THEY’RE the blokes who fix your plumbing, build your houses or concrete your driveway, but last Friday, more than 60 local tradies downed tools for their annual pre-Christmas get together traditionally known as ‘Tradies Day’.

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They started their day, just after dawn, with a round of golf at the Hawks Nest Golf Club.

A breakfast and lunch barbie followed, this year the legendary Lofty, from Lofty Cranes doing the honours, donning the apron and keeping the blokes fed.

But the Tradies also use the day to raise money for local community groups, this year the Hawks Nest Boxing Gym, run for our local youngsters, benefiting from their generosity.

Tea Gardens Senior Constable Rob Wylie, who started the gym said, “They just passed the hat around and before you knew it they’d raised over $900 for the gym.”

While ‘Tradies Day’ has been going for more than a decade, five years ago Sue Abrahams decided to join in the fun and organised the first ‘Ladies Day, Fancy Dress lunch.’

“There’s been a different theme every year,” Sue said.

“We started with ‘Gowns and Slippers, then ‘Witches’, ‘Gangsters’, ‘Fairies’ and this year we were all ‘Sinners and Saints’.

And just like the Tradies, the women raise money for local charities, this year no different with $720 heading off to a worthy cause.

“We had 24 women who lunched at the Benchmark this year, it was great fun, and we’ll do it all again in 2019, the theme yet to be decided.”

Sue said, “We’d like to say a special thank you to Lofty and Liz along with Ben and Emily Hanson from the Tea Gardens Hotel for their donations and for our Ladies Day Raffle.”

By: Margie TIERNEY