The community fair and "car boot sale"-style event, to be held 10am-3pm on Sunday, November 16, at Grants Braes Football Club, will serve multiple purposes — as a pre-Christmas community gathering, a chance to sell excess household items and as a fundraiser for the club.
The event is being organised by Grants Braes Football Club junior co-ordinator and vice-president David Creed and local resident Danielle Culling, who are keen to invite the wider community to come along, enjoy a day out and buy.
"Originally, we thought of creating a series of garage sales, but the community indicated that they would prefer to bring their goods together into one space," Mrs Culling said.
"So, we decided to open up the football club and make it a community gathering."
Only local residents were able to sell items, but the wider Dunedin public were very welcome to come along and join in the fun and help with the fundraising, she said.
Alongside about 30 stalls, the event will include refreshments and a chance for children to have a kick around and for parents to take a look at the club.
"We are hoping for good weather, so that the children can have a run around outside and play while their parents shop," she said.
Funds raised through the event will go towards upgrading the club kitchen.
Mr Creed said Grants Braes Football Club was important as both a sports and community facility.
The club has about 340 members, fielding 20 teams in local football league — two-thirds of them junior squads, ranging from 4-5 year olds to 17-18 year olds.
The club has a senior women’s team, senior men’s teams and two masters teams — for players 35+ and 45+.
Mr Creed said the club’s catchment took in the local Tomahawk area and South Dunedin and, to help ensure the game was accessible to families, fees were discounted for children aged 4-5 years and 6-8 years.
"We don’t want families to miss out because of the cost," he said.
The Grants Braes Football Clubrooms building is owned by the Dunedin City Council and run by the club, which makes it available for the local community to use for events and activities.
"Upgrading the space, in particular the kitchen, will help to make it a more attractive community facility," Mr Creed said.
The club also regularly fundraised to buy new equipment and playing kits for children.
Grants Braes Football Club was founded in 1961 in Waverley, and moved to Tomahawk Domain in the 1980s. At that time, the clubrooms were a badminton hall, but eventually the football club took over the space.
The Grants Braes Football Club will hold its annual meeting on November 30, at 6pm, at the clubrooms, 1 Domain Rd, Tomahawk.
