Our History
MADRA's Beginnings
In the immediate aftermath of the fires, a ‘Thinking Group’ was formed which was led by a range of community minded people who had the foresight to start the collection of ideas and skills in community-led recovery. They met with Steve Pascoe, a Disaster Recovery Mentor (who had been through the Strathewen fires from Black Saturday in 2009), to help plot out the process of how to implement a community-led recovery program for Mallacoota. On Wednesday 15 January 2020, a large group of representatives from Mallacoota’s community organisations were invited to attend a meeting to discuss a way forward. This helped to disseminate information to a larger group of people. The purpose of the meeting was simply to gauge if the community felt the concept being developed was heading in the right direction. The proposal was endorsed by community representatives and the Thinking Group was invited to flesh out a process for establishing a recovery association.
Over the following three weeks, the core Thinking Group, together with other interested locals, worked on a draft constitution and a vision and purposes statement. Work also commenced with EGSC to initiate an election process adhering to Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC) guidelines. This work was presented to a larger representative group at the Mudbrick Pavilion, and then on 4 February 2020, the proposal was put to all interested locals at a town meeting at the Golf Club, which an estimated 500 plus people attended. The proposal was overwhelmingly endorsed, and the Mallacoota and District Recovery Association (MADRA) was formed.
Past and present MADRA committee members. L to R: Jenny Lloyd, MADRA 1 Deputy Chair; Paul Preston, MADRA 2 Chair; David Appleton, MADRA 1 Chair; Carol Hopkins, current Chair; Graham Dempster, MADRA 1 & 2 Treasurer; Ken Grime, MADRA 3 Treasurer. Photo: Mary O'Malley
MADRA Committee
The VEC managed the election process for the MADRA Committee, the first of its kind in Victoria. Nominations for MADRA committee members were sought by 16 April 2020. A total of 44 local candidates stood for election. Voting by postal vote closed on 20 May, and the results of the election were announced on 21 May 2020. A high voting response rate of 88 per cent was recorded. On 9 June 2020, the newly formed MADRA committee elected its office bearers.
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Chair: Carol Hopkins
Deputy Chair: Phil Piper
Secretary: Ash Turner
Treasurer: Peter Giddings
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Chair: Carol Hopkins
Deputy Chair: Phil Piper
Secretary: Ash Turner
Treasurer: Peter Giddings
General members:
Christy Bryar, Justin Hede, Pip Masters
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Chair: Carol Hopkins
Deputy Chair: Phil Piper
Secretary: Rosy Morton
Treasurer: Ken Grime
General members:
Sue Brown, Christy Bryar, Peter Giddings, Jenny Mason, Jeanette Obri, Ash Turner, Jo Wohler
Lea Davis also served as a general committee member for a period of time.
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Chair: Paul Preston
Deputy Chair: Peter Hancock
Secretary: Carol Hopkins
Treasurer: Graham Dempster
General members:
Kate Cowden, Ken Grime, Rosy Morton, Jeanette Obri, Phil Piper, Bryce Watts-Parker
Gary Proctor and Reiner Hurst also served as general committee members for a period of time.
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Chair: Dr David Appleton
Deputy Chair: Jenny Lloyd
Secretary: Trindi Suratman
Treasurer: Graham Dempster
General members: Jude Benton, Tanya de Geus, Brodie Gaudion, Peter Hancock, Paul Preston, Mark Tregellas, Kerri Warren, Bryce Watts-Parker
MADRA's early days: MADRA Committee members, members of the Thinking Group and representatives of Bushfire Recovery Victoria and the East Gippsland Shire Council at a MADRA induction session in June 2020.
Our Vision
We will be an inclusive, vibrant, strong, and safe community.
Our vision will be achieved when:
Everyone in our community who needs bushfire assistance has received it, no one will have slipped between the cracks or left behind.
We have restored what we loved and fixed the things which are broken.
We feel confident we are prepared in the face of disaster.
Through the recovery process, we have created opportunities that promote resilience, diversity, well-being, connectedness, and economic security.
Our Mission
MADRA was established to ensure the needs, wants and aspirations of our community are considered as part of the recovery process following the 2019-20 bushfires.
We are a voice for our community.
We play an active role in community-led recovery by:
encouraging community involvement in the recovery and rebuilding process and related activities.
identifying and prioritising the needs of MAD and assisting in the recovery and rebuilding process.
influencing government bodies to work to meet identified community needs and priorities.
facilitating communication of information between community, government and agencies.
advocating for individuals, families and community groups.
attracting and applying for monies and identifying projects/needs requiring funding.
providing a focus for communication and coordination between community groups.
channelling funding and other opportunities to appropriate groups and individuals.
working with our funding and delivery partners to ensure optimal disaster recovery outcomes for MAD.
working with other Community Recovery Committees (CRCs) to share lessons learned and offer support.
What We Will Not Do
We are a diverse community that does not always agree. There will be situations where the community is split, and decisions cannot be reached.
In such cases, we will not take sides or mediate disputes. Nor will we intervene in the decision-making processes of other organisations or duplicate their roles.
If the matter is being driven by government (local, state, and federal), and there is a failure to adequately consult our community, we cannot take on that role. Rather, we will ‘push back’ to government seeking better information to inform decision making and for more fulsome community consultation (perhaps with an independent facilitator if the issue is divisive). Usually, this will be on issues requiring specialist knowledge and/or policy matters.
We looked to how other communities deal with divergent viewpoints. Key is not rushing decision making (where possible) and encouraging ongoing discussion and respectful debate until all parties reach a position they can live with. If agreement cannot be reached, MADRA’s default position is ‘we will do no harm’. Our focus will be progressing those community-driven initiatives that have community backing.
Our Structure
MADRA is an incorporated association and a Public Benevolent Institution (PBI) registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC). We also have Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status which enables donors to claim a tax deduction through the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).
Our Stakeholders
A stakeholder is either an individual, group or organisation who is impacted by, or has an interest in, the outcome of a project or process.
Our major disaster recovery stakeholder groups are:
community members including residents, property owners and visitors,
our recovery delivery partners, and
our recovery funding partners.
There is some crossover between our funding and delivery partners.
Our comprehensive stakeholder analysis in in our Recovery Plan (see Appendix B).
