Former Springwood RSL president Dave Simmons is one of four in Australia this year to be awarded the Anzac of the Year Award for his “positive and selfless” service to the community.
Among his many achievements was helping create a program to support homeless veterans and their families in the Springwood area, which has now spread across Logan.
Mr Simmon remains humble, claiming the award is a victory and reflection of the sub-branch’s entire team.
“This is not about one person, but a group of people,” he said.
The Springwood Tri-Service RSL Sub-Branch is small, with no official headquarters and only 90 members.
No door for in-need veterans to knock on or phone number to ring.
That’s why the RSL needed to change the way it operated – to ensure veterans could receive the help they need.
“My job was to make sure the operational plans were in place for two, three or four years into the future,” Mr Simmons said.
To do that, he knew the RSL must build alliances with other organisations and charities already doing good work in the community.
“We needed eyes on the ground. We needed other organisations to assist us achieve our mission of developing a homeless veterans program,” he said.
So Mr Simmons drafted a plan and the team got to work.
Now the RSl works with organisations like Rosies – Friends on the Street who keep an eye out for homeless veterans.
“We were utilising the third party system to be our ears and eyes and to locate [veterans], which could be two o’clock in the morning or 11 o’clock at night if they were out and about,” Mr Simmons said.
“That was the beauty about this, it was a 24-hour policy and procedure.
“That concept could be easily exported everywhere around Australia.”
Current president of the Springwood Tri-Service RSL Sub-Branch, Jamie McLellan, said Mr Simmons was a stalwart of the community.
“He’s done a lot over the years, both for the sub-branch and supported veterans in the area. He still does a lot of work for veterans in the area,” he said.
“He’s our assistant welfare officer currently. He is out and about assisting veterans that need help with hospital visits because they can’t drive, or shopping and things like that.”
Mr Simmons served in the army for 20 years.
