Northcliffe women Pat Laws and the late Sandy Jones to be honoured by Manjimup Shire for extraordinary service

Two dedicated Northcliffe women are being recognised by the Shire of Manjimup for their extraordinary service and commitment to their community.

Pat Laws and the late Sandy Jones gave more than 20 years of their life serving on the Northcliffe Town Hall management committee with great enthusiasm and passion, contributing to the functioning of the hall across various town events.

The committee intends to recognise this admirable level of service and commitment with a plaque to be displayed in a prominent location inside the town hall.

The Manjimup-Bridgetown Times spoke with Mrs Laws who has fond memories of her time at the Northcliffe Town Hall.

Mrs Laws said there were quite a few volunteers over the years and many ‘Friends of the committee’ but herself and Mrs Jones were the main ones.

“We did put in quite a bit of time there,” she said.

“We always had a good time.”

Mrs Laws said the most special events the committee ran were the dances but she also remembered the other events they used to cater for, including the annual Karri Cup, weddings, funerals and birthdays.

“When Sandy and I ran a dance once a month for the town hall we mostly had people from out of town,” she said.

“There was even a bus from Manjimup.

“The dances used to raise funds for the hall and we used to do all of the cooking and the supper.”

Mrs Laws said the town hall had a long history and she missed some of the events, including pantomimes, badmington, ballroom dancing classes, New Year’s Eve parties and the monthly dances.

“It was well used in the earlier days,” she said.

“It’s been quite a few years since then.”

After 88 years living in Northcliffe, Mrs Law now lives in Bunbury with her daughter but intends to continue to visit her friends in Northcliffe when she can and stay connected with the community.

Manjimup Shire president Paul Omodei said the community relied on volunteers who saved the State and Federal governments billions of dollars each year.

“I think it’s important that we recognise our volunteers,” he said.

“People like Mrs Laws and Mrs Jones have been outstanding volunteers in our community for years and years allowing the Shire-owned facility to be operated with minimal involvement or cost to the Shire.

“Without these volunteers many things simply would not occur.”

The plaques will be funded through the maintenance budget for the Northcliffe Town Hall, with the estimated cost to come to $800.