The 2025 Grampians “Ride to Remember” will be held on Sunday, 2nd February and will be open to all licensed motorcycle enthusiasts.

The 196km Ride has been endorsed by Victoria Police and will start in Ararat at 9am  and travel the rural countryside including Crowlands, Joel South, through Stawell and onto Pomonal for Morning Tea again this year, then into the Grampians National Park via Halls Gap to Yarram Gap Rd then back to Willaura, Maroona and onto Ararat for a relaxing lunch at the Alexandra Gardens – 2025 Ride route.

Entry is $50 per rider/pillion and will include the 2025 Commemorative Badge, Morning Tea & Picnic Lunch, Bottled Water, etc.

The popular Welcoming Dinner at the Ararat RSL is on the Saturday night (1/2) plus ordering of merchandising will be available with the opening of registrations on 1st November, 2024.In the meantime, take care, keep safe and we look forward to welcoming you to Ararat for an enjoyable Ride in February.

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First prize is worth $250k. A BMW X4 and an all-electric Mini Cooper SE plus $60k in gold bullion.Get your tickets now and also receive entry to early bird prize draws for raffle 25.

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Blue Ribbon Ball sponsors Snowy River Caravans and Blanchard Racing Team kindly donated a few rides in their V8Supercar yesterday at Sandown Raceway.

The lucky recipients were Oscar Broad and Lachlan McKenzie.

Both were recently awarded with a Citizens Commendation by Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton.

They stepped in to help a VicPol officer who had fractured his leg in two places after a struggle broke out while trying to arrest three teenagers who were graffitiing a shop in Creswick.While Oscar and Lachlan rode with Jack Perkins, full-time Supercar racer James Courtney was on hand for photos.

MELBOURNE

MARCH & NPRD SERVICE

10.00am, Friday 27 September

We invite all police members (past and present), their families and the Victorian community to join the official march and service for National Police Remembrance Day.

The march (step-off) and parade will start at 10am from Princes Bridge, St Kilda Road.

The parade will move along St Kilda Road to the Victoria Police Memorial, King’s Domain, Melbourne.

A service will follow from 10.20am at the Victoria Police Memorial, Kings Domain.

BOROONDARAH

2.00pm, Friday 27 September

Boroondarah Police Complex

34 Harp Road, Kew East 3102

SUNSHINE

11.00am Thursday 26 September

Club Italia

128-152 Furlong Road, Sunshine

Guests are requested to arrive by 10.45am for the 11.00 start

Refreshments will follow the Service.

BANNOCKBURN

9.00am Saturday 28 September

Bannockburn Police Station (in front of station)

51 High Street, Bannockburn 3331

SPRINGVALE

END OF DAY REFLECTION SERVICE

4pm, Friday 27 September

Springvale Botanical Cemetery

Victoria Police Memorial – Cnr Fifth & Sixth Roads

Outdoor Ceremony followed by refreshments

REGIONAL VICTORIA

ROSEBUD

10.00AM Friday 27 September

Rosebud RSL Club

117 Eastbourne Road, Rosebud

Police Memorial Service followed by light refreshments

ARARAT

11.00am Monday 30 September

Holy Trinity Anglican Church

47 High Street, Ararat

Refreshment after the Service

BALLARAT

11.30am Thursday 26 September

St Pauls Anglican Church

1309 Sturt Street, Ballarat

BENDIGO

Central Victoria Police Remembrance Day Service

10.00am Friday 27 September

St Paul’s Anglican Church

4 Myers Street, Bendigo

Police members & Veterans wishing to march:

March will commence from Williamson/ Myer’s Intersection.

Form up point: 10 Myers Street by 9.45am

March will commence promptly at 10am.

GEELONG

10.30am Monday 30 September

Peter & St Paul Catholic Church

Cnr Mercer & Malone Streets, Geelong

All are welcome.

SHEPPARTON

10.30am Friday 27 September

Monash Park (cnr Fryers Street & Welsford Street)

Refreshments following the Service.

HAMILTON

10.00am Friday 27 September

Hamilton Performing Arts Centre

113 Brown Street, Hamilton

HORSHAM

10.00AM Friday 27 September

St Michael and Johns Catholic Church

10 Roberts Avenue, Horsham

Refreshments following the Service.

MILDURA

11.00am Thursday 26 September

Sacred Heart Catholic Church

259 Eleventh Street, Mildura 3500

MANSFIELD

10.00am Friday 27 September

Front of the Mansfield Police Station

SALE

10.30am Friday 27 September

St Paul’s Cathedral

149 Cunningham Street, Sale

TRARALGON

11.30am Friday 27 September

Traralgon Uniting Church

19 Park Lane, Traralgon

WARRNAMBOOL

11.00 am Friday 27 September

Old Police Station Memorial

Gilles Street, South West Warrnambool

(Behind the TAFE College)

WODONGA

10.30am Friday 27 September

Sacred Heart Church

285 Beechworth Road, Wodonga

The presentation of the Blue Ribbon ‘Spirit of Sport’ Awards at Richardson Oval, Ararat to a ‘fairest and best’ from each of the four participating teams during the year of the Association.

The Victoria Police Golf Club and the National Golf Club made a generous donation today of $6,000 to the Blue Ribbon Foundation before start of play in their special charity Golf Day.

Blue Ribbon Foundation CEO, Neil Soullier travelled down to the famous Cape Schank location to receive the cheque and to thank all those involved for their generosity in making this donation possible. 

This donation will directly benefit the foundation’s work of installing new and improved medical facilities in Victoria’s public hospitals named in memory of Victoria Police members who have died in the line of duty. Remembering lives by savings others.

The Victoria Police Blue Ribbon Foundation Ararat Branch presented a cheque for $40,000 to East Grampians Health Service as part of its commitment to the purchase of a new anaesthetic machine.

The $114,070 anaesthetic machine will be used in the EGHS Jason Bond Perioperative Unit.

The upgrade of the Perioperative Unit was funded by the Ararat Branch in 2015 and included a redesign and refurbishment of the theatre recovery and day procedure unit. It was named in memory of local young man Jason Bond, a police officer in training, who died as a result of a motor vehicle accident in 2011.

The donation, which primarily came from the proceeds of the recent successful Gala Night, is the first instalment in the anaesthetic machine project, with the Branch expecting to make another donation following next year’s Grampians ‘Ride to Remember’ in February.

Ararat Branch president Dianne Radford said the branch was pleased to be able to present the first instalment towards the anaesthetic machine.

“Since the Ararat Branch of the Victoria Police Blue Ribbon Foundation was formed 22 years ago, we have donated more than $1 million to East Grampians Health Service, of which our volunteer committee is very proud,” Mrs Radford said.

“The anaesthetic machine is a vital piece of equipment for the Perioperative Unit, and we are very pleased to donate this equipment to the unit named in honour of Jason Bond.”

The anaesthetic machine is used for anaesthetic purposes for every patient who has a procedure in theatre. 

The purpose of the anaesthetic machine is for the safe administration of anaesthetic gases, including oxygen, medical air, Nitrous and the actual anaesthetic agents. It also allows for the safe and effective monitoring of the anaesthetised patient at all times throughout their anaesthetic journey.

The anaesthetic machine acts as the lungs for the anaesthetised patient, with the ability to administer the correct amounts of medication required for that patient to have their surgery, in a safe and controlled environment.

EGHS chief executive Nick Bush thanked the Blue Ribbon Foundation Ararat Branch for the first instalment towards, and generous support of, the anaesthetic machine project.“With the support and dedication of the Blue Ribbon Foundation Ararat branch, partners, businesses, organisations and everyone who annually supports the Ararat Branch’s fundraising efforts, we are able to provide state of the art equipment and facilities for our community,” Mr Bush said.

CEO, Neil Soullier travelled to Maryborough to look over the construction of Maryborough’s new public hospital, which is coming along at a blistering pace. We had an opportunity for a walk through and were particularly interested in the location of the new Urgent Care Centre (UCC), which will continue to be named in memory of Senior Constable Maurice Moore, who was killed in the line of duty at Maryborough in September 1986.

Back in 2016 the Moore family, our Maryborough Branch and dozens of tradespeople and suppliers combined to rebuild the outdated UCC in the current hospital. It truly was an incredible show of community spirit and generosity, so we’re pleased that S/C Moore’s memory will continue to live on for many years to come.

Our tour was arranged with the Victorian Health Building Authority and our thanks to Project Director, Darko Jagic for his support and assistance. We and the Moore family – Heather, Kathryn, Paul & Stephen will be working over coming weeks with the VHBA around designs for the new memorial recognition pieces.

A cheque for $20,000 was recently presented by Blue Ribbon/Ararat to the Pomonal Tennis Club being from your recent generosity to the “Giving Back to the Pomonal Community”.

Following conversations that included Ararat Rural City, Blue Ribbon/Ararat and the Pomonal community it was unanimously agreed that the $20,000 would be donated to the Pomonal Tennis Club who were eager to upgrade the tennis court area which very much needs repair work to be playable again.

The enthusiasm of the Tennis Club members certainly has been heartwarming and with significant financial support confirmed from Ararat Rural City via Mayor Bob Sanders who was in attendance, your contributions plus applying for a funding grant will see when completed an area that will accommodate tennis, netball and pickleball plus perhaps a few enhancing amenities to create an infrastructure community wellbeing space that will benefit the whole of the Pomonal Community and beyond.

The donation will go towards rebuilding infrastructure that was destroyed by the February ’24 bushfires. The precinct, which also includes the cricket ground, hall and Men’s Shed is where we have the Grampians Ride to Remember morning tea.

The Maryborough Giants and Navarre Football/Netball clubs recently hosted games in support of the Blue Ribbon Foundation.

The day honoured Senior Constable Maurice Moore who was killed while on duty in 1986.

His granddaughter Keeley, who usually plays football for the Giants but has a broken hand, presented the medals and while the day was cold and wet everyone wore their armbands and medals with pride.

Keeley Moore presents Under 14.5s Navarre player Michael Ador-Kongor with a Blue Ribbon medal. Stephen Moore (Maurice Moore’s son) awards a medal to Under 17s winner Cale Wright. Under 11.5s winner Angus Broad getting congratulated after the presentations.