It has been my privilege to serve as your President for the last year, which also was the 90 Year anniversary of LEGO. Our club has a unique value proposition in that it provides an opportunity for anyone in the community to be involved and share their passion for LEGO, and building awesome creations.
Our two mission goals are to promote and support the LEGO fan community in the ACT and surrounds, and contribute to fundraising for children’s charities. This last 12 months has been a bumper year for CLUG and we have been able to enhance the quality, variety and involvement in activities that contribute to both our mission goals.
I would like to personally thank the 2022 Committee, who have worked tirelessly to prepare, conduct and improve on our activities. Without this team of committed individuals these activities would not have been possible. On behalf of the membership I pass on our sincere appreciation to the team for their efforts and support.
CLUG Activities
Since the last AGM (3 Nov 2021), we were welcomed to a VIP night celebrating the opening of the LEGO Certified Store in Canberra. Around 60 of our members enjoyed an early look and shopping opportunity at the store.
Next, in December, there was a record attendance at the annual CLUG Christmas Party. Everyone went home with some LEGO, and some huge prizes were on offer. The “Dirty Brickster” proved to be source of fun and competition as our adults and juniors took turns in vying for some prized LEGO sets.
Throughout 2022, our regular meetings at the Hellenic Club have been well attended and prove to showcase an ever-increasing range of LEGO models and My Own Creations (MOCs) that are some of Australia’s best. We have all seen our junior members in particular build not only great looking LEGO creations, but also grow their confidence in public speaking. Members have enjoyed monthly and quarterly raffles, with some great prizes throughout the year providing a great opportunity for members to have some fun and add to their collections.
Some 2022 event highlights include:
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Kaleen Train Show – a huge train layout was a crowd favourite at the annual show. The wide radius track allowed for some high speed action and many different custom trains on display.
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Brick Expo 2022 – many CLUG members were exhibitors, volunteers and guests for the final Brick Expo at the Hellenic Club. A great time was had by all, as all sessions were sold out and sort a huge donation to the Canberra Hospital Foundation.
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GammaCon 2022 – a new item on our annual schedule. CLUG put together an excellent “pop culture” themed display for this popular event.
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Bricks @ Woden School 2022 – we returned to the The Woden School this year with another bumper show. Approximately $15,000 was raised altogether from the entry charge, various raffles and food stalls for the school to put towards valuable projects for their students.
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Canberra Brick Show 2022 – our first show at Thoroughbred Park was a massive success. Attracting over 5,000 guests and raising around $15,000 for local charities and specialty schools. This was a huge event which will now become an annual event on the Australian LEGO fan event circuit. Amongst the benefactors are Roundabout Canberra, Marymead Austism Centre, The Woden School, Black Mountain School, Malkara School and Cranleigh School.
CLUG involvement around Australia
In addition to our own activities, our members have participated in LEGO fan events across Eastern Australia hosted by other LUGs. Some of these were:
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Sapphire Brick Show – Merimbula NSW
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Brickvention 2022 – Melbourne VIC
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Illawarra Annual Brick Show – Wollongong NSW
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BendigoBricks – Bendigo VIC
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BrickBuilt – Sydney NSW
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Newcastle Brickfest – Newcastle NSW
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BrisBricks Expo – Brisbane QLD
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BrickGambier – Mt Gambier SA
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Brickstravaganzer – Maffra VIC
This year has even seen some international representation in NZ! It is great to see our CLUG members not only displaying their LEGO models locally but also further afield. This has renewed ties with other LUGs and we already have several invites lined up for next year.
Membership and Finances
Our club membership has increased from 155 to 206 in the last year. This 30% increase due to a wider variety of activities and promotion amongst the community at events. Through several fund-raising initiatives and the increased membership the CLUG financial position is healthy which provides a solid base to support activities in 2023.
One benefit for members this year was a new supply of 3 high 1x8 bricks with the CLUG logo for name badges and to use in models. These were provided to FY22/23 members as one element of the membership package. Show bricks for CLUG hosted shows dating back to 2018 that had not been supplied previously were printed and handed out to members who had attended those shows. This is a small gift for exhibitors and often worn with pride at shows or integrated into displays.
Additionally, we completed LUGbulk 2022, and Project Support 2021 and 2022 for financial members with several tens of thousands of new bricks in a variety of element types and colours now in the hands of our members. We also completed two large scale orders of CLUG shirts for members which can be worn at club events.
The Year Ahead
2023 promises to be an even bigger year, with a full agenda of activities in the works. I look forward to again leading the committee, our membership continuing the journey of exploring the world of LEGO and supporting local children’s charities in an inclusive, family-friendly environment.
Play Well,
Jake
Jake Radloff
CLUG President
4 Dec 2022