Rotary Club of The Ponds

13/03/2026

Fantastic news for The Ponds! 🌱

The Rotary Club of The Ponds has received a $10,000 Transurban Community Grant to build a new community garden at The Ponds Community Hub.

It was a pleasure to meet with Club President Ahalya Rentala and dedicated members to present the cheque today, alongside Transurban.

Thank you for the wonderful contribution you make to our local community.

23/12/2025

❤️ THE NIGHT THE PONDS SHONE BRIGHTER THAN THE RAIN ❤️

They say it takes a village, and on Saturday (13 Dec) night, our community showed up in the most incredible way! 🌧️✨

The Rotary Club of The Ponds is absolutely beaming with pride. Despite the grey skies, Carols at The Ponds 2025 was a beautiful reminder of why we love serving this community. From the first note on stage to the final boom of the fireworks, the energy was purely magical, and it was an honour to bring this event to life for you all.

We’re officially counting down to 2026! 🎄 Have a safe, happy, and dry festive season, everyone!

With huge gratitude,
The Rotary Club of The Ponds & The Carols Committee

10/12/2025

❤️ A Heartfelt Thank You to Our Rotary Family! ❤️

The Rotary Club of The Ponds sends a massive shout-out to our great friends at the Castle Hill Rotary Club!

When our community’s beloved Carols at The Ponds event faced a critical funding shortage, the Castle Hill team heard our appeal and stepped up with an incredibly generous donation. This act of fellowship and rapid support was instrumental in securing the event's future.

This donation has significantly helped us towards our fundraising goals and ensures that The Ponds community will enjoy a spectacular, tradition-filled Christmas celebration this Friday!

It’s inspiring to see Rotary clubs working together to achieve big things for our local area. Thank you, Castle Hill Rotary, for embodying the spirit of "Service Above Self" and being true partners in making this event happen!

09/12/2025

It's this Saturday. See you there.

07/12/2025

✨🎄 Your Ultimate Christmas Shopping Wonderland is Here! 🎄✨

Forget the crowded malls - Carols at The Ponds on this Saturday, December 13th, is bringing the ultimate festive market right to your doorstep!

We've curated a spectacular lineup of 100% local, small business vendors offering unique gifts, delicious treats, and everything you need for the holiday season. Come ready to shop, indulge, and celebrate!

🎁 Gifts That Glow & Delight:

This is where you'll find the perfect, unique present and fun festive wear for the night:

- Flashworks: Be the light! Grab your glow-in-the-dark Santa hats, snowflake wands, and halos (all re-usable!), plus essential picnic rugs and ponchos.
- Kay's Crafty Kreations: Find custom gifts that make an impact-sublimation tumblers, lanyards, keyrings, and fun sewn items (including those brilliantly sarcastic adult gifts!).
- Ley’s Crochets: The perfect spot for handmade, heirloom-quality crochet Christmas decorations, cute plushies, and stylish scrunchies.

- Maree & Co: Refresh your style with stylish scrunchies, tote bags, and drinking cups.
- Fidgets4kids: Keep little hands busy with the latest range of engaging sensory and fidget toys.

🕯️ Pampering & Home Scents:

Treat yourself or a loved one to handcrafted luxury:

- Arcane Moon Botanicals: Indulge in natural, vegan soaps, soothing balms, rich body oils, bath salts, and high-quality aromatherapy essential oils.
- M1kky & Co: Fill your home or car with festive scents with their beautiful candles, wax melts, room sprays, and reed/car diffusers.

🍪 Festive Feasts & Treats:

The most delicious part of the market!

- TheCookieCart&Co: Famous for their incredible, loaded baked cookies. An essential stop for dessert!
- Trinity Bites: Taste the crunch! Grab a bag of unique freeze-dried lollies and fruit—a fun, viral treat for everyone.

Support Local. Shop Small. Feel the Festive Magic! See you December 13th!

29/11/2025

When road closures throw you a curveball, you pivot!

We had an absolutely wonderful morning yesterday advocating against Gender-Based Violence. A last-minute change of plans meant we had to find a new spot, and we could not be more grateful to the amazing folks at The Ponds parkrun for taking us in.

By teaming up with the parkrun Australia community, Warren Kirby MP and the Riverstone Police Area Command, we were able to send our message out to over 600+ attendees! It was an incredible turnout, and the team had so many meaningful, important conversations with the community.

Kudos 👏 Rentala Ahalya, President of the club who orchestrated full relocation, secured collaboration with The Ponds parkRun ensuring the walk could proceed without missing a beat!!!

Here is a photo of the team after a successful morning. As you can tell, we were all working very hard. Well, except for our four-legged supervisor in the front there... pretty sure they were just in it for the pats and was judging our flyer-handing-out technique the whole time. 🐾🧐

A massive thank you to everyone who stopped by, ran, walked, and supported the cause.

29/11/2025

🎤 LAST CALL for Stage Talent! 🌟

Do you sing, dance, or play an instrument? This is your chance to shine!

We have a few last-minute performance spots open on the main stage at Carols at The Ponds on Saturday, December 13th! We are looking for talented community members eager to share their festive cheer with thousands of attendees.

If you are interested in performing for the community, please email us right away with a brief description of your act and any performance links:

📧 [email protected]

Don't miss this opportunity to be part of the show!

26/11/2025

🌸👜 FINAL WEEK – Only 4 Days Left!Share the Dignity –

We’re down to the last 4 days of our Share the Dignity collection and this is our final push. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who has already donated - your kindness is creating real impact for women and girls doing it tough this Christmas. 💕
But we’re not done yet. If you’ve been meaning to donate, now is the moment. Every single bag represents dignity, hope and a reminder that someone cares. Your one act of generosity could change someone’s Christmas.

👜 Collection points are open at all Bunnings stores nationwide until Sunday, 30 November.
If you can, gather your friends, family or colleagues and put together a bag - pre-loved bags are welcomed as long as they’re in great condition.
Let’s bring dignity to those who need it most. 💗👜🌸

4 days left. Let’s make them count.

25/11/2025

You're Invited! See You Dec 13th! 👋

Gather your friends, call your neighbours! Carols at The Ponds is our community's biggest festive celebration! Join us Saturday, December 13th for a night of music, food, and a sky full of fireworks! 🎄

18/11/2025

🤝 COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP SUCCESS: Carols Funding Secured!

Fellow Rotarians, Partners, and Supporters,

We are delighted to share a successful outcome following our recent urgent appeal to secure the future of Carols at The Ponds.

We are proud to announce that local residents and business owners, Jonathan Marin and Donna Marin, from TCG Grading, have generously stepped forward as our Platinum Sponsor for Carols at The Ponds 2025!

Their commitment fills the critical funding gap, enabling us to move forward with the full event scope, including the highly anticipated fireworks display on Saturday, December 13th. This is a true testament to local leadership and the spirit of community service.

Recognising TCG Grading

TCG Grading, Australia’s largest authentication and grading service for trading cards, demonstrates that nationally recognised businesses can still maintain deep local roots. We greatly appreciate them supporting this flagship community celebration.

As an added gesture of goodwill, TCG Grading will be hosting a stall, giving away over 200 Pokémon Card Mystery Packs on the night—a fantastic addition for the families attending.

Thank you, Jonathan and Donna, for ensuring the success of this vital community event. We look forward to celebrating with you all!

🥳 CAROLS SAVED! Introducing Our 2025 Platinum Sponsor! 🥳

We’re excited to share an update following our recent post. We’re very happy to announce that Jonathan Marin and Donna Marin, local residents and owners of TCG Grading have generously stepped forward to support this year’s Christmas Carols as our Platinum Sponsor.

TCG Grading is Australia’s largest authentication and grading service for trading cards, covering Pokémon, sports cards, One Piece, movie cards, and more.

In addition to the sponsorship, Jonathan and Donna will also be hosting a stall on the night with over 200 Pokémon Card Mystery Packs which will be given away throughout the celebrations! A handful of packs even contain cards valued up to $100 — a fun surprise for the kids and families attending.

It’s wonderful to see a nationally recognised business based right here in the Hills supporting its local community. Thanks to their contribution, we’re able to move forward with all our exciting plans for the event.

We can’t wait to celebrate with you all!

17/11/2025

🌸👜 Week 2 Update – Campaign

A huge thank you to everyone who has already created a bag and donated - your kindness is truly making a difference. 💕

We’re now in Week 2 of the Share the Dignity collection, and there’s still time to get involved! If you haven’t had the chance to donate yet, please help us by spreading the word and encouraging others to take part. Every share, every conversation and every bag helps a woman or girl doing it tough this Christmas.

A special shout-out to Bunnings Rouse Hill and their wonderful staff for their support and warm welcome. 🌟

Collection points remain open at all Bunnings stores across Australia until Sunday, 30 November.

If you’re able, gather your friends, family or colleagues and create a bag together. Bags can be pre-loved, as long as they’re in great condition.

Let’s keep the momentum going and bring dignity, hope and joy to those who need it most. Thank you for your continued generosity! 💗👜🌸

15/11/2025

🔗 GoFundMe Link: https://gofund.me/eccd07947

🎄 URGENT COMMUNITY APPEAL - Carols at The Ponds 🎄

The Rotary Club of The Ponds, together with our event partners, has been working tirelessly to bring our much-loved Carols at The Ponds to the community on 13 December.

However, a last-minute withdrawal from our major sponsor has resulted in a $5,000 funding shortfall (as of now), placing this year’s event at serious risk.

Following suggestions from our community, we have created a GoFundMe to help bridge this gap and give Carols the best chance of proceeding.

We must make a final decision by this coming Thursday, 20th Nov, on whether we can go ahead with the event.

If Carols at The Ponds is something you value, we kindly ask you to support and actively share this appeal within your networks to help us reach those who may be able to assist.

Carols is more than a festive night; it’s a tradition where families come together, children create memories, volunteers give their time, and our community truly shines.

Every contribution, no matter the size, brings us closer to keeping Carols alive this year.

Thank you for your continued support and belief in the power of community. 🌟

Carols at The Ponds has been a much-loved community tradition for year… Shanaz Sharina needs your support for Help Save Carols at The Ponds - $5,000 Shortfall