Big Jon Twartz, President of the Bracken Ridge Central Lions Club, has delivered a $1,000 donation to The Common Good, the fundraising initiative of The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation, continuing a decades-long tradition of community giving from one of Brisbane’s north side most active volunteer organisations.
The contribution will support medical research, patient care initiatives and specialised equipment at The Prince Charles Hospital in Chermside, one of Queensland’s major tertiary hospitals and the state’s largest cardiac and thoracic centre.
Jon made the presentation in person at the foundation, reflecting the way the Bracken Ridge Central Lions have always operated: showing up, not just writing a cheque.
A club that built its reputation with a steam railway
The Bracken Ridge Central Lions Club has for decades been described as almost the hub of community activity in the suburb. Long before corporate social responsibility became a boardroom agenda item, this group of volunteers was quietly building things, raising money and solving problems that nobody else had stepped up to address.
One of their most celebrated projects was the construction of a 5-inch gauge steam railway at McPherson Park in the 1990s, a proposal the club took to BCC in 1993 during a recession when interest rates were climbing past 13 per cent and many community organisations were struggling to fundraise at all.
The railway they built became a lasting gift to the suburb. The club still runs miniature and electric steam train days at McPherson Park on the fourth Sunday of each month, more than three decades after first breaking ground on the project.
Continuing a tradition of community service
Lions Australia has a history of providing natural disaster and emergency relief alongside supporting medical research, with the organisation involved in the development of the Cochlear Implant via the Lions International Deafness Research Fellowship and the Lions Medical Research Foundation.
Today, Lions continues this legacy by backing vital research into eye disease eradication and funding childhood cancer genome tracking through the Garvan Institute, while still ensuring that 100 per cent of public donations go directly to the cause
The Bracken Ridge chapter operates within that broader framework but applies it locally: identifying needs in the community, committing to act on them and doing the work.
Jon’s role as Community Ambassador for The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation reflects the kind of formal recognition that comes from years of demonstrated commitment rather than a single donation.
How to get involved
The Bracken Ridge Central Lions Club meets on the first and third Tuesday of every month. The first Tuesday is a social, informal gathering; the third is a dinner meeting that often features a guest speaker. New members are welcome — the club is open to anyone in the community, whether they want to provide direct service or support fundraising efforts.
More information is available here. The Prince Charles Hospital Foundation’s The Common Good program can be found at thecommongood.org.au.
Published 16-June-2026
Featured Image Credit: The Common Good Au/Facebook
