SOME THINGS SHOULD NEVER DEPEND ON LUCK.

ABOUT THE TOOWONG ROWING FOUNDATION

Every generation of Toowong rowers arrives to find something already waiting for them.

A boatshed they didn’t build.
Boats they didn’t buy.
Pontoons they didn’t fund.
Coaches, volunteers and supporters who quietly made sure the Club would still be here when their turn arrived.

Nobody inherits Toowong Rowing Club by accident.
Somebody before them made it possible.

Now its our turn.

WHY THE FOUNDATION EXISTS

Rowing clubs aren’t built in a season. They’re built over generations. Boats wear out. Equipment ages. Floods don’t wait for fundraising drives. And volunteers can only stretch a dollar so far.

The Toowong Rowing Foundation exists to ensure today’s challenges never become tomorrow’s lost opportunities.

Because protecting a rowing club isn’t just about fixing what’s broken. It’s about making sure the next generation inherits something stronger than we did.

WE DON'T JUST FUND RACES.

WE FUND THE NEXT FIFTY YEARS.

The Foundation raises, protects and invests funds for the long-term benefit of Toowong Rowing Club.

That includes helping fund:

Boats and rowing equipment
Boatsheds and infrastructure
Pontoons and facilities
Youth participation
High performance rowing
Community initiatives
Financial resilience when unexpected events occur

Every decision is made with one question in mind:
Will this leave Toowong stronger for the next generation?

HELP FUND THE NEXT FIFTY YEARS

PONTOON PROJECT CONTRIBUTION

FOUNDING DONORS

FINANCIAL BASE BUILT

INDEPENDENT. PURPOSEFUL. BUILT FOR THE LONG TERM.

The Foundation exists solely to benefit Toowong Rowing Club. While closely connected, the Foundation and the Club are separate legal entities. That structure allows the Foundation to focus on something different from the day-to-day running of the Club. The Club focuses on today’s crews.

The Foundation focuses on tomorrow’s generations. Its role is to build long-term financial strength, grow sustainable assets, encourage philanthropy and ensure the Club remains resilient through changing circumstances.

MORE THAN A DONATION

A gift to the Foundation isn’t simply helping buy equipment. It’s helping ensure a young rower gets the same opportunity someone once created for you. It’s protecting a club that has shaped friendships, families and lives for generations. It’s making sure that when the next flood, unexpected expense or major opportunity arrives, Toowong is ready.

Because rowing clubs are measured by more than medals. They’re measured by whether they’re stronger fifty years from now than they are today.

OUR PROMISE

Every dollar entrusted to the Foundation is stewarded with one purpose:

To protect, strengthen and secure the future of Toowong Rowing Club for generations to come.

Because some races last eight minutes. This one can last generations.

Board of Directors

THE PEOPLE STEERING TOOWONG ROWING CLUBS FUTURE

The constitution provides that directors serve for three years with one third of the board subject to re-election each year.
The Board of directors comprises:

Robert van Mourik (Chair & Director)

Robert has 23 years’ experience as Chief Financial Officer, Executive Vice President and director of a United States listed public company. As a principal driver, since its early days, of the formulation and implementation of the company’s corporate and financial strategies with specific responsibility for the regulatory, finance and accounting functions, Robert successfully managed complex financial, legal, accounting and regulatory issues. He was integral to managing relationships with shareholders, SEC, NASDAQ and other government authorities, investment banks, accountants, auditors and attorneys throughout the development of the company. The company was subsequently acquired by its majority shareholder.

He has been a member of Toowong Rowing Club since 2013. He was also for 18 years a member of Rotary serving in various roles including Club President, District Finance Chairman and Assistant District Governor.

Robert initially qualified with a degree in applied chemistry and holds an MBA from Newcastle University. For many years he was a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, finally as Fellow.

Andrew McLean Williams (Vice Chair & Director)

Andrew is a barrister, nationally accredited mediator, part-time Tribunal member and a Legal Officer in the Royal Australian Navy. Andrew has more than 30 years diverse experience in the legal profession with particular expertise in the areas of administrative law and industrial and employment law.

Andrew first joined the Toowong Rowing Club straight from school in 1983, thereby following in the footsteps of his father Max, who served as club captain in the early 1960s, and his maternal uncle, the late Jim Dowrie, who commenced his own long association with the club in the 1950s.

After a ‘sojourn’ from rowing of more than twenty years, Andrew rejoined the club in 2009-2010, and served as Chairman of the Club Management Committee between 2013 and 2015. Andrew brings to the foundation a wealth of experience in governance, regulatory compliance and dispute resolution.

Russell Kerrison (Director)

Russell is an experienced architect having practiced in Australia, the UK and Denmark before moving into arts administration as Assistant Director at the Queensland Art Gallery. He was then appointed Director of the Queensland Cultural Centre Trust with responsibility for overseeing the design and construction of the Queensland Art Gallery, Performing Arts Centre, Queensland Museum and State Library of Queensland at Brisbane’s South Bank. After a period managing diverse projects in the Queensland Premier’s Department, Russell, at the age of 71, went to the Sultanate of Oman for seven years to open a Middle East office for the Brisbane architect Noel Robinson.

Russell has been a member of Toowong Rowing Club since 1955 having been Captain of Boats and Stroke of the BBC First VIII. He has served as committee member, secretary of the Brisbane District Rowing Association and delegate to the Queensland Amateur Rowing Council. He was elected Honorary Life Member 2009.

Peter Macgregor (Director)

Peter is a solicitor specialising in property development in advisory roles since 1998 and as an investor. He has been involved in the approval and delivery of large master planned developments. He is experienced in negotiations with private enterprises and government and has held board positions in private and public companies. In addition, he was a director for three years on the board of the BBC Foundation. He is also a past president of the BBC Old Collegians Association.

Peter has qualifications in law and a Graduate Diploma in Urban and Regional Planning.

Peter was first introduced to Toowong Rowing Club in 1967 as a BBC coxswain on secondment and joined the club on leaving school. In 1973 he was a member of the club’s Lightweight Eight which won the State Title. He continued his rowing and then coached. He was instrumental in influencing a number of junior women rowers to join the club in or about 1993 and with Tom Jack coached them to a number of State Titles.