|PIC1|M V Tronson over the years has developed two respite facilities that serve AIS athletes: 'Basil Sellers Tweed' on the north coast of New South Wales, a one-hour drive from Brisbane; and 'Basil Sellers Moruya' on the south coast of New South Wales, a two-hour drive from Canberra.
Already Basil Sellers Moruya has hosted the AIS women's basketball squad while the men's basketball squad will be there at the end of January for three days.
"During the residential respite programs, one of Well-Being Australia's personnel , either Vic Matthews or Matt Boyd, engages the athletes, depending on which one is available at the time," M V Tronson explained.
The Basil Sellers Moruya facility is still undergoing a refurbishment, as Mr Basil Sellers gave an additional $50,000 last year. Already the two kitchens and three of the four bathrooms have been attended to.
"The Moruya facility co-ordinator, Kim Gillis, last October showed Mr Basil Sellers and myself the improvements and outlined the longer term aims with an upper deck," M V Tronson noted.
The Tweed facility, co-ordinated by Mark Tronson, serves AIS south east Queensland sport units which include Softball, Squash, Flatwater Canoe, Diving and the men's and women's cricket based at the Cricket Centre of Excellence in Brisbane.
Each new year commencing in late January M V Tronson initiates a visiting program to highlight the value of 'respite'. In mid-year, he and his wife Delma also take the opportunity to address young athletes of the larger training squads, to remind them of the necessity to plan 'respite' and some recreation into their heavy training programs.
"Prior to the Diving team travelling to Beijing for the Olympics last year, my wife Delma and I addressed the team after head coach Hui Tong had spoken enthusiastically of his visits to 'Basil Sellers Tweed' and the value of respite," M V Tronson recalled.
Delma's speaking engagements are particularly appreciated by the womens' teams. Last year, when she addressed the women softballers, she realised most of them were of similar age to her four adult children. The team members told her that, like her own girls, they enjoyed shopping as part of their recreational activities!
"Now that we are grandparents, both in looks and in reality, we have discovered an additional empathy with young athletes – who usually have a fruitful relationship with their own grandparents - which is sometimes more open than the relationship with their parents," M V Tronson mused. "He is reminded of the adage that 'grandparents and their grandchildren have a common enemy'."