Celebrating four year partnership with PBF

The mutual partnership between Royal Life Saving WA and the Paraplegic Benefit Fund Australia (PBF) recently reached a four-year milestone with Kate Fandry, Business Development Manager at PBF, visiting our offices to present us with a certificate of appreciation of our corporate support.

Almost every day, someone in Australia suffers a life-changing spinal cord injury. PBF was established to create greater awareness of the risks and causes, with the aim of reducing the impact and incidence of spinal cord injury in Australia by offering protection, prevention, and support.

“Royal Life Saving WA became a corporate member of PBF in May 2017, extending PBF membership benefits to all permanent employees,” said Royal Life Saving WA Senior Manager Fundraising & Membership, Laura Kazmirowicz. “Kate is also member of the Royal Life Saving WA Honours and Awards Committee, which assesses nominations for our member recognition awards and annual Bravery Awards.”

In addition, both organisations regularly work together on raising awareness of the risks of spinal injury as an outcome of unsafe aquatic activity. The partnership developed through the Injury Matters’ Injury Prevention Network, which provides a forum for those working in the injury prevention space to connect with each other. 

Royal Life Saving WA and PBF share a mutual objective of highlighting the life-changing consequences of risk-taking behaviour. Lauren Nimmo, Royal Life Saving WA Senior Manager Health Promotion & Research, said the partnership “initially focused on collaboration as part of the Don’t Drink & Drown campaign (now the Youth Water Safety program) to highlight the overall impact of drowning, fatal and non-fatal.” 

PBF has provided speakers for several Royal Life Saving WA events and community awareness campaigns. Matt Naysmith slipped from the top of a waterfall at Karijini National Park, landing on rocks which broke his neck and severed his spinal cord. Carl Akira Fujinami broke his C4 vertebrae after diving into an approaching wave at Cottesloe Beach, hitting his head with force on the wet compacted sand. 

Symon Still, who is the Injury Prevention Manager at PBF, shared his story of a T1 spinal injury in his early twenties that rendered him a paraplegic. Each of these speakers have bravely shared their personal story with the public in the hopes of preventing spinal cord injury in others.

PBF is now also a Royal Life Saving WA Gold Member Business, providing discounted PBF membership to all Royal Life Saving WA members. Learn more at the link below.