General News
25 May, 2026
Mark's volunteering spirit alive
Rainbow local Mark Thomas has spent most of his life volunteering across the town, helping keep community organisations running for younger generations.
Mr Thomas, 60, has volunteered in Rainbow for about 46 years, beginning with the Werrap fire brigade after leaving school in about 1985.
“I would have joined the Werrap Fire Brigade when I first left school, so I think I was 20-odd,” Mr Thomas said.
Born and raised in Rainbow, Mr Thomas said volunteering had always been part of the town’s culture.
Over the years, he has supported several organisations, including the Werrap Fire Brigade, Rainbow Lions Club, Friends of the RSL Rainbow, Rainbow Tennis Club, Scouts and the Rainbow Cemetery Trust.
He currently serves as secretary of the Werrap Fire Brigade, treasurer of the Rainbow Lions Club and president of the cemetery trust.
He is also a life member of the Rainbow Tennis Club.
Mr Thomas said he became involved in many organisations due to the needs of community groups.
"You need to volunteer if you want to, especially when the kids were younger," he said.
"To offer them the help they needed."
He said parents often became involved through local sports and youth activities.
“You put your hand up to help out the clubs, like timekeeping for the football club and scouts,” he said.
“You joined because the kids were in them.”
Mr Thomas said his work with the cemetery trust had shown him how much effort volunteers put into maintaining important community spaces.
“With the cemetery trust, it is just to maintain it and look after it,” he said.
He said people often visited the cemetery for funerals or to see loved ones, but did not always realise the work required to keep the grounds presentable.
The cemetery trust, he said, carried high costs and responsibilities, and volunteers spent many hours maintaining the area for the wider community.
Mr Thomas said his strong family connection to Rainbow also motivated him to continue giving back.
“I guess I had a family connection with Rainbow, on my mother’s side; they were amongst the first settlers here,” he said.
“So I suppose you sort of have an ownership of it, but you want to try to keep offering.”
He said volunteering also helped people form stronger community connections.
“You get to meet a lot of community members you mightn’t be involved with otherwise,” he said.
Mr Thomas said Rainbow, like many small towns, now faced challenges as its volunteer base shrank.
He said older residents continued to carry on many organisations, while fewer younger people had the time to take on roles.
“The trouble is now, I’m quite one of the older ones in most of the groups,” he said.
Despite that, Mr Thomas said he planned to continue volunteering as long as he could still contribute.
“I’m planning to continue as long as I can offer something,” he said.
He encouraged younger people in Rainbow to get involved and not wait to be asked.
“Don’t be afraid to put your hand up and have a go, because we’re all just trying to help each other,” he said.