There’s many in the Logan City community who, when they see a need for assistance, lend a helping hand. But none, as motivated as Les Hoppe, or as humble.
“Most people know me from a few different organisations,” Mr Hoppe said. “I tend to not go out of my way to make a point of what I do and how I do things, because it’s just not why I do it.”
Logan City local Mr Hoppe has been helping out the local community through various organisations and events for years, including the Beenleigh SES as Deputy Group Leader, a service he has been in for almost 20 years.
“I used to be in air and sea rescue on the Gold Coast, but the last few years I’ve been doing the SES work in Logan,” he said. “I’m also a trainer in heights, storm damage, land search and first aid,
Credit: Les Hoppe
Mr Hoppe is also a flood boat operator.
“I go out and assist with missing persons, searching, and anything else to do with the floods,” he said. “With the recent floods, I helped with storm damage and repairs around the Logan area.”
Assisting with fundraising for the Cancer Council is another way Mr Hoppe helps the community, an organisation his daughter is also involved in, including the yearly Relay for Life fundraiser.
“We do a lot of charity work and events for Cancer Council to help raise money for the organisation,” Mr Hoppe said. “My daughter is Type 1 diabetic so we also help with fundraising for JDRF.”
JDRF is the leading supporter of type 1 diabetes (T1D) research in the world.
Mr Hoppe is also founder of the Logan Geocaching group. Geocaching is an outdoor activity, where participants use a mobile device or other navigational techniques to hide and find containers, called geocaches. The geocaches are hidden and found at set locations marked by coordinates across the globe.
“[The group] used to do Secret Santa for Christmas, but a couple of years ago instead of buying cheap presents, we decided we would go and donate gifts to the kids at the Logan Hospital,” he said. “When we dropped off the presents at the Logan Hospital we found out that in the past, the nurses had actually bought Easter eggs and Christmas gifts for the kids out of their own pocket.
“So every Easter and Christmas now we run a drive and collect Easter eggs and gifts for the kids at Logan Hospital.”
Why is Mr Hoppe so actively involved in community endeavors?
“Basically, whenever I see a need, I assist, and just do what I need to do,” he said. “If I see something that I can help with, I just help out.”
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