Lorraine Borger and Mayor Mathew Hatcher as Lorraine was named this year’s Eurobodalla Local Hero. Photo: Eurobodalla Shire Council.
If you’ve learnt to swim in Eurobodalla Shire, there’s a chance it was because of Lorraine Borger.
The lifelong South Coast resident started teaching swimming when she was just 13.
“I started to learn when I was eight, and a teacher really frightened me,” she said. “It wasn’t till I was 13 that I learned to swim with a high school teacher.
“From then on, I just thought, ‘Well, she’s giving back, so I think I can give back.'”
In the decades since, she has taught generations of Eurobodalla kids to swim during programs at schools in towns including Batemans Bay, Moruya, Mogo, Broulee and other locations.
Ms Borger also taught visitors to the South Coast not only how to swim, but which measures to take to make sure they were safe while swimming in rivers and dams.
It was because of these efforts, in addition to a range of other volunteering efforts, that saw her recently named Eurobodalla’s 2025 Local Hero.
“If they’re in their school carnival, I encourage them … You never know, at the end of the day, all those kids having a bit of a go might be the ones that win the carnival.
“You don’t have to be the best, as long as you’re having a go and showing sportsmanship, then that’s the way to go.”
The other nominees included Pat Anderson, Sarah O’Reilly, Alex Rea, and Jane Taylor.
“They were all very worthy participants,” she said of her fellow nominees.
“They’ve all done great things with the community.”
Ms Borger (far left) with Mayor Hatcher and her fellow nominees. Photo: Eurobodalla Shire Council.
Ms Borger also partnered with a friend to start a playgroup in the late 1970s, which quickly grew to run every other day.
She has also volunteered with a local Little Athletics program, started the Housewives Basketball initiative, helped with Nippers, as well as other sports including football, tennis and hockey.
“The schools appreciate what you do. They sent me cards and flowers, or just boxes of chocolates at the end of the year.
“It was lovely … they were all pretty special – you can’t favour one over the other.
“It was great [to see], because they weren’t inside. They were enjoying the sunshine, doing team sports and making friends.”
Ms Borger said recent years came with the realisation it was time to “wind down” from her volunteering efforts.
“We’ve done a bit of travelling lately in the caravan and I’ve been teaching my nieces and nephews to swim.
“They didn’t want me to retire … There comes a time when you’ve got to say, ‘Well, this is it’ and stand by it.”
Her advice is simple: if you want to improve your community, it’s always worth stepping up.
“If you want to start something up, put it out there and call a meeting and see if you get any interest,” she said.
“It’s harder these days, I suppose, because people are always in a rush. You’ve just got to make the time.”
