Donations will be taken at the SS & A’s venues in Albury-Wodonga as well as The Border Mail’s Wodonga and Albury offices.

WAW will open an account where money can be donated over the internet, by phone or over the counter at its branches.

Acting chief executive of the SS & A Gerard Darmody said the club wanted to do its bit.

“There’s no target in mind — we just want to raise as much as we can and just ask that people give what they can give,” he said.

“We are a community organisation and we feel that it is part of our brief to support the both the local community and greater region which supports us.”

Greater Hume Council has set up a local recovery co-ordination committee to handle the relief.

Mayor Denise Osborne said four families had lost their homes and many more had lost livestock, fencing and crops.

“It’s extraordinarily important for people to know that they not only have the backing of their immediate family and friends but that there are other people out there making these offers for them,” she said.

“I haven’t met all the families but you can visualise what they’re going through.

“It’s not something you can come to terms with quickly... but Australians are good at this.”

“We pitch in and this is an illustration of that.”

WAW marketing manager Linda Butler said the credit union been able to quickly reactivate an account to handle the fire donations.

Editorial — page 38