Richmond Football Club is now seeking nominations for the Alice Wills Award.
The award honours outstanding dedication and commitment of 10 years or more, by a volunteer of the Richmond Football Club.
Volunteers have been vital to the off-field success of the Tigers since its formation in 1885 and the Alice Wills Award pays tribute to those who have made outstanding contributions in a voluntary capacity.
Di Afflitto, who is a 60-year member of the Club received the award in 2018 as a result of numerous years of support.
Di is the current president of Club 80, a role she has held for four years.
Prior to that she was involved with Richmond’s then VFL-affiliate, Coburg, managing merchandise and products for the suburban Club.
Further to that Di has boarded and mentored a long-list of Richmond players, helping them settle into life in Melbourne.
Included in the list is; Richard Tambling, Jarrad Oakley-Nicholls, Ronan Steede, Andrew Browne, Carl Peterson, Relton Roberts, Leroy Gilligan, Matthew White, Brad Helbig and Nathan Gordon.
The award is named after Alice Wills, who was a volunteer with the Richmond Football Club for more than 50 years.
She formed the Richmond Cheer Squad in 1959 and a few years later established the Supporters’ Group, which was an organisation that helped the Club with fundraising and players’ sponsorship.
In 1990, with Richmond facing extinction, due to a dire financial crisis, it was Alice Wills who successfully rallied the troops during the famous Save Our Skins campaign.
Alice managed volunteers, letter mail-outs and collection tins all to raise much needed funds for the campaign.
In 1988, Alice’s remarkable contributions at Tigerland were officially recognised, when she was awarded Life Membership to the Club.
In 2002, Alice was further honoured by the Club, being one of the inaugural inductees into Richmond’s Hall of Fame. To this day, she is the only female Hall of Fame inductee in the Tigers’ history.
In 2008, when the Club celebrated its league football centenary, Alice was named as one of the Tigers’ all-time top 10 servants.
Alice worked tirelessly in the background for her beloved Tigers never seeking personal accolades or publicity. Her commitment to the Club is inspirational and it is with great that the award is dedicated to her.
Nominations for the 2019 award will close Wednesday, May 29.
To nominate a volunteer of the Richmond Football Club for the award, click here.
