In fact, no donations will be sought for the annual Anzac Appeal this Wednesday. 

It is a decision the local RSL Sub-Branch made ahead of the national day of remembrance, following a state-wide ban on all fundraising efforts. 

It comes after a investigation into the financial dealings of the NSW Returned and Services League last year, revealed breaches of the Fundraising Act at a state level. 

A call to cease the fundraising efforts of all sub-branches followed, resulting in public outcry across the region.

Wagga’s not-for-profit alone was hit with a loss of close to $30,000 in Remembrance Day donations last year – money that would be put toward assisting returned soldiers and their families. 

The RSL NSW president has anticipated the fundraising suspension will continue until November at least. 

However, as an alternative for Anzac Day, sub-branch volunteers have been permitted to collect money in donation buckets, with the total centralised and put toward the 2018 Invictus Games. 

But Wagga’s sub-branch vice-president Richard Salcole said the local not-for-profit had decided it would not participate. 

He said the money raised locally would be sent to support a minority of veterans that were not from the area. 

“There are a handful of veterans in NSW participating in the games and none of them are from the Riverina,” Mr Salcole said. “We aim to support all veterans, not just a few.”

With no Anzac Day badges to sell, Mr Salcole said walking through the crowd, rattling donation buckets, was also something members did not want to do. 

“The ban is disappointing,” he said. “But it’s more about the loss of revenue that would support our local guys.”

Mr Salcole said the ban was likely to be in place until the end of the year. 

As a result, the Wagga Sub-Branch is staring down the barrel of a $60,000 loss this year. 

That is money Mr Salcole said went towards provide well-being, care, compensation and commemoration of serving and ex-serving defence force personnel and their dependants.

Donations from meat raffles, cake stalls and remembrance day sales also helped fund outings for the RSL LifeCare’s Remembrance Village residents, who would otherwise not leave the nursing home.