Family celebrates many milestones

“We had three family functions in three years at the Workers,” Mikael said.

“My 30th, my mother's 60th and my father's 60th, probably with 60 or 70 people at each.”

The family’s connection to the club runs deep.

“I am a member at the Workers, we all are,” Mikael said.

“Dad has probably been a member since it first opened.”

Mikael recounted the surprise party they organised for his father’s 60th birthday, Darky Lawford.

“He’s the sort of man who doesn’t like a fuss or doesn’t want a party,” he said.

The family worked with the club staff to orchestrate the surprise, which initially met with some resistance from his father.

“He just thought he was going for tea,” Mikael said.

“We just said that to the lady at the front counter, and she just said ‘The dining rooms booked and the overflows going into the function room’.”

“Dad, being Dad, said, “If I’m not sitting in the proper room, we might as well go home.

“But we got him in there.”

The Lawford family has found the Echuca Workers the ideal venue for their celebrations.

“It is easy to go to, and everyone there is just really nice and nothing is ever a problem,” Mikael said.

He praised the club’s facilities, including the function room with its own bar and the staff’s attentiveness to details.

The affordability of hosting events at the club has been a pleasant surprise for the family.

“When we got the bill, especially with Dad's party, with his old mates at the bar, the bar never stopped, so we were a bit worried, but once we got the bill we were presently surprised,” Mikael said.

The positive experiences have led to a tradition of weekly visits to the club.

“We used to go to the Workers once a week when they had their steak night,” Mikael said.

“Then we swapped from that to go on the Wednesday to their raffle night.

“The whole family usually goes along, mum, dad, everyone.”

Mikael’s endorsement of the Echuca Workers Club was unequivocal.

“The food is always good, I’ve never had a bad meal there,” he said.

“If someone comes from out of town and asked us where to go for tea, we always say ‘go to the Echuca Workers’.”