Honouring John Wood: a heartfelt thank you to a true community champion

In Northam, Western Australia, everybody knows everybody.

And for many years, everyone knew John Wood as the heart behind Croak Ave Retreat, a humble backyard clubhouse that became much more than a shed on Croak Avenue.

It became a place of friendship, music, raffles, Christmas-in-July lunches, pool games, and laughter. Most importantly, it became a place where people came together to support men and their families impacted by prostate cancer.

Since first fundraising for PCFA in 2016, and possibly earlier, John and the Croak Ave Retreat crew raised more than $45,000 for PCFA. Month after month, year after year, they kept showing up.

Their Christmas in July event became their biggest fundraiser, featuring roast pork, Christmas pudding, roast vegetables, gravy, crackers, hats, and lights. It was grassroots fundraising at its very best: generous, down-to-earth and full of heart.

John did not have an email so PCFA kept in touch with him by phone and mail. His physical invitations, handwritten spirit and regular deposits became a reminder that something special was still happening in Northam.

Through the COVID years, when many fundraisers paused, John and his crew kept going. In a regional WA community that could still gather safely, they continued to do what they had always done: bring people together and raise funds for a cause they believed in.

John was the linchpin of Croak Ave Retreat. He was a man of simple pleasures, proud of his community, proud of what the group had achieved, and always ready for a yarn. Those who met him remember him in his favourite chair, wearing stubby shorts and blue thongs, tapping along to the radio under the Croak Ave Retreat sign.

When PCFA learned of John’s passing in March, everyone who had come to know him through his fundraising felt it deeply. His contribution was never about fanfare. It was about loyalty, generosity, and community.

To John, to his family, and to every member of the Croak Ave Retreat crew: thank you.

Thank you for every raffle ticket sold, every lunch served, every conversation started, and every dollar raised.

Thank you for believing in a future where fewer men die from prostate cancer.

And thank you for reminding us that powerful change can start anywhere, with a good story, good music and a group of people who care.

John will be greatly missed, but his legacy will continue through the work he helped make possible.