Legacy has launched the Legacy Dry Tap, a culturally significant fundraising mechanism that allows patrons across select NSW pubs and bars to honour fallen veterans with a symbolic gesture of mateship and distinctly Australian way of saying thanks, through the shouting of a beer.
The Legacy Dry Tap stands as a powerful reminder of sacrifice – a beer tap that pours no beer, but instead offers a meaningful way for Australians to support veterans’ families by nominating an amount to donate and making an honorary shout to a veteran in their next round. Proceeds go directly to support Legacy’s vital work in supporting more than 30,000 veterans’ families.
“The empty chair at the bar and the beer that will never be drunk are powerful symbols of those who never returned,” said Sydney Legacy president and legatee Ian Thompson.
“The Legacy Dry Tap transforms this symbol of loss into practical support for the families left behind.”
Bob Hawke Beer & Leisure Centre proudly installed a Legacy Dry Tap on Remembrance Day.
“At its core, The Bob Hawke Beer & Leisure Centre is an expression of the importance of legacy and the acknowledgment of what’s come before us. We are privileged to now play a role in the Legacy Dry Tap initiative, offering our guests a chance to look back, remember, and give back in a novel yet familiar way—by raising a glass in honour of those who served and sacrificed,” says venue co-founder Nathan Lennon.
The aim is that the Legacy Dry Tap will replace tin hat money boxes previously kept on the counters of pubs and clubs. Designed by creative agency, VML, the Legacy Dry Tap uses RFID technology to allow donations through the simple tap of a credit card or phone.
For over a century, Legacy has provided crucial assistance to veterans’ families through social, emotional, and financial support. The Legacy Dry Tap initiative is a modern approach to fundraising, combining Australian pub culture with remembrance and a culturally resonant way of saying thanks.
Participating venues across NSW have installed the distinctive Legacy Dry Tap alongside their regular beer taps. Each honorary beer purchased contributes directly to Legacy’s programs supporting widow(er)s, children and disabled dependants of veterans who have given their lives or health in service.
Jason Clarke, licensee of the Imperial Hotel in Paddington, said that installing a Legacy Dry Tap was a “no-brainer”, and that pubgoers have engaged well with the concept.
“Since we installed the Legacy Dry Tap, it has received quite a bit of interest. People are curious about this tap that pours no beer and when they realise what it’s for, they become automatically engaged with the cause. It’s a conversation starter as well as being a fundraising tool, which is quite powerful. Everyone is a bit fascinated by it at the moment so I think there is some novelty tapping going on, with the best intentions, but I also think, as a venue with a rich historical significance, The Imperial’s regulars are the right crowd and it will become a part of their routine to tap the tap when they buy a beer for themselves and their mates.”
Other venues that have installed Legacy Dry Taps include The Resch House in Sydney, The Salamander Hotel in Salamander Bay, Lakeside Village Hotel in Lake Macquarie, The Longyard Hotel in Tamworth, Bull and Bush Hotel in Baulkham Hills, and the Bradford Hotel in the Hunter Valley.
One hundred per cent of Legacy Dry Tap proceeds go to support veterans’ families.