By Renee Wood
Half a million dollars will be going towards supporting projects across the Yarra Ranges as part of the council’s annual Grants for Community program.
Councillors unanimously supported the funding at the Tuesday 26 October meeting for 68 projects across the municipality ranging from events, health and wellbeing projects and Covid-19 recovery ideas.
Councillor Sophie Todorov said they support the council’s strategic plans and will create a sense of belonging and identity for local communities.
“I must say our calendars will be jam packed over the next 12 months or so, so many fantastic initiatives and events coming up,” she said.
The grants were broken into community development, arts and heritage and festivals and events.
“They will involve many community volunteers, in fact we can never underestimate the monetary value of our volunteers in running these fantastic events and programs as well.”
Councillor Tim Heenan said many of the funding recipients will be looking forward to getting back together after cancellations due to the pandemic.
“We know that in 2022 there is a lot more certainty for our community to have these great events and to do these great things in the community than what there was in 2020 and even 2021,” he said.
Local grants include:
Community development
– Tecoma’s Food is Free program extending to a new program ‘Food for Life’ $10,000
– Belgrave South Junior Football Club cultural awareness and mental health initiative $10,000
– Friends of Kurth Kiln for the reprinting of a walking guide booklet $2,500
– Foothills Community Care project to support Domestic Violence sufferers $10,000
– Mums of the Hills to deliver a ‘resilient mums’ support project $8,000
– Interchange Outer East to deliver Better Together conference $8,969
– Eastern Domestic Violence Sevice’s Level Playgroup focusing on gender equality $5,000
– Tribe Monbulk Youth to create a program to help youth advocate for issues affecting them $9,000
– Big Brothers Big Sisters to establish a local mentoring program in the Dandenong Ranges $9,881
– The Philanthropic Collective’s Free Food Program $10,000
– Hills Reconciliation Action Collective for a cultural awareness project $8,500
– The Big Sister Experience for a series of mental health and wellbeing workshops $4,000
Arts and Heritage
– Selby Community House to deliver ArtSpace Selby $9,720
– Christopher Lucri for a ‘Caretakers’ collaborative storytelling project $8,000
– Pauline Klemm at Burrinja for The Baba Desi story exhibition $10,000
– Auspicious Arts Projects to build on from a 2021 documentary about creative women $7,000
– Belgrave Volunteer Fire Brigade to create a mural for 2023 centenary $8,000
– Katu Katu for a mentoring project for local artists $8,000
– Jenny Game at Burrinja for free community music workshops $4,000
– Claire Lacuone-Hadley at Burrinja for an arts excursion for school students $9,999
– Yarra Ranges Heritage Network for a research project with 15 historical societies $10,000
– Dandenong Ranges Music Council for a series of music mentoring sessions $8,000
– Forgotten Heroes Vietnam and Veterans Music reminiscence project $10,000
– Mikhaela Ebony Bourke at Burrinja for Play Imagine Create workshop series $7,500
Festivals and Events
– Selby Community House for SelbyFest 2022 $9,840
– Ranges Academy of Performing Arts Lantern and Light Festival $9,620
– Australian Soth Asian Centre for the Diwali Festival $9,000
– Ruccis for the Burrinja Circus Festival $10,000
– 3MDR for Alive and Brilliant event $6,000
– Eastern Volunteers for a volunteer expo showcasing community groups $9,000
– Belgrave Traders Assoc. Front to Back micro events for Blacskmiths Way in Belgrave $9,000
– Hills Creative Alliance for a 3 day Hills Renewal Festival in Kalorama $8,000
– Upwey Community Group for the Foothills Festival in Upwey $5,941
