The Northern Rivers Community Foundation (NRCF) distributed around $114,000 to a range of social, arts and environmental groups throughout the northern rivers region at Monday’s annual grants ceremony.
This is NRCF’s 14th year of support in the region – it has distributed over $1.5 million since 2004, is totally independent and funds community organisations across the seven shires of the northern rivers.
The awards ceremony was held at the Murwillumbah Community Centre which last year received a significant NRCF grant to help re-establish its community food pantry wiped out in the Cyclone Debbie floods of 2017.
‘We call this region paradise, but for many caught in underprivileged situations it is the opposite,’ said NRCF’s Chair John Callanan.
‘This year we have spread our funding across 20 community groups.’
Local groups to receive funding included the Byron Community Centres wet weather project, the Casino Neighbourhood Centre to assist with their refurbishment project, Wedgetail Retreat – Tweeds Palliative Support service, the Mullumbimby Gateway project that will have the rotunda posts decorated by Arakwal artists and the Sprung!! Integrated Dance Theatre who teach dance and clowning to folk with intellectual disabilities.
‘We are tremendously excited to receive this support from NRCF,’ said Sprung!! President, Robyn Brady.
‘It will help our local clown and theatre tutors to work with renowned Italian clown teacher Giovanni Fusetti to collaboratively develop a model for teaching clowning and bouffon to persons with intellectual disabilities and for us to implement the recommendations of the 2018 National Disability Quality and Safeguarding Framework.’
The awareness of the reach of NRCF had increased with the help of local media said Mr Callanan.
‘A wonderful example of how NRCF directs donors toward emerging needs is shown by Women Up North’s initiative called LOVE BITES,’ he said.
‘It is a violence prevention program for young people in Years 9-11 designed to educate them about domestic violence and sexual assault, delivered in seven schools across the Northern Rivers: Nimbin, Woodenbong, Kyogle, Casino, Lismore, Kadina and Richmond River.
‘We are constantly looking to extend knowledge of our capacity to help, and would be delighted if local individuals and businesses would partner with us further – to aid the burgeoning inequality and disadvantage in the Northern Rivers region.
Find out how to become involved in Northern Rivers Community Foundation. https://nrcf.org.au/giving/.’
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