Gippsland Community Foundation

Big news for Gippsland! We're excited to announce that the Gippsland Community Foundation, originally formed as the East Gippsland Community Foundation in response to the devastating 2019-2020 Victorian Black Summer bushfires, is now expanding its reach across the wider Gippsland region! With the generous support of $8.8 million from the Victorian Bushfire Appeal—a partnership between the Victorian Government and Bendigo Bank’s Community Enterprise Foundation—our Foundation has been able to distribute over $4.5 million to support East Gippsland's recovery efforts. These funds have helped support everything from rebuilding local infrastructure, and strengthening emergency preparedness, to mental health initiatives, tertiary scholarships, and community events. Now, with valuable experience gained and proven impact in East Gippsland, we are extending our support to the broader communities of Wellington Shire Council, Latrobe City Council, and Baw Baw Shires, working alongside existing South Gippsland and Bass Coast foundations to amplify our reach. Our Community Connections Gippsland Project, co-funded by the Department of Transport and Planning, is already in motion. Keep an eye out for our sign-written car (Thanks Sign Torque Sale) as we connect with new communities! As we branch out, our goal is to continue building strong, sustainable communities by raising capital, managing funds, and supporting local projects for the long-term well-being of our regions. Together, we are building a resilient and thriving Gippsland community 🤝 We look forward to sharing more of our journey in the coming months

Dear funding recipients, supporters, stakeholders and friends, Gippsland Community Foundation invite you to join us at our upcoming AGM, Monday 11th November, 3pm. To be held in Bairnsdale. As always with GCF's Annual General Meetings, we'll be sharing stories of projects achieved by community and featuring a review of the 2023/2024 period. At this year's AGM we are excited to also launch of our very first signature project, Youth On Purpose. A series of engaging youth workshops that encourage community leadership and personal confidence, brilliantly facilitated by Chico Johnson. We will also be unveiling the result of our independent evaluation on the impact, effectiveness and community response to Gippsland Community Foundation activities. Gippsland Community Foundation are deeply proud of our ongoing involvement in community strengthening activities across Gippsland. Our AGM's are always a wonderful opportunity to connect face to face, We hope you can join us! RSVP to info@gippslandcf.org.au

Delighted to be part of the Gippsland New Energy Conference next week. I look forward to a wealth of information, reconnecting with peers and making new connections.

🌱 Gardening Australia's Sophie Thompson presents Water Wise Gardening, a FREE event held at locations across East Gippsland. Southern Farming Solutions, in partnership with Gippsland Community Foundation, Far East Victoria Landacare and several others, invite you to attend their latest Community Wellbeing event. The events are very relaxed, designed to be a “meet & greet” environment over an enjoyable topic. Bookings are essential and expect to book out quickly. Please click the link to register https://bit.ly/46v8PbV or scan the QR code

Funding opportunity NOW OPEN! Do you have a recovery and resilience project idea for the areas of Gipsy Point, Genoa, Cann Valley, Cabbage Tree Creek or Bemm River? East Gippsland Fire to Flourish have opened applications for a $1.2 Million funding pool, administered by Gippsland Community Foundation. Projects of up to $75,000 or larger projects up to $200,000 will be considered for community-led projects that meet criteria. Applications close SUNDAY 8th SEPTEMBER 2024. Applicants must speak to a member of the Fire to Flourish Community Team before applying. An Information and Eligibility document, which includes the Community Team contact details, can be found at https://lnkd.in/gvqarDE6

East Gippsland Communities are certainly getting ready for some amazing events in the second half of the year. From photography exhibitions, to Halloween and end of year celebrations and of course a swathe of events for East Gippsland Winterfest... there's plenty of reasons to stay connected in East Gippsland!

Are you headed to an East Gippsland Winterfest event this weekend? There’s a huge number of events on offer over the coming weeks with plenty of opportunity to get out, get social and get into some fabulous food and fantastic entertainment. Funding for small, local, community-led events is often hard to come by, which is why we’ve partnered with East Gippsland Shire Council to fund community events in bushfire impacted regions, and Bruthen Medieval Festival directly through the Foundation. Good luck to all event organisers through the East Gippsland Winter Festival, and congratulations on a job well done! ☃️ ❄️

Centre for Rural Communities applied for funding in our recent round, to cover the publication of the updated 'Growing and learning in rural communities' manual for facilitators of community engagement. Committee member and author of the manual, Helen Sheil, explained “Recent experiences in Gippsland highlight the importance of skilled practitioners in all stages of disaster recovery and the need for an investment in community-led preparation and recovery.” A complementary resource to 'Building Rural Futures through Co-operation' study circle kit, the manual will provide access to an affordable resource with local relevance that introduces workers, paid and unpaid, to a sequenced approach of Collaborative Engagement. The original text, published by Helen in 2000, has a documented track record of successful outcomes for communities, workers and organisations in communities being better prepared for disasters, management and recovery. Thankyou to Helen and Centre for Rural Communities for the important and ongoing work in supporting our region. 📸 Manual author and Centre for Rural Communities committee member Helen Sheil (left) receives a cheque from GCF Community Liaison, Cherie Draper

🎭 Successful events such as last weekend’s Bruthen Medieval and Fire Festival just cannot go ahead without huge effort from a dedicated committee. Congratulations to the entire Bruthen Community, the Bruthen Arts and Events Committee Bruthen Presents, vendors, entertainers and every single person who dressed up, braved the chill and made the 2024 festival another great success! Gippsland Community Foundation were merry and glad to award $10,000 to the festival committee and ‘bid you good tidings’ for future events. (Though our attempt at sounding Medieval just now, may be lacking!) 📸 Bruthen Arts & Events Committee Members

The Bruthen Tambo Rambler was first established in 1999. Formed to be a focal point for local information and a celebration of Bruthen people and community, the free monthly newspaper plays an important role in maintaining the social fabric and identity of the area. Like many worthwhile ventures in smaller regions, the Tambo Rambler is run by a dedicated group of volunteers and an editor, who meet weekly to gather articles, images and advertisements. There is always more to be done, and with rising operational costs the support of local business, community groups and advertising is vital in the Ramblers ongoing production. The committee applied in our recent grant round for funding to purchase an updated photocopier to provide printing services to residents, and print the monthly newspaper. Foundation directors saw the $6269 requested as a valuable investment to the Bruthen and District Community. You can pick up your copy of Tambo Rambler in Bruthen stores at the start of each month, and at venues in Tambo Upper, Nowa Nowa, Buchan, Ensay, Swifts Creek, and Omeo. As well as Local and State Government representatives, Bairnsdale Library and Bairnsdale DELWP. Digital copies can be downloaded at https://lnkd.in/gWnbSaQX 📸 Tambo Rambler Editor Lee Flinn (back) with hardworking volunteers around their new photocopier.