2022 Survive & Thrive Grants

$2,400

3216 Connect provides relief for people experiencing hardship and is mainly funded by their op shop in Grovedale.

This grant will enable 3216 Connect to provide nutritious meals to community members in the 3216 postcode.

$23,879

Anam Cara House Colac is a community founded and funded hospice located just outside Colac and servicing the entire South West of Victoria.  The organisation provides short-term respite and end-of-life care along with day respite and chronic illness and bereavement support groups.

This grant will allow Anam Cara House Colac to fund the recruitment, training, and support of volunteers to increase the amount of in-home volunteer support that is available to the community.

$33,655

Barwon Disability Resource Council provides both individual advocacy support to people with disability of all ages and their parents/carers. It also supports regional systemic advocacy to build a more inclusive community.

This grant will allow Barwon Disability Resource Council to continue their individual advocacy work and provide crisis support. It will also support people with disability to strengthen their community connections, reduce social isolation and build self-advocacy skills.

$30,000

Bellarine Living and Learning Centre (BLLC) is a welcoming and inclusive not-for-profit community centre located in Whittington.  It provides the community with opportunities to learn, grow and connect through a diverse range of services and activities including Foodbank.

This grant will enable Bellarine Living and Learning Centre to fund their food security project where participants can access food, pantry and personal items at a weekly foodbank market day. It also supports people to develop their skills to grow food at local community gardens and access a community meal program.

$40,000

Cultura supports ethnic communities across the Barwon region, to inspire and embrace culturally diverse individuals throughout their life journey.

This grant will fund the Geelong Community Connections (GCC) program which will create culturally sensitive orientation information for new arrivals who come to Geelong as part of the Humanitarian Settlement Program. These resources will be designed with recently arrived individuals and families and be coordinated by a local community member with a refugee background.

$30,000

The Drysdale Family Support Inc. assists people experiencing food insecurity on the Bellarine Peninsula.

This grant will enable the Drysdale Family Support Foodbank to continue providing nutritious and fresh food to people facing food insecurity.

$6,000

Encompass Community Services is a not-for-profit organisation providing disability support and Community Services to people of all abilities in the Geelong community.

This grant will support the Encompass Homestart Material Aid program, to provide families and individuals experiencing immediate crisis with basic household goods.

$20,000

Feed Me Bellarine converts rescued food into nutritious meals, for distribution to families experiencing food insecurity across the G21 region. Feed Me Bellarine delivers over 7,000 cooked meals to 2,000 families per week.

This grant will allow Feed Me Bellarine to increase their cooking capacity and enable them to purchase additional produce to meet an increasing community demand.

$25,400

Geelong Arts Centre is the G21 region’s creative hub. They foster local artists and creative communities and provides the Geelong region with access to enriching and affordable arts experiences.

This grant will fund the ‘This is me’ project which uses creative mediums including animation, theatre, visual arts, and music as a tool to engage First Nations young people.  It will empower them to share their stories of identity, develop confidence and skills, and to engage in their local community.

$20,000

Geelong Food Relief is Geelong’s main food distribution Centre who assists those in need of emergency food relief within the local community.

This grant will provide the Geelong Food Relief Centre (GFRC) the financial security needed to offset rising operational costs associated with the provision of Emergency Food Relief throughout the G21 region.

$40,000

Hope Bereavement Care (Hope) offers free information, support and counselling for people grieving the sudden and unexpected death of a child or adult.

Hope Bereavement Care’s Hope Baby and Child Loss program provides information, connection, groupwork and counselling to reduce isolation and build resilience for those grieving the death of a baby or child.

$5,000

The Lazarus Community Centre provides a safe and welcoming place for people experiencing homelessness and social isolation to meet and be supported as valued members of our community.

This grant will provide Lazarus Community Centre with funds to purchase food and other consumables to support community members with a daily volunteer-cooked hot lunch.

$30,000

Lifeline Geelong & South West Victoria offers suicide prevention and crisis support in Geelong and South West Victoria.

Currently 10-15% of calls to Lifeline Geelong are unable to be answered. This grant will enable Lifeline Geelong to train 30 new community members to become volunteer Crisis Supporters. These volunteers will help to meet the increased demand and are expected to answer 8,250 calls to Lifeline Geelong annually.

$30,000

Ocean Mind provides therapeutic surfing programs for young people with disability and those experiencing mental health challenges and social isolation.

Ocean Mind programs change the lives of young people by delivering evidence-based therapeutic surfing interventions that build confidence, connection with the community and develop new skills. This grant will support Ocean Mind to meet the increased demand for their services and improve access to mental health services. It will support the delivery of up to 15 six-week programs and weekly surf club sessions for young people in our community.

$40,000

OneCare Geelong provides a range of programs that help people in the community who need support and/or are experiencing disadvantage and social isolation.

This grant will allow OneCare Geelong to run its COACH Community Mentoring Program, which empowers individuals and families who are experiencing family crisis and social isolation through one-to-one mentoring.

$10,000

Riding for the Disabled-Barwon supports children with a disability to experience the enjoyment, challenge and sense of achievement that comes with horse riding. It aims to improves their quality of life and help them to attain personal goals and develop life skills.

This grant will cover the cost of legal registration for the riders to ensure that payment is not a barrier for participation in the program.

$22,900

Samaritan House Geelong exists to help men experiencing homelessness in the Greater Geelong Region by providing welcoming accommodation, an evening meal and ongoing support.

Samaritan House Geelong was granted funding to support their Accommodation Living Skills Program (ALSP), a 12-week program to provide men experiencing homelessness with the knowledge and skills to help them to secure long-term, stable accommodation.

$10,000

Solve-TAD changes the lives of people living with a disability by providing personalised technology, equipment and services to enable them to participate more fully in society.

Solve-TAD’s project will reduce social isolation and increase the capacity of people with disability in the Geelong region by providing custom-built equipment that meets their individual needs. It will also enable them to participate more fully at home, school, work and in their community.

$20,000

Somebody’s Daughter Theatre Company is a company of artists whose mission is to work with the most marginalised in our community, to empower them and give them a voice through drama, art and film.

This grant will fund the creation of a short film addressing the issue of consent, based on the song ‘No Means No’ from the new Nobody’s Fool Theatre play ‘When the Light Went Walking’.

$15,000

The Outpost, Inc exists for the purpose of providing support to those experiencing housing instability, addiction, or mental health challenges, though the provision of food and material aid.

The Outpost received a $15,000 grant to assist them to continue to provide hot meals and drinks to those who are homeless or doing it tough.

$30,000

The Power In You Project (PIYP) aims to support people experiencing drug and/or alcohol addiction, people living with a mental health condition and people who have been in contact with the justice system.

This grant will be used to cover the cost of client services and programs. These include personal training, gym sessions, yoga, self-defence classes, cooking, art therapy & Community Connection Days. These programs aim to support the mental health of clients and engage them in positive activities interrupting drug and alcohol use while helping clients positively reconnect with the community.

$40,000

Uniting (VicTas) strive to make a difference for individuals, families and communities by connecting with people experiencing homelessness, addiction or mental health issues.

This grant will enable Uniting to continue employing a Housing and Homelessness Worker to help reduce accommodation insecurity across our region. It will provide people who are experiencing homelessness with access to advice, information and practical help to assist in their transition into housing.

$5,000

Wesley Church Geelong serves the Geelong community by engaging with people who are marginalised and experiencing disadvantage. They also offer programs to support asylum seekers and refugees who have recently settled in Geelong.

This grant will provide people seeking asylum, or who have only temporary protection in Australia, and are also experiencing financial difficulty, to access culturally appropriate food on a regular basis.