Bay & Basin Networking Morning Tea
This project received grant funding from the Black Summer Bushfire Recovery Program.
Tuesday 4 April 2023
On the 4th of April 2023, FRRR held its first Networking Morning Tea for the Bay and Basin Community. We gathered at Tomerong School of Arts Hall to reconnect after completing road mapping activities in 2022, and to share updates and progress within our organisations and communities.
The morning tea was hosted by Meg Stratti the Community Facilitator for Nowra and Kate McBride our Bay and Basin Community Facilitator following participatory practice methods. A few things the group shared they were excited about in 2023 were
- Being able to share and help the community. Support wellbeing in the community and assist in building a more resilient community.
- My organisation’s future. Going through significant change, which is providing new opportunities.
- Seeing the compounding benefits and ripple effects of the IRCF program in Bay and Basin.
- Excited to see what changes and future improvements happen with our space. Looking forward to making it a community hub.
The group shared some stories from the field with BBCR providing an update on their capacity building project of engaging a marketing and communications manager, and the Firefly Team shared an update on their youth capacity project which will launch in week 2 of term 2 in the local school and also Sanctuary Point Pride gave an update on their website build and structure change to support and sustain the group going forward. Such wonderful collaborative sharing in the Community groups. The groups left looking forward to the next networking event, and feeling that together they are stronger and smarter and how so many originations have so many similar needs. Another wonderful example of the key work of our facilitators on the ground and the wonderful ability to address emergent need around capacity that the IRCF program is.
Check In
What are you excited about in 2023?
- Being able to share and help the community. Support wellbeing in the community and assist in building a more resilient community.
- My organisation’s future. Going through significant change, which is providing new opportunities.
- Seeing the compounding benefits and ripple effects of the IRCF program in Bay and Basin.
- Excited to see what changes and future improvements happen with our space. Looking forward to making it a community hub.
- Work with a great committee, great things happening. Looking forward to travelling.
- Growing our team, launch our flagship project.
- Year of change within our family, excited to see how it goes and where it takes us.
- Looking focrward to our construction project, and getting connected again, rebuilding culture, wellbeing and connection.
- Excited about opportunity and process to making our school into a community hub, available to community on weekends and holidays.
- Excited to expand our organisation into a new community.
- Finally moved into new location, looking forward to grow into our new space and expand.
- Building connections within community, fostering collaboration.
Stories from the Field
We invited Christine from Sanctuary Point Community Pride, Tash from Firefly and Heather from BCR Communities to share an update on behalf of their organisation. Below are some notes captured from these updates:
Sanctuary Point Community Pride – Christine McInerney-Percy
- Almost completed their new website which will be a repository of all community pride past knowledge. Their system used to be paper based. Process has been a learning curve and quite arduous.
- Using Yes Creative and a social media person, both local businesses.
- Website will be fantastic as the one place people go to find out about our organisation, eg when we apply for grants. It will also put us in a great position to take on big projects in the future.
- Need a new members to join the committee, hoping website will help attract people.
- Community Pride auspices for other organisations. Take a minor fee which pays for BAS accountant and annual website fee.
- Moved to Xero.
- Funds have enabled us to be strategic.
- Moving into succession planning next.
BCR Communities – Heather Marciano
- Update on two FRRR grants:
- Marketing and communications manager engagement.
- Create profile and create a place that community can find information on our organisation.
- Website was built internally. They engaged with internal and external stakeholders, became immersed in community.
- Built separate website for community radio.
- Brand refresh, sought feedback from all levels of organisation. Who are we now?
- Development of NDIS coordinator
- How can we create opportunities for people with a disability?
- Supported employment through social enterprise
- Learning and development
Firefly – Tash Busbridge
- “Youth Voice Project” launching Week 2, Term 2.
- Vincentia HS and WSU – peer research project.
- Results in Youth Voice Roadmap Report that will be available for community.
- Project proposals will come out of this. They will present them to community organisations to seek funding to proceed. Some Government funding already secured.
Opportunities in the community
- Firefly Youth Week activities – see attached flyer for information!
- FRRR Evaluation week – taking place in May
- Bay and Basin FRRR Roadmapping – TBC July
- Call out to all organisations, Kate from FRRR is pulling together a monthly newsletter, if you have any opportunities or events that you want to share with the Bay and Basin NFP community, email it through to Kate to include in the next newsletter. The newsletter goes out on the first Tuesday of every month!
Check Out
What is one word to summarise your thoughts from today’s morning tea?
- Working hard
- Connnection x 4
- Possibility
- Great opportunities
- Learning
- Many different organisations, similar needs
- Information share
- Commitment
- Together we are smarter and stronger
