Grow Hope Foundation

'Our school is lucky to have a place like Hope House to support us.'

That was the heart-warming feedback Grow Hope received from Sharni, a fifteen-year-old student from Gunbalanya who recently stayed at Hope House together with some of her peers in Years 10-12. The girls spent a week doing schoolwork away from home, finding Hope House a better environment to concentrate on their assessment tasks and build skills in working as a team and living with others.

Read more about what Sharni and her friends got up to in Darwin at growhope.org.au/newsroom.

October is Indigenous Business Month, an initiative started in 2015 to call upon First Nations business owners and their non-Indigenous allies to look at our actions today and how they will impact our tomorrow. In Australia, we have a thriving Indigenous business sector that has created opportunity and change in many communities across the nation. Join us by acting now to create a greater impact for tomorrow.

Thirty Yorta Yorta children came together during the school holidays to participate in Wanyara's Cultural Connections program! Over a week, they were empowered to reflect on the standpoints from which they view their world, develop a sense of belonging, and build their own personal understandings of how they relate and contribute as an Aboriginal person within their communities and the nation. An exciting addition this year was learning about Indigenous food and healthy connections, made possible by VicHealth.

It’s been a busy few weeks at Grow Hope! As part of the Victorian Government’s Future Healthy initiative, our Foundation has received grant funding from VicHealth to support Wanyara’s Cultural Connections program. Over these school holidays and the next, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in Shepparton will learn about Indigenous food and traditional cooking while exploring their connection to self and strengthening their connection to community. We can’t wait to see this program come to life in a couple of weeks!

Tomorrow is the day! Children's Day is a special occasion in our community as we celebrate the rich connections between young Indigenous Australians and their family, culture, and Country. Grow Hope relies on the generosity of our supporters to deliver inspiring and impactful programs that foster opportunities for First Nations children.

Head to https://bit.ly/3d4nsvn to read more about our Children's Day appeal and to donate!

Do you believe in the creation of opportunities for Indigenous young people? In celebration of Children's Day on August 4, Grow Hope is raising funds to strengthen our educational and community development programs. Make a difference and support young Indigenous Australians to lead lives full of choice, connection and opportunity. We look forward to sharing more information in the lead-up to this special day!

📸: SNAICC - National Voice for our Children

No matter how challenging the conversation, we need to talk about racism and the causes of inequality. By taking a stand against racism, we can build a fair and equal society - for everyone. RACISM. IT STOPS WITH ME. is a national campaign providing tools and resources to help people and organisations learn about racism and take action to create change. Ask yourself the hard questions at itstopswithme.humanrights.gov.au

This year's theme for NAIDOC Week, Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up!, calls on all Australians to rally around the social, environmental and cultural reforms that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are working to secure for their lands and communities.

Grow Hope continues to show up for Indigenous young people through our ongoing efforts to strengthen the Foundation's educational programs. Significant planning work has been undertaken recently and we look forward to sharing an update soon. If you haven't already, subscribe to our newsletter at growhope.org.au/news-events.

Today, on National Sorry Day, we remember and acknowledge the mistreatment of Indigenous Australians that led to thousands being forcibly removed from their families and communities. We pay tribute to the remarkable strength and resilience of the Stolen Generations and commit ourselves to healing through deepening connections to culture, family, and land.

We also reflect on the fact that, even in the 21st century, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are ten times more likely to be in out-of-home care than non-Indigenous young people. We can all play a part in the process of healing intergenerational trauma.

Earlier this week, the Gunbalanya community received a very special visit from Dylan Alcott AO, the recently retired wheelchair tennis champion and 2022 Australian of the Year! Dylan chatted with students and staff at Gunbalanya Community School over a barbeque lunch and spoke to the children about living with a disability and what he, despite this, has accomplished.

On May 28, Sandringham Village in Victoria will be hosting a number of exciting events as part of National Reconciliation Week. Wanyara will be running Traditional Aboriginal Games in the Village Square between 12:30 and 2:00 PM, so bring your children along to join in the fun and actively experience Indigenous culture.

From 11:00 AM, there will be free activities for all ages at the Sandringham Library. Then, at 3:30 PM, the Bunurong Land Council will hold a Welcome to Country, followed by a performance from Djirri Djirri, a women's dance group, at the Village Square. It's set to be an enjoyable and interesting day!

National Reconciliation Week, from May 27 to June 3, is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia. We've put together four ideas for practical things your school can do during .

Today, on ANZAC Day, we pay our respects to all those whose sacrifice and contribution during wartime has allowed us to live in peace. Brave Indigenous men and women have served alongside other Australians in every major conflict since the First World War, and continue to serve our country in the armed forces today.

If you missed Grow Hope's April newsletter, one of our latest stories was about the work we're doing to establish a pilot program for Hope House in Melbourne. Discussions that our team has been having recently with industry, universities and the state government have highlighted the need for culturally supported accommodation that Indigenous Victorians can access whilst undertaking apprenticeships and VET studies.

Head here to catch up on other stories from The Latest: mailchi.mp/67e7315c141f/the-latest-from-grow-hope-april-2022-news

We are excited to announce that bookings are now open for the 2022 Grow Hope Dinner. Join us for an evening of culture and community as we celebrate our Foundation’s efforts to build stronger communities and a more inclusive Australia for the generations to come.

This year’s Dinner will take place on August 6 at Sandy by the Bay, an idyllic venue based on the grounds of the Sandringham Football Club and overlooking Port Phillip Bay. Enjoy an amazing three course meal and drinks, with a raffle, live entertainment and inspiring stories.

Head to www.trybooking.com/BYOQL in order to book.

This International Women's Day, we're celebrating the achievements and contributions of First Nations women.

Happy to all the girls, women, mums, aunties, grandmothers and great grandmothers out there 🤎🧡💛

Today we want to acknowledge the women who’ve contributed to and understanding the needs of our young women.

The young women from our communities are the next generation of matriarchs and we’re here to help strengthen their identity and culture so they can continue to connect, contribute and thrive 🤎🧡💛

Today we're at the University of Melbourne for their annual Wominjeka, an event held to acknowledge the Wurundjeri people as the traditional owners of the land on which the University's Parkville campus is based and to celebrate the contributions of Indigenous students and staff. Wominjeka means welcome in the Wurundjeri people's Woi-wurrung language.

This February marks 57 years since a number of Sydney university students drew national and international attention to racial inequality in Australia through the course of the Freedom Ride. Their bus journey across New South Wales became a watershed moment on the long road to reconciliation.

On this day in 1965, the Freedom Ride travelled through Kempsey, on the lands of the Dhanggati people. In her diary, Ann Curthoys recalls the '[blatant] segregation of the swimming pool' in Kempsey and the day's success 'because of the publicity'.

Head to the link in our bio to learn more about the Freedom Ride, the students involved and the impact their actions had.

Last week was a busy one for many schools across Australia as Term 1 got underway. In Gunbalanya meanwhile, students and teachers are already four weeks into the school year; a year they started by taking to the streets in order to remind their community about the return to school. We wish all students the very best for the year ahead!

Like many, we were glued to our television screens last night as Ash Barty emerged victorious in the Australian Open women's final. A great role model for young people here and everywhere, we can't wait to see where Barty's journey takes her next!

Today, and everyday, we acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, work and play. We honour the resilience and leadership of all those who have come before us, and whose special connection to Country has remained strong over 65,000 years.

For us at Grow Hope, we especially pay our respects to the Bininj people as the owners of Gunbalanya, the Larrakia people as the owners of the land on which Hope House in Darwin is based, and the Wurundjeri and Boon Wurrung peoples as the owners of what is today Melbourne, where much of our community outreach takes place.

But we also extend this recognition of the association that Indigenous peoples have with the land to Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders everywhere.

We wish everyone in the Grow Hope community a very festive holiday season and a wonderful New Year! May time with family and friends bring you opportunities to enjoy one another's company, eat great food, and relax. In what has been a challenging year, thank you for your continued support and generosity.

You can access our 2021 Annual Report and read about our accomplishments over the year at: issuu.com/growhopeaus/docs/grow_hope_foundation_annual_report_2021. We look forward to returning with renewed vigour and determination in 2022!

The participation, funds raised, and widespread support in this year's Walk for Truth has left us feeling tremendously excited for the impact Grow Hope will be able to have in the lives and communities of young Indigenous Australians over the months to come. Our utmost gratitude goes to all who took part in the Walk, and whose advocacy and fundraising will contribute vastly to our educational and community development programs.

Pictured are the SKOB Saints football team wearing their Indigenous round guernseys, who were the largest team to participate in the Walk for Truth this year, and Mathew from CJG Advisory, the highest fundraising team in the Walk, with his dog Fred.

The Grow Hope Walk for Truth starts this Friday (the 22nd of October).

To register a team, sponsor someone or to learn about why we walk go to:

www.mycause.com.au/events/growhopewalk

On the 22nd-24th of September, 8 Gunbalanya students visited Hope House to work on their Stage 2 Nutrition subject. During the stay, the girls were able to relax in the yard, shop and cook lots of meals, including trifle!

The Grow Hope Walk for Truth retraces the footsteps of William Barak, a ngurungaeta (meaning leader) of the Wurundjeri-William clan. In campaigning for his people’s autonomy and connection to their land, Barak led a number of historic marches from Coranderrk, to Parliament House in Melbourne.

The Walk for Truth seeks to raise much-needed funds in support of the educational programs and learning experiences that the Grow Hope Foundation offers in Victoria and the Northern Territory.

For registration and fundraising visit:
www.mycause.com.au/events/growhopewalk

In exciting news, the 29th of June marked a historic day with a formal partnership made between Grow Hope and Wanyara.

Wanyara brings Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander games, art, dance, language, history, ceremonies, songs and stories to schools and businesses. Together our shared purpose is to help Australians understand and embrace an Aboriginal perspective of country.

A heartfelt thank you to Trinity Grammar School, Kew for their recent fundraising efforts in support of Grow Hope! As part of their Harambee outreach program, the students organised a community-wide treadmill and bike challenge, which lasted for nine hours and raised $3,000 for our Foundation. We are very grateful for Harambee's ongoing support, allowing us to deliver life-changing teaching and learning programs for Indigenous Australians.

On a beautiful evening in the centre of Sandy Village last month, the Sandringham community saw the unfurling of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags. Following a poignant Welcome to Country and reflection from Boon Wurrung man Steve Parker, a moving speech was given by Joshua Toscano, a young Torres Strait Islander and director of the Ellen Josè Memorial Foundation, on his family's special connection to Sandringham. Finally, the flags were raised by Bayside Mayor, Cr Laurence Evans OAM alongside Steve and Josh, concluding the evening's wonderful celebrations.