Six charities and the people they help will benefit from more than $800,000 in new funding from the foundation of a leading Hunter-based business, Greater Charitable Foundation.

 

2015 funding recipients

Raise Foundation - $44,560 - 1 year

Sir David Martin Foundation - $113,992 - 18 months

Camp Quality - $128,000 - 2 years

Aspect - $320,000 - 2 years

Cerebral Palsy Alliance - $98,500 - 18 months

Starlight Children’s Foundation - $110,000 - 1 year

HMRI - $330,000 – 3 years

Youth Off The Streets – $ 287,375 -2 years

YWCA NSW - $245,300 - 2 years

 

Foundation CEO Anne Long said the funding has gone to a mix of new partners and projects as well as continuing funding for existing partners’ projects that improve the lives of families in the Hunter, regional NSW and the Gold Coast.

Camp Quality has $128,000 for its Child Life Therapy Program at Newcastle’s John Hunter Children’s Hospital.

 

Autism Spectrum Australia (Aspect) will use an additional $320,000 to operate its Early Intervention Readiness Program for families of children newly diagnosed on the autism spectrum in Port Macquarie for the first time as well expand the program in the Hunter. The Foundation funded the pilot of the program in the Hunter.

Cerebral Palsy Alliance has received another $98,500 to deliver its mentoring programs for teenagers and young adults with cerebral palsy in the Hunter and Central Coast regions.

 

Starlight Children’s Foundation will use an extra $110,000 to introduce regular visits by Captain Starlight to Taree Hospital for the first time as well as continue the diversional therapy program visits in eight other hospitals in the Hunter (Maitland and John Hunter), North Coast, New England Central Coast and Gold Coast.

This takes the total funding from the Foundation to Starlight to almost $700,000 over four years.

 

Other charities working in regional NSW to benefit are the Raise Foundation and The Sir David Martin Foundation.

Ms Long said this funding follows on from a special additional funding allocation of $155,000 in January this year to three current partners - Aspect, Starlight Children’s Foundation and Cerebral Palsy Alliance – to continue providing their unique services to regional communities.

 

Three other current charity partners are continuing to benefit from Foundation funding - Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI), Father Chris Riley’s Youth Off The Streets and YWCA NSW.

Ms Long said that an important part of the Foundation’s support for its partners and the community, is co-ordinating opportunities for Greater Building Society staff to volunteer with those partners.

The Greater Charitable Foundation was established in 2011 and is funded from the profits of the Greater Building Society. The Foundation has committed almost $5 million to 14 charitable organisations since inception.