Others to receive grants include a parent support group for kids with hearing loss, a female football mentoring program, girl’s jujitsu squad, youth festival and support for refugee and asylum seeker students.
The council has handed out $521,368 to 98 different local community organisations in a special ceremony held at the Bryan Brown Theatre.
Mayor Bilal El-Hayek said he was proud to support so many local organisations and heartened by the work they did in the community.
“Local organisations are the heart and soul of our community and these grants are all about helping them help others,” he said.
“There are some really great initiatives and I look forward to seeing them come to life.”
Among the successful applicants was the Recreation Sports and Aquatics Club at Bankstown, which has been supporting people with disabilities in the area for more than 35 years.
Cameron Gregory, who coordinates various programs across the City, said the grant would be used to run life-changing soccer and basketball sessions for people with disabilities.
“Doing an activity like this once a week with the same group of people, gives our participants an opportunity to get out, be active and socialise,” Mr Gregory said.
“It’s impossible to measure the difference in somebody from when they start the activity, to then making friends and developing relationships.
“Without these grants, we wouldn’t be able to run the activities. It’s an integral part of helping us continue offering activities to participants which are life-changing for them.”
Another organisation to receive funding was the Zonta Club of Sydney West, with long-serving volunteer Lorna Parker said the grant would provide much-needed home packages and food vouchers to women in need.
Nearly 100 share windfall
DOMESTIC violence victims, people with disabilities and a group organising a multicultural cake festival are just some who will benefit from City of Canterbury Bankstown’s community grants program.
