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Mayor’s Message 24 May 2017

This week is National Reconciliation Week and I would like to begin by acknowledging our indigenous people and history. We each have a part to play in the journey towards reconciliation.

By Portal Admin - 29th May 2017 - Back to News

National Reconcilliation Week celebrates and builds on the respectful relationships shared by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and other Australians. There will be an event at the Cape Kitchen on Sunday, 4 June, at 3.00pm for us all to celebrate these relationships in Bass Coast. It is a free event, but bookings are required. Visit www.basscoast.vic.gov.au/reconciliation for more details.

On one of my usual community group visits this week, I learned, first hand, what a fantastic resource we have available to our youth, namely the Bass Coast Youth Assist Clinic in Wonthaggi. This Clinic is a hidden gem, a place many adults – including myself – wouldn’t know about, even though it has been in existence for four years!

The Clinic is a collaborative effort, with partnerships coming from diverse areas including medical groups and health care providers, the Department of Education, local schools, the Bendigo Bank and Council. Together, these groups and individuals have created a space where people aged between 12 to 25 years can access important services including medical advice and mental health assistance. What a perfect example of how idividuals and groups with a common cause can give rise to community empowerment and ownership.

Last week I attended the Gippsland Local Government Network (GLGN) meeting in Traralgon, where we began crafting our advocacy strategies for the forthcoming year.

This network is an alliance of the six Gippsland councils. Working together we have a much more substantial voice in presenting our cases to government for support, both at a state and federal level.

I also met with the Phillip Island View Club, a group which I am ashamed to say, I had no knowledge of until last week. I have been missing out! View Club is a leading women’s volunteer association which supports disadvantaged children through the charity, The Smith Family. These Phillip Island ladies produce the most beautiful quilts which they raffle off to raise funds for The Smith Family. It was an honour and a delight to meet and address this wonderful association.

I was also honoured to meet another group of inspiring women in a very different regard, the Bass Coast Breakers. This is the first womens’ AFL team for our area and

I was immensely proud to see the dreams of these women, who have wanted for so long to just get out there and play the sport they love, come true. Many of the players are mothers and I couldn’t help but think how wonderful (and right) it is that for their little ones, women playing sport will be the norm.

Cr Pamela Rothfield, Mayor

Bass Coast Shire Council

For more information contact:

Simone Short

media communications officer

t (03) 5671 2703 | f (03) 5671 2222

e simone.short@basscoast.vic.gov.au

Source: www.gippsland.com

Published by: support@gippsland.com