$155,000 in additional funding for three charities

Three charities today received a welcome start to the New Year, sharing in $155,000 in additional funding from the Greater Charitable Foundation.

CEO Anne Long said the Greater Charitable Foundation is providing one off additional funding to three of its current charity partners - Aspect (Autism Spectrum Australia), Starlight Children’s Foundation and Cerebral Palsy Alliance to allow them to continue to help improve the lives of local people.

Aspect will use its funding to help an additional 40 families with newly diagnosed children under its Early Intervention Readiness Program (EIRP). The Foundation provided $300,000 to fund the pilot of the program at Aspect’s school in Thornton 2011. This additional funding will bring the total donated to Aspect’s EIRP program to almost $500,000.

Cerebral Palsy Alliance will use the funding to run its 2015 Emerge leadership program for young adults with cerebral palsy and other related disabilities.

Starlight will use its funding to continue to deliver its Captain Starlight program to seven hospitals (Gosford, John Hunter, Maitland, Armidale, Tamworth, Lismore, Tweed) in regional NSW and Gold Coast University Hospital, as well as Wishgranting programs until June 2015. Last year Starlight was able to bring a smile to more than 4,000 kids during 28 hospital visits.

Ms Long said the Foundation had provided more than $4 million in funding since its inception in 2011. She said the Foundation will call for expressions of interest for its annual funding round next month (February 2015).

“The Foundation provides significant amounts of funding to its charity partners over an extended period of time to help them develop, trial and establish innovative projects,” Ms Long said.

“These additional funds will enable these charities to continue their highly successful programs which are assisting families within our local communities,” she said.

She said Greater Bank staff will continue to volunteer for the Foundation’s charity partners. Last year, 230 Greater Bank staff volunteered almost 500 hours.

Other partners currently funded by the Foundation include Father Chris Riley’s Youth off the Streets, YWCA NSW and Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI).