Greater Shepparton City Council is the proud recipient of a $2,000 Victorian Youth Week Grant, to help fund a community initiative marking annual Youth Week celebrations.
Youth Week runs from Saturday, June 26 to Friday, July 2 with Council celebrating the event by sharing messages of kindness from local young people to the wider community.
The $2,000 funding grant, provided by the Victorian Government, will help Council implement the Young People Activate Kindness project which is a new initiative of Council's Youth Development Team.
"Victorian Youth Week is an important event on Council's calendar as it aims to celebrate and recognise the contributions of young people right across Greater Shepparton," Manager Community Wellbeing Melanie Holt said.
"We are asking young people to help us stay connected in our new COVID-19 normal world by writing letters, poems and messages, drawing images, taking photos or creating videos that can be shared online with older people in our community."
As part of the funding, Council is working with Headspace, GOTAFE, the Berry Street School, local primary and secondary schools and other partner agencies to ensure the success and wide reach of the program.
The Youth Development Team is also working internally with the Aged and Disability Team to engage with older people as a way to create intergenerational connections through the program.
Ms Holt encouraged young people aged between 12 to 25 years to get involved by creating a message of kindness which can be shared with community members who need some positive support.
"We are extremely excited to be given $2,000 as part of the Victorian Youth Week Grants to help us celebrate the amazing depth and intelligence of our local youth," Ms Holt said.
"We hope this kindness project offers some words of support and happiness during a time of a lot of uncertainty. The aim is to unite the community, from all walks of life, and share positive messages."
Local young people have until Friday 18 June to email their kindness messages to Council's Youth Team ahead of this year's Victorian Youth Week.
