Geelong East Rotary’s support of the North Children’s Choir
 

Geelong East Rotary is proud to be a supporter of the North Children’s Choir, a group of four to eleven year-olds drawn from the northern suburbs of Geelong. The formation of the choir was the brainchild of the Bluebird Foundation and aims to gather and perform songs, music and dance from the diverse cultural backgrounds of the children and their families.

 

Geelong East Rotary has a long association with the Bluebird Foundation, a community arts organisation that recognises the power of the arts to effect cultural change within communities resulting in improved social, emotional and health outcomes.  Together we have touched the lives of many vulnerable children, youth and adults in our community, bringing joy and meaning through music, art and theatre. 

 

So we were delighted when our Rotary club was invited by Bluebird to participate in ‘Pitch Up Geelong’, a live crowdfunding event organised by ‘Give Where You Live’ at the Geelong Arts Centre on 5 March. Three enterprises—Bluebird Foundation, Foundation 61 and Geelong Mums—were invited to’ pitch’ to an audience of community-minded people as to why their work should be supported. There was a great incentive to make a pledge as each pledge (up to the value of $15,000) was to be matched by two generous donors, GForce and the Anthony Costa Foundation.  Our pledge of $600 was therefore doubled.

 

As a result of the generosity of the assembled throng, Bluebird received over $30,000 for the North Children’s Choir project, Foundation 61 over $45,000 for its dream to build a residential facility for women fighting addiction, and Geelong Mums received over $31,000 for their work in providing material support for new mothers and babies.

 

This most successful event showed the Geelong community at its most generous best and demonstrated what can be achieved when we work together.