Following Monadelphous’ support of 21 local groups via the Karratha Community Grants Program, we visited a couple of the recipients in February to find out how the small grants have been helping.
First stop was the Karratha-Dampier Tee-ball Association who were in full swing for their game day.
Secretary Deanne Manson said that the funds supported the purchase of sporting and gameday equipment necessary for the growing club.
“Funding is essential to help promote participation and grow the sport in the region,” Deanne said.
“Our aim is to continue developing the sport locally with baseball pathways and we are looking forward to hosting the north-west competition, which is significant for tee-ball in our community.”
Next, we caught some of the action as the Karratha Water Polo Association took to the pool at the Leisureplex.
Flippa Ball Coordinator Kate Kalajzich said that the club’s Flippa Ball program has doubled this season and it was great to see more young players getting involved.
“Our goal is to make it accessible for kids with low costs and the gear provided – the support from Monadelphous helps us to encourage more families into the sport,” Kate said.
“The recent funding has allowed us to purchase a frame for moving the goals, reducing manual handling in set up and therefore demand on our volunteers.”
Inside the gymnasium, the Karratha Gymnastics Club were busy training and happy to show off their impressive skills on the different apparatuses.
Club President Melissa Durkin said the grant supported the purchase of equipment, as ongoing upgrades were a significant cost for the club.
“Funding helps us to modernise our facilities and begin to bridge the gap between metro and regional gymnastics,” she said.
With the popular club nearing capacity, Melissa said that most children in Karratha have likely been a member at some stage, gaining the fundamental skills required for all sports.
Finally, a stop in at Millar Wells Primary School, where we met with the P&C and tested out the newest addition to the grounds.
The funds from the Karratha Community Grants Program contributed towards the much-loved new playground, used by all year groups.
It was great to see first-hand the positive impact that the Grants Program is already having in the region, and the value that grants can deliver to the community.