Celebrating their hard-working volunteers and attracting more people to help out is the goal of Northern Illawarra Neighbour Aid following its win in Greater Bank’s #GreaterIllawarra Community Funding Program.
Topping the count in the public vote in the March round has won Northern Illawarra Neighbour Aid $2,000, with $500 going to both Towradgi Public School Parents & Citizens Association and Dapto Little Athletics Centre as monthly runners-up.
Northern Illawarra Neighbour Aid (NINA) is a charitable organisation that provide people over the age of 65 and those with a disability with social and individual support, shopping, individual and group transport and other services to ensure they remain connected to their community.
Northern Illawarra Neighbour Aid Manager, Sharon Gissane, said the group relies on the support of volunteers to enable them to provide these services to some of the community’s most vulnerable people.
“NINA is a not-for-profit organisation with only four paid members of staff, so we try to look after our volunteers as much as possible, because they make a massive contribution to our clients and our community more broadly,” Sharon said.
“We have 42 volunteers on our books at the moment, and we support over 200 vulnerable people. Demand for our services is constantly rising, so we’re planning to use this contribution from Greater Bank to say thanks to our volunteers and to be able to continue providing a great service with trained volunteers
Northern Illawarra Neighbour Aid Manager, Sharon Gissane
“We’re always looking for volunteers, so we’d love to hear from anyone in the Northern Illawarra region who’d like to help out.”
Greater Bank’s Illawarra Regional Sales Manager, Greg Creagan, said community connection is fundamental to wellbeing.
“Maintaining connections is vital for people’s mental health and helps them to feel part of the community,” Greg said.
“Regular contact also ensures that vulnerable people can access other services they might need, like medical care, pharmacists, libraries, shops and so on.”
The April round sees another $3,000 up for grabs and our monthly nominees are Wollongong City Gymnastics, Fifty for a Farmer and Windang Boardriders.
The public online vote is now open until 5.00pm Wednesday 26 April, 2023 at www.greater.com.au/greaterillawarra.