Pitch Night 2: Tamworth LALC gets lion's share

Tamworth Local Aboriginal Land Council (LALC) came away with $62,000, Beyond Empathy $44,000 and Gomeroi Education and Training $41,000 after they pitched their ideas for Aboriginal health and wellness to the crowd.

A spokesman for the organiser, Hunter New England and Central Coast Primary Health Network, said the presenters did “a wonderful job sharing their passions for empowering those in our region through their health initiative”.

“Together we pledged almost $150,000 – a true demonstration of the power of the collective.”

Opportunity Hub case worker Patrick Strong from Tamworth LALC, with colleague Jacob Stanton, delivered the pitch for his organisation.

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He said he was “blown away” with the result.

“I was hoping we would all get an equal share,” he said.

“We were all winners at the end of the night … and now there’s three great initiatives that will be funded to be able to run in our communities.”

The LALC’s pitch was to revive a program it ran for three years: Wii wiima-li Gaaynmara-gal, a school holiday program aimed at Aboriginal students aged five to 12 years.

“We were able to keep our kids positively engaged during the school holiday period and it’s another connection for them to see local role models, such as high school students who have volunteered their time, that they probably would not have the opportunity to engage with.”

Mr Strong said the program was run from two venues, Trelawney Station and Hillvue Public School, and school staff also donated their time.

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“On an average day they could be learning food preparation, Aboriginal dance and language, or doing recreational activities.”

The audience was made of invited guests from stakeholder sectors such as non-profit, education and government, plus community members who registered to attend. 

They each had a certain amount of funds they could elect to pledge to whichever idea they found the most valuable – or all three if they wished.