Berry Street Web Docs Annual Report 2009 | Page 20

Our Contribution to Fairer and More
Inclusive Communities
connecting us to each other

When you reflect on the response to the dreadful
bushfires earlier this year, it was a time when
everyone – governments, businesses, groups and
individuals – pulled together to help those in our
community who lost so much.

• ensured young people leave school with a pathway
to further education or employment;

The challenge is to keep this strong sense of our
common humanity as the thread which binds us to each
other, rather than dividing us and excluding some.

Encouraging a whole of community approach
in the early years

Wherever we work, we want to play a useful role in
our local community.
In Alexandra, the generous support of a private
foundation enables us to work with the community to
identify issues of concern and then develop new ways
of meeting them. Working in partnership with over
30 different groups, we:
• ran arts and other workshops;
• developed community aid programs;
• looked at new ways to reduce all forms of violence;

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• provided emergency relief; and
• supported volunteers.

Singing and reading with babies and children is so
important to help parents bond with their children and
help children build an interest in words. Our Early
Learning is Fun (ELF) program encourages the whole
community to support reading.
Community reading days, where everyone dresses up
in their favourite book character, are lots of fun and a
great way of bringing people together.
More than 4000 book bags were given to new parents
after the birth of a child. Ten communities held special
reading days, involving nearly 1400 children,
15 schools, 131 business and 176 volunteers.