A $30,000 donation from the Otago Community Trust will assist the Otago Peninsula Biodiversity Trust with its continued possum eradication programme on the Otago Peninsula, supporting their vision - “A Pest Free Peninsula by 2050”. The Otago Peninsula Biodiversity Group (OPBG) possum control programs started in March 2011 to help protect and enhance the Otago Peninsula’s biodiversity.
A $20,000 donation from the Otago Community Trust will assist the Milton Community Health Trust with a building renovation project to upgrade the support and advocacy hub in Milton – the Tokomairiro Community Hub. The Tokomairiro Community Hub housed in the old BNZ building on the main street of Milton, started with two agencies and has now increased to 14 part-time agencies.
The Otago Community Trust is pleased to announce it has distributed $935,500 to 35 Otago sport development programmes from its Regional Sports funding round in June. Otago Community Trust Chief Executive Barbara Bridger explains that the Trust has one round of funding for Regional Sports each year. “The regional sports funding is pivotal to the sustainability of many of our regional sporting bodies. These regional sporting bodies are the umbrella groups that support hundreds of community clubs and local sporting groups across Otago with development programmes” she said.
The Associate Minister of Finance Hon Paula Bennett has appointed Mr John Wilson as a new trustee to the Otago Community Trust, replacing Noeline Munro who retires after eight years of service to the Trust. Mr Wilson will start in his new role in July. Present trustees Kate Hazlett of Roxburgh and Lauren Semple of Dunedin have been reappointed to the Trust for a second four-year term. https://youtu.be/EmCf9lD-lsU
The newly named Wanaka Recreation Centre has been given a $300,000 boost to assist with its fit out, in particular the purchase of sporting equipment and the Rebound Ace flooring after securing funding from the Otago Community Trust. The donation was approved at the Trust’s recent board meeting, where trustees granted a number of sizable donations across the region, including the announcement of a $500,000 boost to the Otago Museum.
The Otago Museum has received a funding boost of $500,000 in the Otago Community Trust’s latest donations round. The donation will assist with the Discovery World Stage Two project (Discovery World II) and the creation of the Otago Museum science engagement centre. The donation will specifically contribute towards the cost of the interactive displays, which need to be ordered over the coming months to ensure they will be available for the planned opening in 2017.
A $26.3 million project to connect Central Otago's trail network and create 500 kilometres of continuous trail network will be a "game changer" for the region. Prime Minister and Tourism Minister John Key announced at a function in Bannockburn on Sunday the Government would commit around $13 million towards the project, with the Central Lakes Trust contributing $11.15m and the Otago Community Trust contributing $2m.
The Otago Community Trust is pleased to announce it has donated $400,000 to 10 social services organisations in April. Barbara Bridger, Chief Executive comments that “the social services sector is one of our most challenging sectors when it comes to funding.The needs across Otago are not diminishing, we know and appreciate that our social service agencies are constantly encountering increased demand for services and intervention, all whilst the funding landscape is under review”. https://youtu.be/ZRaDbKJXUcQ
New Zealand boxing champion and Queenstown local Richie Hadlow is among a group of Otago athletes who have been named in this year's intake for Academy Otago and Academy Central Otago's talent development programme. Athletes from 13 sports have been accepted into the two-year programme which has been supported by the Otago Community Trust.
A new "Olympic grade'' hockey turf servicing Central Otago and Queenstown Lakes was officially unveiled yesterday. Construction began on the turf on Barry Ave in October to replace a sand-based surface. Central Otago Sports Turf Trust chairman Michael Paardekooper said the new surface made the game "much more skilful''. "And compared to the sand turf, if you fall over, you don't get burnt.''
The Otago Community Trust has made a $20,000 grant to help with the making of a documentary that will retrace the paths different generations of Chinese took to reach Otago. The grant to the Dunedin Chinese Garden Trust was the largest of a series of grants, totalling $77,442, made to 16 organisations by the trust last month.
The Otago Community Trust is delighted to support the newly established Cosy Homes Charitable Trust in its March funding round with a $14,965 donation. The donation will assist with kick-starting the project, which includes acting as a “one-stop” resource for residents looking for information on improving the health and warmth of their homes, and good energy practices that ultimately save money while reducing environmental impact.