SMITH FAMILY: WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES FOR A CHARITABLE ORGANISATION IN CONTEMPORARY VICTORIA?
EDWIN GILL
5 FEBRUARY 2020
Ed Gill, a volunteer with the Smith Family spoke at the first of our Saturday seminars for 2020.
His talk was fascinating, covering a range of issues faced by the broader charitable sector and the challenges that not for profit charitable organisations face.
He spoke about the size of the charitable sector, the dimensions of need across our community, the benefit to the overall economy, and the value of the volunteer work that goes into the sector.
He spoke clearly about sources of funding, from the public, individual benefactors, corporations or government and that the costs of running such organisations must come from the donations or grants received.
His major focus however was the work of the Smith Family. His description of how the Smith Family charity started and how it has changed with the times was very enlightening. He indicated that it is now Australia’s largest national education-oriented charity which supports disadvantaged Australian children to participate fully in their education, giving them the best chance at breaking the cycle of intergenerational disadvantage.
With the support of success stories, he outlined the range of learning support, mentoring programs, and scholarships provided to help children in need to fit in at school, keep up with their peers, and build aspirations for a better future for themselves.
It was an inspirational start to the U3APP 2020 Saturday seminar series
Report by Pam Caven & Photos by Barry MacIntosh