	{"id":111846,"date":"2025-04-22T04:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-04-21T18:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/ballarat\/?p=111846"},"modified":"2025-04-16T21:26:26","modified_gmt":"2025-04-16T11:26:26","slug":"telco-champions-those-raising-the-bar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/ballarat\/news\/telco-champions-those-raising-the-bar\/","title":{"rendered":"Telco champions those raising the bar"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>OPTUS has recognised two locals making a difference in the community, awarding each with a $10,000 grant to continue their work.<\/p>\n<p>The Raise The Bar Community Grants seek to champion the unsung heroes of regional Australia, showing relentless dedication to supporting and upholding their community.<\/p>\n<p>A total of $20,000 was pledged by Optus to be awarded to one individual and one organisation for raising the bar in Ballarat.<\/p>\n<p>The nomination process saw over 240 Ballarat residents submit their stories of local volunteers, heroism and generosity.<\/p>\n<p>Access consultant and disability advocate Heidi Biggin was awarded $10,000 in the grant&#8217;s individual category.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Ninety-five per cent of the advocacy work I&#8217;m doing at the moment is voluntary, so winning the $10,000 will allow me to basically stay afloat and continue my work in the community,&#8221; Ms Biggin said.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I would love to be able to expand on some of the initiatives we&#8217;ve championed in Ballarat, to the whole state such as inputting service animal relief areas in major train stations and entertainment spaces.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_30038\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-30038\" style=\"width: 600px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-30038\" src=\"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2025\/04\/GrampiansHealthWelln_68729.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-30038\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Simone Noelker, wellness program manager at the Grampians Health Wellness Centre, said the grant will enable the centre to continue vital support care programs.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;And to continue to work with businesses and councils to show how they can be better allies to people with disabilities in the community.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The Grampians Health Wellness Centre won the organisation category for its work providing therapy and service for patients undergoing cancer treatment.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;At the Grampians Health Wellness Centre, we are dedicated to providing vital supportive care programs, free of charge, to oncology patients in the Ballarat and Grampians region,&#8221; centre wellness program manager Simone Noelker said.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Our goal is to ensure patients receive the best care possible during their cancer experience, without the added financial burden.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Winning the $10,000 grant from Optus will significantly boost our fundraising efforts and allow us to continue providing supportive care services. It will also enable us to expand our programs, including offering a new initiative focusing on addressing the fear of recurrence \u2013 a critical concern for many patients.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Optus local general manager for Victoria and Tasmania Jayson Grool said the company has a commitment to strengthening local connections and the region&#8217;s future.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The Raise The Bar Community Grants have been a fantastic way to celebrate and support the connections that make Ballarat such a dynamic and special place,&#8221; Mr Grool said.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;At Optus, we&#8217;re passionate about helping to keep Ballarat connected \u2013 whether it&#8217;s helping families stay in touch, empowering businesses with digital tools, or improving access to the latest technology across the region.&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>OPTUS has recognised two locals making a difference in the community, awarding each with a $10,000 grant to continue their work. The Raise The Bar Community Grants seek to champion the unsung heroes of regional Australia, showing relentless dedication to supporting and upholding their community. A total of $20,000 was pledged by Optus to be [&#8230;]<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"btn btn-secondary understrap-read-more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/ballarat\/news\/telco-champions-those-raising-the-bar\/\">Read More&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":215,"featured_media":111854,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-111846","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Telco champions those raising the bar - Ballarat Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Optus Raise The Bar Ballarat grants awarded to Heidi Biggin &amp; Grampians Health for their community impact, supporting disability advocacy &amp; 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