Enterprise loves giving out grants

TORQUAY Community Enterprise (TCE) has “the greatest job in town”, according to chair Magdalena Wheatland: “we give money away!”

“Nobody else has such a good job as we do,” she said at TCE’s annual grant handover, held at the Torquay Community Bank branch in Gilbert Street on Thursday night.

Customers at the bank can nominate that a small percentage of their banking value and business spend is delivered (at no cost to them) to TCE, which then gives the money as grants and sponsorships to community groups.

Last week, grants worth a total of $13,319 were presented to:
• Art of the Minds ($2,000)
• Bellbrae Cemetery Trust for its 155-year anniversary celebrations ($1,200)
• Jan Juc Kindergarten for the Surf Coast Kite Festival ($1,500)
• Ocean Mind ($2,000)
• Torquay Autism Support Group ($1,000)
• Surf Coast Suns Football Club for jumpers raising indigenous awareness for its under-13 team ($2,000)
• Torquay Museum Without Walls for establishing an online image database ($1,700)
• Torquay Football Club for jumpers for its senior women’s team ($1,320), and
• Torquay Surf Life Saving Club for a new barbecue to help with fundraising ($599).

Ms Wheatland said the handover was being held for the first time in the bank, which featured new TCE advertising on its front.

She said TCE had given away about $312,000 in the 11 years of its existence, and she was looking forward to the figure reaching $500,000.

“It’s great to see it going up, and I think what we are really proud of is that the customers support the community through what we do.”