FRRR has awarded $207,812 in grants to community groups across the Kinglake Ranges region, for 13 projects that will strengthen the social connectedness and continued recovery of Victorian communities impacted by the 2009 Black Saturday bushfires. 

These grants mark the final round of FRRR’s Grants for Resilience & Wellness (GR&W) Kinglake Ranges program and closes out the Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund (VBAF). In total, VBAF has funded 492 community-led projects, with an investment of $7,436,642, thanks to funds raised by the general public following the bushfires. 

In this final round of GR&W Kinglake Ranges grants, locals continue to seek to strengthen community identity and a shared sense of place.  

“It’s important that the people in these communities know that they are supported now, and into the future,” said FRRR Disaster Resilience & Recovery Lead Nina O’Brien. 

Funded projects will create opportunities for people to come together and connect, such as The Foggy Mountain Music and Arts Festival 2023 bush dance, or through improvements made to the accessibility and function of shared spaces like Kinglake Ranges Neighbourhood House’s Community Garden or the Toolangi District Community House’s C J Dennis Hall.  

Other places, like Flowerdale Community House, are preparing for future disasters by building community capacity through planning and education. 

Related:$180,000 in grants for community-led initiatives in Kinglake Ranges communities 

O’Brien said the Foundation is humbled to play a small, yet consistent, role in the Kinglake Ranges’ recovery journey 

“For the past 14 years, FRRR’s Grants for Resilience & Wellness program has been dedicated to supporting the recovery of Victorian communities impacted by the historic bushfires.” 

According to O’Brien it’s grant programs, like GR&W Kinglake Ranges, demonstrate the complexity of disaster recovery and the need for long-term funding to support affected communities, especially those in remote, rural and regional areas. 

“In Kinglake Central, Kinglake West, Pheasant Creek, Toolangi and Flowerdale, we have seen how priorities and needs have shifted and evolved throughout the recovery process.”  

“We know that the Kinglake Ranges region will continue the process of recovery, and for each community, that will look different. While this is the final round of GR&W, FRRR will continue to support the communities of Kinglake Ranges through our Strengthening Rural Communities grant program,” added Nina. 

The full list of grant recipients and funded projects can be found below, and on FRRR’s website.