The Krils charity fund is a family account where each year we donate $2000 for a Christmas present, and once it is all saved up the three kids will give money to a charity of our choice.

It's a great way to build up money and know that you're helping as many different causes as possible. My brother, sister and I will keep this account going for many years to come, and then hopefully give it to our children/grand-children. We named it the Krils fund because those are the initials of our family now, and my great great grand-children will hopefully still be doing the same thing in years to come, and remember that we can help the community and also remember who started it in the first place.

I would like to explore the possibilities with the charities that we donate to which is why MCF is so good, because it can help us understand what is needed and what we can do.

My teenage daughters and I recently opened a sub-fund ‘Gumnut account’ with Melbourne Community Foundation [MCF].

We propose to gradually build up our own sub-fund. When the account balance has reached $20,000.00 we intend, through MCF, to direct the income from the sub-fund each year towards charitable activity we want to support.

We think this approach has several things to recommend it –

1. Deposits [donations] can be made into our Gumnut account at any time;
2. The donor receives a tax deduction for the donation in the year it is made;
3. The sub-fund will grow each year by a combination of the deposits and income earned because MCF manage the sub-funds as a pool;
4. When the balance has reached $20,000.00 we shall be able to decide which organisations/activities we help and how we help;
5. I am at the stage of life when I’d rather have money that might be spent on gifts for me on my birthday, Christmas, Father’s Day etc. applied more meaningfully. One way is to suggest a donation to this Gumnut account rather than to buying a gift. My daughters might, in years to come, feel similarly.
6. My daughters and I can work together in a long-term project, which requires a commitment from all of us.The Krils charity fund is a family account where each year we donate $2000 for a Christmas present, and once it is all saved up the three kids will give money to a charity of our choice.

“We chose to open a Gumnut Account through MCF as a family.

Why? Our long term goal is to show our children that ‘it is better to give than to receive’. They may not understand giving now (as 14, 11 and 8 year olds, receiving seems pretty good fun) but they made the decision to cut back a little on excesses now in order to gradually build something they can direct and that will last into their adult lives and the lives of their children. What other ‘product’ offers both long term growth and education about values?

We are looking forward to using the decision making process about what we want to support, to raise debate in our family - about how we can contribute the most good in the areas we think are most in need, and influence the kind of social change we want to see.”

For twenty years philanthropy and community have played an important role in our lives.
Our Gumnut fund offers us the promise of working with our children, now in their early twenties, to support other people’s needs.
When our family has built the fund to $20K, we look forward to investing in projects together with the support of MCF.

Fostering Indigenous leadership is vital to the ongoing survival and growth of Indigenous communities in Victoria. By supporting exceptional people and developing their leadership capacity, the Fellowship for Indigenous Leadership provides lasting benefits to the Indigenous community in Victoria.

The Fellowship consists of 5 year Fellowships and a 12 month Emerging Leaders Program.   

Current Fellow Daphne Yarram’s work and passion is around the development of programs to support Indigenous children, young people and women, to build self esteem, confidence and support them to reclaim, embrace and understand and be proud of their cultural identity.

Inaugural Fellow Paul Briggs of Shepparton finished his term as Fellow at the end of 2008 and the appointment of the next Fellow will be dependent on sustainable funding.  

The 12 month program Emerging Leader works with the next generation of leaders of Victorian Indigenous communities, providing them with mentoring, professional and personal development and the opportunity to improve their leadership skills. In 2008 the Fellowship for Indigenous Leadership appointed its second round of Emerging Leaders – Lidia Thorpe of Gippsland and Roland Atkinson of Shepparton.   

“The support of the fellowship has been empowering and instrumental in developing my confidence. It has been an opportunity that has required me to challenge myself in new ways and provided me with exposure to key people across industries”.

                              Belinda Jakiel, inaugural Emerging Leader, 2008. 

For more information about the Fellowship please visit http://www.indigenousfellowship.net.au/

Jon Faine interviews Chris Spindler

Download a podcast of Jon Faine's The Conversion Hour on 25 June 2008 in which he interviews Chris Spindler.

Aims and strategies

The Towards a Just Society Fund (TJSF) is a small philanthropic organisation operating as a sub-fund of the Melbourne Community Foundation. The fund’s general aim is to:

“assist in the reduction of current injustices affecting particular groups and individuals in Australian society and/or to increase the capacity of such people to overcome any disadvantages, discrimination or injustices through their own efforts."

Since inception in 2003, TJSF has distributed grants with a total value in excess of $750,000.

How one family chose to commemorate the life of their beautiful 16-year-old.

Alice Sloan by Sue Sloan, Alice's aunt

Alice Victoria Sloan was born on the first day of winter 1989. On the last day of winter 2005, she lost her life at the beautiful and exciting age of 16. Alice was on a greatly anticipated school outdoor education trip with much loved friends when a tree fell on the tent that she was sharing and her life was taken instantly. Inspired by the way Alice lived her life with love, passion and enthusiasm, Alice's family established a sub-fund in her name under the guidance, support and direction of MCF. This fund was established in December 2005. The aim is to provide young people from all walks of life with opportunities similar to those Alice passionately pursued, and so assist their development during formative years.

What is EastWeb?
EastWeb is a sub-fund of the Melbourne Community Foundation. We are a group of committed young people who believe that by encouraging community capacity and self-determination through developing community driven, grassroots projects, we can all help to overcome disadvantage.

We work with the Indigenous, Asylum Seeker and Refugee communities in Victoria, whose experiences of marginalisation and discrimination affect their ability to fully participate in the community.

Field of Interest:           Education, Training and Employment
Grant Recipient:           Swinburne University
Project:                        June Shenfield Poetry Award
MCF Sub-fund:             June Shenfield Poetry Award Fund

The June Shenfield award celebrates the life and work of June Shenfield – a poet, playwright and performance artist, who lived and worked in Paris, but was educated in Melbourne and was a graduate of Swinburne University.

June died in 2004 and her mother established the Award, as a lasting tribute to her daughter and her work.

Swinburne University manages the annual Award, which is designed to encourage Swinburne University students to write and become interested in publishing and reading poetry and is judged by a panel of professional writers and editors.

In 2008, the winner was Rhys Evans, for his poem "Early Return" and the Certificate of Commendation awarded to Kane Murphy, for the poem "Next Stop Please"

For further information about the Award go to www.swin.edu.au

• Read a report about Australian Federation of University Women - Victoria Scholarships in PDF format.