$900,000 grant to improve lives of Aboriginal men

An Aboriginal organisation supporting young Indigenous men through sport is set to establish a new head office in Perth after receiving a $900,000 grant from Lottery West.

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The derelict site where construction will take place

CEO of the Clontarf Foundation Gerard Neesham was on hand to receive the grant and spoke about the future of the foundation.

He said the national headquarters for the Clontarf Foundation was set to take shape on abandoned land.

"As you can see this is as derelict as you can get. We've been at renting offices for the last five or six years and this is an adequate space, and we are glad to be back on and education precinct," Mr Neesham said.

Minister for Sport and Recreation, Terry Wahlbrink said the space selected to be transformed into a new headquarters site is an old, abandoned visual-arts centre.

"This $900,000 is to go towards the refurbishment and rebuild," he said.

Minister Wahlbrink has been helping clear the site in hope of a successful grant application.

Now that the grant has been given, the Clontarf Foundation will be able to operate as a national franchise.

"This will save us about $100,000 a year in rent and that means we can invest that into the boys so we'll be able to mentor 70 boys every year," Mr Neesham said.

The Investment has already seen 300 Aboriginal boys enter Year 12 studies this year.


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2 min read

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By Craig Quartermaine
Source: NITV News

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