Essendon Football Club today formally announced an affiliate club partnership with Rumbalara Football Club in Shepparton.
The partnership aims to use the Essendon Football Club as a vehicle to help build the capacity of the local indigenous community and to increase awareness of indigenous issues in the broader community.
Through the partnership, Essendon players will act as role models to those involved at Rumbalara and will communicate regularly via visits to Shepparton and using Skype technology which allows the players to communicate with the club via the internet.
The partnership will see Essendon Football Club and Rumbalara Football Club working closely with the Academy of Sport, Health and Education (ASHE), Munarra Youth Futures and Munarra Leadership Program.
Essendon managing director, Peter Jackson, said he hoped the partnership would help create lasting change for the community of Shepparton.
“Before we make any decisions about our community involvement, we ask ourselves whether our involvement will help strengthen the community,” Jackson said. “Our youth and education programs, partnership with the Cancer Council and our multicultural programs achieve that – this partnership with Rumbalara now adds significantly to our Indigenous programs which we also think make a difference.”
“It is important to note that we are not setting ourselves up as the experts when it comes to the delivery of these programs. We work in conjunction with experts and peak bodies to deliver the programs and associated outcomes – we provide the brand, role models and most importantly the commitment to make it happen. We look forward to working with Rumbalara and the wider Shepparton community.”
The partnership will also include the implementation of the Barpirdhila program which provides companies with an opportunity to make a meaningful and long-term contribution to the education and employment challenges facing many Indigenous Australian’s today.
The aim of the program is for companies - large and small - to mentor young Indigenous people to help them complete secondary school to the stage necessary to qualify for a tertiary education, traineeship or apprenticeship, and to then guarantee their placement in a company as a graduate trainee or apprentice as appropriate.
“The Barpirdhila program has the capacity to create real long-term change for young indigenous people. I encourage businesses to get behind the concept which will create great opportunities now and into the future,” Jackson said.
Essendon’s Indigenous community programs have grown significantly in the past two years and now include fostership programs with the remote communities of Wadeye and the Tiwi Islands in the Northern Territory and the establishment of the Dreamtime at the ‘G event.
The club has also developed a community partnership with The Long Walk which supports programs that develop and support Indigenous leadership.
Essendon has other affiliate club partnerships with the North Shore Bombers (NSW), Tiwi Island Bombers (NT), Redland Bombers (Qld) and Lauderdale Bombers (Tas).
