Thank you to our 'village' of partners
It takes a village to create change. The Bennelong Foundation thanks our 'village' of partners that came together yesterday to create positive change for the City of Melbourne, with the opening of the new Bennelong Foundation Tan Track digital clocks.
Eighteen months of planning culminated in the launch of the 4.3-metre timing towers on a beautiful Melbourne morning, with more than 100 people gathering to see the Right Honourable Lord Mayor of Melbourne Sally Capp AO unveil the clocks. Joining her were Olympians Steve Moneghetti AO and Peter Bol, Paralympian Jaryd Clifford and a host of Bennelong Foundation partners and friends.
The Foundation thanks the following groups for supporting our focus on developing community sport as a pathway to inclusion and cultural connection.
- The City of Melbourne, which led the design and build of the clocks.
- Victoria Walks, which supported the donation of the clocks to the City of Melbourne.
- Run the Tan, which officiates the fastest laps around the Tan and displays them on the clocks.
- Meals with Impact, a social enterprise helping women with migrant or refugee backgrounds find employment through a shared love of food, which served delicious food at the launch event from its truck 'Mama Maggie'.
- Thane Garvey, a Wurrindjeri man who performed an inspiring Welcome to Country at the opening.
- Our community partners Koorie Academy, Team Sports 4 All, Catalysr and Sisterworks for coming to the launch to celebrate.
- Stamping Ground PR, which helped us tell the story of the clocks.
The clocks stand on Wurrundjeri land on Melbourne's most popular running circuit - the Tan Track. They were the brainchild of our Foundation's co-founders Carena Shankar (Chairperson) and Jeff Chapman AM, who came up with the idea for the clocks when they lived close to the Tan and walked or ran the Track every day. They wanted to give people practical encouragement to maintain an active lifestyle and foster community engagement.
