Ventia was proud to receive a special award from Port Adelaide Football Club recently in recognition of our partnership helping Indigenous teens stay in school.
We began working with Power Community Ltd (the not-for-profit charity arm of the Port Adelaide Football Club) in 2011 as part of our commitment to provide mentoring and meaningful career opportunities for Indigenous Australians to help close the gap.
This includes the annual flagship event, the Santos Aboriginal Power Cup, which we have been proud to sponsor for 11 years.
Now in its 15th year, the Power Cup is an education-based program that uses an Australian Rules Football competition held over several days to engage Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander secondary school students.
Other activities at the event include a careers expo where students can meet prospective employers and hear about work opportunities, and the Aboriginal Leadership Forum held at Flinders University, where our team members talk about their professional journey with Ventia.
Bessie Fredberg has played an integral role in our participation in the Santos Aboriginal Power Cup.
The award was presented to Ventia Indigenous Employment Coordinator Bessie Fredberg, who has played an integral part in our participation in this fun and successful initiative.
Bessie is a member of Ventia's TRECCA team, our dedicated Indigenous recruitment and mentoring division designed to identify Indigenous candidates for roles right across the business in Australia.
Bessie said the partnership with Power Community Ltd provided an important pathway to engage with local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, learn about their community and discover how we as individuals and as a business can contribute to reconciliation.
Pictured left to right: Byron Davis - Ventia TRECCA team; Jake Battifuoco - General Manager, Power Community Limited, Port Adelaide Football Club; Braedon Talbot - Community Programs Manager, Aboriginal, Port Adelaide Football Club; and Bessie Fredberg - Ventia TRECCA team.
"Through this partnership we have been able to connect with First Nations Year 11 and 12 students and outline the many different types of roles and industries we have at Ventia," Bessie said.
"But it's not just about recruiting people, it's more about engaging with the First Nations community to lift their school attendance and help them succeed.'
This program has made a difference to participation in school and the kids' grades have improved as a result, and I'm so proud Ventia has been able to help achieve that.
The award we received from Port Adelaide was a team guernsey signed by all of the players from the 2022 season and will be put on display at our Adelaide office.
The team guernsey was signed by all the players of the 2022 season and presented as an award to be displayed at our Adelaide office.
Ventia powers on with second cup at Port Lincoln
As part of our partnership with Power Community Ltd, a second Santos Aboriginal Power Cup was on Tuesday, 27 September for students from the Eyre Peninsular who were unable to attend the May event in Adelaide.
About 100 students participated in the eventat Mallee Park Football Club at Port Lincoln.
Thanks for the TRECCA, AGFMA and Skout teams for their support on the day. Well done team!
A second Santos Aboriginal Power Cup was held in September. Pictured, members of the Ventia team at the event.