Supporting young people to reach their true potential
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Stephen Michael
A West Australian Football Legend
Stephen Michael is widely considered to be one of the greatest ever players from Western Australia and arguably the greatest in the history of the South Fremantle Football Club.
Throughout his life, Stephen has demonstrated great values and integrity and the perfect role model to have a foundation honouring his name.
A proud Aboriginal man, Stephen was born in Wagin, WA and grew up in the southern Wheatbelt town of Kojonup before making his way to the South Fremantle Football Club where he became a legend.
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Stretching Our Skillset
Recently we had the privilege of having Gymnastics WA come to our head office in Fremantle and deliver a professional development session on gymnastics to our staff. The session was fun, upbeat, packed with a variety of gymnastics activities and most importantly, was an opportunity to expand our skillset and ensure we up-skill in areas we can then engage our youth in.
Big thank you to @gymwa for giving up their time to give us the tools to now be able to engage in gym-based activities! 🤸🏽
We’re a finalist in @freochamber 2024 Business Awards! 🤩
We feel proud to be a finalist in the ‘community organisation’ category, along with the other organisations who are making a difference in the community.
A highlight of the work we do in Fremantle is our annual Cultural Games Carnival. This event brings together students from various primary schools within the City of Fremantle, celebrating culture and connection in the heart of Walyalup. #sofreo
Vote for SMF to receive this award through the link in our bio!
Happy Birthday to Toby!
Toby leads and works in the Upper Great Southern Region. His dedication to empowering the youth of Narrogin and Brookton students is an asset to the Foundation’s goal of making a difference in communities we work in. Toby’s dynamic spirit and enthusiasm is part of what makes his work with young people so successful.
As a Program Coordinator, his days are busy working on programs both in preparation and delivery, but Toby also has an eye for all things business and is quick to offer business growth advice particularly in the marketing space. On top of this, Toby works to recruit young talent through the Rams Football Academy through nurturing participants’ growth and helping young people pursue their dreams.
Outside of the day-to-day tasks, Toby adds value to many other areas. Whether he’s leading a workshop or sharing a laugh with colleagues, Toby’s bubbly personality creates a vibrant atmosphere that uplifts those around him. We are lucky to have him on our team. Have a great day, Toby!
Wishing a very happy birthday to the talented Linda Loo!
Linda’s artistic ability is matched by her strong cultural knowledge and life experience. Through her art and storytelling, she creates meaningful connections with youth, empowering them to enhance their wellbeing and embrace their cultural identity.
Linda’s empathy and understanding fosters strong relationships with young people, who greatly appreciate her support and guidance as an elder.
Whether she’s teaching an art session or having a yarn, Linda’s positive influence on youth and the broader community is evident. We are truly fortunate to work alongside her. Happy birthday Linda!
JAMBINU CARNIVAL 2024 💥
What a blast the 2024 Jambinu Carnival was! One week on and we are still reliving all of our favourite moments from this fantastic weekend in Geraldton.
Here’s a little look at what the weekend was all about. Stay tuned for more as we showcase the talent, teamwork, and joy felt by all from this special community event.
Happy Birthday Tamashya!
Today, we celebrate the incredible Mashya. Joining SMF last year as a SEDA College workplace student, she quickly stood out as a positive influence among young people, naturally earning their trust and respect.
Throughout the past year, Tamashya has shown remarkable personal and professional growth. She stands as a shining example of a young leader who truly cares and is making a lasting impact on the lives of the youth she works with.
Tamashya is grounded, empathetic, and mature beyond her years, qualities that not only make her an exceptional role model but also an amazing young women. We are proud of all she has accomplished, grateful for the positive energy she brings, and look forward to seeing her continued impact. Have a great birthday Mashya!
Over the past three weeks, our staff travelled out to work with the talented Years 8-10 students at Northam Senior High School. The students engaged in a mix of teamwork, communication, mindfulness and perception activities, as well as a variety of sports, all aimed at building leadership skills and fostering personal growth.
The participation and enthusiasm from the students was incredible. Students made special connections with one another and our staff and were able to open up and share with us about their lives in such a short space of time. It was inspiring to watch as they fully embraced the values of leadership, teamwork, and self-awareness.
Thank you to Northam SHS for welcoming us into your school community and thank you to the students for your dedication to the program. We thoroughly enjoyed every part of these three weeks and are excited to see what the future holds as our Rising Leaders Program continues to grow! 🌱
Our Trip to Shark Bay
Our team travelled to Shark Bay to deliver Nightfields with the support of Lane, Shark Bay Shire’s Youth Officer. The young attendees enjoyed a few rounds of ‘run the gauntlet’ before playing a game of football. In line with our Nutrition Program and healthy eating values, we provided fruit and water at half time which allowed the young people to fuel up on healthy snacks for the second half of their game.
We also spent the day at Shark Bay School where we worked with students in Kindergarten right up to Year 10, focusing on Culture Through Sport. Everyone shared a healthy burger for lunch which featured a huge variety of colours from the rainbow. They were a hit! Carrots, mushrooms, capsicum, cucumber, tomato - they were packed with goodness. Colourful food for the win 🥕🥒🍅🥬🥩
Jambinu week is here!🤩
We are proud to present our Jambinu guernseys, once again featuring stunning artwork by Tracey Green.
The design highlights the kangaroo, symbolising strength, loyalty and the ability to journey forward. The footprints represent communities coming together for celebrations, sad times, and yarning circles. The circle areas signify our people joining together in harmony and respect.
Ask R U OK? Any Day.
R U OK? Day serves as an important reminder to stay connected and engage in meaningful conversations that can provide support to those experiencing challenging times.
In alignment with this message, we delivered a wellbeing session this week at our Laverton Rising Leaders program. The session emphasised the importance of understanding emotions, exploring the influence of emotions on behaviour and how to express emotions in a healthy and constructive way.
A key objective of the session was to deepen students’ understanding of resilience as a protective factor for mental health. We discussed an often-overlooked aspect of resilience: The importance of seeking support. Building resilience is a gradual process, and it is most effective when we reach out for help from others.
At SMF, we place a strong emphasis on empowering youth to enhance their emotional literacy. We encourage young people to have open discussions about feelings, reinforcing the idea that we should be asking “R U OK?” every day, as these conversations have the potential to change lives significantly.
Rising Leaders in Review
It’s been a big few weeks for our schools involved in the Rising Leaders Program. We’ve had social media awareness, student-led events, group challenges, staff vs student games, meditation sessions, and more.
Our students have relished the opportunity to try new things and continue to embrace the program as it comes to an end. Check out some of the best bits 🌟
Happy Birthday to Mr Efficiency a.k.a Mark.
As the name suggests, Mark is our go to man for all things efficiency. Whether it be thinking up new ways of doing things, speeding current processes or revamping old systems, Mark is the man.
But when he isn’t upgrading our admin or enhancing our brand, he is heading up our Umpiring Program. Mark designs and leads all of our umpire sessions, and does so with notable passion. He brings years of personal experience and a devotion to seeing young people thrive in their young umpiring careers.
We wish you a wonderful day today Mark!
Happy birthday Georgia!
Georgia is a program coordinator at the Foundation who has worked in roles across both the Perth Metro and Gascoyne regions, having an excellent impact on the students both in school and in the community.
In particular, Georgia set her mind to making a difference in the small town of Carnarvon over the last couple of years and has left an incredible mark on the school and students through her tireless efforts to empower youth in Carnarvon and build our programs throughout the Gascoyne.
Georgia’s creativity, dedication to her role, and willingness to try new things at the Foundation makes her a valuable asset and someone we are fortunate to work alongside.
Stephen’s Visit to the Avon Hub
Our Gnalla Djooks were treated to a special visit from our leader and legend, Stephen Michael. It was an incredible oppprtunity for the students, who have been working together for weeks embodying many of the values of life lessons Stephen promotes.
The young ladies spoke about the meaning of true leadership, what we admire in our leaders, and were able to ask Stephen lots of questions during the session.
It was a beautiful thing to watch as the young women in the program connected with and related to an older male role model in Stephen, relating in deep and meaningful ways, and building on ideas they had learned in the program through the voice of our very own leader.
FREMANTLE CULTURE THROUGH SPORT CARNIVAL
The Stephen Michael Foundation recently had the pleasure of running our second annual Culture Through Sport Interschool Carnival. Six Primary Schools in the Walyalup area were brought together to Fremantle Oval to participate in a range of activities which gave the students an opportunity to immerse themselves in Aboriginal Culture. The students were Welcomed to Country by local Walyalup Elder, Robin Collard, and later enjoyed traditional song and dance by her grandsons, they were treated to traditional Aboriginal food, taken through a Cultural Awareness and Art session, and competed in four traditional Aboriginal games across the day.
Congratulations to Brentwood Primary School on being crowned the first ever Culture Through Sport Champions!
These events aren’t possible without the enormous support of agencies like the National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA) who funded the event, and others who made significant contributions. We’d like to thank the NIAA for their incredible generosity, and thank the following for their support; Imagined Futures; Mayor of Fremantle, Hannah Fitzhardinge, Deputy Mayor of Cockburn, Chontelle Stone, Headspace, Palmerston Association, Neami National, City of Cockburn staff, Healthway.
Shining the Light on All Abilities
Our All Abilities Program seeks to empower youth living with a disability to recognise and reach their full potential through increasing self-confidence, personal development, and connection with others. One of the best parts of the program is seeing that growth in confidence shine on carnival day.
The @accsport1 All Abilities Carnivals celebrate different abilities and do so in a way that is fun and competitive too! From football games on the field to lots of fun, dancing and endless laughter off the field, they are an excellent way to showcase the wonderful talent of our participants as well as make new friends and build confidence.
Here’s to embracing every unique talent and ability, and cheering each other on! 🏆
