At ACC we try to offer a wide range of opportunities for people to meet their neighbours, to make friends in the community, and to build, explore and share their skills and knowledge.

We run a number of activities that are self-led or run by a generous volunteer. These include Czech and Slovak Playgroup, Ukulele, Line Dancing and the like. For these programs we ask all attendees to contribute $5 per week (no matter how long the session lasts) to keep the lights on and the heater heating etc.

We also support a number of micro-businesses that provide services that fit in with our programming goals. Small business owners/sole traders running these programs set their own fees and we support them with low room hire rates (again $5 per attendee) and publicity. These programs include Jane’s Group Harp, Cat’s Lego Club and Matthew’s Guitar Lessons (about to start up).

Then we run a number of tutored programs, where we spread a small bucket of money that comes from Darebin Council and Yarra Council as widely as possible, prioritising community building and community need.

In the first half of 2021 we will fully subsidise Jill to run our very successful and long-standing AAA Bowls program (a partnership with Alphington Bowls Club) and Jenny to oversee our Friday community morning program that includes Community Craft, Gardening Group and Morning Tea on the Corner.

Then with the remaining program funding we will partially subsidising our tutored/supervised Community Shed sessions.

These programs will cost $5 per hour per participant (still a bargain) and we’ll need a minimum of 6 people booked in by the term for them to run.

Of course, we also tap into other funding where ever possible. We always have our eyes open and our ears to the ground … last year we partnered with MyTime to support our Peer Support Playgroup for example. And we get one-off grants from wonderful community support organisations such as Clifton Hill/North Fitzroy Community Bank who have previously provided funding for our Community Lunches and our Gardening Group … and this coming year will be supporting our History Group (more to come on this).

Our full program for 2021 will be out next week, and we’ll be featuring some of the new things on offer at ACC (and some old favourites as well) in our newsletter in coming weeks (with the links to book in).

We hope you can find something that you will enjoy being part of, and we look forward to seeing you onsite in the new year. Our programming will resume in the first week of February.

After the year we’ve had, we’re feeling pretty lucky that we’ve been able to test run ‘morning tea on the corner’ over the last few weeks. This week we’re looking forward to our 4th and final Friday morning tea for the year.

To mark the occasion we’ll be firing up the new bbq and giving our new outdoor kitchen a workout … to cook up the rest of the fancy Brenta sausages leftover from the market on Saturday.

And we’ll throw in a mince tart and some shortbread with your cup of tea or coffee … a soft introduction to the fast approaching Christmas season.

So if you’d like to pop past for a bbq-y Christmas-y morning tea/early lunch and a chat, we’ll see you from 11.30am. And if you’d like to come earlier you are most welcome to join in crafty activities inside and gardening activities outside from 10am.

We are anticipating keeping our Friday community mornings with morning tea running next year (we’ll be back on deck after Australia Day). So if you can’t make it this week pop it in your diary for next year. And we’ll see you then!

The weather held off for our annual Christmas Makers Market, and we had a wonderful community morning on Saturday. We were thrilled to have some lovely community minded folk from Rotary helping out on the BBQ. Thanks Kevin (you may know him for his lovely bonsai trees that he has sold at our markets in the past) for suggesting that your Rotary friends might be able to get involved.

We’d also like to thank Nelson Alexander for helping us get the word out about the market with 2 signboards and some coreflutes. We really appreciate having an ongoing relationship with a local real estate agent. We couldn’t possibly do any large and flashy advertising without their help.

Thanks to all the makers that participated on the day including our local CWA. There was a super variety of things to purchase. Lots of jewellery, jam, plants, gorgeous craft and some super recycled bags … just to name a few.

Lots of kids got into our crafty Christmas project that recycled a jar lid into a nature based Christmas decoration. And we had all our community art projects out on display. It was nice for everyone attending to see what Blind Date with a Book is about, and to be able to collect an Honestly letter (sometimes it is hard to make it down to the shops in time to grab one before they all go!).

Thanks again shoppers, seller and crafty kids. Aren’t we lucky to live in such a great local neighbourhood!

Our community Christmas tree is up. Thanks to everyone who did a little drawing for it!

A photo of Lee doing the finishing touches and stringing the metal ‘tinsel’ with washer ‘baubles’.

Our latest Craftberry Jam kit isn’t in a jam jar at all - it’s in a fancy little bag. And Lee made a step-by-step video for anyone who collects one so that they know how to turn the little balls of fimo into a lovely rainbow lorikeet! The video is also on the front page of our website and on our Facebook page … if you get a kit and want to follow along.

** edit, we do have about 5 kits left after the market, so if you are reading our newsletter and would like one then you can pop past our office this week! They cost $3.

Collect your Craftberry Jam kit and follow the step-by-step instructions in this video to make your very own Lorikeet brooch! A bit of bright rainbow fun!