THE WA AIDS Council was one of 229 youth-focused organisations to receive a 2016 Commonwealth Bank Community Grant.
The grants, worth up to $10,000, are awarded to organisations that work to support the health and wellbeing of Australian youth.
WA AIDS Council’s Mark Reid said the funding would go towards running a retreat for up to 35 LGBTIQ youths, run by The Freedom Centre.
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READ NOW“The retreat program the centre runs is fantastic, it gives the young people the opportunity to have time out, a weekend away and have discussions and workshops,” he said.
“The Freedom Centre is vital; if you look at the current climate and negativity around marriage equality, the issue of transgender rights to use toilets in the USA, you see the vitriol and stigma that comes out in social media of people that have a lack of understanding of the issues transgender people are dealing with.
“That does so much harm and I don’t think people realise how much harm it does.”
Western Australia Commonwealth Bank area manager Karen Reid said organisations like The WA AIDS Council were wholly committed to the wellbeing of young Australians.
“It is a great source of pride for our staff and the Commonwealth Bank to support so many worthy programs in Perth through these grants,” she said.