The Skills for Education and Employment (SEE) and Vocational Education and Training (VET) program participants and staff at STEPS sites in Cairns and Far North Queensland have smashed their $8,000 fundraising goal for the 2023-2024 financial year, raising an incredible $11,314.40.
The funds raised go directly to STEPS Pathways College, a unique learning environment for young adults with a disability or autism to become more independent, self-empowered, and confident in their abilities to be active participants in their community.
Tracey Wyer, one of the passionate Language, Literacy, Numeracy and Digital (LLND) Trainers at STEPS’ Far North Queensland sites, said everyone involved couldn’t be prouder and happier to make a difference in the lives of young people with a disability or autism.
“Our mission is to educate our participants and enrich their lives, be it in our training rooms, nutritious cooking activities in our kitchen, or in outside team building exercises,” Ms Wyer said.
“Everyone involved loves our fundraising events, it just gives you that incredible sense of purpose and pride to know you’re supporting such a worthy cause.”
With a goal of $8,000, the collective staff and participants used a range of fundraising efforts to surpass expectations – all while connecting with their community and giving participants practical learning experiences.
Every Wednesday, the STEPS team in Cairns City office sell coffee, catering to dozens of customers with delicious drinks and snacks. The participants research their chosen recipes, work out how much it will cost to make and set the price to ensure they make a profit, all of which is contextualised learning for their numeracy skills.
There are also sausage sizzles, cake stalls, and raffle tickets to win beautiful quilts, which are made during the participants’ weekly sewing classes.
“We want all of our participants to embrace the art of giving and feel connected to their community,” Ms Wyer said.
“Working together and creating such a caring working and learning environment for our staff and participants is very empowering. Being able to come together and raise money for STEPS Pathways College is the icing on the cake,” she said.
With a 2024-2025 financial year fundraising target of $10,000, the STEPS Cairns team has a lot of work to do – but Ms Wyer is confident that they’ll make it happen, saying there are even more fundraising ideas in the pipeline.
