By Archie Macwhirter
Bark for Youth is a program based at the Western Bulldogs Football Club. Youth participants across Victoria’s west from past youth programs at the Western Bulldogs Community Foundation (WBCF), meet regularly throughout the year to plan out projects for the local community and provide a youth voice within the football club and throughout the community. The very first group started in 2020 and ran youth events for youth week and created child safe videos for the Western Bulldogs Football club.
Did you know that the Western Bulldogs is the only club to have a youth advisory group for youngsters around Victoria’s west?
It started in October 2020 by the teens of Footscray, Hobsons Bay, Ballarat, Ararat and Brimbank that did the Youth Leadership Project and those people that were in the first group made the name and the photo that till this day is the same logo that Bark For Youth 2022 uses. The Western Bulldogs Community Foundation strives to include young people in decisions, honour our voices, implement our ideas and to share and advocate our achievements to empower young people.
“We are privileged to be able to work with young people through Bark for Youth to empower young voices throughout the club and community,” said Hannah Singleton, Youth Development Coordinator at the WBCF.
This year I was lucky enough to be accepted into this program and I am thoroughly enjoying it. We are currently planning events for Victorian Youth Week this year and will be involved in an employment tour with the Western Bulldogs Community Foundation.
For more information on Bark for Youth and the Western Bulldogs Community Foundation go to www.westernbulldogs.com.au/foundation.
