Photo caption: Federal Member for Parkes Mark Coulton (second from left) pictured with Broken Hill City Council Outreach Project Officer Jeannette Thompson, Mayor Tom Kennedy, Community Development Officer Dionne Devlin, Archives Collection Coordinator Eileen Wright and Librarian Tracy Fraser at the Broken Hill Library, where the oral history project will take place.
The stories of Broken Hill people will be able to be captured and preserved thanks to a grant provided under the second batch of the Coalition Government’s $3 million Culture, Heritage and Arts Regional Tourism (CHART) program.
Federal Member for Parkes Mark Coulton said Broken Hill City Council has received $2,551 in funding to undertake its History Alive project.
“Council will use this funding to purchase four voice recorders to enable staff and volunteers to capture the oral history stories of local people,” Mr Coulton said.
“This is a fabulous project that will help safeguard local history for generations to come.
“I’m pleased the Federal Government is supporting the development of cultural tourism experiences that will help to reignite the local economy and participation in the arts as our communities recover from two years of disruptions caused by the pandemic.
“I encourage other arts, cultural and heritage organisations in the Parkes electorate to apply for a CHART program grant today – this will assist us to continue offering appealing cultural tourism experiences in our communities.”
Broken Hill City Council Mayor Tom Kennedy said the oral histories will be recorded in both group settings and individual interviews over the coming months.
“There are so many colourful characters and stories in the Broken Hill population, along with important historical knowledge of our city and its surrounds,” Cr Kennedy said.
“This grant will ensure that the stories and knowledge held by locals will be available for future generations to enjoy and understand.”
Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts, the Hon Paul Fletcher MP, said more than $232,000 in grants would flow to 81 projects under Batch 2 of the CHART program to support activities that will encourage visitation to regional, rural and remote parts of Australia as they continue to recover from the devastating impacts of COVID-19.
“We know that tourism is vital for driving economic growth in regional Australia,” Minister Fletcher said.
“The Morrison Government is pleased to continue stimulating this growth under CHART with the promotion of our community arts sector – something that is invaluable to our regions and wider arts sector.”
The first batch of grants are supporting a variety of projects across the country, contributing to the reactivation and recovery through a total of 131 projects under the program to date, valued at over $368,000.
The CHART program is being administered by the Australian Museums and Galleries Association (AMaGA) on behalf of the Government. Applications are open until 29 April 2022, or until funding is allocated, whichever comes first.