The RKDN team calls itself “small but mighty” and is collectively fired up by community spirit. Photo: RKDN
It’s that time again – we’re back to work, back to school, and Canberra is on the move.
With the new year comes the Canberra Day Appeal, a whole-of-Canberra fundraiser for over 80 charities.
They range from ACT Volunteer Brigades, which support firefighters injured in the course of their work, to Women’s Shed Canberra. Most are small, all are local, and all help our neighbours and friends across the ACT.
When you donate through the Canberra Day Appeal portal, we’ll match that fundraising dollar to a total of $2500 for each charity, a massive boost for small charities whose focus is on urgent frontline work.
You’ll hear a lot more about the charities for the next six weeks, culminating in the Canberra Day Fun Run on 9 March.
But who makes matched funding possible?
Our HAC Heroes are a small, carefully chosen group of Canberra businesses who go above and beyond in their commitment to the community. Their donations to the Canberra Day Appeal play a crucial role in delivering the funding boost that makes this Appeal so worthwhile for smaller charities.
The PAMA spirit is embedded in an app designed for the Gungahlin Eagles by RKDN. Photo: RKDN
RKDN are an amazing example of the ethos we see among our Heroes. They’re a local tech firm based in Kingston, small but mighty and highly motivated by community spirit.
Stef Gerstenberg, their community impact lead, says giving back is a part of RKDN’s culture.
“We see so many amazing organisations doing extraordinary things with such limited resources. The work we’ve done in the community space helps those passionate people stay focused on doing the important things, and automating the rest”, she says.
“Joining Hands Across Canberra felt like a natural extension of our values. For us, giving is about rolling up our sleeves and standing alongside community organisations by contributing our time, skills and energy.”
RKDN were already on our Heroes list at HAC, but we were especially thrilled to find out about the work they’ve been doing with two of our partner charities. The Gungahlin Eagles and Good Omen Goodeze, now both have transformative apps for managing their work.
The Eagles run a sport and cultural program that includes many South Sudanese kids who have faced trauma, displacement and prejudice.
Working together with the Eagles, RKDN co-designed and built a platform to promote their positivity and mindset alignment, PAMA. Using the app, Eagles coaches and educators can manage inclusive sporting, cultural, and educational events.
The app also helps individuals and families connect with their local community while maintaining strong ties to their traditions and cultural identity.
Good Omen Goodeze (known affectionately as GOG) had different challenges. They bring together volunteers to craft comfort items that support patients, families, and staff through Canberra Health and ACT Ambulance Services.
Goodies such as knitted toys, rugs, and baby clothes are donated to hospitals and health care centres across the ACT, offering warmth and support to people under great stress and often in pain, and also fostering a crafting community.
RKDN designed an app that enables sick children to create their own GOG monster. Photo: RKDN.
RKDN built a management platform for the GOG community’s patterns, connecting requests from the Canberra Health Service with GOG volunteers. They also built a ‘Gogster Maker’ application allowing consumers – including children in hospital – to design their own GOG monster and have it hand-made and delivered by a GOG volunteer.
“It’s been enlightening working with both of these amazing organisations. Both have become dear friends of RKDN, and we’ll continue to work alongside them”, Stef says.
“Internally, the work has been genuinely energising. We’ve had some key staff members working on these projects, but we’ve had our entire team rally behind them, feeding ideas, feedback and testing. Collectively, we’re very proud of what we’ve achieved – there’s something deeply rewarding about seeing your work land in the real world.
“Working alongside community organisations has strengthened our sense of connection and pride as a team. It has helped us redefine what ‘giving’ means to us.”
I often talk about bringing all our gifts and talents to the table to build a better Canberra for the whole community.
This Canberra Day, the choice is yours. Find a cause close to your heart on the Canberra Day Appeal site, where you can learn more about each charity. If you can’t decide, donate to Hands Across Canberra, and we’ll share your donation.
Join the fun run on 9 March, or sponsor someone to participate and donate to a cause you care about. It’s up to you, but together we can build a better and fairer Canberra together.
Genevieve Jacobs is the CEO of Hands Across Canberra.
