NMFC Multicultural Community Ambassadors visit

AFL Multicultural Community Ambassadors attached to North Melbourne visited the club at Aegis Park on Arden Street today, to see some of its facilities and meet some of its staff members.

Me and some local girls playing volleyball at the Huddle. Photo: North Melbourne's Sarah Bourke

I love the work done by the Huddle. This is North's community space which offers a range of programs for the young people who live in the surrounding community (encompassing sport and academic support services) as well as introducing people to Aussie Rules and the North Melbourne football club.

They've been recognised several times for the services they provide - as a recipient of the 2012 Premier's Award for Community Harmony, at the Celebration of African Australians National Awards and winner of the 2013 National Migration Council sports leadership award, where the CEO of the Huddle Dr Sonja Hood accepted the award and thanked North Melbourne, "who when building a new facility in 2008 chose to dedicate space to community instead of a bar, or a pokies venue: thank you for having the courage to realise that true success doesn’t come from focusing on yourself and your own needs, but instead results from investing in those around you”. I bet that there's very few professional sporting clubs in the world that do what North Melbourne do at the Huddle.

The Huddle are on Facebook and Twitter. I'm keen to take a group of Indonesian international students and locals of Indonesian background to visit North Melbourne and catch one of their games.