ILT board members have approved grants for the first time since July, along with awarding its annual tertiary scholarships.
The economic impact of Covid-19 had previously forced ILT to put a halt on considering any new funding applications.
ILT president Alan Dennis said the board was “thrilled” to last week return to a financial position where funding requests could once again be considered.
“The Covid-19 pandemic certainly had us operating in a challenging environment but our commitment to working in partnership with our community never wavered,” he said.
“We were always optimistic about our ability to ride out the economic downturn if we were prudent in our financial management and it’s satisfying to now emerge on the other side.
“While we will be as generous as we can be going forward, this global crisis has taught us all to expect the unexpected so we still need to take a responsible approach.”
Mr Dennis applauded the role the community had played.
“The support shown to our establishments by the public has been crucial in getting us to this point,” he said.
Despite not granting itself, ILT staff had continued to work alongside a variety of organisations to source alternative funding opportunities.
“It has strengthened the relationships we have within our community even further given the collaborative effort needed during an exceptionally tough time,” Mr Dennis said.
“I believe the appreciation for what ILT is able to do for our community has increased notably as a result of this situation. We’ve got through this together and we’ve seen many organisations cut their cloth to fit as we all take a more conservative approach.”
Due to existing funds available, the ILT Foundation has been considering applications since June.
“We know this has been greatly valued by those which rely on community funding to support the fantastic work they do in many sectors of our community,” Mr Dennis said.
Last night, ILT also awarded scholarships to 65 ambitious young students embarking on their tertiary studies.
Over 1500 scholarships have been granted since the programme was introduced in 2007.
“We’ve had the pleasure of watching many of the previous recipients go on to do incredible things with their lives and careers and I’m sure this group of students will be no exception,” Mr Dennis said.
“It’s a financial boost which takes a bit of the pressure off the students, allowing them to focus on achieving their respective goals.”
The 2020 ILT Tertiary Scholarship recipients are:
Hailey Anderson, Emma Ashton, Emma Bantang, Liam Barnes, Kayla Boniface, Arnia Bradley, Aimee Brookland, Maia Cavanagh, Rachel Checketts, Ruby Dempster, Emilia Dermody, Joaquin Diamse, Madeleine Doherty, Lisa Eckhold, Laurent Edwards, Haley Erskine, Samantha Faherty, Jessica Fairbairn, Madison Flannery, Max Forde, Jordan Goodall, Cassandra Gray, Olivia Gray, Katie Heads, George Heenan, Finn Holden, Kate Hopcroft, Benjamin Jennings, Ella Jones, Emma Jones, Emma Kelly, Wilson Ludlow, Ella McCabe, Thomas McCabe, Donald McIntosh, Briar McKenzie, Sarah McLeish, Michael Moynihan, Nina Nakano-Broers, Callum Nimmo, Pippa O’Connell, Rory Patu, Mya Peterson, Kavarn Pettigrew, Destiny Schmidt, Gabrielle Schuck, Breea Scully, Mia Segun, Joey Sheppard, Blake Singleton, Tessa Sloan-Officer, Cameron Smith, Claudia Smith, Hannah Smith, James Smith, Sarah Stewart, Distance Takamori, Isobel Thompson, Janelle Tinker, Kapila Tohiariki, Priya Tohiariki, Makensie Waddell, Kathy White, Sophia Witham, Claudia Young-Blomfield.
