About Loch Online

Funding for this website was made possible through the Poowong Football & Netball Club and the Strzelecki Lion's Club's joint My Connected Community initiative, which was run in partnership with and managed by the South Gippsland Development Committee Inc.

In July 2006 the Strzelecki Lions Club was successful in receiving a grant from the State Government to create and train 20 non-profit community groups in using the Internet and the My Connected Community (MC2) website. This project was given to the Poowong Football & Netball Clubs to manage and run. At the same time the South Gippsland Development Committee Inc. were planning on launching their own community website creation project, and thus a partnership between the Poowong Football & Netball Club's MC2 project and the South Gippsland Development Committee's community website program was created.

The Poowong Football & Netball Club has enjoyed working with a large number of different community groups. President Peter Notman states "Working in with other community organizations to help the wider community is largely what the Poowong Football & Netball Club is all about. Being the largest community group in Strzelecki, we feel that it is important to help other groups to assist with the continued development of the Poowong & Strzelecki region."

Through the My Connected Community project 20 community organizations from Strzelecki, including the Loch Community Development Association, have had an online community group set up for them, with complete training in how to use all features of the system. To assist with this training, while also benefiting all community groups using the facilities, upgrades have been made to the Poowong Recreation Reserve Clubrooms including the installation of a large data projector, sound equipment, wireless internet access and required computer components.

Funding for the Loch Village [online] public website, as you are viewing now, has come from the South Gippsland Development Committee's Community Website Access program. This has covered all costs involved with the design, development, documentation, training and implementation of this website. All of this was provided at no cost to the Loch Community Development Association.

The South Gippsland Development Committee has used local website designer Callum Forbes, who successfully created the Poowong [online] community website for the Poowong Community Consultative Committee in 2005. Callum was awarded the South Gippsland Shire Council's Young Citizen of the Year award in 2006, for his contributions to the Poowong and surrounding communities. These contributions have continued with the development of this website and the training for the My Connected Community organization, with most work being completed at no cost.

Further information regarding the Loch Village [online] website, or the My Connected Community Project can be obtained by contacting Peter Notman on 03 5659 2314.