Last night the Awesome Newcastle crew returned to The Edwards for great drinks and fantastic ideas from the community. We welcomed five guest board members including returning Claire Wheeler (and previous Awesome Newcastle winner) of Kid Biz Academy and media and comms professional Chad Bennet. This month we had three first time guest board members: Jem Irvin from Life Without Barriers, virtual assistant Adrienne Donnelly and  accountant Alex Vojdanoski.

Our three Awesome October finalists were Martin Sully of Chatterbox, Kimberly Mann of  Yukuna Glow makeup and Dominique Hasan of Sunflower Girls

Martin went first. He’s a graphic designer and photographer collaborating with another business owner named Sophie Brenton. Together the two created Chatterbox, which brings local small business owners together for a monthly coffee. They’ve hosted over 300 different local business owners, supported 14 local cafes and purchased close to 400 coffees. Martin would use the $1000 to set up a website and host workshops on marketing, insurance and more, free of charge.

Next up was Kim. She told us about her cosmetics brand, Yukuna Glow. It’s the first Aboriginal-owned cosmetics brand nationwide that creates products inspired by culture, connection, and country. With it Kim has created a well-being & self-care program to be delivered to the community by qualified and experienced individuals. Kim wants to use the Awesome money to hold wellbeing workshops for high school girls and also help staff attend a First Nations Conference in Sydney.

Last but not least was Dominique. Dominique has a daughter on the spectrum, and she’s working to make sure her child gets the same opportunities as her peers. Dominique wants to start an all girls disability-based soccer club for girls ages 5 to 16.  She would use the money to start a basic kit for a trial day, to host a fundraising bbq and to create advertising around the initiative.

The board members went on to debate and discuss. It’s never an easy task, but votes must be cast! Then we invited our finalists back to the beer garden, and Adrienne announced the winner, Kim! Congratulations, Kim! We love your idea and how far you’ve come already. We can’t wait to watch you inspire young women in the community and throughout the rest of Australia, too.

Thank you again to all our awesome finalists, and we just might see you back again. Remember, applications never expire.

PS If you haven’t applied already, start brainstorming your next big awesome idea. You too could take home $1000 no-strings-attached cash!