The Daughters of the West health and wellbeing program has wrapped up for 2022, completed in person for the first time since 2019.  

Delivered across ten weeks, the program has seen over 450 women at 15 different locations in the west of Melbourne and Victoria come together each week. Every session, participants learnt about an array of health and wellbeing topics and got active through engaging in exercise tailored to their fitness and ability. 

Education topics across the program included mental fitness, nutrition, gender equity, dental care and gambling harm – all of which have been delivered by experts from local community health organisations. This aspect of the program created a safe, judgement free space for participants to discuss these topics, with support from Victoria University Provisional Psychologists. 

Guided by Exercise Physiologists, personal trainers and Victoria University Exercise Science students, participants took part in a variety of exercises each week. From netball to boxing, seated stretches to Bollywood dance, all participants were able to get moving in a way that suited them. 

Western Bulldogs Community Foundation Health and Wellbeing Manager Alyce Vella, said that the connection between participants is one of the highlights of 2022. 

“It's been amazing to see so many people from right across the West of Melbourne, Ballarat, Maryborough and Horsham engaged in the program for 2022,” said Vella. 

“Having the program delivered in a face-to-face model once again after such a challenging two years has been very special. The connection that participants have developed with one another across the ten weeks is a key outcome of the program and is even more important given the isolation many in the community have faced during the COVID lockdown periods.” 

Vella thanked the Community Foundation's delivery partners for their support in making the program happen.  

“We are very grateful to work with such fantastic local delivery partners across our heartland and beyond to facilitate the Daughters of the West program. We know that our participants are now better connected with local health and community services thanks to these partnerships, which is again a major goal of the program.” 

Participants across the program will be celebrated at local graduation ceremonies over the coming weeks.