The Sisterhood Project co-founder Grace Larson has won the Victorian AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award.
A dedicated paediatric nurse with more than 17 years of experience, Grace’s passion is to break down barriers hindering parents from accessing vital training in illness recognition, accident prevention, and basic first aid.
Grace is a mum of three from Kyneton and founded the The Sisterhood Project charity in 2022 with her sister Skye.
The project works to support families in disadvantaged areas, such as rural and remote Victoria, low socio demographic regions, and culturally and linguistically diverse communities.
Grace said they used a tailored and collaborative approach to overcome the barriers for parents or carers to learn how to save their child in an emergency.
“We engage community groups that support these cohorts, and parents and carers themselves, to better understand the barriers. We then come up with a training solution that resolves as many of these as possible,” Grace said.
“For example, some young mothers in remote locations face transport and finance barriers, along with restrictions to childcare, all which may restrict them attending a baby and child first aid course.
“The Sisterhood Project provides the funds, transport and child care support to allow the mothers to attend a course and learn vital life saving skills such as how to recognise a serious respiratory illness in their child or how to perform CPR.”
As Victoria’s Rural Women’s Award winner Grace will receive $15,000 towards her project.
She will also go on to represent Victoria at the National Award, a gala event at Parliament House in September. The national winner will receive a further $20,000 towards their project, and the national runner-up $15,000.
With the funding, Grace plans to develop an automated computer program to connect first aid providers with organisations and people in need. The money will also fund 90 first aid courses across Victoria for disadvantaged families.
