Resilient Ararat

Click on the image to download your free Stick to It Challenge sheet.

Mental Health Month 2024 – October Stick to It Challenge

Kindness is empathy in action. It improves our mental health by promoting feelings of happiness. This year’s Mental Health Month campaign is designed to help all of us practice being kind to ourselves and others.

As part of the campaign, Resilient Ararat has created a Stick to It Challenge sheet which features a list of thirty-one tasks. The tasks have been developed by local students and include a mix of wellbeing activities and random acts of kindness. Download the challenge sheet and choose one task to complete every day during October.

Compete with your friends, family, colleagues and classmates to see who can prioritise their mental health and stick to the challenge for the entire month!

Resilient Ararat cluster schools

Thank you to all the schools that helped establish Resilient Ararat. Their hard work and commitment were the driving forces behind The Resilience Project’s visit to our town in early 2020.

Founding schools: Ararat College, Ararat 800 Primary, Ararat West Primary, Moyston Primary, St Mary’s Primary, Pomonal Primary, Willaura Primary, Maroona Primary, Buangor Primary.

Current cluster schools: Ararat College, Ararat West Primary, St Mary’s Primary, Willaura Primary, Maroona Primary.

Resilient Ararat Year in Review 2023

Resilient Ararat Year in review 2022

Resilient Ararat Year in Review 2021

Resilient Ararat Year in Review 2020

About the Resilient Ararat

Resilient Ararat is a school-led approach to promoting positive mental and emotional health and wellbeing among students and the wider community. The project supports the implementation of The Resilience Project curriculum in participating schools across Ararat Rural City and promotes positive community engagement with mental and emotional health.

Through the development of specialised projects and activities, Resilient Ararat helps reinforce the important work schools are undertaking with students throughout the local community.

Resilient Ararat cluster schools

Thank you to all the schools that helped establish Resilient Ararat. Their hard work and commitment were the driving forces behind The Resilience Project’s visit to our town in early 2020.

Founding schools: Ararat College, Ararat 800 Primary, Ararat West Primary, Moyston Primary, St Mary’s Primary, Pomonal Primary, Willaura Primary, Maroona Primary, Buangor Primary.

Current cluster schools: Ararat College, Ararat West Primary, St Mary’s Primary, Willaura Primary, Maroona Primary.

Paying it Forward – Kindness in a cup

Resilient Ararat has joined forces with two local cafes to spread caffeine and kindness throughout the
community. Paying it Forward – Kindness in a Cup launched in September 2024, providing customers at Fred and Bet’s and Forager’s cafes with the opportunity to pre-purchase a hot drink for someone who could use a little extra happiness in their day.

As part of the ongoing initiative, Resilient Ararat has supplied both cafes with Kindness in a Cup cards
which can be bought for the price of a coffee or hot chocolate. The cards will be kept safe by café
staff who will randomly selected customers to surprise with a free hot drink throughout the day.

You may never meet the recipient of your kindness, but you will get joy from knowing your generosity brought a smile to someone else’s face.

Martin’s visit

Resilient Ararat’s first major project was bringing The Resilience Project’s Martin Heppell to Ararat in February 2020. Over 1000 students, 250 school staff and youth workers and almost 500 community members attended one of six sessions Martin delivered over his three-day visit. In his presentations, Martin spoke about the three principles that The Resilience Project is based on; gratitude, empathy and mindfulness, more affectionately known as GEM! As a result, GEM has been a key focus of Resilient Ararat’s activities to date.

The Resilience Project resources

Resilient Ararat is a stockist of some great resources from The Resilience Project. The following items are available from the Central Grampians LLEN office. Please phone 03 5352 3266 to arrange purchase.

21 Day Wellbeing Journal, $16.50
Six Month Wellbeing Journal, $30
Finding Happiness through Gratitude, Empathy and Mindfulness by Hugh Van Cuylenburg, $34.99