Hi, my name is Michelle Hudson and I graduated from the Alpine Valleys Community Leadership Program in 2014.
I started AVCLP with the vision of developing a community fun run that would unite the cities of Albury and Wodonga to raise funds for our unique cross-Border local health service, Albury Wodonga Health. The skills, knowledge and networks that I developed during AVCLP assisted me to assemble a committee that established the City2City Run/Walk – a complex logistical event that takes participants along closed roads and across two States.
Over 12,000 people have participated in the City2City since it commenced in 2015, raising over $320,000 for Albury Wodonga Health. The City2City has been warmly embraced by the people of North East Victoria and in just three years has grown to become the largest regional fun run in NSW and Victoria (possibly Australia!). It is an iconic community event that is now embedded in the region’s sporting and cultural calendars
AVCLP also encouraged and supported me to start my own communications consultancy, The Communications Dept. and even became my first client!
In addition, I have increased my community commitment by joining the Board of the Border Trust – a Community Foundation that distributes around $300,000 in funds annually to worthwhile causes across the Albury Wodonga and Border region.
The people I have met through AVCLP have all had a part to play in my journey. I encourage others to follow their dreams too.