GatewayIndustries crew Luke, Dougal, Peter, Mathew, Darren and Jason hard at work inCranbourne recently.By Jade Lawton
General manager Alex Neitz said the cash, donated by Berwick Honda, would help the non-profit organisation buy new gardening equipment.
Based in Dandenong, Gateway Industries employs 50 people with mild intellectual or physical disabilities.
Employees work in a packaging factory, make wooden products such as wine racks, clean offices or do mulching and gardening for councils.
“We are out there five days a week. At the moment there are two or three crews, and we’ve been asked if we can get a fourth crew out in the New Year,” he said.
Mr Neitz said Gateway Industries offered its employees, who lived mostly in Casey and Dandenong, many benefits.
“The obvious is they come and work and receive extra money on top of their pensions,” he said.
“But there is also the social aspect, and fulfilment – they are valued people that contribute in this case to the environment and local community by doing that sort of work.”
Mr Neitz said Berwick Honda’s sponsorship was a great help.
“We are always looking for more sponsorship – we have doubled in size in the past six years and although we do receive funding from the government, there are shortages,” he said.
Anyone interested in sponsoring Gateway Industries should phone 9793 9988.
