We’re nearing the silly season with the Christmas holidays fast approaching. In the spirit of giving, it’s been another busy month for the PlanBig community. 

Our PlanBiggers have been achieving great things this month, connecting and inspiring more and more people every day. We now have more than 2,370 likes on Facebook and more than 2,020 followers on Twitter.

We’ve put together some of the highlights from the month for your reading pleasure:

Bendigo Blues and Roots Music Festival

Colin began planning the first ever Bendigo Blues and Roots Music Festival nearly two years ago and this month all of his dreams and visions came true. The event was a huge success, with the three day festival featuring more than 55 acts as well as kids’ activities, face painting and craft workshops – there was something fun for everyone. You can see what Colin has been up to here.

Men’s Health Expo

This month John successfully hosted the Men’s Health Expo, an event committed to supporting and promoting men’s health. There were a number of community organisations present on the day including Movember, Vision 2020, Kidney Health Australia and the Red Cross Blood Bank – all lending a helping hand to this fantastic cause. You can check out John’s plan here.

Cruisin 4 a Cure

Vanessa has a plan to travel around Australia for 12 months in a motorhome with the goal of raising $1 million dollars for the Cancer Council. Vanessa successfully hosted a Bingo and Burlesque night to help contribute to the cancer research fund, raising a whopping $3,500 and has other activities lined up to help make her dream a reality. A fantastic effort Vanessa! Show your support here.

There are more inspiring plans to get behind next month – here are a few that would love your support:

The Fair@Square fair trade + ethical festival kicks off on December 2^nd

The Sheep Art Kaniva project will be launched on December 5^th

The COMPASS summer vacation program will be happening from December 12^th-22^nd

Big News (February)

The start of the year has flown and we can’t believe we’re approaching Autumn already!

 February marks our two year anniversary and as our community continues to grow and we reach an exciting 2,823 likes on Facebook and 2,199 followers on Twitter, we’d like to say a big thank you to everyone for the ongoing support.

There has been lots happening on PlanBig, with more and more projects kicking off and others achieving goals.

Some of our February highlights included:

A New Pathway for the Elderly at Graceford Retirement Village Byford

The pathway plan is a success! Developed by the Byford and Districts Community Bank Branch of Bendigo Bank, the plan was to build a new 44m footpath out the front of the Graceford Retirement Village. With the help of big-hearted Rod Beaman from SJ Landfill and Jarrod Daniels from Dowsing Concrete to do the job, the path was built and has since eliminated the need for residents to travel on or near the main road. The area which was once loose gravel is now a fantastic brand new path with yellow paint on its border to assist the visually impaired. Read more about this plan here.

Cruisin 4 a Cure

27 year old cancer survivor Vanessa Wyder has been Cruisin 4 a Cure for a month now and has already raised $16,249 for cancer research. Vanessa hopes to raise $1 million in her 12 month motorhome journey around Australia. She was featured on Channel 10 News last week raising awareness for her cause – check out the great footage. Vanessa arrives in Border Village between SA and WA at the start of March and you can show your support for Vanessa here.

Expert video blogs

Need help from someone in the know? PlanBig now has videos from a range of experts on The Big Blog. Visit the blog for advice on how you can take your idea to the next level. So far, you can hear from  

•  Michel Hogan from Brandology talking about branding for non-profits
•  Kate Kendell who is behind theFetch, Cloud Peeps and Social Melbourne talking about building a community      
•  Sam Saltis, the founder and CEO of bwired, talking about developing a website strategy

There are more inspiring plans to get behind next month – here are a few to check out:

The Otesha Project: Cycling for Sustainability, Tassie Cycle Tour kicked off on February 8^th 

Five Point Five started on February 14^th 

Sports STAR Cards kicked off on February 24^th

Howdy PlanBiggers! First up, a HUGE thank you to all the peeps who have taken the time to follow us on Facebook. We’ve reached over 3,500 likes so far, which is absolutely fantastic.

As we hit the halfway point of 2012, we think it’s time to sit back and reflect on some of the successful plans we’ve seen come to fruition this year. We’re proud to say that we are continuously marking more and more plans with that shiny golden COMPLETED stamp and look forward to stamping yours soon.

So congratulations to all the PlanBiggers who have achieved their goals and to those that are well on their way, this post is dedicated to you!

A Men’s Shed for Augusta

In April last year, living legend Merv Barrett set out to create a men’s shed in Augusta WA where guys of all ages could get together over a cuppa, build stuff, make friends and foster community connections. What started out as a few blokes with a dream to have their own sanctuary, turned into a whopping 149 guys who helped create the ULTIMATE men’s shed. You can find out more about the project here. Amazing work Merv!

3 Young, 1 Mum Oxfam Team 048

They did it! Karen and her three kids, Nadia, Jordan and Matt, tackled the grueling Oxfam trail from Jells Park down to the Yarra Valley on April 20^th. Even with pulled hamstrings, hurt quad muscles and a rolled ankle, the team carried on walking an impressive 63km AND raised over $1,500 in doing so! Through lots of fundraising efforts, including great support from the local community at the Bendigo Farmers Market, the team raised more than they planned and have helped Oxfam bring about positive change for South African orphans. Check out Karen’s feedback on the walk here.

PlanBiggers in the blogosphere

This month has seen PlanBiggers receive a huge amount of coverage on the interweb. Check out these fantastic PlanBig blog posts from a range of well-known Australian bloggers:

Amanda Kendle from Not a Ballerina: A Travel Blogger’s Life wrote about Cruisin 4 a Cure 

- here

Nicole Avery from Planning with Kids wrote about Every Parents Dream

- here 

Jason Berek-Lewis from Healthy Startups wrote about Soften the Fck Up and YABI

- here

There are lots of great plans which kicked off this month! Why not show your support for these newbies:

Are you based in Melbourne and keen to give blood? The Bendigo Bank Blood Drive is looking for 1,000 pledges to donate blood by National Blood Donor Week (July 30 to August 3 2012). Find out how you can pledge here.

Keen to support a brave team of cyclists who are gearing up for a 200km+ ride? The Muppets on Wheels team will Ride to Conquer Cancer with the goal of raising $15,000 for the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. See how you can attend one of their great fundraising events here.

Unsure how to get your not-for-profit organisation online? Rose is developing Websites for Charities, an online platform which allows charities and non-profits to design their own sites. Check out the plan here.

It’s been another busy month here on the PlanBig team, with lots of new plans (which I’ll mention at the end) and quite a few plans progressing along wonderfully. 

Some of the standouts this month are Rose Brown’s plan Websites for Charities, Vanessa Wyder’s Cruisin 4 a Cure and Jarrod Parker’s Bendigo Bank Blood Drive.

Websites for Charities is about providing a cheap and reliable way for not for profit (NFP’s) and charitable organisations to get into the online space. Rose and her husband have been working tirelessly on web.org.au and think they are almost at completion! If you think your NFP or Charity needs a quick and easy solution to getting online then take a sneak peak at the website design.

Cruisin 4 a Cure is the dream made reality by Vanessa to raise cancer awareness and funds. Vanessa is on a 12 month journey around Australia in her motor home in the hope of achieving her $1million target. You can have a look at Vanessa’s website here - http://www.cruisin4acure.org.au/. Also follow Vanessa on Twitter to keep up to date on where she is - @Cruisin4aCure. Below is a picture of Vanessa doing her thing!

Bendigo Bank Blood Drive is a group of staff members from Bendigo Bank branches across Melbourne who are rallying together to get more blood donations for the Red Cross. Jarrod is the driving force behind the plan and the group has organised various events to help get signed pledges for blood donations. Read more about the initiative on Jarrod’s Plan. Here is the team!

Last but not least, here’s a quick list of some of our new plans this month.

1. Anna Dang is trying to create an active clothes trading website through her plan My Secret Wardrobe.

2. Nicholas is raising awareness for scoliosis through his plan Support and Awareness for Scoliosis.

3. Jordan Gillman is trying to get a co-working space in Wollongong to give community driven people a communal place to work out of - Cowork The Gong.

Written by Heath Penbrook,

Community Manager at PlanBig.