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Yours & Owls Festival 2026: Horizon Bank backs emerging South Coast music. Yours & Owls Festival returned to Wollongong on 3 and 4 October 2026, and this year Horizon Bank was lucky enough to be right in the middle of it. But beyond all the festival fun, we had something pretty special up our sleeves. The launch of our very own Horizon Rising Stage, giving emerging South Coast bands the chance to perform at one of the Illawarra's biggest music events and compete for a $2,000 grant to help take their music to the next level. Horizon Rising: Giving South Coast artists a bigger stageSunday was all about the local music scene as we proudly launched the Horizon Rising Stage, a new addition to Yours & Owls Festival dedicated to showcasing emerging South Coast artists. The idea behind Horizon Rising was simple. Give local musicians a bigger platform, get their music in front of new audiences and put some real support behind the talent coming out of our own backyard. Seven local bands took to the stage, each bringing their own sound and competing for a $2,000 music grant from Horizon Bank. A massive congratulations to the Horizon Rising acts:• YEARN• Flannelette• Lightyears• Silvia Lane• Loose Surface• Sega Jade• Big Modern From recording new music and booking studio time to purchasing equipment or getting on the road, the grant was designed to give one local band a helping hand with whatever comes next. And festivalgoers had a say in who would take it home, voting for their favourite Horizon Rising performance. Lightyears take out the Horizon Rising title! After seven performances and votes from festivalgoers, Lightyears took out the Horizon Rising title, scoring a $2,000 grant from Horizon Bank to put towards their music journey. This is exactly what Horizon Rising was all about. Giving emerging South Coast artists a bigger platform and the opportunity to take their music further. We're stoked to have played a small part in Lightyears' journey and can't wait to see what they've got up their sleeves next! Rain, glitter and a whole lot of fairy floss The Horizon Rising Stage wasn't the only thing keeping us busy over the long weekend.  Saturday brought plenty of rain, but that didn't stop us having all the fun in the Horizon VIP area. Our team spent the day adding a little sparkle to festivalgoers with our glitter station and chatting with locals. By Sunday, we'd swapped glitter for fairy floss, handing out hundreds of serves to festivalgoers. Judging by a few of the faces we saw, a little sugar was very much appreciated after a big Saturday! One of our favourite parts of the weekend was getting to chat with so many people. About music, banking, life and yes, confirming more than a few times that we really are a local bank. Why supporting local music matters to Horizon Bank Being part of Yours & Owls Festival was about more than having our name on a stage. As a customer-owned bank with roots in the Illawarra and South Coast, we're super passionate about supporting the people, organisations and events that make our communities thrive. And that includes our local music scene. There is so much talent coming out of the South Coast and initiatives like Horizon Rising help create opportunities for emerging artists to be seen, heard and supported. Whether it's through music and the arts, sport, education or community organisations, we're proud to back the people doing great things in the places we call home. A huge thank you to the Yours & Owls team, the Horizon Rising artists and everyone who stopped by to say hello, grab some fairy floss, get glittered or vote for their favourite band. Want to know more about how we're giving back? Check out our community initiatives and see how Horizon Bank is supporting local people and organisations across the Illawarra and South Coast.

Rally for Recovery operates from a converted and upgraded Eurobodalla Council Fire Service shed in Tomakin NSW. Thirty volunteers use this space to raise money for the Sydney Children's Hospital Foundation, working twice weekly all year in unheated and uncooled premises. The Horizon Bank grant was used to fund the purchase and installation of a split system air conditioner, creating a comfortable environment for the volunteers who sell second-hand and donated items.

Marine Rescue Bermagui purchased an emergency management whiteboard with funding received from a Horizon Bank community grant.  Grants Officer Stephen Knight said "The addition of this Whiteboard ensures that the Marine Area Command, Marine Rescue Operations personnel and other emergency services who come to Bermagui to plan and coordinate Search and Rescues actioned by our own Volunteers at Bermagui and other emergency services, are working in a base that has all the equipment they require to meet their needs in an emergency. We are most grateful for the support of Horizon Bank and the service we receive from your friendly Bermagui staff."

Illawarra Cancer Carers are a not-for-profit group of volunteers, working to improve the caring environment for cancer patients in the Illawarra. They were the successful applicants of a Horizon Bank Community grant for 2025/26, receiving $5,000 to upgrade sewing machines, which are used by volunteers to make garments. These are then sold to raise funds to help cancer patients in the Illawarra. Proceeds are also used to buy equipment for the Wollongong Cancer Care Centre and for cancer research. The Illawarra Cancer Carers also upgraded their massage tables and had their Lymphoedema equipment serviced.

Marine Rescue Sussex Inlet was the successful applicant of a Horizon Bank community grant for 2025/26. They serve the boating public (both locals and visitors) in Wreck Bay, Sussex Inlet, St Georges Basin and Swan Lake waterways. Their accredited Marine Radio Base operations provide both wellbeing monitoring for vessels, and receiving and responding to phone & radio calls for assistance of varying seriousness, including MAYDAY calls. The grant of $5,000 was used to purchase a backup generator. Grants Coordinator Neil McCorkell said "This generator has been installed to kick in at the flip of a switch to provide backup power to our base. This provision of backup power will allow us to provide continuous emergency services capability to save lives on the water during times when it is critically needed and mains power is down - i.e.; during flood, fire and storms". Pictured Left to right: Skippers Aaron, Tony and Jim

1st Austinmer Scout Group recently completed a refurbishment to Austinmer scout Hall, which was co-funded by both a federal grant and a community grant from Horizon Bank. Federal member Alison Byrne met with Scout group members, and Kaylee from Horizon Bank Thirroul to see the outcome of the refurb, which included major roof repairs to the hall. Paul Rustomji, from Austinmer Scouts said "we are very grateful for the grant funding Horizon Bank has provided to us.  It makes a big difference to grass roots community groups such as our scout group and the other hall hirers to be able to maintain our community infrastructure".  

The Long Beach Community Association has been announced as a successful recipient of a Horizon Bank Community Grant, securing $2,500 to purchase an alarmed public defibrillator for Long Beach Recreation Park. The lifesaving device was officially unveiled at the Long Beach Christmas Markets on Sunday 14 December, 2025 with Horizon Bank Moruya Branch Manager Jenny McKenzie attending the event to mark the occasion. Public access defibrillators play a critical role in cardiac emergencies. Research shows that for every minute a person in cardiac arrest does not receive defibrillation; their chance of survival drops by around 10 per cent. (Source: St Johns Ambulance Australia) Having a defibrillator readily available in a well-used community space like Long Beach Recreation Park could be the difference between life and death. The installation of the defibrillator reflects the community’s commitment to improving safety and reducing the risk of heart-related fatalities in the local area, ensuring residents and visitors alike have access to vital emergency equipment when it is needed most. Pictured: Ian Gray and Moruya Branch Manager, Jenny McKenzie

The Eurobodalla Woodcraft Guild were thrilled to receive a Community Grant from Horizon Bank totaling $1,958, enabling the purchase of a new chainsaw, case, and helmet set. This essential equipment will enhance the safety and efficiency of their members as they work on local timber projects. According to Rick Stanford, Vice President of the Guild, the new equipment allows members to safely trim donated tree trunks to fit into their milling machine, resulting in usable timber slabs for various community projects. “This grant will significantly improve our operations and enable us to support even more local initiatives,” Stanford stated in their Grant application. The Woodcraft Guild has a proud history of providing services to local organisations, including Anglicare, Eurobodalla Council, the Tai Chi Club, and the Moruya Jockey Club. The group benefits from skilled ex-Forestry members who offer safety and usage training, ensuring all members are equipped to handle the equipment responsibly. Jenny McKenzie, Horizon Bank Moruya Branch Manager, expressed pride in the bank’s commitment to supporting local communities. “The Horizon Bank Community Grants program has delivered over $22,000 to Eurobodalla-based organisations over the last couple of years. We are excited to support initiatives that make a real difference in the community,” Jenny said. Here you can see one of their senior members, Malcolm, giving a demonstration and training of the new chainsaw to some other members.    Horizon’s Community Grants Program will open for applications in mid-2025. 

Our Moruya Branch team spent their Saturday in the sun recently at the Festival for Sustainable Choices in Moruya held by the Eurobodalla Shire Council.Everyone gathered in Riverside Park Amphitheatre on September 14th for great day with plenty of stalls, activities, workshops, panel discussions and more, providing lots of information on how to make more sustainable choices. Jenny, Ella & Kim-Maree from our Moruya Branch manned a Horizon Bank stall at the festival. They enjoyed spending time chatting to the festival-goers about how Horizon could help them in making more sustainable choices. They provided information about our competitively priced Green Personal Loans as well as our Green Car Loans. At Horizon Bank we acknowledge our environmental responsibility. ‘Green Horizons’ is a key strategic initiative to be, and be seen as being, a responsible & influential environmental citizen. Being able to be a part of events such as this aligns with our values is fantastic and we look forward to more opportunities like this in the future. Well done to all involved.