Announcing your 2023 Westfield Local Hero

We are excited to announce Tim Hewson from Mongrels Men as your 2023 Westfield Local Hero for Warringah!

Westfield is proud to award a community grant of $20K to help Tim and Mongrels Men to continue to grow their impact in the local community

The 2023 Westfield Local Heroes program will award 126 grants across Australia and New Zealand – totalling $1.26 million to support local communities.

Nominations for the 2024 Westfield Local Heroes program are open now. If you know someone who's making an impact, nominate them as a Westfield Local Hero - nominate here.

Your 2023 Westfield Warringah Local Hero is:

Tim Hewson

Mongrels Men

Dedicated. Visionary. Energetic.

Dedicated Tim Hewson motivates thousands of Northern Beaches men to get outdoors, exercise and feel part of a supportive community.

Tim is the founder and volunteer Director of Mongrels Men, a charity on a mission to improve men's mental and physical health.

He spends many hours of his time working on the charity and attends four or five meet-ups a week for a chat over coffee and a run, walk, swim or game of soccer.

Tim started Mongrels Men after realising how helpful it was to have a run and chat on the beach with mates.

In 18 short months, the charity has grown to host weekly meet-ups for men aged 30 to 70 in Manly, Dee Why, Bondi, Castlecrag and Avoca,. Tim aims to have a group in every postcode in Australia so that all blokes have somewhere to go, someone to turn to and support when needed.

The reward for Tim is when families give feedback that he has helped men become better partners, fathers, grandfathers, uncles, sons, employers and employees.

Tim feels his efforts are validated by his nomination as a Westfield Local Hero. “Most importantly, the men can feel improvements within themselves. Individually, they are all better men, but as Mongrels they are collectively stronger as a pack,” he says.

Mongrels Men will use its funds for education and training to expand the meet up program and provide members with mental health tools.

We'd like to thank and acknowledge our finalists who will receive a $5K grant for the organisation they represent...

Michelle Mott from Be Centre Foundation Limited

Michelle Mott gives hours every week to help Northern Beaches parents make positive changes for their children. As a volunteer Parent Counsellor at Warriewood’s Be Centre Foundation, Michelle provides one-on-one counselling to parents whose children attend play therapy. She provides an emotionally safe place for parents to learn how to improve their home environment.

Vanessa Karakas Women and Children First

Vanessa Karakas is a Caseworker at Women & Children First, where she goes beyond the call of duty to support Northern Beaches survivors of domestic violence. She always caring and calm when women are most vulnerable, helping them to transition from surviving to thriving.

If you need support, please phone Lifeline: 13 11 14