Hi Everyone,

Thank you for taking the time to read about the 2025 Blakdoll Women’s Softball Teams—Blakdoll Elite & Tjija Mob. I, Vanessa Stokes, a representative member of the 2025 Blakdoll Elite Softball Team, am writing on behalf of our teams to seek potential funding opportunities from anyone who like to contribute to us.

Your contributions would directly support Blakdoll Elite Women’s Softball in participating in the inaugural 2025 Indigenous Women’s Softball Championship, held in Logan, QLD, from June 21st–22nd, 2025. This competition will bring together some of the best Indigenous softball players in the country, with an exciting pathway toward selection for the Indigenous National Team and recoginition from talent coaches within Elite Softball Programs.

The Blakdoll Women’s Softball Teams are driven by a passion for the sport and a commitment to uplifting Indigenous women through competitive play. By entering the 2025 Indigenous Softball Championship, we aim to:

• Inspire Indigenous women to engage in softball, a sport widely embraced by women in Central Australian, NT communities & Australia wide.

• Promote a healthy lifestyle through teamwork, leadership, and respect, fostering a supportive and empowering sporting environment.

• Raise awareness for suicide prevention, breast cancer, and the No More campaign, using sport as an innovative way to educate Indigenous people across different language groups and regions.

• Develop future role models by competing in mainstream softball carnivals, helping Indigenous women refine their skills and pursue elite-level sporting careers and social engagement for all skills levels of the game.

• Create new opportunities for Central Australian & Top End Women, fostering growth, resilience, and community strength through team participation.

The Blakdoll Elite & Tjija Mob teams offer Indigenous women the chance to play at a higher level, enabling self-growth while revitalizing local competitions in Central Australia & the Top End of NT.

How Donation of Funds Helps

We deeply appreciate the effort and resources required to transport our team to Queensland for the Indigenous Championships. Given the costs per player & coaches, donation contributions would greatly ease financial burdens and ensure our team’s participation.

We are seeking $9,000–$10,000 to cover travel, accommodation @ Logan Motor Inn, softball kits (bats, helmets, catching equipment etc.) for the 2 teams & Bus Hire to support 30 players to and from the Logan softball fields.

The Division 1 Blakdoll Elite Softball Team and the Division 3 Tjija Mob Softball Teams are super grateful to be able to continue playing the sport softball at social and elite level this year. This is our 2nd time we are playing in the Championships and are happy to do it again in the spirit of softball and love for the game.

Our Motto is to Inspire, Believe, Achieve Future Role Models, using softball as the pathway to grow and develop the sport "softball" within the lives of Indigenous girls and womens all over Australia through a holistic way of life.

If you have any further questions about the Blakdoll Teams, please let me know.

Vanessa Stokes

[email redacted]