The real reason we are here

I was very pleased to be able to join the Group of 44 Students and leaders from Kerang, Cohuna, Darwin and the Tiwi Islands for their first week at Siem Reap in Cambodia.

For me, the positive, 'can do’ energy that our young people brought to whatever tasks they were set, was really impressive.  Most had not picked up a paint brush before, much less painted a building or two as we did at Life and Hope.  They also made the work fun, with the odd bit of paint going astray onto other students, and finished up on the last day with a mini concert.  As a Rotarian, I was impressed to see how the Kerang Schoolies Alternative Group has undertaken different projects at Life and Hope each year - including a concreted bike shed, shade houses, fencing, land (ie jungle) clearing - which has made an enormous difference to the lives of the children and families of Life and Hope.  Our young people were equally impressive with their efforts at Green Gecko this year.  This time they learned some farming skills - using basic tools they formed beds, mulched, fertilised and planted by hand, on two sites.  It is amazing the difference around 40 pairs of hands can make in a short time! 

The second thing that really struck me was the interaction of our young people with the Khmer children, which was warm, genuine and heartwarming to see. The poverty, landmine injuries and tough lives of street kids and the people generally was truly confronting for our Group.  We saw people missing arms or legs (landmine injuries) working at Green Gecko washing plastic bags to recycle into woven products; we saw one very proud young lad with only one leg of about 12 years old who won an award at Assembly then showed us how well he could kick a soccer ball, balancing on his crutches.  One of my favourite sites was a swarm of young Khmer boys playing soccer with some of our students - the Khmer kids absolutely loved their football, they were fearless, highly skilled an unrelenting and gave our boys a very good work out between work sessions on the farm.  And they laughed and cheered at every goal made on that dusty soccer field.  In the meantime others from our Group played with a band of student drummers; some played guitar and sang with the Khmer kids or provided great entertainment when they joined in the children’s yoga class.

Again, as a Rotarian it was heartening to see the way the Kerang Rotary Club through the Schoolies project and through direct donation has built on the facilities at Green Gecko.  The Club’s funding of two of the staff at Green Gecko to study agriculture has resulted in improvements in the running of the small farms; the Schoolies Group donations to the facility bought basic supplies, school books and writing materials for the students to use; and the labour of the Group has moved mountains (or in one year - a massive hen house, literally) which saves the centre a great deal of time and cost of employing external labour.

We also had a very successful visit to New Hope where we were served a lovely lunch at their Restaurant Training Centre (included some fried crickets - a particular delicacy tried by some)  and saw their Medical Centre and School Classrooms where the children study in Khmer and in English each day.  At every place we visited the Khmer children had little compared to their Australian counterparts but were joyful, happy, engaging and keen to practice their english. 

Congratulations to the Kerang Rotary Club for organising this magnificent opportunity for our school-leavers each year.  Congratulations also to the schools and participating students and  the leaders from Kerang, Cohuna and Tiwi and to the distance eduction students around Darwin.  And last of all a big thanks to Sharon Champion, Gerardine Prendergast and Dave Armstrong for the outstanding work you do each year in organising this fantastic opportunity for Year 12 students and their leaders to enjoy and learn about different cultures and different ways of living.  It was a privilege to be a part of the Group.  Thank you.

Warm Regards
Rosanne Kava