By Deb Oliver | Desert2Surf Founder
Dear Supporters,
We are so pleased that we were able to end 2016 off on such a high note!
We managed to bring 3 Australians down from the Northern Territory to Melbourne thanks to you and your donations! From the 3-7 December, we hosted Marcianne, Samuel and Wyonna in Melbourne, taking them surfing and engaging them in various cultural activities. It really was an amazing week!
Samuel and Wyonna live in a place called Gorge Camp, which is 20km east of Katherine. Marcianne lives in Minyerr, 270km south of Katherine. All three of them have previously attended our Stand and Lead trips and have done stand up paddling with us before. Samuel and Wyonna have even been surfing with us before!
Samuel helped us with all of the travel arrangements including all bus trips between Katherine and Darwin, all taxi arrangements and payments in Darwin, and timely arrival and check in for flights at Darwin airport. Marcianne was the (stand out) leader during the surfing. She was first into her wetsuit before helping the others, she was first to get a board off the car and help the others with carrying to the beach, she was first to be ready for the beach lesson and assisted the others with technique practice, she was first into (and last out of) the water and overflowed with encouragement for the others as they embraced the art of riding the waves.
The surfing at Point Road Knight built the participant’s self-confidence, self-esteem and self-belief and every participant expressed a desire to fulfil any Desert2Surf requirements in order to participate in future trips. These requirements include regular school attendance, a commitment to their employment and training and a commitment to making healthy life choices. All trip participants commented that they wished Trip South 2016 could run for at least a week longer!
Providing trip participants with the opportunity to engage with an organisation, a school in Victoria and family facilitated positive cultural exchange. Desert2Surf also organised a visit to a small organic farm in Warburton for trip participants to meet the property’s delightful owners and take a tour. Desert2Surf’s aim with the cultural exchange of this kind is to build on trip participants’ ability to successfully navigate the mainstream.
Thank you for your support this year which made this trip possible!
With Gratitude,
Desert2Surf
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