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2022 Kurrawang Service Trip

As part of our Year 10 Christian Living program, students continue their development through the implementation of the Rite Journey program. Part of the program focuses on serving others and challenging yourself. This is the perfect opportunity for students to participate in a week-long service trip in the Kalgoorlie Goldfields area.  

Southern Hills Christian College has been doing this service trip for the last 8 years and it is always a memorable experience to serve others. Students travel to Kalgoorlie via the Prospector train, stay at the Kalgoorlie Camp School and then do day trips to Kurrawang Aboriginal community. Whilst they spend the day in Kurrawang students are involved in feeding programs, small construction and maintenance programs and they also help out with literacy and numeracy in the local CAPS (Christian Aboriginal Parent-Directed School) primary school.  

We have seen a significant shift in our school culture, where students leave for Kalgoorlie being self-absorbed and introverted, and returning home more mature and empathetic towards others. 

Student Leaders Charnae and Micah have prepared the following summary of the 2022 Kurrawang Service Trip, on behalf of the Year 10 students. 

Day 1
On Monday morning, exceedingly early, we began our trip to East Perth train station and from there began our journey. We were given our seats and excitedly boarded on the train. After about 8 hours of eating, sleeping, and watching movies we finally arrived in Kalgoorlie. We collected the hire buses and we drove to the campsite where we unpacked briefly. Then we went to the look out of the C.Y. O’Connor and made friendship bracelets to signify our commitment to each other and the kids we were serving. We drove back to the camp and had dinner, then from there we went to Lake Douglas for a bonfire. After the hectic day we all had, we crashed as soon as we got into our dorms.

Day 2
On the first day of the camp, we woke up early and made our way to CAPS Kurrawang Primary School. CAPS referring to (Christian Aboriginal Parent Directed)… To wake us all up we went for a bush walk along the C.Y. O’Connor pipeline. The bush walk served as an ice breaker between the children and the students. Before we knew it, we were all coupled up with a friend. That day we also helped the children with their schoolwork, we did arts and crafts and did jobs around the school. We finished school and made our way back to the camp where we then had some free time and later a delightful dinner.  Afterwards we made our way to the pools to enjoy some leisure time on the inflatables. To finish off the night we had devotions and went to sleep.

Day 3
Day 3 started with peaceful worship music for the boys and a nice calm wake-up for the girls. We began our day with a nutritious breakfast of cereal and toast. Then we made our way to the school where we helped with school activities and enjoyed some morning tea with the children. After recess we made our way into the bush where we spent the rest of the day, playing, building cubbies with sticks and enjoying sausages cooked on an open fire. We were all exhausted after the fun day we had and were given the opportunity to rest before dinner. After dinner, we played The Game of Life and enjoyed devotions with some chocolate treats. Then it was time to prepare for bed before the lights went out.

Day 4
This day was the last day at Kurrawang primary school, and we were all feeling various emotions. Some felt sadness because they were not ready to say goodbye to the children and some were feeling a sense of fulfilment for the impact and love we had on the children at the school. After saying goodbye, we went back to camp and got ready to go to the movies. We enjoyed popcorn and a soft drink whilst watching Top Gun. We came back and packed our bags and went to sleep.

Day 5
We got up at 5:00 am, got dressed and had breakfast prepared by the family that owned the campsite. We loaded the luggage onto the buses and made our way down to Kalgoorlie train station where we were assigned our seats. 7:00 am came and we boarded the train. Once again, we ate, slept, and watched some more movies. After another 8 hours on the train, we finally arrived at east Perth train station where we unloaded our bags. We said our goodbyes and went our separate ways.

We would like to thank the teachers that came to the camp, Mr. Prinsloo, Mr. Pleysier, Mrs. Hasluck, and Mrs. Hill. Thank you for putting up with us for the week and for showing us that there is more to life than what is on our phones. Thank you for helping us to be selfless and teaching us how to care for others. We would also like to thank Mrs. Edwards and Mrs Groom for organizing and planning the camp and for the administration that went into the camp. Thank you!”

– Charnae and Micah (Year 10 Student Leaders)