Many young people use the school holidays as a chance to chill out, hang with their friends, and pursue their hobbies.
Make Place’s Youth on Leadership camp offers a more challenging alternative, for young people who want to push themselves.
From Monday July 4 to Friday July 8, a group of thirty 12- to 17-year-olds travelled out of town to the Manjedal Activity Centre for five days of leadership training.
James Cherry, a first-year student at Curtin University, has been to six Youth on Leadership camps, and this year took on a more senior role.
“This year they got me to step up and run some of the activities. It was really enjoyable to watch theses guys learn for themselves… and facilitate it, sort of push them along on their journey,” James said.
He said the hardest part of the camp for him was the abseiling tower, because he has “never been a fan of heights.”
“Pushing myself over the edge was really challenging for me… You’re looking around and it’s like, the view’s great, but the fact is, I’m 20 metres up and that’s a big drop.”
The camp was designed to get the participants out of their comfort zone, running on a schedule of late nights, early mornings, and physical exertion.
“It does take a demand on your physical health, you’re sitting there and you’re like, ugh I don’t want to do this, you get all cranky and snappy, and it’s kind of pushing yourself at that point to be patient, and deal with everyone, and do things right,” James said.
Another participant, year 9 Halls Head College student Tahlia Barns, who this year completed the camp for a second year, said she had learnt a lot of patience this time around.
She said the hardest part of the camp was a log-based team building activity.
“Because I did it last year, and I knew the solution, I had to stay silent,” Tahlia said.
“That was on the 4th day, and everyone was tired, and it was a lot more slower process trying to figure everything out… I was watching everyone and they were clashing, and I wanted to step out and say we need to calm down, but I couldn’t. But, in the end, they realised it and we figured it out.”
She said the camp had also motivated her to stand up for other students she might see being bullied at school.
“I want to change something, I want to stop bullying… After this camp I got picked to mentor some kids at my school… kids who had some issues, they’ve been bullied or they don’t want to go to school,” she said.
Six years of camp also motivated James to pursue a student councillor role while he was in school at Mandurah Baptist College, where he went on to become head boy in year 12.
“Then coming out of high school, in uni, it’s taught me the kinds of communication skills I needed to work in those sorts of groups, to share those ideas and not get frustrated at people.”
Another aspect of the Youth on Leadership Camp is a follow-up program, where the participants meet up fortnightly to work on social justice projects.
"In the next couple of weeks the group will be getting together to discuss local issues and design their own program, product or event to help combat a local issue," the Makers chief Rhys Williams said.
In the past this has included events such as Relay4Life and Make Place’s Youth on Health Festival.
“At the moment we’re actually organising a little fundraiser of our own, we’ve set a goal I think of $3000, we’re not sure what we’re putting it towards yet, it’s most likely going to be Relay4Life and the Cancer Council,” James said.
Mr Williams said he was impressed with the participant’s commitment at camp, and excited to see what they come up with throughout the year.
