Newsletter for the Rotary Club of Western Endeavour - Issue No.: 1115 Issue Date: 14 Apr, 2024

Balga Senior High school students presented to our club about recent experiences supported by the Rotary Club of Western Endeavour.   The relationship between the club and the school continues to grow and it always an enjoyable meeting to hear about what activities the school students undertook and the impact it has had on their life.

Aimee, Tui and Dyllan attended the Rypen camp which was attended by more than 50 year 9 & 10 students.   Whilst being woken up at 6am on Saturday morning for a fitness session was a shock to their system, it set them up for a busy day of empowerment activities.  Dyllan was quick to point out he excelled at the rope climbing however left it to other attendees to highlight his achievement of winning the most improved award for his group.   They also got a lot of benefit from the sessions run about road safety, impact of drugs, public speaking, goal setting and overcoming issues in life.    

Heading home on Sunday, they each had their “warm and fuzzy” bag.  The bag contains pieces of paper with compliments written by other campers over the weekend.

James has a great passion for drama and participated in both the junior and senior teams in the Yohfest competition and wants to compete again next year.   The competition uses the arts to express the student’s views on issues with the theme for this year being equality.   The junior team’s play had a king that was mean to the villagers who organised an uprising and even managed to work into the storyline a love triangle with the king’s daughter.

An unexpected outcome of the Yohfest competition was the relationship Balga teams developed with the Dongara dance team.   Balga travelled to Dongara for a weekend where they presented their play to the local school and even a broken down bus wasn’t going to stop them enjoying the weekend away.

Our final speaker, Shayce, made the finals for the Royal Commonwealth Society Speech and Leadership contest and is the first ever aboriginal student to make the final.    Shayce performed his speech to the club which combined his traditional language and culture with a message of inclusiveness as once people feel connected they can reach their full potential.   Shayce feels very much respected at school and wants to compete again next year.