Social Services

Several lines in a reflection titled “The Paradox of Our Time” say …we buy more but enjoy less; we have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time; we have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values; we’ve learned how to make a living, but not a life; we build more computers to hold more information but we communicate less and less; these are the times of big men and small character. The De La Salle Social Service commitment is to provide our students, staff and community the opportunity to help others in whatever way possible. During the year there have been a myriad of events and activities, both small and large, inviting participation from our community. We are a community rich with good intentions and generously donate financially to Mission Action Day, and non-financially to the Winter Warmers Appeal (clothing), Social Justice Mass (food), Blood Bank, Cancer Appeals, Homeless World Soccer and the Christmas Toy Appeal, to name a few. Our challenge is to move “outside the square” and “Walk in someone else’s shoes”. This is addressed by offering programs such as “Coolies” (India) to the Year 12 students, Papua New Guinea to the Year 11 students and the Philippines exchange to the Year 9 and 10 students. Each program enables our students to physically and spiritually experience the lifestyle and culture of that community and to see things from another perspective. Furthermore, we are trying to address some of the points raised in the reflection above – that is, to enjoy and appreciate what we have; to find the time to be involved; to value what life and other people have to offer; to communicate with other people; and to be “Men for Others”. In time, we will offer other opportunities to the De La Salle community to extend our service to those who may need it. Our intention is to put into practice our goodwill and ideas.

Mr Richard Komiazyk Social Services Coordinator The De La Salle Coolies trip takes a group of Year 12 students who have just finished their exams and, instead of their enjoying the “normal” schoolies activities at somewhere like Surfers Paradise, transports them to India, where they do volunteer work at projects run by the De La Salle Brothers A “Coolie” (variously spelled Cooly, Kuli, Quli, etc.) is a historical term for manual labourers from Asia. Most days at Kadalisai were spent lugging bricks, sand and screening to the roof and helping the bricklayers construct the walls. Building progressed slowly, but we all plodded along. Petite ladies in beautifully coloured saris cruised by us constantly, carrying 20kg of sand on their heads. They do it for 12 hours a day and $3 pay. After 10 days in Nagapattinum it was time to say goodbye to Uvari, Doss, Xavier and the 11 Junior Brothers and head to RTU at G. Kalliputti. RTU was set up by Englishman Br James Kimpton, in 1974. It started as a simple outreach centre for the poorest of the poor in Tamil Nadu and is now a kinder, primary and secondary school, medical clinic, food production plant, building material producer and administration centre for the region. It is surrounded by the town of G. Kalliputti, and small villages that RTU has helped build from scratch. There is no hot water and a bucket is used for a shower. After a tour of RTU we set off to work. The process was very simple. First we helped a family empty their palm hut of all possessions. Things were moved to a nearby space on the ground and stayed there until construction was completed, about 10 days later. Once empty, we took to the hut with a knife and brute strength. We slashed at straw bindings and ripped off palms. The hut came apart easily. Maybe too easily! The people whom the Coolies help are the poorest of the poor. They are truly destitute. There is no mattress, no desk, and no lounge suite or kitchen table. There is no food and no pantry. There are not even any clothes or toys for the children. When we move them there are containers of water, some pots, cooking utensils, work tools and a floor made of cow dung. Being able to see a family of four’s entire possessions, spread out in a space no bigger than a double bed, makes you re-evaluate your understanding of life. My thoughts provided no solutions to the dilemma of poverty and injustice, but if a little bit of difference can be made in some way, then that is a start. Maybe lots of people making a little bit of difference can be enough?

On the 26th September, 17 students and 3 teachers gathered at Tullamarine airport in preparation for the cultural exchange to Manila, Philippines. For the following two weeks, as guests of La Salle, Green Hills, we participated in some social justice outreach programs developed by the Brothers in the Philippines, explored various places of interest in and around Manila and found time to do some shopping for family and friends at home. The outreach programs included painting and labouring at a building site in the slums of Manila; interacting with former street children; and spending the day with a primary school that the Brothers have founded in the jungle north of Manila. The students found the experiences rewarding and enjoyed meeting the different people in each situation. They saw that happiness does not come from what you have but who you are. The participating students were James Fagan (Year 11), Michael Badrock, Liam Cummins, Daniel Guemene and Jack Jopling (Year 10), Justin Anagnostopoulos, Michael Bruce, Jordan Bull, Angus Cramp, Nick Guemene, Nathan Johnstone, Sebastian Mackay, Anthony Moumar, Alex Otten, Dan Slavin, Alex Sly and Nick Sullivan (Year 9). The accompanying teachers were Mrs Carmel Dwyer, Mr Andrew Wozencroft and Miss Liz O’Connell. The motto of the outreach programs is: “Teaching minds, touching hearts, transforming lives”. We all found that our trip to Manila taught us many things about ourselves and the world. The graciousness and hospitality of the Filipinos that was extended to us, from all in the communities we visited, touched our hearts. We know that our lives have been transformed by this experience. We will be forever grateful

to the Brothers and staff at La Salle, Green Hills for giving us this opportunity. I commend and thank all the teachers and students for their efforts and contributions to making this social justice experience such a success. I would also like to extend my gratitude to Mr Murray Enniss for his hard work over the many years this program has been operating and his support and advice this year. Miss Liz O’Connell

If you were planning a little tourist jaunt to an international tropical destination, Papua New Guinea probably wouldn’t be it. Nevertheless, at the beginning of the last week of Term 3, that is where sixteen Year 11 De la Salle students and ten accompanying adults, under the leadership of Richard Komiazyk, ventured. Our destination was one hundred and sixty kilometers west of Port Moresby to the coastal village of Bereina and the De La Salle school of Mainohana. The school, set on an 800 hectare property, was originally operated by De La Salle Brothers then handed back to local authorities for a number of years and is now under the auspices of the Lasallian order again. Mainohana Catholic Secondary School is co-educational with a population of about 600 Year 9–12 students, all eager to acquire a good education and improve their prospects in a country with a great deal of illiteracy and high unemployment. Teachers are also housed on the property and there are currently five Brothers in residence, Brother Robert the current Principal, Brother Bede overseeing the development of the property and three teaching Brothers from India, Brothers Jay, Xavier and Anthony. Our purpose in travelling to Mainohana was to assist with renovation and building projects. A large assembly hall, flown back from Yule island in a strategic exercise by the Australian Army needed four staircases rebuilt, two with landings added to allow students to enter directly onto the stage for assemblies and other school functions. The hall needed to be painted inside and out – no small feat if you consider the size of it and that it sat on a steel framework three metres off the ground. The other project was the building of an additional pre-fab teacher’s house, up the point of being framed and weather-boarded ready for roofing, wiring and plumbing. Our entire cohort worked tirelessly for the duration, many acquiring new skills and learning about the use of tools and building procedures. The weather was stinking hot and humid most of the time with no shortage of ants, mosquitoes and other flying insects. The wet season arrived early and we were treated to a tropical downpour or three. The boys also had the opportunity to participate in a fantastic home stay experience where they spent a weekend in a village with a local student and his family. All returned from their two nights in a local village with many lively stories to tell about food, culture and their experiences in this new environment. Some of the noteworthy aspects of the trip included the opportunity to live on a local community for a period of time and to glimpse an understanding of an entirely different culture and way of life. The De La Salle boys were remarkable in their willingness to persist with demanding tasks in a challenging climate and their openness to new cultural experiences. The students and staff at Mainohana were most welcoming of us and did their utmost to ensure our trip was a memorable one. Towards the end of our trip we had the opportunity to spend a few days in Port Moresby. One of the highlights of these few days was our attempted trip up to the end of the Kokoda trail at 5.30 am on the final morning of our

stay. We had been unable to make the journey the day before due to torrential rain. It was in fact highly debatable whether we would make it on this day eitherm, but we decided to give it a go. After a spectacular early morning drive on a narrow, windy road up into the highlands, we set off on the last unsealed 8km to Kokoda. Our adventure included the truck slipping and sliding over the red clay, getting bogged four or five times and after an hour of bumpy traveling and only having covered 6.5 km, turning around and heading, mud covered, straight back to the airport. It was a hoot! I am sure all would agree it was a real privilege to spend time in PNG, learning about and experiencing the wonderful people and their rich culture and, learning quite a bit about ourselves in the process. Mr Bryan Smith Four members of staff Troy Potter (Term 1), Larry Evans (Term 2), Henry Corcoran (Term 3) and Ann Corcoran (some of Term 3) spent time in Balgo during 2008. Two Year 9 boys, Jackson Adams and John Moneir also visited Balgo during Term 3. Balgo is a remote aboriginal community of about 400 people in the south east Kimberley region, on the edge of the Great Sandy Desert. The school there is run by the De La Salle Brothers. This year was the start of a pilot program of staff from DLS spending a term in Balgo. The objective is to inject new faces and new ideas into the school to provide a range of skills that is not readily available in such a remote region of Australia. The community has a school, a church, a store, a medical centre and a thriving arts centre. It is not called remote for nothing – it is 3.5 hours drive from the nearest town (Halls Creek) over dirt roads. The nearest community is 70kms away. We were immediately struck by the red, red earth, the dry air and the slow pace of life; after a time the remoteness hit home. Wednesdays were a good day to shop as the delivery truck usually came in on Wednesdays; those quick enough could buy fresh fruit and vegies — an orange cost me $1. The mail plane flies in every Wednesday; if the letter or parcel you are waiting for isn’t on the plane you wait another week. Football is played late afternoon and on a ground of dirt (red of course) and gravel. We are told the players quickly learn to roll when they fall. School is a very pleasant stone building. A number of local aboriginals are recruited and trained to work as teachers’ aides – partly to translate as English is the second or even third or fourth language for the students (and their parents). The students range from about 4 (pre Kinder) to about 17 years old (young men), they are inquisitive and friendly, but quite challenging to teach. Schooling does not have the cultural expectations that exist in the big cities, and while there are students with good skills, attendance and concentration on a task are ongoing issues. The experience of Balgo has been very valuable to those who have spent some time there. Mr Henry Corcoran