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Apunipima trainee selected for touring rugby team by Juliana Foxlee 8 November 2015
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punipima Cape York Health Council’s eHealth Business Administration Trainee Kai Lowah (pictured) has been selected for the National Indigenous Australian Under 20s Invitational rugby union team which is currently on a two-week tour of the USA. The tour will see the team compete against five college teams across the country in 14 days. The Australians will take on three Los Angeles teams as well as teams from Arizona State and University of New Mexico. The team will also play against an invitational Native American squad with time set aside for cultural exchange. Tour Manager Darrell Morris said there was hope that US talent spotters would attend the games. “The tour’s goal is to also showcase our future talent to college recruiters with the hope of getting some of our players considered for scholarships to attend college in the USA,” Morris said. Kai, who plays for Cairns club JCU Mariners, said he was surprised and humbled to be chosen to represent his country. “It all happened around June this year. I didn’t even know I’d been selected! One of my team mates who was selected as well was starting to plan for the trip and came up and asked me if I was getting ready as well. It was a total shock, I asked him what he meant
and then the next day I got a phone call from our coach saying he had watched me play throughout the year and would like me to go on the trip. I said, ‘yeah, that’s awesome, what do I have to do?’ and then started getting everything ready, passports and visa and clothes, especially warm clothes as it will be winter when we’re there.” Kai, 18, has had an exciting 2015, playing for his club, representing Far North Queensland in the intrastate rugby union tournament, working towards his Cert III in Business and working full time at Apunipima to complete
his Business Administration Traineeship. “I work with Apunipima’s eHealth team,’ Kai explained. “I help with Medicare, billing and the electronic medical record system. I am glad to be working for an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health organisation as I want to give back to my community.” His year is about to get even better with the opportunity to play for Australia. “I am a bit nervous but excited too. My family are really excited. I told my mum and she went crazy!”
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