30 YEAR 11 GIRLS GIVE BACK ON THE VIETNAM SERVICE LEARNING TOUR

In early April, 24 students and five staff embarked on a life changing service learning tour to Vietnam. We were greeted by many happy residents of the Ba Vi Centre for People with Disabilities, who were counting down the days for PLC Sydney to arrive.

By Isabel Hayek Social Educator Vietnam Service Learning Coordinator

This year with the assistance of Helping Hands staff, we were able to have five swimming sessions with residents and for many, it was the first time they had left the centre.

The squeals and excitement in the water was something students and staff will never forget.

Water is medicine and this was evident when watching residents with cerebral palsy move so calmly in the water and move their muscles and bones for the first time. Residents were also treated to a lunch fit for a king.

Ba Vi is the saddest yet happiest place on earth. Our motto is always, “It’s not what PLC Sydney does for the residents, it’s what the residents do for us”.

After our amazing time in Ba Vi we went to Hue for the cultural learning aspect of the tour. We went to the Imperial City and the 17th Parrallel, did a cooking class and rode bikes around the rice fields.

Having done a final evaluation of the tour with students, they all agreed that the best part of the tour was being at Ba Vi and establishing connections with the residents. The centre relies strongly on PLC Sydney to make these connections and pay for staffing as well as the maintenance of the buildings. Our largest fundraiser is a trivia night and all funds raised are provided to the centre.