Teenagers working hard to raise funds for young children in a developing country isn’t unheard of — but when that same group visits the overseas community to help out with the project it becomes a much more significant personal journey.
Last September, 17 teenagers from Blue Mountains Grammar School, along with four teachers and a parent, travelled to a little known area on the island of Sulawesi in Indonesia.
In the 12 months leading up to the trip they worked as a group to raise $15,000 for the Child Survival Project in partnership with Compassion Australia.
The project supports mothers and their young children who live in poverty and provides a holistic program covering physical, social, emotional, financial and spiritual support provided by local staff.
“It was a real privilege to be able to see an effective program in action and to see such joy and hope in those that have so little,” said Katrina Knight, one of the organisers of the partnership.
“The teenagers that came had a fantastic time and were challenged to continue to work hard to raise funds so that this worthwhile project can keep supporting these families who live in poverty.
“We are continuing to raise funds this year through various events to help this vital project continue, so every little bit of support from the community is much appreciated.”
Two of the teenagers have written songs about their experience on the trip and a local musician, Craig Field, has kindly recorded the songs for them. CDs of these recordings will be on sale at a benefit concert to raise funds for the project.
The concert is on Sunday, July 21, at St Hilda’s, Katoomba at 3pm and will feature music and song from talented past and present students and music teachers from the school.
All proceeds from the concert will go towards the Child Survival Project. Tickets are $10 at the door.
