School new letter - we made the papers

WE Gen @ In-SYNC 2010 Web: www.spiritus.org.au

In-SYNC Youth Service was privileged to be asked to be apart of the ‘We Gen’ project with Cannon Hill Anglican College. Our part in the project was to have the students(who had given up their break during the school holidays to participate) at our service or two days.

Below is the two day program with the ‘We Gen’ young people:
Day 1- Morning
1. Meet Staff/ Informed about service and what we do.
2. Meet staff from foster care service
3. Learn how to use spray on tattoo machine

Afternoon Videos

1. What’s the story- the truth about Youth (by the Youth Advocacy

Centre

2. Another Way- a look at 3 prisoners over 3 years who do the

Alternative to Violence workshops.

Debrief the videos. Assign homework from discuss- look up websites headspace and beyond blue- to provide information to the group tomorrow

Day 2
Morning Discuss issues facing young people today- and what options are available for them within and outside the school. Confidentiality/ privacy what does this mean for the young person and the services that they seek assistance from.
Afternoon Look at what the young people found out about websites Future focus- what are the ways that they would like to work together in future? How/ who/ when can we develop these ideas to becoming realties (see below)?
Youth Day Out – on Saturday 10th April- come and attend and assist In-SYNC staff with spray on tattoo’s during the event.

T\he ‘We Gen’ two day program is just the beginning of the relationship between the school and In-SYNC. Research shows that young people who become involved in civic and/ or political issues are more likely to be involved in these issues later in their life (Hart, Donnelly, Youniss, and Atkins, 2007 pg199).
In the two days that the students were at the service, the students came up with the following ideas for future activities. First we explored whatmotivated them to be involved:
Chill - share experiences - gain trust - raising funds - giving of self – fun –
Activities - helping out - talk and meet young people: pen pals, become friends

We then looked at ways of how this can occur: The students came up with the following ideas:
• Art project to sell at upcoming Art auction/ wetlands festival through schools
arts committee/
• Baby sitting for young mums through the schools girls’ advisory committee
• round robin lunches open to all community members held at church halls (Bulimba Anglican and Uniting Churches).

The students and In-SYNC are currently working together to get an art workshop run prior to their Art Auction on the 23rd May.

They also named some other ways that could be developed in the future:
• Voluntary work within Spiritus services which included administration and cleaning
• Development of pen pals between students and service users/
• Planning joint activities which could contain a fund raising component by the
school for services.

Spiritus services are generally inundated with demands upon their limited resources to provide support to vulnerable people within the community. And people who access our services usually have limited support networks (formal and informal) on which they can rely on to address issues such as poverty, homelessness, educational, health and mental health.

The on going relationship is seeking to develop the relationship between us and school students who are looking for ways to engage and support those vulnerable within their community.

Karen O’Donohue, Manager Spiritus In-SYNC A 2010

Web: www.spiritus.org.au