Year 12 Vanuatu Service Trip
Year 12 Vanuatu Service Trip
August 14, 2018 at 10:44 AM
With thanks to student reporter, Gemma Moore and Kate Lemon
The 2018 Year 12 Vanuatu service trip was a genuine trip of a life time. Every minute of every day presented us with new, beautiful moments that will be remembered and appreciated throughout the group for a very long time. 14 Year 12 students travelled to Vanuatu during the Term 2 holidays. All of us were nervous about what to expect, but eager to face some challenges, different daily routines and to be able to step outside of our comfort zones within a new environment.
The main purpose of the trip was to contribute to Manua Centre School, through teaching and interaction with the children there. We spent all day at Manua, undertaking a range of activities including teaching classes, playing sport, painting and a lot of singing and dancing.
We left our mark on the school by repainting the run-down basketball courts, painting the walls of a new-build house; built after several structures were destroyed by Hurricane Pam, designing and painting our own beautiful mural, as well as providing some resources to benefit the school.
We met so many new faces that we will never forget, nor replace, and will always be remembered in our hearts. To be able to assist the children (locally known as Pikininis) and create a small difference in their lives, even for a short time, was extremely rewarding and seeing the improvement within each one of them was heart-warming.
Not only were we able to share our knowledge with the students of Manua, but we were able to widen our own knowledge, by gaining insight into their everyday life and culture. Their warmth, huge smiles, determination and unconditional love in the classroom is something that we will always carry in our hearts and something that has inspired us to shine as bright as they did. Even though we were only there for a short while, we all grew close to many children and created a genuine connection with them. I hope that we were able to impact their lives as much as they impacted ours.
From Sunday to Friday we stayed at Emua Village, a small and simple village directly on the beach front. We stayed in the heart of the village and were fortunate enough to experience and be involved with the beauty of the village’s culture and life. The villagers didn’t have much, but what they did have was pure love for everyone. Nights at the village will always be a favourite memory of the trip. If we weren’t running around on the beach with the children, we would be sitting under the stars singing some of our group’s favourite songs. These simple moments made us all so content and appreciative of the simpler things in life.
We gave gifts of resources and supplies to the villagers, to help them with their everyday lives. Being able to physically hand someone supplies that will significantly help them, is a heart-warming feeling everyone should experience. Even though we are often told to be grateful for what we have, being able to experience it first-hand had a profound affect. Basic items we take for granted are often a huge help to others, and the gratitude shown by the villagers had a deep effect on us all.
The trip was most rewarding in being able to experience first-hand why you don’t need a lot to have long lasting happiness. Balloons, tennis balls, bubbles and our hair were a few of the many things that produced a smile from ear to ear across the children’s faces, which was then reflected onto our faces.
We would all like to personally thank Mr Corrigan, Mrs O’Toole, Mr Robinson and Saint Kentigern College for presenting us with this opportunity that we will forever remain appreciative of. We are so grateful to have had amazing teachers assisting with the trip. It was an experience filled with many laughs, smiles and emotional tears that have created beautiful memories lasting a lifetime.
