Pictured: Indie School teacher Ria, Tahlia, from Junction Support Services, students Libbity and Amelija and Carevan CEO Stacey
Indie School students have been busy sewing and creating for local adults and children in need.
Indie School provides alternative education for young people aged 15-19 and has campuses in Albury and Wodonga.
Students have made about 90 toiletry bags that will be filled with supplies, about 15 blankets for children and about 20 “raggytaggy” baby comforters for infants.
The toiletry bags will be donated to Carevan, which helps homeless and disadvantaged people, and the children’s blankets and baby comforters will be donated to Junction Support Services to be given to young parents, families who have experienced family violence and children in need.
Indie School Deputy Principal David Pickett said that about 15 of its Albury campus students in the Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL) program, which is a ‘hands-on’ option for students in Years 11 and 12, had created the items.
“In VCAL we have outcomes and projects like this are a great way to combine practical life skills, and helping the local community,” he said.
The students suggested helping Junction Support and Carevan as they were local charities helping people in the community that they knew and cared about, and whom they had seen have a visible presence around the area.
Coordinating teacher Ria Crisp said: “It’s been amazing to see the students teaching each other, learning new skills, developing patience, even chatting about their own favourite toys and blankets”.
“Their enthusiasm to help others and the way they have supported each other has been wonderful to see. They hear another say ‘I’ve run out of thread’ or ask ‘why is this not working?’ or ‘what’s the next thing I do?’ and I’ve been wonderfully surprised at students just jumping in to help each other out.”
Indie School hopes to expand the project next year with donated fabrics and the current students will be able to do a great job assisting the next group of Year 11 students as they join the class.
The Manager of the Families and Children’s Team at Junction Support Services, Tahlia McCulloch, thanked the Indie School students and teachers for gifts that would be given to children and infants of families in need.
“A handmade meaningful gift can be a wonderful reminder to someone in need that there are people in our community who care,” she said.
Carevan Foundation CEO Stacey Franklin was extremely proud of the students for considering others needs in the community and thinking of practical ways they were able to assist to remove some of the financial burden.
“It is just so pleasing to see youth in the community considerate of the hardships many people are facing and then being able to give back where possible. I personally know that these care packs will be extremely appreciated by those in need.”
