Funding for volunteering program

Brisbane Water Secondary College has received a Schools First Education Award worth $15,000 for its involvement in the NSW Premier's Volunteering program.

The funding from the National Australia Bank will allow the school to continue its volunteering work with Peninsula Village Aged Care next year.

This year the school formed a partnership with Peninsula Village which saw students visit the Village each week to provide computer tuition for the residents, play bowls, assist with mosaic projects, provide residents in the nursing home with hand massages and play board games.

Students also painted a mural on the Village's hydrotherapy pool and the indigenous students are presently creating a mural in the grounds of the Village.

Other programs students have been involved in this year as part of the NSW Premier's Volunteering program included the Graffiti Art Project, a State Government initiative introduced to rid the community of unsightly graffiti.

Students designed murals in workshops at school run by the Project artists and then reproduced these murals in graffiti hotspots in the community.

Member for Gosford Mr Chris Holstein introduced a Private Members Statement to State Parliament about this project and commended Brisbane Water Secondary College students for their efforts.

These students also gave up part of their school holidays to complete a mural at the school.

Other volunteering initiatives include students who give up their weekends and school holidays to keep the school farm running, RSPCA Cup-cake Day, Forty Hour Famine, Mary Mac's, Red Shield Appeal and Legacy.

Newsletter, 17 Dec 2012

Frank Gasper, Brisbane Water Secondary College