We continue to build excellence in wisdom and service along with learning in the way we teach and the experiences our students get to undertake when on excursions. A recent example of this would be the Year 11 Community and Family Studies class who visited the Baptist Care Hopestreet facility.
I wanted to share with you some accounts from the students in this class and the impact it had upon them...
The excursion opened our eyes to the real experiences of homelessness and made us want to help out more. It gave us a sense of compassion for the homeless individuals and gratitude for what we take for granted. It was a valuable experience to serve the community and also improve our conception of others, as you don’t know their story or what they’re experiencing.
- Brianna, Caitlyn, Amelia
Through the experience of going to Hope Street, we experienced compassion for the homeless individuals through hearing their personal stories of adversity and hardship from a young age and older. It showed us how all these experiences made them resilient and allowed them to grow as people. We saw the perseverance of the individuals, and how, although they were not in the best place at the time, they obtained a positive attitude towards all challenges, making us as a class feel encouraged and accomplished when serving them. We loved hearing the stories of all the people there and seeing the differences between them all, inspiring us to want to return to Hope Street to work together again in making a change!!
- Davina, Lily-Joy & Kendra
The excursion helped me realise that people experience hardship in many different ways, and that a single mistake can sometimes lead to a lifetime of struggles. Listening to their stories made me understand that homelessness is never a choice people want to make, but often a circumstance they are forced into. Nick, a volunteer in Woolloomooloo, shared his own experiences with us, and something I took from his story was how powerful small acts of kindness can be. Something as simple as looking someone in the eyes and giving them a genuine smile can brighten their day.
- Callie
Arriving at the Baptist Care Hopestreet, we encountered many individuals who were homeless, and seeing them was sad in the sense that the way they dressed and had to carry their belongings around. It was very confronting to someone who doesn’t experience this or see it daily. We got to prepare some meals for them. When we started serving the meals to the homeless people, they were all so grateful for our kindness. One man who everyone knows as Cookie, was very appreciative and even began to cry as we all sang him happy birthday. In my own opinion, I think this excursion was very good and a great way to open the eyes of what it is like to go down a pathway making the wrong decisions. Interacting with homeless people made me realise how we are so spoilt and don’t realise we have everything whilst others have nothing. I would 100% recommend this excursion to others.
- Rocio
