Last week, Wanta had the privilege of supporting a group of twelve incredible Year 6 students from Kalkaringi School to attend a ‘Make your Mark’ program at the Michael Long Learning and Leadership Centre (MLLLC) in Darwin.
While these students, for the most part, didn’t have a clear or detailed idea as to what MLLLC and this program would be offering them, they were obviously excited to be heading on a big excursion, all the way to Darwin. In fact, several of them were at school, bags packed and ready to go, almost an hour before our allotted departure time.
The trip to Darwin was long and slow, with numerous stops along the way, ultimately taking us 12 hours door to door. This did not, just the same, dampen the enthusiasm of any of these remarkable kids, all managing to maintain their excitement and their curiosity for the whole journey.
Once at MLLLC we were greeted by the AFLNT team members who were going to be our support people, our mentors and our guiding lights for the duration of the program, but first up was the need to get to bed to have everyone bright and ready to go first thing in the morning.
MLLLC, at its core, aims to improve opportunities for young Indigenous Territorians through the power and influence of AFL football, with the following values held firm:
- Standing strong
- Feeling Good; and
- One Mob
In return, the Kalkaringi kids were able to offer their own school values, noting they were broadly aligned:
- Try your hardest
- Be Respectful
- Unity
- Aim for Excellence
Holding all values close, the kids quickly got involved in a range of classroom activities, these being scheduled for each day, all shining a light on leadership and on the kids becoming better versions of themselves. They also, through group discussion and fun games, emphasised the importance of teamwork, sharing and good communication. With fantastic teachers and mentors delivering these activities, it wasn’t long before all the kids were fully engaged, laughing, listening, playing and offering their own thoughts as required.
These ‘indoor activities’ were complemented beautifully by footy related activities whether that meant a range of games out on the immaculately manicured grass of Marrara Oval or time in the gym learning how to use exercise equipment. A trip to the Combat Therapy Centre was a real highlight, with activities such as a team-based tug of war through to individuals learning about discipline, fitness and strength (mind and body) with newly acquired self-defence moves. No matter what, where and when the activity, teamwork and leadership remained themes and concepts placed front and centre. To this end, each one of the kids understood and appreciated this, and managed to find more of their own voices as the week progressed. To hear them contribute to group discussions, without shame, was a special thing to witness and a moment of pride to be involved with.
Outside of these more formal MLLLC activities, the kids also attended swimming lessons each afternoon with Swim NT at Casuarina Pool and got to ‘go bananas’ on their last night in Darwin with a mad game of Laser Tag at Kingpin. This certainly tested their recently acquired leadership and teamwork skills, making it clear that learning such as this should never stop. There were also trips to Nightcliff Jetty and Casuarina Beach as well as to the MAGNT (Museum and Art Gallery of Northern Territory), adding to the overall excitement of a huge excursion for these little champions.
All in all, a brilliant few days was had in Darwin for a bunch of amazing young people. While it could simply have been seen as a holiday, this excursion had much more both in terms of expectation and of actual results seen. To that end Wanta was happy to be involved, helping Kalkaringi School and supporting a group of young students whose vision for themselves can now be enhanced and lifted…. “To infinity and beyond!”
Written by Neil Mackenzie, Director Kalkaringi Brighter Futures Program.
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