Wendy’s Group Week 9 Term 4

Our camp at Jervis Bay this past week was just wonderful. The weather was superb, the children were all fabulous campers and the parent helpers were amazing. Thank you so much to you all. Special thanks to Susan for coming as the second teacher and working so hard all week.

Some of the highlights:

• watching the children getting their tents set up and looking after themselves and their gear
• walking along the beach at dusk on the first night
• helping duty groups to produce great meals for the group
• swimming in the pristine water of Jervis Bay at Greenpatch
• children snorkeling and seeing some amazing fish
• exploring the rock platform at Bristol Point
• walking along the beach to the Hole in the Wall
• meeting Bernie Macleod again, Aboriginal Cultural Practitioner, who has a company called Djungga Kultural Tours. We met him at the Botanical Gardens and learned about Aboriginal culture, bush food and medicine and some Indigenous history of the Jervis Bay area. We then met members of his family and made damper around a campfire on Wednesday night
• the Thursday night ceremony with so many parents there, listening to each of the leavers presenting their symbols and saying their goodbyes
• hearing the depth and strength of the connections between the children in the things they said to each other
• saying goodbye in a circle after packing up our tent village, everyone tired but happy

Enjoy the photos. I hope they give a sense of the enormous impact on the children’s confidence, independence and sense of community of a camp like this. It is so very special.

Love,
Wendy