A group of Middle School students recently returned from a trip to Christmas and Cocos Islands as part of a community service project, with the primary aims of exposure to different cultural and social situations and involvement in community service.
The students were asked to sacrifice 5kg of their own luggage and use this weight to take fresh fruit and vegetables to the communities as they are expensive and difficult to come by for the communities on the Islands. The group took 50kg (25kg for each community visited) of fresh fruit and vegetables for the two communities and schools visited, providing them with ‘luxuries’ that we take for granted. One watermelon was auctioned at a fete on Christmas Island, with the offer standing at $200 when the boys left!
On Christmas Island, the students worked with local communities to pick up rubbish off the beach – 1.6 tonnes in total was collected, and for the first time in many years, the turtles came back to the beach to lay their eggs.
The local communities shared their homes, their lifestyles and their faiths with the students, providing them with a powerful insight into Islamic culture.
Headmaster Mr David Gee said “this trip has opened the boys’ eyes to a different culture and way of life and they no longer take their lunch-time piece of fruit for granted. The College is extremely proud of the initiative and maturity they have displayed”.
The school was left in ruins with the few buildings left standing too damaged to be used. The tragedy of the tsunami was amplified by many children losing one or both of their parents.
Wesley College, a member of Adopt a School Sri Lanka, has assisted in repairing the school’s damaged buildings through fundraising activities. The College’s annual fundraiser, the Curry and Sari night, has raised more than $16,000 so far, with all proceeds going to the school in the form of school equipment and gift boxes to the children.
Staff and students from Wesley College have visited Bathigama School twice since the tsunami, assisting in teaching English and helping with basic school maintenance.