One major project that I have been part of at Goolwa Secondary College has been the ability to take teams of students on an Operation Flinders experience. I have been part of the Op Flinders organisation personally for over 8 years and I know of the huge benefits and transformational opportunity it can be for the young people involved. Operation Flinders is an adventure therapy program with a mission to transform young people’s lives through evidence-based remote outback intervention. This program allows youth to experience an immersive time in the Northern Flinders Ranges in a wilderness setting. It creates opportunities for young people facing challenges through adventure therapy programs that provide demanding experiences, personal development and pathways to wellbeing and life success.
I work in the wellbeing space at the Secondary College and each day I am meeting with students who I know would benefit positively from an Op Flinders experience. Students who are struggling with depression, anxiety, social challenges, lack of self-confidence, lack of self-esteem and mental health difficulties….I know that having an experience like Operation Flinders would be a circuit breaker type of opportunity that would be great for these students to experience and I felt God showing me that he had put me in this school for this reason, that my skill sets and passion were coming together to be able to make this experience possible. It has been such a blessing to be involved and the school has now had 2 successful teams of students complete Operation Flinders in 2023 and 2024.
The results of the Operation Flinders experiences were amazing! I have come away with much deeper and more meaningful relationships with the students who went. As we shared the journey and went through the highs and lows together, there is a deeper knowing and sense of trust between myself and the students at school. The students succeeded at a really hard physical and emotional experience in the Northern Flinders Ranges, and I have seen them do this, so am able to support them more at school to remind them of their strength and resilience and be able to apply these skill sets and knowledge to situations that may arise at school or in their home community. The students opened up emotionally to each other and to myself and the other staff while on the trip, there were lots of tears shed, and lots of joy and laughs experienced. The students personal confidence increased as they shared about their journeys, took on leadership roles, faced challenge and achieved in areas they didn’t think they could previously.
We have seen that this experience has brought about increased confidence and belief in self, for these young people. They have learnt about empathy, compassion, leadership, outdoor skills and emotional awareness. We have seen that these young people have come back to their homes in Goolwa as changed young people with more direction, more patience and understanding for themselves and others and a different attitude of success to frame future challenges they encounter. We have seen that this journey has had a positive difference to their families and wider community also as the girls seek to connect, learn and support their peers at school with their additional confidence and leadership.
