Amy Carroll who works for the Wanganui District Council spoke first. Her enthusiasm and high regard for the course were evident in all she said.
“My life will never be the same”,
“Gives you stuff that works in real life”,
“.......a realisation of how much more I could have achieved had I known about these things earlier”
The course programme began with several physical activities to build individual confidence and turn the 40 individuals into a team . Then came the classroom sessions the titles of which sounded intriguing:
“Recognition of Personalities”
“Treaty of Waitangi”
“Leadership and Management” (John Edwards)
“Youth Suicide and Depression”
“Risks and Change” (“If your dream doesn’t frighten you then its not big enough !”)
“Positive youth development –future directions of education”
Each day there was aerobics before breakfast and during the day a variety of team building exercises
Sam Gordon, who is studying physics and maths at Auckland University, spoke next. He described how he had received a “toolbox for life”: a set of skills for interacting with people, a sense “of who I am” , a launchpad for the rest of his life. He came away with a network of 40 new friends and a quote that is engraved in memory “Strive to be inspired”
Rotary International encourages districts (or clubs) to run courses for young people in “leadership camp format” to encourage potential leaders and provide them with training in fundamentals and ethics of leadership, communication skills, problem solving and conflict resolution, building self confidence, and the elements of community and global citizenship. District 9940 attempts to provide such a course every year for 18 to 25 year olds. The demands on the organising club are great and many clubs are reluctant to take it on.
The Rotary Club of Wanganui ran successful courses in 2002,2003 and 2004. Club member Neil Bates was the driving force in 2002 with Bob Smith taking responsibility for the other two.
Here are impressions of the 2004 course from two participants