2007 Community Programs - Tour 3
Sunday, 27 May - Friday, 1 June

Mutitjulu/NG College

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Tour report:

The Red Dust team for Mutitjulu didn't exactly rough it this tour, being so close to Ayer's Rock Resort, and the drives certainly didn't compare to the four and five-hour ones that are common to most of the community visits.  But the team worked very hard and delivered a successful program at both the Mutitjulu School and Nyangatjatjara College.  

The Ng college students created a sensational song with Adam and Glenn (check out the clip on our Red Dust Jukebox!), with the team pitching in to help get them in the groove before heading over to the community. It wasn’t long after the introductions before the kids jumped into the activities, amazing us all with their enthusiasm and skills.  Football, softball, cricket and soccer games and clinics saw the Mutitjulu students honing those skills, as well as learning new ones relating to not only physical activity but also to communication, structure and numeracy.  

In the classroom, the team organised an interactive healthy eating program that involved open discussion about what foods are good for you and what foods are 'sometimes' foods, utilising items purchased from the local shops (community and Yulara).  Afterwards, the kids from Mutitjulu and Ng College worked in groups, creating their own healthy sandwiches with ingredients prepped by the Red Dust team.  There were some very interesting – but very healthy – masterpieces created…and devoured wholeheartedly!  Further classroom activities involved discussion with the college kids about smoking, alcohol abuse and drug use.

As is always the case with our visits, the kids weren't the only ones learning new things. The Red Dust team joined the Mutitjulu Primary students on their Junior Rangers bush tucker excursion, where we hunted for witchetty grubs and learned about all the different types of tucker available out in the bush.  Later in the week, the team was guided around Uluru by the Ng College students, who told us stories about significant places around the Rock.  We visited waterholes, saw some bush tucker and had a fantastic afternoon with them.  

It was great for the more seasoned team members to see many familiar faces and for others to meet the Mutitjulu community – we can't wait to return in October!
Participants:

Glenn Bidmead – Music   
Anthony Brooks – Macquarie Bank Sports (cricket)
Jack Davison - Macquarie Bank Sports (rugby)
Maddie Fitzgerald – Softball Australia (softball)
Elaine Leong – Vodafone Australia Foundation
Nik Mirich – Team Leader (basketball)
Adam Thompson – Music
Melissa Thompson – Team Leader (Red Dust Role Models)
Mark Thomson – Team Leader (basketball)
Carmen Vincent – Team Support

This was my fifth time to Mutitjulu, and it was great to be back. It had been a couple of years since my last visit there. I made a connection with some the boys at the College back then and hoped to see a couple on my return. What I did not take into consideration was that they had become young men through the years and moved on. It was good to catch up with Zac and Dilon who now work as park rangers and live at Mutitjulu. Zac had also gone to high school up in Darwin between my visit, which is encouraging. Anthony Brookes, Nugget/Jack from Macquarie Bank along with Mark Thomson and myself trained with the footy team from Mutitjulu who were preparing to play in the regular yearly competition. It was good to keep touch with some of the other older guys from the community. They tried to teach me a couple of things, but I think I will stick to Basketball!

The college had a new core group of boys and girls strictly from Mutitjulu. I can remember a couple of them from my past visits to the primary school. Once again they had all grown up like the college boys. These kids are committed to learning and were engaged in everything we did from sport to music. What great potential! There is some great leadership in this group. They were asked to assist in organising the primary school kids and their involvement was great. We were lucky enough to be shown around Ayres Rock/Uluru by the kids from the college and have that Cross-cultural experience. Way better than any tour guide! Hopefully the next tour will include the Imampa and Docker River secondary students.
As for the little ones over at the primary school, it was good to see them getting involved in the program. They helped make sandwiches, played games and listened to our healthy lifestyle talks. Some of our team members received the cross-cultural experience of looking for bush tucker with the primary school kids, elders and bushrangers.

Over all energy levels of the kids was a vast improvement to what I have seen in the past. A note of thanks to the teachers and support staff who commit year round to these children. I think that this program not only benefits the children, but also the staff who deserve assistance with the great work they are doing to keep the children engaged and active. This makes a world of difference upon our return.

The more trips I go on the closer I come to understanding the principles and values within indigenous communities. These experiences have changed me and given me a chance to make positive changes in my own life. It is as important for us to learn from them as it is for them to learn from us through these cross-cultural experiences. I believe this to be very important in building relationships and being able to connect with the community as a whole in such a short period of time. I think that this is one reason why Red Dust stands apart from all others.