Published on Monday, 12 October 2020 at 10:00:00 AM
On Friday, 2 October 2020, 16 students from Curtin University departed from the Bentley Campus to make their way to Merredin. After the three-and-a-half-hour drive, the students eagerly arrived in town and were greeted with a catered lunch, before making themselves at home at their accommodation. Shortly after arriving, the volunteers visited Merredin Rec Centre where they assisted with preparations for the Games Day. They set up the activities and spread themselves out across each of the games, supervising the stations to ensure everything ran smoothly. They delivered a fun filled afternoon of activities to the 30 youth in attendance.
The students returned to their accommodation at 4:30pm to relax, set up beds, and await a pizza night feast. Saturday morning the students were up early to enjoy breakfast at local café Dimensions, before heading to the Railway Museum where they spent a few hours touring, weeding, and tending to the gardens. The students then participated in a Njaki Njaki Aboriginal Cultural Tour around Merredin Peak with local Mick Hayden. The volunteers had a very educational experience and expressed that they couldn’t wait to come back and do the other tours that Mick offers.
For dinner on Saturday, the volunteers were able to experience a farm visit with the Willis family. They were overwhelmed by how delicious the food was, the vast space, and the very sweet animals on the farm. The volunteers often say this is the best part of their trip to Merredin.
Sunday came around with a relaxing sleep in and an in-house catered breakfast before heading down to the Community Garden, where they carried out activities including planting, weeding, moving wood, and making garden beds. After all their hard work the students enjoyed a hearty home-made morning tea catered by the Community Garden.
The Curtin volunteers were very thankful and cherished the experiences and networks they made in Merredin during their John Curtin Weekend. They are eager to come back and continue helping the various community groups. The Shire of Merredin would like to thank all the community groups and businesses that assisted in the smooth running of this weekend and especially for giving these students a glimpse of our wonderful wheatbelt lifestyle.
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