Refugee children in Wagga are being welcomed into the community through an AFL program encouraging team work and a healthy lifestyle.
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The four week, after-school program ran from October to mid-November, and those involved have said the changes they’ve noticed in the children are significant.
AFL NSW-ACT development officer Benjamin Walsh taught the program and said he hoped to help the children feel more comfortable as they adjust to life in Wagga.
“It’s really all about getting the kids involved in the community through sport, and hoping they will sign up to a club or feel confident enough after the program to branch out into other community activities,” he said.
“The kids love it, they’re always really competitive and eager to participate so it makes our job so much more enjoyable because they’re actually excited to listen and show a real passion for the sport.”
Mr Walsh said he teaches the children the basics of the sport, but in the end it’s about how they bond with each other.
“We teach them the basics very slowly to begin with because it’s more about having fun, but they do learn how to pass, kick and mark and things like that,” he said.
“At the end of the program we have a game too which they all love, so it’s just an all-round great program and I hope we can continue it.”
Twelve-year-old Rozaliya Hasan and Shireen Khalti both participated in the AFL program and said it was a great experience.
“The AFL program was awesome, I’d never played the game before and we learnt how to hand-ball and kick properly and all of those things,” Miss Hasan said.
“I’m actually going to choose AFL as my sport at high school because I love it so much.”
The two girls have both been in Australia for two years now and will be heading in to high school this year.
Miss Khalti said the friends she has made through the program will help adjust to the new school environment.
“I’d never played before either, and we’ve both made lots of friends that we now have to go into high school together with,” she said.
“I would definitely do it again if it’s offered, I had so much fun.”
Community Development Officer at the Multicultural Council Wagga, Thom Paton, said AFL was just one of the many programs on offer.
“AFL was just one of the sports of an on-going program with monthly multi-sport sessions like soccer and things like that,” he said.
“The next sport session will be in February – we have around 120 people attending them so it’s really great to get everyone involved.”
The programs are assisted by community grant funding from Wagga City Council, and Mr Paton said it is a huge help for a good cause.
“The team work we get the kids to participate in is like an equalizer to break down those barriers that might hold them back from becoming more involved with their community,” he said.
Mr Paton said the programs are not a new idea, and the variety of cultures represented are always growing.
“There’s been a few of these programs in the past years, but this time around we’ve seen four different cultural groups involved – Yazidi, Afghan, Burmese and children from various African backgrounds – we always try and welcome the newest groups to the region into our own community and help them adjust,” he said.
“In the end, it’s about encouraging people to get active with a healthy body for a healthy mind.”