Camp joins forces with police

By Melissa Donchi
FOR 15-year-old Cassie Sutton police camp was fun and not at all what she had expected.
The Upper Yarra Secondary School student is one of 15 who took part in the annual High Challenge program run by Victoria Police last Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
The three-day camp in Wesburn allows the students to interact with new police recruits in a range of team-building activities.
Josh Baring, 14, said his favourite activity so far had been running around in the bush trying to find targets the police had set for them. Later on in the day they performed songs they had written in their groups.
The message behind all of the activities at the camp is teamwork and the importance of cooperation and communication.
“We have leadership skills but we haven’t really known how to use them at school,” Cassie said. “We’ve come here to work together at developing those skills.”
The students weren’t the only ones testing their skills, with recruits Charlotte Somon, Lisa Godenzi and Lee Coulthard surprised at how challenging the camp was.
“There have been a couple of activities which we’ve really had to work hard at,” Ms Godenzi said.
“Running around the bush has been hard but we’re all really nervous about singing a song in front of everyone!”
Both the students and the recruits were pleasantly surprised to find each other friendly and approachable with both parties admitting they had hesitations before coming. “The camp has changed my perception of police,” Josh said.
“They’ve all been really nice.”
Senior Constable Paul Roberts from Lilydale Police said the program is about building a partnership between the police and the community.
“Through this program relevant police youth issues are addressed in a variety of activities which also fosters a healthy partnership between the participants,” he said.
“All participants leave the program with a greater appreciation of each other and the various roles and responsibilities in the community we all have.”