A group of about 20 young men from Isis District State High School are currently engaged in a fitness and healthy lifestyle program organised by Childers Police officers.
This week the students gathered as usual at the Community Sports Stadium where they hammered the pavement in relay runs over a 250-metre course interspersed with a supervised physical exercise routine.
Constable Rohin Power from Childers Police seized on an idea floated by Biggenden school chaplain Ben Roberts which involved a police-facilitated program called Blue Edge.
“It’s a before-school fitness and mentoring program that runs twice a week for eight weeks,” said Constable Power.
“The program is targeted at students to develop fitness, healthy lifestyle habits and leadership as well as developing community cohesion.
“Additionally, it cultivates positive interaction with police.
“We commence with an early morning fitness session and it has been really impressive the manner in which the group has engaged with what is a fairly rigorous program of exercise.
“We follow that up with a hot breakfast prepared by school and community volunteers and during the meal we generally have a guest speaker along to act in a mentoring or motivational role.”
The guest speakers at Tuesday’s gathering were from the Isis Central Sugar Mill with mill staff and apprentices finding an enthusiastic audience keen to know of opportunities at the mill.
Program creates sense of mateship
Officer-in-Charge of Childers Police Sergeant Geoff Fay said the program provided a sense of mateship among the participants with many of the exercise drills calling for support and encouragement for each other.
“Rohin is extremely engaged with the program and has really been the one instrumental in pulling it all together,” he said.
“Funding for the program is via the Blue Edge Foundation with the money supporting shirts for the participants and assisting with the cost of the breakfasts.”
Sergeant Fay said community support was very important and the group had been fortunate to gain the services of Brett Dittman who was a recently retired serviceman with extensive experience in the catering corps.
“Brett, who had around 26 years’ experience in the armed services, had catered for literally hundreds of service personnel so cooking for the 20 or so participants of this program is a piece of cake.
“We also have Pastor Alan Brown and his wife Kerenne and high school staffer Renee Adams busy in the kitchen preparing wraps, smoothies, French toast and fruit which really is an exceptional breakfast,” Sergeant Fay said.
One of the course participants Elio Zea said the group fitness and great breakfast were certainly inducements to attend each session.
“However, I think it’s the fact that if you attend every session there’s a free pair of New Balance sports shoes on offer for each 100% participant.”
The program will run through to a scheduled completion date of November 10.
- Other stories: Changes proposed to address backpacker shortage
