You know that it is getting close when its time to do this!

This Friday night is the Packing night.

We will start after school and hopefully be finished by 8pm for pick up. At the end of the evening students will be taking their filled bag home with them.

You will need to bring:

• your duffle bag (have your name written on the bag so we can return it to you at the end of the trip)
• all of the donations that you have collected (boots, runners, uniform kits)
• $5 for dinner

Carramar students will be collected at the end of the school day from the Makaria car park and transported to Duncraig.

Unfortunately, I will not be able to be there, however I am sure that you will get great enthusiasm in readiness for the trip from this activity.

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South Africa Entry Requirements

I have been speaking with the South Africa Embassy this week and they have clarified the changes to their “Entry Requirements”.  They have recently softened the requirements and documents that have been needed to previously be presented at the border for school groups.  They have advised that the attached letter will be of assistance in getting through Customs more efficiently.  The letter has the generic tour information filled in and will just require parents to sign the relevant sections.  There is no need for this to be certified, nor will you need to submit any further documents such as passports etc as we already have them.  If we could have them returned on Friday when students are being picked up that would be much appreciated.

SA Entry_Consent Letter

Have a great evening on Friday – I will look forward to hearing about it from Ms Everett and Mr Merrifield.

Mr Thomas

I hope that you are ready to get your DIY on!!  I have spoken to Bunnings today and they have organised a great day of learning for us.

If you could please meet at Joondalup Bunnings ready for a 9am start. I will be there from 8.30 if you need to be dropped off early. Along with the training Bunnings will be providing morning tea and lunch (make your own roll).

We will be learning how to use power tools, painting, brick laying and rendering.

Please wear your sports uniform and bring your safety boots if you have them. We will be finished approx 3pm for pick up. If you are someone who is always hungry it might be worth bringing some extra snacks as well.

See you you in the morning!

Mr Thomas

We are down to 30 days to go!

Updates on a couple of upcoming events:

Bunnings Training Day – next Thursday.  Information and permission form can be found here.

Packing Night – Friday March 22nd.  Start time 4pm at Duncraig Campus, hopefully finishing around 8pm.

Keep pushing the boot drive!

This afternoon we had Mat from the WA AIDS Council come and speak to the tour group about HIV and AIDS which many of the children at Sinethemba and JJ Haven have been exposed to.

Mat was very informative and dispelled many of the myths surrounding HIV and AIDS.

If you wish to find out more information about HIV/AIDS you can visit www.waaids.com

Welcome to 2019 – I hope that you had an enjoyable Christmas and New Year period.

We are well under the 100 day mark now and things will seem like they are all coming in a rush before we leave. With that in mind, it is time to start checking things off your list:

• Have you already started any immunisation program you may wish to acquire through your GP or travel nurse?
• Have you organised a large duffel bag (or 2)?
• If you are also an Australian citizen AND a South African citizen, do you have a valid passports for both countries (both passports are required for dual citizens)?
• Have you ensured that there is at least 6 months validity remaining on your passport(s) for AFTER we return from Africa?
• Have you prepared 2 certified copies of your passport(s) and your unabridged birth certificate?
• Have you reached the required individual fundraising amount of $750? If so, keep going! 🙂
• Have you placed a reminder on your personal calendar for the next student and parent meeting (Wednesday, 13th of February)? The student meeting is from 4-5pm in the GPLC and the parent meeting (with students) is from 5:30pm-7:30pm in the GPLC. Attendance for all tour students and at least 1 parent is mandatory, as this is our final meeting as a whole group before we depart.
• The “Boot Drive” begins this term, so keep an ear out for anyone that might be looking to discard their “pre-loved” boots or sneakers.  We can take all sizes so none will be too big or too small.

We also have an event that Emma Cooke is running on February the 9th (Flyer) and there is a Sausage sizzle at Joondalup Bunnings on Australia Day.  What could be more Australian than going to Bunnings and having a sausage in a bun!  It would be great if you are able to support these events by passing the word around.  Please let us know of any other events that you may be running so that we can promote them.

Mr Thomas

The Great Aussie Car Wash is here!

Tomorrow at the Duncraig campus and Tuesday at Carramar campus.

Feel free to practice on your family’s car this weekend to make sure your skills are up to speed! 🙂

Details:

Monday 3rd December – Duncraig

Carramar students to meet at the Gym @8.20am for transport to Duncraig.  Make sure you have your lunch/food for the day. We will return to Carramar by 3pm

Wear PE uniform, hat, sunscreen

Bring any car cleaning equipment that you can borrow from home – buckets, sponges, chamois etc

Tuesday 4th December – Carramar

Duncraig students to meet at student services @8.20am for transport to Carramar.  Make sure you have your lunch/food for the day. We will return to Duncraig by 3pm.  Those students who are involved in presentation evening rehearsals, we will arrange for pick up once you have finished.

Wear PE uniform, hat, sunscreen

Bring any car cleaning equipment that you can borrow from home – buckets, sponges, chamois etc

Here something to get you in the mood….

I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend.

I have attached the links to the videos that we looked at on Friday night including a clip from the movie where the poem “Invictus” was recited. The poem was one that Nelson Mandela held dear to him during his imprisonment at Robben Island.  Have some fun with your family and friends trying out one of the eleven national languages.

South African National Anthem

Shosholoza – unofficial 2nd anthem

Xhosa language lesson

Basic Afrikaans language lesson

Invictus poem

A reminder that you can bring in any shoes/boots that you have been collecting and we will place them in storage until next year.

Don’t forget the “Great Aussie Car Washes” on the 3rd (Duncraig) and 4th (Carramar) of December – feel free to start encouraging staff members to sign up. Details regarding transport arrangements will be placed on blog in the upcoming week.

Mr Thomas

Our next get together is a real favourite of mine – the Invictus and cultural immersion night!  This will be held on Friday the 16th of November at the Duncraig campus running from 4pm – 8pm.

The evening will begin with a look at the different languages of South Africa and in particular Afrikaans and Xhosa where we will learn a few common phrases to help us when we are there.

This will be followed by some pizza (and other options) before we settle in to watch the movie Invictus which is set during the time that  apartheid was being dismantled.  The fabulous Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon play the roles of Nelson Mandela and Francois Pienaar focusing on their critical interaction in the healing process of the South African nation.

The evening will conclude at 8pm.

Keep going with your fundraising activities.  We are hearing some great stories and cant wait to hear you share your experiences on this night.

Don’t forget that we will also be collecting running shoes and football boots as part of our donations.  Start spreading the word.  Last year we took over 200 pairs of shoes!

Mr Thomas

Good evening everyone

We are hearing some great stories of how people have been or are planning to meet their fundraising targets.  Please let us know of any projects that you are doing and we will promote them through the blog so that people who follow the blog can support you all.

Also a gentle reminder that the second instalment is due this week.  Please use the online link to transfer funds.  With this round of instalments we will now have sufficient funds to begin making payments on our land based activities.  If you have any concerns please contact one of the tour leaders.

Mr Thomas

A big congratulations to everyone that supported our “Drum for a Cause” evening on Wednesday night.  The weather was very kind to us and it was great to see everyone have a go at the drumming.  Based on our ticket sales we have raised just over $1500 from the night!  Please pass on our thanks to the many members of your family and friends who supported the event.

There are a few students who haven’t handed in their money yet.  Please arrange to hand in to your tour leader this week or transfer into the online fundraising account.

We have also heard some of the great ideas that people have been coming up with for their personal fundraising.  Where you can, try and include other tour members to help you share the load.

Next up – Car washes and sausage sizzles!