The Year 9 College leaders attended the MacKillop Family Services Social Justice Day on Tuesday August 9 at St Joseph’s College. It was a day of collaboration with other Geelong Catholic schools and lots of learning. We listened to many inspirational speakers and participated in workshops that taught us about many different topics such as foster care, residential care, and orphanages in the past and present. We also learnt about therapy dogs and how they support struggling kids; MacKillop specialist schools, trauma within children, and ways to help out those in need. It was an extremely rewarding day for everyone involved, and we are so grateful to St Joseph’s College and MacKillop Family Services, along with the speakers and teachers for such a fantastic and enlightening day.
Student Reflection: Mary Cavenett, Year 9. From the Leadership Day with MacKillop Family Services, I was able to learn more about those who do not live with their family, and are put into foster care. I also learned what residential care was, as I had never heard about it before. I was able to get a glimpse of what those living in that kind of system go through and the psychological effects it can have on the children, their behaviour, learning, concentration, relationships, etc. With this new knowledge about this organisation and the issues in Geelong, I am able to make others aware of the organisation for all the work they are currently doing in our community and could be doing, if they had more support.
