I CAN, WE CAN Project

09/05/201619/05/2017

I CAN, WE CAN Project is a project that is organised through Athletes Village in Tawa. Athletes Village has an area for non perishable food items that are donated brom staff and/or member of their gym.

This month Ace Tiatia (who runs the gym) is giving the donations from the gym to Challenge 2000! This is a photo of myself and the Porirua College nurse (who is a member at the gym) collecting the boxes of donated goods!

A huge thank you to Athletes Village – you have made a difference!!

– Viv Campbell –

ANZACS – We will remember them

22/04/201619/05/2017

We will remember them!

For the past 20 years Challenge 2000 has encouraged our young people to reflect on ANZAC day, what it meant in 1915 and what it means today.

Our focus is on Service, Sacrifice, Peace and Justice and how these are significant values of our country – now and then.

Much time is spent on learning about WWI and WWII in particular and how these wars shaped the psyche and soul of Aotearoa New Zealand. Then a play is workshopped, practiced and delivered in centres and churches. What happens is incredible. The “actors” actually absorb the identity of those young men and women who served overseas. Flanders Field becomes real to the “soldier” and the mum and children who stayed at home know the pain and fear of waiting. The nurse writing the letter for Reg on board the hospital ship leaving Gallipoli is moved to tears as Reg says how his younger brother was killed on the beach.

The haka by a soldier of the Maori Battalion at El Alamein honours his dead comrade and beings the spirit of his ancestors alive again.

Words can’t describe it really – but our young people grew as they discovered the history, feelings and courage, fear, pain and reality of War and its wide ranging effects.

Now we need to not just remember but to act so that all can have the quality and type of life that others were prepared to serve and die for.

Will you serve? Will you sacrifice? The challenge is there. Worth thinking about – worth acting on!

And the conversations weren’t all serious…………………

Conversation in a vehicle:

Sam, 7, who acts as a boy in 1945: “When I take Under Mike by the hand – shall I say come and see my poster of Aaron Cruden?”

Luke, staff member: “Ummm maybe don’t say Aaron Cruden cos he wasn’t alive in 1945”

Sam: “Shall I say Christian Cullen?”

Luke: “No I don’t think Christian is that old either! Maybe you just say rugby stuff?”

Sam: “Yeah maybe the All Blacks weren’t invented them!!!”

ANZAC Day

19/04/201619/05/2017

“They ask me where I’ve been

And what I’ve done and seen.

But what can I reply

Who knows it wasn’t I,

But someone just like me,

Who went across the sea

And with my head and these hands

Killed men in foreign lands ……..

Though I must bear the blame

Because he bore my name.”

Poem by Wilfrid Gibson

Girls Adventure Group – Tramping Scheme

15/04/201619/05/2017

Challenge 2000 has recently formed an outdoor adventure group for young women. Our objective is to help young women to experience new things and to step out of their comfort zones.

The groups first expedition was a two day tramp along the Oronogorongo Track into the Rimutaka Forest Park. For some of the young women, even sleeping in a tent was a new experience. Simply in saying ‘Yes’ to this adventure took a lot of courage. The young women were tasked with preparing and cooking their own food on camp cookers, finding an appropriate place to rest, and navigating the journey.

On reflection, one participant said:
“I just want to say I learned a lot on those two days; like anything is possible if you put your mind to it. I think the most challenging part for me was the walk, it was a struggle but I got there in the end. The thing I enjoyed most was bonding with the leaders and with my old friends. This would have never happened if it wasn’t for Challenge 2000”

It was incredible to see the amount of physical, mental and emotional growth that can occur in the space of a weekend. In seeing the young people be challenged and inspired by all that nature has to offer, it was very motivating for Challenge 2000 staff to endeavour to provide more opportunities like this for our young people.

School Holiday Programmes!!!!!

08/04/201619/05/2017

Pushing Boundaries at Adrenaline Forest

“If you keep doing what you’ve done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got” – Anthony Robbins

Young men from Colleges in the Porirua region participated in the various courses at Adrenaline Forest in Wellington as a reward for their progress in school. The course also aimed to encourage the young men to step out of their comfort zones and face the challenge as a team.

By the end of the day, the young men were exhausted from the physically demanding courses but were grinning from ear to ear about what they had achieved. For some, it was a fear of heights while for others, it was the struggle of working as a team. All in all, it was a great learning experience with a bit of fun added!!!

Rugby 101: Passing, Tackling and the Breakdown

“I don’t believe in magic. I believe in hard work” – Richie McCaw

Peeling it back to the very basics of passing, tackling and the breakdown, students attending the rugby clinic learnt the art of mastery. The small technicalities involved in making a good pass to the timing and positioning of a tackle were examined in the sessions.

The students enjoyed the sessions and have the ability to teach their respective teams or work on the drills themselves. As one student summed it up: “you don’t have to get paid like a professional to train like a professional”!

H2O Extreme and We are ANZAC’s

As the children arrived, they were all filled with excitement for the days ahead. The first day was spent at H20 Extreme in Upper Hutt. We enjoyed riding the lazy river, cruising down the slides, practicing our swimming and having lots of fun. As the day went on we saw the children grow in confidence ready to take on new challenges.

On the second day, the children came back with big smiles on their faces ready to experience an Anzac filled day. We started by reading stories, learning about our soldiers, teddies, dogs and nurses that had been to war. The children had a chance to try on different army gear. This was definitely a highlight for many of our boys. We then headed to the city for a tour to look at the sights, the kids were full of questions and even managed a game of nonstop tag before we headed back to the Challenge House.

Thank you to all the children, parents and people who provided baking and volunteers who helped out on these days. Your support is so appreciated and make these days possible.

Caritas Challenge 2016 – Supporting our brothers and sisters in our common home.

16/03/201619/05/2017

Caritas (Catholic Agency for Justice, Peace and Development) promotes the Caritas Challenge. The purpose of the Caritas Challenge is to fundraise, educate and raise awareness for people and places that they work with. This year the focus is Cambodia and Challenge 2000 kick started the Wellington area campaign over the weekend of 1st-2nd April 2016 in Johnsonville. Schools were invited, and they responded with enthusiasm and passion.

We organised to sleep in boxes overnight, workshops, activities and games, presentations, set up a room to look like a Cambodian home, reflections and prayer. We had guest speakers – Nick from Caritas, Kitty McKinley and Geoff Rahari – as well as visits from Cardinal John, Peter Dunne, Deputy Mayor Justin Lester, local Dominican Sisters, parents, a youth worker from BGI, Emily from Young Church Ministries, teachers and supporters. Thank you to everyone who came together to support the cause – the overnight security team, the cooking team and the background missions team.

Thank you to the Colleges who took part – St Bernard’s College, St Patrick’s College Wellington, St Catherine’s College, St Mary’s College, St Patrick’s College, Silverstream – your students’ input was valuable and we enjoyed being with them.

[gview file=”http://www.challenge2000.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Caritas-Challenge-2016-Independent-Herald.pdf”]

Children’s Day – Te Ra O Te Tamariki – Celebrating our Children

01/03/201619/05/2017

On Sunday 28th February, Challenge 2000 celebrated an early Children’s Day. Children of all ages were entertained with a bouncy castle, face painting, bead/jewellery making, a tug-of-war, sack races, paper plane making and shared food, drink and fruit. Smiles were ear to ear and laughter was heard all around. One of the best things of the whole day was the presence of twenty five volunteer youth leaders who organised all the activities and made sure that the young ones had a great time. A great day for children and their families!!

“The soul is healed by being with children.” Dostoyevsky

“Children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see” – J F Kennedy

Kia mau i a ratou te ihi

They hold the delight of life

Kia mau i a ratou te wehi

They hold the awe of life

Kia mau i a ratou te wana

They hold the love of life

The greatest thing we can do is love them and spend time with them.

Mana Athletics Day

01/03/201619/05/2017

Mana College held it’s annual athletics day at the Titahi Bay Athletics Club in Kura Park. Four members of our “Youth Workers in Secondary Schools” (YWiSS) team helped with the running of the day by supporting staff with events such as high jump, long jump, time keeping or being a year group marshal.

All in all, it was a great day with some healthy competition and in-house rivalry, which featured a staff relay that included some of our team. Fair to say there were some seriously competitive teachers on the track!!!

Leadership Training – 2016 – St Oran’s, Lower Hutt

24/02/201619/05/2017

Three Challenge 2000 Youth Workers provided a leadership programme for Year 13 students. Together the young leaders explored the principles, challenges and rewards of leadership and set goals for themselves and the College for 2016. Everyone enjoyed the day – St Oran’s is all go for 2016.

Feedback from the students included:

“I enjoyed the communication games and the meditation because it resonated with me the most and reminded me of key leadership skills! I realised the true importance of my role as a leader in both the school community and the wider community.”

“Being able to learn what it means to be a leader and how to go about being a leader”

“I enjoyed the casual atmosphere that was created, it made it easier to listen and to take the information in.”

Welcome to the Syrian Refugees

23/02/201619/05/2017

Welcome to Wellington,

Nau mai, haere mai

To our new brothers and sisters from Syria. We look forward to receiving the many gifts, strengths and life experiences you bring to us – together we will all be so much better off – an alive, inclusive, diverse, generous, welcoming city. Absolutely positively Wellington.

Over the past weeks, many Challenge 2000 staff, volunteers and young leaders have been collecting items to prepare for the arrival of new whanau in our city. Thanks to those who gave money, lifted and shifted, colour matched, purchased and enjoyed preparing homes.

Challenge 2000

Helping young people since 1988

Category: Challenge 2000