Local foundation reaches region’s youth

Building on the success of their visit last year, the Reach Foundation has once again brought their transformative workshops to Mount Gambier, aiming to create meaningful and lasting impacts on local youth.

This year’s visit, at the end of last month, has been proudly funded by the Will Norman Foundation, a cause deeply rooted in community spirit and love. The foundation was established in memory of Will Norman, a 14-year-old boy tragically lost in 2021. In his honour, Will’s family and the community have united to raise invaluable funds, which are now being directed toward initiatives that nurture and uplift the young people of Mount Gambier.

Reach is an independent, for-purpose organisation that has been improving the wellbeing of young people across Australia for more than 30 years.

Through a promotion, prevention, and early intervention approach to building social and emotional skills, Reach supports young people to build known protective factors for good mental health. Reach workshops equip young people to navigate life’s challenges and in turn reduce the development and/or severity of mental ill health in the future.

The safe, inclusive, and interactive workshops Reach delivers in schools are 100% peer lead. Reach gives young people the chance to talk about what’s going on in their lives, equipping them with the essential social skills, emotional intelligence, and overall sense of well-being to effectively navigate relationships and life’s challenges.

Will’s mother Renae McQuade said these workshops were powerful and delivered in such a unique way, that’s able to resonate deeply with students – addressing real challenges in relatable ways.

“It’s our hope that each student takes away something meaningful—an insight or shift in perception—that stays with them and inspires positive change,” Renae said. “This is Will’s legacy and it’s heartwarming to see it making a tangible difference”.

A dedicated team of five facilitators from Reach spent the week delivering workshops at Mount Gambier High School and Grant High School. Each session was tailored to the age and unique challenges of the students, addressing issues relevant to their stage of life while fostering personal growth and resilience.

Reach Foundation’s Jack Heenan said the team at Reach are so grateful and proud to be able to work with the young people in Mount Gambier – returning this year for some more workshops has been such a highlight for the team.

“We know that being a young person in the world is not easy and in our workshops we are often hearing this from young people,” Jack said. “We hear that young people feel misunderstood or judged and we know that trying to find your place at school and online is not easy.

“Being able to listen and support young people to talk about what is really going on for them is such a huge deal for young people and we believe that having preventative honest conversations can really make a difference in young people’s lives today and help set them up for their future.”

In these workshops Reach challenges young people to answer questions they may not have answered before – asking students to reflect on their lives and their day-to-day experiences. In doing so, Reach is able to help students see that they are not alone in their experiences and that they have much more in common with their peers than they may have previously thought.

“Through the Reach Foundation’s programs and the Will Norman Foundation’s support, this initiative continues to leave a significant impact on the lives of Mount Gambier’s youth, empowering them to navigate their world with confidence, compassion, and strength,” Jack said.

Key Workshop Themes:

• Respect: Encouraging students to examine the normalization of disrespect in everyday interactions and the profound impact their words can have on others.

• Gender Stereotypes: Helping young people explore societal expectations placed on them due to gender and challenging the limitations these stereotypes impose.

• Vulnerability and Connection: Highlighting the importance of open and honest conversations, particularly for young men, and promoting the value of practising vulnerability in building stronger relationships.