More camp actions for our youth!
What a great way to kick off 2022!
Albany SLSC were fortunate to have three very deserving youth members selected to attend the SLSWA TOAD CAMP for 2021 at the Ern Halliday Recreational Camp at Hillarys earlier this month.
Many thanks again to John and Jan Inglis for their ongoing support for youth development programs for our young members.
Here is what our participants had to say…
Kleo Proudfoot…
Last week I had the opportunity along with Ethan Wood and Liesle Freebury to attend the SLS T.O.A.D camp (T.O.A.D) standing for ; Team, Opportunity and Development. This camp was to improve and develop a range of skills, physically, and socially.
I met a lot of surfclub kids from all around our state and learnt a lot about the other clubs.
This camp wasn’t just to build our leadership skills, but our social aswell. I now know that within leadership you need to be able to communicate.
The camp began on Tuesday the 4th and ended on Friday the 7th. Out of the many camps I’ve ever been on, this was the most organised and eventful camp. Each morning was set off with exercises, followed by team activities and other events including, rock climbing, flying fox, big swing, and crate climbing. We also went down to Sorrento beach and used their IRB’s and jet skis.
We had a huge relay and multiple small bonding games, and other team activities, we also developed our radio skills on the first night before playing an ultimate game of spotlight against the camp leaders. Throughout the day everyone was well fed by Ern Halliday chefs, and everyone enjoyed playing cricket and volleyball in the afternoons.
My highlight of the camp was meeting people from other clubs around WA. I encourage the age groups below me to put there name down when it is there year to attend the camp. I’d also like to give a great thankyou to everyone who made it possible especially to our sponsors.
Ethan Wood…
On Tuesday 4th to Friday 7th of January, Liesel, Kleo and I were chosen by our club to partake in TOAD Camp. TOAD stands for Teamwork, Opportunities and Development. It is for u14-u15 Surf Club members. Whilst we were there, there were a lot of fun, social and physical activities that helped us with teamwork. For the days we were there we learnt new skills and made lots of friends from all around the coastal areas of WA. I look forward to catching up with these friends at future events.
On the first day we did icebreaker games that were mini games to get to know everyone and when it turned to night, we played a few good games of spotlight. Each day we woke up really early to do some morning fitness, then for the rest of the day we did teamwork activities until teatime. I had to wear a harness so my team could swing me off a long rope and we built a milk-crate stairway to get to giant Styrofoam balls on the ceiling at different heights – again we had to wear harnesses. (Don’t ask about harness burn!) Other activities included the flying fox, rock climbing and learning to belay (there’s the harness again!).
In the evenings we completed the radio course and on the last night we had a skit night – what happens on camp stays on camp 😉
On Friday we woke up at 6:30, packed everything up and did a bit of yoga and after brekkie we did the Amazing Race. This was in teams competing against each other in a scavenger hunt – joining in was more important than winning! Then we set off home.
My favourite thing we did was the giant swing, and something I found challenging was waking up every morning for fitness. I think my teamwork skills really benefitted from this camp. I would like to thank Albany Surf Life Saving Club and the sponsors for letting me go on this camp. I would also like to thank Dana and Mark for the lifts.
Leisel Freebury…
Toad camp is an amazing experience and I would definitely recommend it for all youth.
On the first day we started with a long drive to Ern Halliday recreation camp which is located on a large nature reserve near hillary’s boat harbour. Once everyone had arrived we split up into our groups for the camp and learnt each other’s names. For the rest of the day we played team games and got to know one another.
The next day consisted of morning fitness and a walk to Sorrento beach where we played games like ultimate frisbee and participated in different first aid scenarios.
The last two days where made up of activities such as rock climbing, a giant swing, crate climbing, zip lining and an amazing race.
A highlight of the camp was definitely meeting youth from other clubs. One challenge that none of us were used to was wearing a mask!
Overall this camp was really fun and I enjoyed it so much. I would like to thank all the sponsors for making it possible for us to go.
