Over 150 students from the Charters Towers region travelled hundreds of dusty miles from their cattle properties to take part in the 2018 Fit 4 Rural Futures Sports Camp last week.
Celebrating its 10th anniversary last year, the camp with a reputation for excellence run by the Charters Towers ICPA branch took place at the Columba Catholic College Mt Carmel campus, offering another enriching program of performing arts and physical sports coaching.
Branch president, Lynda O’Brien, said that at its core, the annual ICPA sports camp was about providing sporting and extra-curricular opportunities that isolated kids and families would otherwise miss out on.
“However, rare chances to connect in this way also help to strengthen the bush community. As the event has grown, so too has its purpose,” she said.
“This year, we incorporated visual and performing arts, giving participants the opportunity to discover new ways of expressing themselves and perhaps even revealing a hidden talent.
“Adults and parents who attend camp had access to massage therapy, stress and mental health workshops and a range of other wellness and support services.”
The huge range of activities at the 2018 camp included swimming, hockey, tennis, yoga, a ninja obstacle course, hip hop and ukulele workshops.
The evening highlights included a camp concert and a fire twirling show, which enthralled young campers and their families.
As with the success of all previous ICPA sports camps, the opportunities in store for this year’s participating kids were not possible if not for the support of the local community sponsors and volunteers.
The Charters Towers branch is gearing up to host the 2019 state ICPA conference, on June 5-6.