End Trachoma: Hygiene Bags for Northern Territory Schools

Members of the E-Club of Brindabella have put together hygiene bags for two small schools in the Northern Territory.  
 
The first school is Newcastle Waters. This school is located 788 km north of Alice Springs and  714 km south of Darwin in the Barkley region. 
 
The Newcastle Waters school draws most of its few students from the Marlinja homeland community, which lies on the town's northern boundary.  
 
The photo shows the class displaying the bags sent from the Club - each also having a letter in it from one of the pupils from Moss Vale Public School. 
 
We have also supported the Bulla Camp School, about 350km southwest of Katherine. 

Newcastle Waters

This is a combined school, serving years 1-4 and 6-7. The school is comprised of 25 students; 12 boys and 11 girls (10 years and under) and two boys (11 years and over).  An unofficial student is the 6-month-old baby of the Assistant teacher!
 
So, all 26 bags were made and sent – they didn’t leave out the “unofficial” student who will receive an age-appropriate bag! (It included yellow duckies for her bathtub!)
 
To complete this project, the Rotary E-Club partnered with the Moss Vale Public School – Class 2C.  Moss Vale Public School principal Katherine Hurst and teacher Nicola (2C) were keen to promote the link between their school and Newcastle Waters.  The students of this class each wrote to an individual student at the school,  and that letter was placed in the student’s bag.  Nicola (teacher) also penned a letter to Newcastle Waters encouraging a possible video/zoom link up with the school for her students.
 
Pack & Send from Mittagong, a local firm, also came on board to assist the club in this project, transporting the boxes of hygiene bags and water bottles to the Northern Territory at cost.
 
Australia is the only western country to still have trachoma within its borders.  These hygiene bags will help educate these young children to prevent this eye disease that causes permanent blindness.
 
The Rotary E-Club encourages other Rotary Clubs within the District to take on this project.  Our club planned this project by having one member make the drawstring bags and then distribute them to other members who fulfilled the list.  The cost per bag is approximately $30.  A small cost for a long-lasting reward! 
 

Bulla Camp School 

Our club has sent another two boxes of hygeine bags filled with shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, hand towels and washers to the Northern Territory for the Bulla Camp School. Bulla Camp is a coeducation combined school serving Primary years P-6 and middle school years 7-9. The School is located in Baines, about 350 km southwest of Katherine.  
 
Shaws Darwin Transport generously transported the boxes to Katherine for free, from where they will be distributed to the School by the Katherine Education Office.