“I’ve never been on a surf board before and it was lots of fun,” Geme told kangaroos.com.au.
North Melbourne’s innovative classroom ‘The Huddle’, in conjunction with Life Saving Victoria, Victoria Police and Citylink, brought Geme and 25 other children along with their fathers, to Port Melbourne Beach as part of a special water safety program.
Monday’s session was the last of three water safety programs held throughout the school holidays for migrant families from the Horn of Africa.
Life Saving Victoria representatives were on hand to explain the dangers found at the beach, from sharks and jelly fish to rips and currents. The group was educated about the importance of sun protection and swimming between the red and yellow flags.
Geme and his classmates also learnt how to surf and boogie board but on a more serious note, they were also taught how to rescue somebody caught in a rip.
“Some of the mums in last week’s program hadn’t been to the beach ever which is hard for us to understand as Aussies. It’s great for these kids to have the opportunity to learn what to do in the water and the importance of swimming between the flags,” Sergeant Del King from Victoria Police said.
The Huddle’s Community Program Manager Sash Herceg underlined the water safety program’s importance in light of statistics which show 15% of drowning deaths in Australia are from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse communities (CALD).
“We saw an opportunity to use our links with community and Life Saving Vic to help address this issue,” Herceg explained.
Yasseen and Abdul both had children in today’s program and they too had the chance to participate.
Yasseen said his kids “loved being at the beach”, and even though the weather wasn’t perfect, he says it was still a fantastic opportunity to learn all about water safety.
“Today is also about mingling between people of the community and police services. It is really important for us to build that positive relationship and connect with people from the North Melbourne and surrounding community,” New and Emerging Community Liaison Officer with Victoria Police Faten Mohammed commented.
The water safety program is just the beginning of many community programs to be held throughout the year as part of The Huddle’s various community partnerships and initiatives.
