2022
MID YEAR TRIP
Sunday 3rd July - Saturday 9th July
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With Big Lift exploding in 2022, we had one of the biggest turnouts in a while with 34 participants on our Mid Year Trip led by our wonderful team of executives including Abigale Pineda, Andrew Ballantyne, Annabelle Nott, Caitlin MacPhail, Hayley Bandera, Joris Mijnssen, Long Ly, Taleesha Crone, Tamzin Ward Kucurs and Taylor Willmington (Also our community consultant for Wandoan Ilva Werkman who did not attend). The cold winter air may have been extremely freezing but that did not stop this team from pulling together a successful trip. This time round, Big Lift visited Eidsvold, Taroom and Wandoan. We are glad that after so many delays and cancellations, we were able to visit these towns, some of which have personally contacted us to come. Our trip led us to build many new relationships with these communities as we engaged in needs-based volunteering. We also got the opportunity to learn much more about rural life and Indigenous history through community talks, student-development sessions and discussions.
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(L-R): Abigale Pineda, Andrew Ballantyne, Annabelle Nott, Caitlin MacPhail, Hayley Bandera, Joris Mijnssen, Long Ly, Taleesha Crone, Taylor Willmington, Chilli Kot, Chris Ayling, Estelle Sanchez, Gemma Jeremy, Gloria Leung, Jacob Ramis, Chi Kin Ng, Jess Ell, Joade Lennox, Joseph Etican, Katie Atkinson, Keeley Murphy, Libby Kirby, Luci MacDonald, Mya Tillack, Naomi Nott, Nathan Kimber, Nikki Edsen, Rachel Merry, Raymond Werkman, Sarah Norton, Shenaya Salgado, Terris Fok, Thomas Nguyen
Brisbane to Eidsvold - Day 1
Intro courtesy of Abi ~ Media and Communications Officer
The clouds loom ominously over Parliament House, rolling over slowly, quietly. The sun peeks through, making its routine announcement with confidence - today is a new day. Early morning ambience consists of chirping birds, rustling leaves, and the mechanical hums of buses, cars, and trains. Some which head towards the one and only Parliament House. Slowly as the rolling clouds and surely as the morning sun, one by one, the shuffling march of boots, crocs, sneakers, and sandals trudge towards their designated meeting place. These would be the early-morning strides of QUT Big Lift, taking their very first steps towards a week-long volunteering trip across rural Queensland. With 34 volunteers, 1 bus to board, and 7 days ahead – the adventure begins now. Where phone reception is lost, new friends are found.
After a long bus ride with a few rest stops including one in Murgon, the team arrive in Eidsvold. The night sky slowly encroaches as the logistics manager, Joris Mijnssen, and Treasurer, Andrew Ballantyne, put on a fight for light as the power of the Kitchen Hall is absent. The pair unfortunately become exhausted within seconds, forcing the cooking team to blindly cook or so, dance in the dark to the speaker on blast. The day passes by like a flashing light and president, Annabelle Nott, readies some fun tunes for the next morning. One by one, the participants snuggle into their beds.
"My experience on the '22 MYT was very eye opening. The most valuable part of my experience were the conversations I had with people. I gained a better understanding of the experiences of people from rural communities when we talked to Will, an Indigenous man from Murgon and Guy, the police officer from Taroom. They were very open in sharing their wide ranging struggles and experiences. I also found great value in the conversations I had with others who were on the trip. This trip helped me really understand how diverse and interesting people can be as well as really helping me grow my social skills."
~ Sarah Norton, MYT Participant
Eidsvold - Day 2
The sun is still asleep like many Big Lifters whos' snores drown in the music of the heavy rain dancing on the shed's metal rooftop. A sudden light-show emerges as the button on the speaker is pressed on. The sweet little dreams of the Big Lifters are dismantled by the melody of the morning party music. The cold air freezing each breath signals the awakening of the sleepy participants. With cereal and toast quickly devoured, the team strap on their boots and beanies, ready for the big day of volunteering ahead. Separate groups depart the showgrounds one after another and diverge around the small town to work on volunteer projects at Eidsvold State School, Eidsvold Caravan Park, the Blue Care Respite Centre in private homes, the local boxing gym and the ambulance station (See some of the work below). Following the projects, the Big Lifters explore town, visiting the local stores and parks. Eidsvold's Community Consultant, Taleesha even got the chance to feed a horsey hand, or so an artwork of a realistic horse. After a few hours, the group converge at the town hall for a community talk by the Eidsvold Queensland Country Women's Association (QCWA). They then head home after some insightful dicussions for some fun activities led by the service learning coordinator, Taylor Willmington who announces the first silly hat winner of the season before everyone tires out early.
We had our first community talk for our mid-year trip given to us by the lovely locals of the Eidsvold Queensland Country Women's Association (QCWA). There we started discussions about rural life and the support networks of society in the small populated town. We also learnt a bit about the town history and how it has changed over time with many businesses closing down.
Caravan Park
A few of us went to assist with maintenance duties at the caravan park. There was gardening to do but due to the rain, we mainly stayed indoors however we achieved much cleaning and tidying in the cabins.
Ambulance Station
At the ambulance station, we did some general cleaning around the facility and washed the cars. Afterwards, we had some nice chats with the paramedic on duty.
Local Gym
A group of us helped out at the local gym; cleaning all the equipment. We were also invited to use the equipment so we had some light fun and competitions.
Eidsvold State School
The team at Eidsvold State School helped clean all the windows and chairs whilst the students were on holiday. It was wonderful to see the school's devotion to teaching indigenous languages and culture. We had chats with the staff as we cleaned and some were even lucky enough to get a cameo of some didgeridoo music. The principle there even gave a handful of us a tour around the town.
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"This trip was full in emotions and in new encounters that definitely opened my perspective on what living regionally means in Queensland. I wouldn't say I have a favourite moment in particular but more so that going on a Big Lift trip felt like living life to the fullest and I can't wait for more adventures with the team. However, though I like camping, it does get very cold sleeping in sheds for a week I'm not going to lie! One of the projects that I worked on that was impactful for me was visiting the museum in Taroom and helping around with cutting off some trees, weeding and cleaning the indoors areas of the museum. It was so great to discover such a small place had a lot of history and I discovered several stories from the Iman People there. However, talking with the community also made it clear how hard it is for small towns to get funding when it comes to taking care of their heritage and how little help I could provide in comparison."
~ Estelle Sanchez, MYT Participant
Eidsvold to Taroom - Day 3
It is day 3. The participants are now adjusted to the cold chilly nights, loud rainy roof noises and mouse squeaks; nothing can disturb their sleep other than president Annabelle's booming speaker. The group slowly arise from their sweet dreams and gather to forge the world's longest b-line for bread. Toast would be the only medicine for their tiredness. Taroom's community consultant, Hayley, was awake early and had already made home on one of the empty tables. Loneliness clouded around her but was quickly banished by secretary Caitlin and her band of merry Big Lifters. Soon after the morning routine was completed, the group proceeded to fill the bus, heading towards the next town - Taroom. After a short Hamilton concert, the team arrived at the next destination. A scavenger hunt manifested as the sleeping quarters were not apparent Luckily the mystery was solved before sundown, just in time for some minigames; the rivalry was intense with the fight for participants to evolve from eggs, chickens and dinosaurs into humans. The group was soon split into the oldies vs babies for a spirited competition. The group after reunited as one for some sunset watching.
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Taroom - Day 4
Another day of volunteering came and the Big Lift crew were energised. Many members rotated around throughout the course of the day to help complete a variety of projects. Groups started off at the community gym, information centre and museum. This then branched of into multiple smaller projects around town and by the end of the day, Big Lifters were sprinkled throughout Taroom (See the work below). After a long day of work, the team had a barbecue and roasted marshmallows by the campfire. In addition to the marshmallows, service learning facilitator Chris, roasted his raw sausage which he carried around in his pocket since dinner preparations. Ultimately, this continued his reign of Silly Hat winnings.
Taroom Gym
We had our strong people team head on over to the Taroom gym to help move in some new equipment. This project relied heavily on team work as we depended on each other and honed our communication and listening skills to navigate around obstacles and problem solve. We also LIFTED BIG things!
Information Centre
Many of us went to the Information centre where we were split all across town to assist the community. The ones of us who stay at the information centre itself also worked on some projects there such as some interior designing, organising, cleaning, gardening and IT maintenance :) The locals were so lovely and surprised us with some delicious homemade food for lunch. That day we had many delightful chats with the community members and even other volunteers.
Police Station
A few of our Big Lifters visited the police station to help with some gardening. We also toured the precinct and made some animal friends. The police on duty was very kind and even took some of us to gather some firewood for a campfire which we later enjoyed at night.
Community Weeding
A small team of us did some weeding at the local pool across the information centre. We successfully got rid of some gnarly weeds and even found some mandrakes (for all our Potter fans reading ~ hello). Luckily there was no screaming but there were some tunes and sing-a-longs.
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Vinnies
At the local St Vincent De Paul Store we achieved some weeding and painting of the deck area.
Riverwalk
Some of our information centre team members went to the Taroom River Walk where we helped put up some signs. We rotated in turns supporting each other and hammering.
Taroom Museum
A good amount of us went over to the Museum and helped with cleaning and organising as well as restoration of old materials and decor. We also got to see the Star of Taroom which is a very special Aboriginal groove stone which was returned in 2021. The journey of its return is very interesting as it people walked it back from 500km all the way from Brisbane back to Country in a major event.
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"Throughout the Mid-Year Trip I worked on a number of projects that were all special in their own way. By far my favourite was in Taroom where we had to weed and then paint a deck. It was a lot of hard work to get it all done and there was some confusion between all of us there about how to go about painting the deck but in the end we worked it out. The community member organising us was so grateful for the work we had put it. It was amazing to see the difference that we had made. I am also incredibly grateful for the friendships that I was able to make throughout the trip, as they added to the wonderful experience!"
~ Luci MacDonald, MYT Participant
Taroom to Wandoan - Day 5
Another day of travel ahead from Taroom to Wandoan. It was time to say goodbye to the lovely locals, horses and cubby houses that were built. The media producer, Long, strictly organised a school photo day before everyone rushed onto the bus to heading to Wandoan. It was a very short ride which left heaps of time for the traditional trip Big Lift Olympics. Teams went head to head in a egg and spoon race, wheel barrow challenge, arm wrestling, balancing a broom, finger carrot challenge and a trivia competition. In the end everyone won at heart and got lollies. The rest of the day was filled by free time; participants went for a run around the track, some had a dance party, others had a karaoke session and some went to explore town. By night, the Big Lifters had one last session of service learning group discussions where they reflected on their self-development through the course of the trip.
Wandoan - Day 6
It was the last volunteering day and ironically the biggest projects were scheduled. Today participants were scattered to the Wandoan Museum, local kindergarten and community Bowls Club (See the work below). The kindergarten workers provided the volunteers with a spectacular bbq and ice cream which was perfect for the sunny day. The mini-lift officer, Tamzin, however feared what would follow after for their last dinner. Would it be leftover sandwiches and curry paste? To her surprise, she was saved by the Wandoan Community who graciously prepared a feast for dinner for everyone. It was the best meal ever; homemade pasta, pizza and soup. With filled bellies the participants held their last reflections and affirmations. Tonight, the moon would be ignored and participants stayed up late playing mafia.
Wandoan Bowl's Club
At the Bowl's Club, our group split up to complete a very big gardening job. It started off by racking the freshly mowed grass, then we went around the large lawn to weed the surrounding edge track and trim the club's hedges. There was some experimentation with trimming but in the end, it looked super fine. It was a long sunny day but after a break and some back up, the Bowl's club never locked better.
Wandoan Museum
Another big project that we undertook was assisting the caretakers at Wandoan's Museum. There we helped with gardening including some weeding, pruning and removal of trees. The goal was to help Wandoan to get the museum prepared for a big event they are holding in 2022.
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Kindergarten
We spent some time at Wandoan's Kindergarten. There we helped with a variety of tasks. These included painting some furnishings around the building, organising items in the shed, oiling tables and gardening.
The Community Feast...
Wandoan to Brisbane - Day 7
It was the final day. One by one, the Big lifters wake up together to see the sunrise one last time. They participants delayed their trip home with a thorough clean of the space but eventually all hopped on the bus for the last ride. The media and communications officer, Abi, started challenging other participants to some tricky games which started riots amongst the bus. More and more challenges arose until it was time for the bus party. The participants arrived back at QUT safely and all said their goodbyes and that was all. The End.
"The Mid-Year trip was absolutely amazing! My favourite moments were when I was volunteering from washing ambulances in Eidsvold, helping out at the Taroom Kindy and weeding away in the Wandoan Heritage Centre. I am so grateful for the opportunity to attend these one-in-a-lifetime trips!"
~ Caitlin MacPhail, Secretary Semester 1 2022
