During the school holidays, eight students and three staff members from St Patrick’s Technical College will be heading to Cambodia on the College’s inaugural service tour. The group will visit a small rural village in the north western part of the country. Using various skills they have learnt at school, the students will be involved in a number of construction projects including the building of a fence in a local village, assisting with some basic farming and teaching in the local school.
The students see themselves very much as pilgrims to Cambodia rather than tourists. They hope to be involved in projects which will be of tangible benefit to the local people. They also know that this trip will be the source of much learning about themselves as they experience a culture and environment so different from what they are used to. In the local village they will be visiting live over 1500 disadvantaged children, many of whom are orphans.
The students have spent most of this term fundraising so they will be able to take a substantial cash donation with them that will be used to finance various projects around the village. It is hoped that this pilgrimage will be the first of what will become an annual trip to Cambodia for StPatsTech.
At a recent assembly held at the school, Elizabeth Catholic Parish Priest, Fr Pat Woods, commissioned the group of pilgrims, praying a special blessing of protection over the students and staff travelling to Cambodia. We wish them all a wonderful experience away and we look forward to hearing about their adventures when they return.