Interact for leadership and creating good

PICTURED: While the purpose of the weekend-long camp was to train the president, secretary, treasurer and school representatives from each Interact club, plenty of fun and friendship was had too.

Young leaders from across Central Queensland came together in February at an inspiring Interact Leadership Camp to build skills, connections and confidence to drive positive change in their schools and communities.

By Anne Matthews. D9560 Passport Rotary Club, Qld.

In February 2025, D9560 Passport Rotary Club’s enthusiastic Youth Director Daniel Roussounis organised an Interact Leadership Camp. Daniel was assisted by Storm Drabsch and Blair Felsch, Rotaractors/Rotarians from Bundaberg, Qld.

Interactors from four different clubs, including two clubs sponsored by D9560 Passport Club, attended the camp, which was held in Yeppoon on Queensland’s Capricorn Coast.

Approximately 30 students and teachers from the four schools participated – all eager to develop leadership skills and make a difference in their communities.

The four Interact clubs were Chanel College, sponsored by the Rotary Club of Gladstone; Mount Larcom State School, sponsored by the Rotary Club of Gladstone Midday; Faith Christian College of Distance Education, sponsored by the D9560 Passport Rotary Club and the Interact Club of the Central Highlands based at Emerald State School, co-sponsored by the Rotary Club of Emerald and D9560 Passport Rotary Club.

Held at Yeppoon’s Police-Citizens Youth Clubs (PCYC), the purpose of the camp was to train the president, secretary, treasurer and school representatives from each club, but the weekend wasn’t just a training seminar, it was also packed with fun activities. The PCYC helped organise team-building games, community project planning and goal setting.

Overall, the interaction during the camp was a great example of Uniting for Good. It embodied the power of human connection and collaboration to create positive change.

The camp was such a great success that Daniel will be the District 9560 Interact Chair for 2025-26. He is planning a larger camp for next year, most likely based in Townsville.

Chanel College

Chanel College’s Rotary Interact Club has been operating for many years but during the past 12 months has witnessed a dramatic surge in numbers. There are currently more than 30 members made up of students from Years 7 to 12. The club meets each Thursday during second break, where they discuss ways they can help others within the college and the greater community.

The club’s motto is ‘to put others above self’ and is made up of like-minded students with a passion to serve the public and help those less fortunate.

The club is led by President Sophie W, Vice President and Treasurer Anna M, Secretary William A and Public Relations Officer Harold E under the watchful eye of staff Mrs Tammy Bretherton, Mrs Fiona Skinner and Ms Tracey Iki.

The club’s focus for 2025 is to keep expanding its student membership base, promote volunteer work and boost fundraising activities. The focus for this term will be raising awareness of and funds for men’s and women’s mental health. The club aims to participate in one charity event and host one fundraising event each term.

Emerald High School

Eight students from Emerald High School attended the Interact Leadership Camp. Students participated in team building activities to develop their leadership skills. Their club helped inspire the other schools to adopt a club t-shirt, as well as their meeting and OneNote procedures. OneNote procedures involve using a digital note taking application to create, organise and manage notes, research, plans and information.

Mount Larcom State School

Students from Mount Larcom State School helped ensure the success of the camp. They all enjoyed the camaraderie and the new friends they made. It is always amazing to see how young people can combine and form alliances in such a short space of time.

“Being a P-10 school, we also had the youngest group,” said teacher representative Leanne Callum. “Our six student representatives were President Kaitlyn (Year 10), Vice President Ayla (Year 10), Treasurer Jackie (Year 8), Tyson (Year 10), Jasmine (Year 9) and Eden (Year 8).

Our students have an amazing time at the camp. They stepped out of their comfort zones time and time again. Being younger and from a tiny rural P-10 school they were confronted with public speaking and participating in activities with people they didn’t know. They even shared cabins with campers not from their school. The outcome? They loved it.

They came to realise they had ideas and experiences to offer others. That they could work with anyone once they decided they could. They have come away with ideas for projects. They ate, laughed, talked to new friends and asked to be at the camp in 2026.

Faith Christian College

Three students from Faith Christian School – Isabelle, Maria and Caleb – attended the Rotary Interact Leadership Camp.

“It was a long drive filled with plenty of ‘Are we there yet?’ questions and car games, but the students arrived eager and ready to participate,” said teacher representative Christine Scott.

“They represented Faith Christian School admirably, integrating well with students from other schools, building new friendships and demonstrating great teamwork throughout the camp.

A highlight for me was watching our students step out of their comfort zones and embrace the challenge of public speaking – an outstanding and brave effort!”
D9560 Passport Rotary Club was so proud when they chartered the new Interact club at Faith Christian School of Distance Education.

Club member Graeme Johnston, who is the principal of the school, and Christine Scott, the school’s business trainer, will oversee the club’s projects and organise meetings. The club was formally established after the Interact camp.

Faith Christian School of Distance Education is a co-educational school catering for students in Years Prep to 12. Their role as a school of distance education is to ensure students have access to high-quality and teacher-led curriculums, as well as the resources to achieve their goals.

The school was started in 2012 by founding principal Jason Caldwell and many parents who believed in his vision. As a registered school, the goal was to help parents educate their children at home, with the support of Christian teachers. By 2019, enrolments were over 1,000 and Faith Christian College registered as a distance education school with the Commonwealth. Graeme became principal in 2021.

A fundamental principle of the school is that Christian education should be about giving and serving, so an Interact club was an ideal fit to its vision and goals.

The club raised $130 at their first fundraiser in May, selling snow cones at Pedal Prix Ipswich. D9560 Passport Rotary Club purchased the flavours and cones. Pedal Prix is a competition held all around Australia where teams race a human-powered vehicle on a closed circuit.

D9560 Passport Rotary Club also purchased Peace Pole Number 451 for the Brisbane office of Faith College.