RYPEN - Rotary Youth Program of Enrichment
RYPEN fosters newest Hi-5 star
David Clark of Rotary Club of Lower Blue Mountains, NSW, knows firsthand the difference the Rotary Youth Program of Enrichment (RYPEN) makes to the lives of young participants.
Siobhan Clifford, a 15 year old from Winmalee High school with a passion for music, said the RYPEN camp gave her the strength and courage to follow her dream to sing. Siobhan has been selected as one of the performers for the new Hi-5 team.
“The RYPEN camp was really a life changer, as I was just sitting on the fence” Siobhan said. “It really made me think about what I wanted to do in the future and to make goals and plans to achieve it. Thank you Rotary. I will always think about that weekend that changed my life.”
RYPEN is an amazing opportunity for young people aged 14 – 17 years to attend a weekend residential camp designed to develop their potential, self-respect, confidence, leadership, and other life skills.
Our Club has had students from local Colleges attend a RYPEN workshops. Year ten and eleven students, from schools across District 9820 attend the weekend long camp designed at developing their potential through a mixture of lecture style sessions and adventure-based learning.
Its aim is to communicate to young people a series of ideas, problems and social experiences, which will assist them in forming their own values and moral standards. A program of thought provoking speakers, social situations and personal challenges is offered. It is an intense learning and social experience.
The program is focused on activities that increase participants’ self-esteem and leadership skills as well as allowing opportunities for them to think about understanding themselves and how they relate to others. Parts of the program require the participants to become involved in outdoor sessions that require them to work as a group, as well as being individually challenged.
The students attend one of our meetings afterwards and share what they experienced and how it has contributed to their personal development.
RYPEN is a great program and we are always happy to support youth.