{"id":331698,"date":"2023-05-04T17:20:10","date_gmt":"2023-05-04T07:20:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=331698"},"modified":"2023-10-31T17:15:50","modified_gmt":"2023-10-31T07:15:50","slug":"yag-is-building-confidence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2023\/05\/04\/yag-is-building-confidence\/","title":{"rendered":"YAG Is Building Confidence"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Cherbourg Council Community Services Manager Edwina Stewart with Neil Simpson and Wawida Collins and some of the many ballroom dresses and suits which have been collected<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

May 4, 2023<\/strong><\/p>\n

Have you ordered your flowers yet for Mother’s Day? If you happen to live near Cherbourg, there’s a bunch of young people who are very keen to help you …<\/p>\n

Cherbourg’s Youth Advisory Group (YAG) has been working on a number of projects lately, but the most recent is bunches of flowers for Mother’s Day.<\/p>\n

The idea for YAG dates back to 2021 when Cherbourg Council received some funding aimed at connecting Cherbourg youth to Elders and culture.<\/p>\n

Community Services Manager Edwina Stewart said story-telling, well-being and building resilience were some of the topics considered.<\/p>\n

A youth forum was held, community surveys undertaken and other stakeholders interviewed … and the eventual result was the establishment of the YAG.<\/p>\n

The young people who make up the group are aged from 12-25 and have been meeting regularly since then.<\/p>\n

They have enthusiastically thrown themselves into volunteer projects in the community, such as repairing vandalism, cleaning up the skate park and helping to set up at events.<\/p>\n

YAG members also helped out at the Cherbourg Christmas Fair, have enjoyed arts, pottery and music workshops; helped to tidy up the football ground sheds and paint the canteen.<\/p>\n

A few weeks ago, another Youth Forum was held, this time organised by YAG members themselves.<\/strong><\/p>\n

They connected with Elders, discussing positives and negatives in the community, tossing around ideas and collecting suggestions for more projects.<\/p>\n

One of the ideas was to hold a ball during NAIDOC Week, reviving an old Cherbourg tradition of ballroom dancing.<\/p>\n

Up to 20 young people have now been turning up twice a week for dancing practice in the lead-up to the big event on July 5.<\/p>\n

Edwina said this was also proving popular with older members of the community who have been enjoying sharing their skills.<\/p>\n

Council’s Community Services department has been supporting their effort by collecting ballroom gowns, suits, shoes and even jewellery so everyone can look glamorous on the night.<\/p>\n

The other YAG project focussing attention at the moment is Mother’s Day.<\/p>\n

Edwina said several YAG members had spent time recently with florist Felicity Aitken at a well-being workshop in Murgon.<\/strong><\/p>\n

They were now busy taking orders for Mother’s Day flowers and had hopes of opening their own YAG shop in Cherbourg.<\/p>\n

Council has employed two people to help guide the YAG activities, Neil Simpson and Yolandie Gadd.<\/p>\n

Edwina said the community had begun noticing that YAG members “kept on turning up” and were growing in confidence.<\/p>\n

Two young men have now gained full-time employment with Council; while another has just begun a Certificate 1 in Business. Others have returned to school …<\/p>\n

Wawida Collins, from Community Services, said YAG members were proud of what they had been achieving and were learning new skills.<\/p>\n

They will now be attending a leadership course on the Gold Coast in June.<\/p>\n

“We are getting these children to not just think with their heads, but with their hearts. It’s not just a job,” Edwina said.<\/p>\n

* * *<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Ross Gray is one of the YAG members who has been turning heads in Cherbourg.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ross is now 21 and admits he had troubles with police in his younger years.<\/p>\n

However, he’s now keen to reach other young people in the Cherbourg community and be their voice when dealing with organisations such as Council, CRAICCHS and Jumbunna.<\/p>\n

“I want to give back to the community,” he said.<\/p>\n

Ross, who is the grandson of the late Aunty Lillian Gray, chaired the recent YAG Youth Forum and has been an active participant in volunteer activities.<\/p>\n

He began working at Cherbourg Radio this week on a three-month program.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Station co-ordinator Michael Monk said he was hoping to access more funding to extend this to a 12-month traineeship in broadcasting.<\/p>\n

Ross said people had noticed the change in him.<\/p>\n

As he was walking home after work this week, people had called out to him: “Your grandmother would be so proud of you!”<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Ross Gray, right, has begun learning the ropes at Cherbourg Radio under the watchful eye of Michael Monk<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Have you ordered your flowers yet for Mother’s Day? If you happen to live near Cherbourg, there’s a bunch of young people who are very keen to help you …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":331700,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[22,3],"tags":[1131],"yoast_head":"\nYAG Is Building Confidence - southburnett.com.au<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Have you ordered your flowers yet for Mother's Day? 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