By Casey Neill
Keysborough students are going the extra mile to support their community with help from Rotary.
Springvale 14-year-old Caitlyn Naitoko is the inaugural Interact Club of Keysborough president.
The Keysborough College student and 20 of her peers will work on local and international projects with support from the Rotary Club of Noble Park-Keysborough.
“It gives an opportunity for us to work within the community and get involved in the community more and be an example to those around us,” she said.
“It really puts some of my personal values, such as service, into action.”
Teacher and community partnerships co-ordinator David Pfeiffer said the school wanted to improve the opportunities for its students.
Committee members will complete a leadership training day to enable them to run the club without teacher assistance.
He said Interact was about tapping into the energy and talent of young people and helping them to develop their own potential as leaders.
Greater Dandenong Councillor Matthew Kirwan, on behalf of Mayor Jim Memeti, told the students that he’d attended the predecessor to the college’s acacia campus, Chandler High School.
He also has an 18-year association with Noble Park Rotary that included time with Rotaract, an offshoot for members aged 18 to 30.
“I know how much Interact is going to do for you,” he said.
Cr Kirwan said taking part helped him to develop the leadership skills and community connections that led to his election in 2012 and re-election in October.
“I never would have had those skills were it not for Rotaract,” he said.
Rotary Club of Noble Park-Keysborough president Ron Damon said he, too, started out with Rotaract. He joined in 1975, aged 21.
“I had such wonderful times in that organisation for young people,” he said.
“You’ll love it and you’ll make lifetime friends.”
Mr Damon presented badges and certificates to the members and welcomed them “to the worldwide fellowship of Interact”.
He also presented a $200 donation from the Rotary Club to kick-start the Interact efforts.
“Our Rotary club will support you 100 per cent in anything you want to do,” he said.
“We are so proud to be able to sponsor you.”
Salwan Shahine found a passion for youth after joining Rotary about six years ago.
He assists Interact groups throughout the region, and explained that the name stemmed from international action.
Interact involves 460,000 students in 208 countries, and he can help the Keysborough group to connect with any one of them.
Keysborough College principal John Baston said the students would do the school proud.
“They’ve got such sensible heads on their shoulders,” he said.
“Sometimes they want to do things in the community but don’t know how to go about it.”
Mr Baston said this was one way to give them the opportunity.
“One of the things that we really have on our books is a priority to get our students to engage more with the community,” he said.
