Each year Rotary clubs from across the district sponsor young people to go on the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) camp as a way of self discovery.

Port Macquarie local, past Rylarian and one of the leaders at the camp this year, Andrew Stokes, said the camp was a full week dedicated to self improvement and said he was glad to be back for a second year.

“Last year I came to RYLA as a participant and it was great to be able to dedicate an entire week to myself and my own personal development,” Mr Stokes said.

“It was a chance for me to think about my life and the things that I want to achieve but also gave me an incredible opportunity to grow as a person.

“And when I was given the opportunity to come back for a second year, and this time as a leader, I jumped at the chance to help others.”

Mr Stokes said that as hard as it is to describe what happens at RYLA, it certainly is life changing.

“It is hard to put into words just what RYLA is, but I am really glad that I was able to come back as a leader and it has been surprising how much this week has also changed me as a role model and leader,” he said.

“The main thing I have taken away from this week is the fact that being a leader doesn’t always mean standing at the front of a crowd; and helping and talking to people in a positive way can have a huge impact on their life.” 

District 9650 Governor, Bob Ryan, said that Rotary as an organisation is always looking at the next generation of leaders.

“We are very keen as a district to promote youth programs where we can, because any project that Rotary clubs want to undertake we need the youth to take us there,” Mr Ryan said.

Program coordinator of RYLA, John Carroll said the camp, which included a dinner on March 21 at Macksville, was a chance for members of the sponsoring Rotary clubs to see how the young people are going.

“On March 21, mid way through the camp we host a dinner for the participants and their sponsoring Rotary clubs as a way of acknowledging the work to get to this point,” Mr Carroll said.

“The camp itself, RYLA, is a week of intense personal development where we work on leadership skills and by removing outside distractions the participants really uncover surprising things about themselves.

“It is hard to quantify what exactly one person would get out of the camp because everyone’s experiences are different, but needless to say it is life changing.”