Karuna Brothers Camp Project
The project was initiated through the work of Sister Helen Barnes, a Catholic missionary
nun from the Sisters of Mercy convent at Harris Park, NSW. When visiting the Cambodian mothers, Sister Helen discovered that many were often stressed by the difficulties of raising their children in the context of an unfamiliar culture and generation gap. Sister Helen referred boys between 5 and 10 years old from these families to
The Karuna Foundation Children's Fund in the hope that the mothers would get some respite
from their children.
With Sister Helen's help in collecting 20 to 30 boys from their homes, they were provided with a series of regular camps at the Katoomba Karuna Sanctuary in the Blue Mountains four times a year during their school holidays. Some children were very difficult, and some were in the high-risk group of children. The Karuna’s team of professionals, supporters and volunteers provided children with opportunities to learn
social skills and to develop confidence through fun and healthy activities in the natural
bush environment.
Camp activities included bushwalking and abseiling on the Karuna property; adventure walks in Blackheath and Wentworth Falls; horse riding in Megalong Valley; indoor activities such as bush crafts, drawing and team games; and campfire before bedtime. Many volunteers helped by transporting and accompanying children at every activity and preparing their meals during the camp.
In the camp environment, the boys were particularly encouraged to bring forth and strengthen conscience of responsibility towards themselves, their families, their fellow campers and the camp organisers. To help the children further develop a sense of community service, they were taken several times to visit residents of a nearby nursing home in Leura.
A yearly highlight of the Karuna Brothers program was participation in the annual City to Surf Run, culminating each time with a picnic lunch provided by volunteers for the boys and also to support runners at Bondi Beach.
As years passed by and the boys grew to high school age, they tended to be replaced by younger siblings.
The Karuna Brothers project was concluded in 1998. There have been good outcomes for many of the karuna brothers since that time. Some have continued their association with The Karuna Foundation, some of them have become official members and one of them became a management committee member at the KFCF Special General Meeting in June 2019.
As a representative of the Karuna Management Committee, I would like to take this opportunity to extend our gratitude to the organiser Malcolm; to committee members; to Sarah, Graham, Ray Marlene, Patrick, Suzy and Obachan; and to many more volunteers for playing their parts, passionately believing in children. Because of their dedication, we were able to continue with this project for ten years and at its conclusion, felt satisfied that we had taken part in a rewarding charity activity. We believe that this project brought positive changes and made a difference to many of the Karuna brothers’ future lives.
-Nara Pearce
