A team of Graceview Secondary students travelled west to Texas, Queensland, continuing an 11-year tradition of service, friendship and connection between our school and this remarkable rural community.
They went ready to work. There were showgrounds to prepare, a school Athletics Carnival needing extra hands, animals to care for and aged care residents to spend time with. After 11 years of returning to Texas, STORMCo has become a two-way relationship. Our students and staff give their time and energy, while the people they meet generously share their stories, knowledge, hospitality and way of life.
“One of the key things with our trips is that it’s not just that we’re serving, it’s that we’re connecting with the community. There are things that we do, but there are actually things they give us, that they teach us, that they show us.” - Mrs Melissa Burrett, Graceview Chaplain
STORMCo stands for Service To Others Really Matters, and this year there was plenty of service to be done.
At the local showgrounds, students tackled the physical work needed to prepare an important community space. At the local school Athletics Carnival, they stepped in to help run events when there weren’t enough staff available. At a wildlife sanctuary, they worked alongside its owner caring for a growing refuge that previous Graceview STORMCo teams have also helped support. And in aged care, service looked like spending time with residents, joining them in singing and conversation.
“Everyone was just really warm and friendly. Someone said it was really lovely to see kids coming and doing something that wasn’t for themselves. And I found that making a difference for others was really good for me too.” - Emma, Year 10
"It was fantastic to see our students engage with the community. The students stretched themselves in different ways in order to serve others. Whether it was shovelling gravel to make an animal sanctuary or starting a conversation with a nursing home resident, our students all added value to the community. Ultimately the most growth occurred as the students reflected on and appreciated the people whom they met." - Miss Alexandra Tiller, teacher
One local farmer, who works long days throughout the week, stopped what he was doing to take the students around his farm. He showed them his machinery and shared his work with such passion that the students were struck by how much he loved what he did. For students accustomed to life on the Gold Coast, seeing rural life up close offered a different perspective on the work behind things they might ordinarily take for granted.
“We kind of forget all the hard manual labour that people have to do in order for us to live in our world today. We just see in the supermarket, ‘Oh, there’s some more food for me today.’ On STORMCo, you’re helping others, but you’re also helping yourself when you serving others. It really opens you, brings you a new perspective on how the world runs and how we can be better people for the world and for others.” - Kyle, Year 12
Students apply to participate in STORMCo and commit to operating as one team, laying aside the things that could divide them and being willing to stretch themselves physically, emotionally and spiritually.
“What happens with the students out there is unbelievable. I see them stretch themselves, push themselves out of their comfort zone emotionally, spiritually and physically.” - Mrs Burrett
“When we all come together to serve others, it brings all of us closer. Service is our way of saying, ‘We understand we’re not alone. How can we help?’” - Kyle
“These are people I’ve known my whole life, but now I feel like I actually know who they are as a person.” - Emma
At Graceview, service is part of how our students learn to live out their faith.
“Service to others really matters because it’s the Jesus way. There is no us and them. Everyone is of equal value, worth and love.” - Mrs Burrett
“Whenever I try and help people, I just do it because I want to show people Jesus. I’m helping for Jesus.” - Emma
Eleven years after our students first began serving in Texas, each new STORMCo team becomes part of a relationship built by the students and community members who came before them. And they return with a life-changing understanding of what it means to serve, and the difference it can make for others and themselves.