#ruralstories “I was born in Ararat in Victoria’s Western district, where I lived with my family all throughout my childhood. It was a great place to grow up and I have fond memories of riding my bike around town and really feeling like part of the community. I was very involved in the arts and culture of the town, including through my school and community theatre groups.
In my final year of school, I applied for a Youthrive Victoria (then Macpherson Smith Rural Foundation) University Scholarship. When I received the email informing me that I was unsuccessful for the scholarship, I was initially deflated. However, the email also included information that I was eligible to attend the upcoming Young Rural Leaders Program that the organisation was hosting. I had always been one to take up all opportunities that came my way and so I replied that I would be interested in attending.
The Program was held in December 2012 at Cave Hill Creek, near Beaufort, and was unlike any experience I had participated in before. Everyone was from a similar regional background to me. Many of us were contemplating moving away for university or TAFE studies (we actually received our Year 12 results during the program!). All of us knew that this would involve considerable personal and financial sacrifices to make it happen. It was really refreshing to be able to share these experiences with other people who got what it was like to grow up in the country.
That was the beginning of what has now been 12 years of involvement with Youthrive Victoria. Since then, I have had so many wonderful opportunities to grow and develop my leadership capacity. I have supported the organisation as a Leadership Coach and Program Manager in the Young Rural Leaders Program, Secretary of the Alumni Committee, a Dream Seeds presenter and even as a writer and researcher.
These experiences have provided me opportunities to develop my skills in so many different capacities. I learnt how to manage a team and how to plan and implement initiatives through first-hand experience – the sort of thing that I could never have experienced through my degree. Working in the Young Rural Leaders Program helped to cement my chosen career path as a secondary school teacher, which I have been working as for the past six years.
My involvement has also helped to build my sense of pride of being from regional Victoria. When I first moved to Melbourne, I initially felt like this was something that I needed to hide to fit in. However, being a part of this community taught me that I could be proud of being from regional Victoria, and that being a rural kid had shaped my life in a positive way.
Youthrive provides an invaluable service to the young people of regional Victoria. They not only provide financial support, mentoring, networking and skill-building opportunities for rural youth, but also a sense of hope that you can achieve your goals and live a fulfilling life regardless of your background and personal circumstances.
We all know that there are still considerable barriers remaining for young rural people in accessing further study and training. Organisations such as Youthrive play an important role in levelling the playing field so all young regional Victorians have the same opportunities to achieve success, whatever that might look like to them.”
– Chris