Local Kids Tackle Kokoda For Charity

By Tom Penistone on April 8, 2014 in News

Local kids from the Young Guns Development Academy (YGDA) in Maroubra will tackle the Kokoda Track in October to help raise money for the charity Network Kokoda.

The aim of the trek is to teach the children of the achievements and sacrifices made by the Diggers during the Kokoda campaign in 1942, as well as raising money for building projects in Papua New Guinea’s remote areas.

The travelling group will compromise of boys and girls from the YGDA, an organisation that focuses on developing the life skills of children aged between 12 and 16 years old.

The group meets up three mornings a week and educates the children on different aspects of training including strength, conditioning and dietary advice.

Accompanying the children on the trail will be South Sydney Rabbitohs coach Michael McGuire. Souths have strong links with the YGDA, with many of their younger players involved with group.

Once the Kokoda Track is completed, the children will partake in an exhibition game of rugby league. The game will be played against local children from the town of Sogeri, just outside the nation’s capital, Port Moresby.

Peter Morrison, a trek leader for Adventure Kokoda, could not stress enough how important the exhibition match will be.

“Rugby League is the national sport in Papua New Guinea. For many children the only way out of poverty is through education and it is hoped that the match will help to promote that,” Mr Morrison said.

Network Kokoda is a not-for-profit organisation responsible for one-off projects that make significant impacts within remote areas of Papua New Guinea, such as providing clean and safe water supply.

The YDGA group recently held a successful sportsman’s dinner that raised $5000 for the charity, and more fundraising events are set to be announced in the coming months including a possible golf day.

For more information about the trek and how you can donate, visit the www.ydga.com.au or contact Jason Peterson on 0418 268 973 or jason@ygda.com.au.

For more information about Network Kokoda, visit www.networkkokoda.org.