Senior Constable Kelly Chamberlain will co-ordinate the Girls Booyah program
Kelly’s calling for girls to participate in Project Booyah!
Cairns Police have again partnered with the PCYC, Education Queensland and the Tropical North Queensland Institute of TAFE to kick off Project Booyah early next year.
Project Booyah targets ‘at risk’ youth involved in criminal, antisocial behaviour, self harm, substance abuse and disengagement from school and has run successfully on the Gold Coast since 2011 with Cairns running it’s first program this year.
A major component of the program includes police mentoring ‘at risk’ kids aged 14 to 16-years. The first group will run from February to August and will consist only of girls.
The goals of the program are to re-engage children into schools, assist them to gain employment, reduce offending behaviour and empower children to be confident and contributing members of society.
Of the children referred to the program, 10 will be chosen to engage with numerous other partner organisations who have agreed to provide in-kind support to the program, including adventure and sporting oriented activities.
Cairns Booyah Co-ordinator, Senior Constable Kelly Chamberlain explained the program Project Booyah translates to an expression of ‘joy, excitement or triumph’.
Kelly said, “We are looking for girls only for our next program which is due to kick off in February.
We are looking wider than the kids already linked into other referral agencies and I’d like to hear from parents of children who may fall into the ‘at-risk’ group.
If you think your child may benefit from some healthy outside influences, please make contact with us. It may be just what your family needs.”
Those families who’ve not yet sought help from local support services and are interested in participating in this program, please contact Kelly via email: chamberlain.kellyl@police.qld.gov.au
Project Booyah will again be seeking support from local businesses, organisations and Government agencies in an effort to help support Project Booyah, which will no doubt change the lives of not only the kids involved but also their families and the community in general.
For more information about Project Booyah go to: www.projectbooyah.com.au/