George Huitker
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George Huitker is currently the Director of Service Learning at Radford College. Canberra. He is inspired to help young people see beyond themselves by investing their time and energy in working with others who have fewer, if any, choices in their lives. Alongside colleague Father Richard Browning, George is well known advocate, leader and voice in the field of service learning.
In 2007, with Rachael Bishop, he founded teamSUPPORT, a project designed to encourage young people to participate in and lead charitable work. This project was honoured with an Order of Australia Association Committee Award in 2010 and with a National Volunteer Award (Under 25 Team Award) from the Australian Government in 2011. This was followed by George's deeply personal memoir, Little Life, which traced the formation of teamSUPPORT alongside caring for a mother with dementia. Its sequel, Big Life, details his service learning philosophy in light of a recent project working with Radford staff and students, as well as his rock band Junk Sculpture, in developing lasting relationships with people in Gamilaraay country of northern New South Wales. These "G-trips" were recognised with an Order of Australia Association Committee Award in 2015. Mentor, writer, musician, actor, teacher, sports coach – George is still asking tough questions in an attempt to find the most caring, lasting and robust service practice. He is currently working on a third book in his “Life” trilogy, Real Life. www.georgehuitker.com.au www.facebook.com/junksculpture |
About George's Keynote:
George Huitker has made many mistakes in attempting to develop a philosophy for service learning over the past decade. Since his appointment as Director of Service Learning at Radford College Canberra, he has been seeking and refining an authentic service approach which sits comfortably with his world view; his school’s ethos; the needs of the people he walks alongside in a myriad of service settings; and, at a personal level, with the earthy wisdom of his mother, Jeane, who had been battling with dementia in a retirement village during this time.
Setting out to try and find a way of marrying his (often quite intense) passion for service, education and music - particularly that of Midnight Oil, Huitker will recount a journey of discovery that eventually found him out of his comfort zone and in tiny, tin towns 1000 kilometres north of his family home and school, striving to develop lasting and meaningful partnerships with rural communities. After many kilometres of dusty roads and across 30+ trips with small and larger groups to date, Huitker, his Radford College students and generous-hearted band Junk Sculpture, have struck up an inspiring and life-affirming friendship with the Gamilaraay people of north-western New South Wales, many of whom are descendants of the survivors of the Myall Creek Massacre of 1838.
As a result, Huitker has developed a ‘palmcard' for service approach, written extensively on the subject and had his service ideas challenged on many fronts. He will explore the pros and cons of fund-raising; question the concept of immersion and poverty tourism; prioritise ideas of relationship and returning; and investigate the subtle to profound impact a server can have - or not have - on the very people they have set out to work with and alongside. Understanding that people of any age do not like their good intentions challenged, Huitker does so with humour, respect and hope, and a mirror placed firmly in front of himself.
Setting out to try and find a way of marrying his (often quite intense) passion for service, education and music - particularly that of Midnight Oil, Huitker will recount a journey of discovery that eventually found him out of his comfort zone and in tiny, tin towns 1000 kilometres north of his family home and school, striving to develop lasting and meaningful partnerships with rural communities. After many kilometres of dusty roads and across 30+ trips with small and larger groups to date, Huitker, his Radford College students and generous-hearted band Junk Sculpture, have struck up an inspiring and life-affirming friendship with the Gamilaraay people of north-western New South Wales, many of whom are descendants of the survivors of the Myall Creek Massacre of 1838.
As a result, Huitker has developed a ‘palmcard' for service approach, written extensively on the subject and had his service ideas challenged on many fronts. He will explore the pros and cons of fund-raising; question the concept of immersion and poverty tourism; prioritise ideas of relationship and returning; and investigate the subtle to profound impact a server can have - or not have - on the very people they have set out to work with and alongside. Understanding that people of any age do not like their good intentions challenged, Huitker does so with humour, respect and hope, and a mirror placed firmly in front of himself.
| the_road_to_gamilaraay.pdf |