Thirteen Year 11 students at Kolbe Catholic College in Rockingham travelled to Melbourne on December 4 to attend the inaugural Australian Catholic Youth Festival (ACYF).
Along with Miss Stirling and Mr Richards, everyone was bursting with nerves and excitement.
When we arrived in Melbourne, we were greeted by Kolbe Catholic College Victoria and we caught a bus to their school, sharing our schools’ histories, and had a tour of a different Kolbe College, overwhelmed by their gym, elevators and all those stairs.
The students were nervous about meeting their exchange host families but, by the next day, every one of us were the best of friends.
This was perhaps the most special aspect of our trip, making connections and lifelong friendships with our new friends and families in Victoria.
On Thursday, we ventured into the city and walked into Festival Hall with more than 3,000 young people dancing, singing and chanting their faith through music, dance and worship.
We were all so overwhelmed by the atmosphere which only grew and became stronger over the next three days.
The ACYF days were filled with workshops, discussions, live music, stalls and games.
The event was extremely well organised and was a wonderful experience for all the participants.
The theme of the festival, The Spirit of the Lord is Upon me, certainly held true as all participants connected with their faith in good spirits and love for each other and for God.
Students cried and didn’t want to leave their new friends on the last night of the Festival, after we shared a Mass with more than 15 concelebrating bishops and nearly 3,500 people in attendance.
It was a fantastic experience and will remain with us all for ever.
It changed our lives in ways we could never fully explain nor understand; however, we will hold onto it and try to share our faith with all those we meet and interact with as a result.
Many thanks to all the students who attended the event – their host families did not want them to leave and everyone we met commented on their behaviour and response to the event.
We certainly cannot wait to do it all again in two years’ time.