Community News

2025 Mission Awareness Tours Information Evening

Year 9 parents and students are invited to an information evening on Wednesday, 4 September at 7:00pm in the college library. 

If you are interested in one of the mission awareness tours to either Thailand or Vanuatu in 2025, please come along to find out more.

2024 Missions trip – Vanuatu

Esther M and Jayde H

This year the 2024 Missions team embarked on a transformative adventure to the beautiful country Vanuatu, where we said hello to a country where smiles met every corner of our day, to a place that embraced their culture and loved God with all their heart.

 Landing in Port Vila, we were nervous because we would be in a new country entirely, but the nerves didn’t last long because soon we were welcomed by the community that became our family in such a short period of time.  We were introduced to their church, homes and schools where we would connect and make meaningful relationships with each and every person. The team was blessed to be able to travel to an island outside of Port Vila, Nguna island where their small community gave up their home and their beds to give us the opportunity to be able to stay with them for three beautiful days that we will never forget. The island was incredible, the sun beamed over the papaya trees while kids were running around the beach holding the biggest seashells. 

Every afternoon while the sun went down and the sky looked like a painting, we would swim in the blue waters taking in the coral reefs and tinted sky, we would be soaking wet and getting eaten by mosquitos but that didn’t stop us from playing an exciting game of volleyball with all the people on the island. Every night we took the opportunity to play an intense game of duck duck goose with the bonfire running and all the people on the island were so happy to join. 

Each morning, we would wake up to the sounds of waves and a sunrise over the island trees. This place was surreal. It was an honour to be a part of their world. Once we were back in Port Vila, we hit reset and at the start of the next week, we travelled to the Black Sands community to the small, lively, Victory School of Hope, where we would each have a year level to teach and guide and connect with. Every one of the kids were so filled with love and energy. There was something so unique about each one of them and in the short amount of time we had with them it felt like a forever connection. We played games, learnt new things, danced, sung and hung onto every little one until our last goodbyes. To be a part of this beautiful country was something else, an experience that felt like a dream. Our team was truly changed after this trip. 

We are so grateful to be able to have had this experience and we didn’t only make connections with the people in Vanuatu, but we made connections with each other, each one of the beautiful people on that trip has something special to offer and we are so grateful to be able to learn more about them. But most of all we are so grateful that we were given the opportunity to go to another world all together and experience such life in a country, a vibrant community and meet people that had a genuine love was something we all will never forget. 

2024 Mission Awareness Tour – Grace House, Pua, Thailand

On June 22nd this year a group of six intrepid Year 10 students and three Plenty Valley staff boarded a Singapore Airlines flight bound for Thailand.  The group did not travel to Thailand to head for a resort to bask in the sun and laze away for two weeks, but to spend time at the Grace House children’s home and serve the children who stay there, as well as the local community. It was such an eye-opening opportunity for the group to not only experience the famed hospitality, food and customs of the Thai people, but also become part of a small rural Thai community, and in doing so, to “live in the shoes of others” for the two weeks the team spent in Thailand. 

The students had the opportunity of being able to visit a number of local schools, where they not only taught English to students from Kindergarten to secondary level, they also connected with these students at a level that many had not anticipated.   Sunday allowed the team to worship with fellow Christians at the local Pua Baptist Church and to share their testimonies with the congregation. There was also the opportunity to visit the hilltribe of PhaKum, high in the tropical mountains close to the border of Laos and Thailand, where they served the local hilltribe Christians and spent a precious evening of fellowship with these amazing people. And for many, the highlight of the trip was the opportunity to get to know the amazing children who form Grace House. Whilst the students who visited Grace House had no relationships with any of the children there prior to their visit, they quickly formed incredibly tight bonds despite the fact that they could not speak Thai.  They instead shared their time and their love, and this allowed the team to bridge the language barrier and build what we hope will be life-long connections and memories. 

It was quite hard for the team to say goodbye to the children of Grace House, as well as the people who work there.  The bonds and memories that formed on this trip were profound.  It changed hearts, perspectives and understandings of how God works in the hearts and minds of people, and for that we are so grateful to God firstly, and Plenty Valley secondly, that such a unique opportunity existed for this group to undertake a life-changing trip to a little orphanage in the far north of Thailand. 

Year 12 Leave your Legacy Initiative

As the year is coming to a rapid end for the Year 12’s, we wanted to show our appreciation and gratitude for what the school has done. Helping us get ready to enter the world that exists beyond school. And so, the ‘Leave your Legacy’ project was born. 

The project ‘Leave your Legacy’ aims to raise enough money to purchase an item beneficial to the school. As a cohort, we have decided to raise money towards benches for the bus bays. 

The project will only run on Friday 6th of September when secondary students can wear free dress to school (gold coin donation required). 

At recess, there will be a bake sale with some yummy treats and desserts, followed by a lunchtime sausage sizzle (bring cash or card- Eftpos available). During lunch time there will be teacher vs year 12 student games to watch. 

As a cohort, we are very excited to run this project, and we would love the community to support us in this endeavour. 

Nina T - Year 12