MESSAGES

ACT Children's Week Patron - The Hon Margaret Reid AO
Children's Week Ambassador - Jackie French
ACT Children's Week President - Narelle Hargreaves OAM

ACT Children's Week Patron
The Hon Margaret Reid AO

'A Caring World Shares'

Children’s Week again!  How wonderful that we are able to celebrate the achievements of children in our country.  We must always strive to ensure that every child has the best possible opportunity to develop talents and potential.

But there is more to Children’s Week – our gratitude to the dedicated committee who work throughout the year to prepare each programme.

There is the excitement of the Awards to those volunteers who give so much time and effort and who make a noticeable difference to the lives of others.  Young people who are an inspiration to us all are also acknowledged.  This is the time to notice and applaud them all.

Children’s Week is a time to remember children who miss out on so much.  As I write I am thinking of the thousands – hundreds of thousands – now in Pakistan, displaced by devastating floods – lost homes, family members, schools.

Let us not forget the theme of Children’s Week – ‘A Caring World Shares’.

 

The Hon Margaret Reid AO
ACT Children's Week Patron

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ACT Children's Week Ambassador
Jackie French

Bad things happen.  They happen to kids too.  We’d love to be able to promise our kids a perfect world – or even an always safe one.  But we can’t.

I’ve just been going around schools that were affected by the 2011 floods.  Some of the kids still aren’t able to return to their homes – one little boy said the best Christmas present of all would be to go home again and be able to have his pets with him.

But when you talk to many of these kids, what they remember most clearly isn’t the disaster, but the kindness – strangers turning up with buckets and hammers to clean and mend, friends who lent hands and homes.  In a strange way many are comforted and even more feel secure because they now know that in disaster there’ll be people who’ll help you.  Others remember with pride who when things were bad, they and their families helped others too.

Kindness is contagious.  Each time you help a stranger, perhaps they will help others in turn.  It is a privilege to be able to help, because every time we reach out a hand to someone it binds us more firmly together as human beings.

No, we can’t offer our children a perfect world to grow up in.  But we can strive to make it a world where we help each other.  When we work together, sometimes we can make even the bad times good.

Jackie French
Ambassador
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ACT Children's Week President
Narelle Hargreaves OAM

Welcome to Children's Week in 2011!  This is a special time of the year when all states/territories join together to promote friendship and understanding of the needs, interests, rights and achievements of children, young people, their families and communities.  Universal Children's Day is held each year during Children's Week.

The focus for Children's Week in 2011 is 'A Caring World Shares' - CELEBRATE CHILDREN'S WEEK'.  The word 'CELEBRATION' provides a wide range of opportunities for organisations to support activities that focus on the rights of children to enjoy childhood; highlighting the achievements of children and young people; acknowledging and supporting families and all those wonderful people in the community that are associated with the welfare and wellbeing of children and young people.

In March, 2011, I was privileged to attend the AGM of the Children's Week Council of Australia held in Launceston, Tasmania where each/state and territory shares information about their Children's Week activities and happenings held during the previous year.  This is a wonderful opportunity to share and celebrate the achievements of children and young people across Australia.

The ACT Children's Week Committee has enjoyed another successful year and I would like to take this opportunity to thank all members of the committee for their time, commitment and enthusiasm.  You will find in this program a wide range of exciting activities planned for Children's Week 2011 by so many different organisations in the ACT.  A 'BIG THANK YOU' to everyone for your outstanding work and dedication to our children and young people.  The ACT Children's Week Committee applauds you and your organisation!

Once again a feature of our ACT Children's Week Committee is to provide small grants to assist organisations with their planned activities.  The Children's Week Awards continue to be a highlight of the week so please nominate a colleague or organisation that provides services and support to children and young people in the ACT that is considered to be 'over and above the call of duty’!  What inspiring stories are told in these nominations!

As stated in previous Children's Week programs....  'Children need TIME, lots of LOVE, SUPPORT and CARE to assist them to grow into responsible adults. The most important valuing comment you can say each day to children is.....
'I LOVE YOU'!  When children and young people live with approval they learn to like themselves and when they live with acceptance and friendship they learn to find love in the world'.

Let's join together and 'Celebrate Children's Week'.  Become involved in the many and exciting activities that will be held across the ACT in 2011.

’A CARING WORLD SHARES' - 'CELEBRATE CHILDREN'S WEEK 2011’

ENJOY THE WEEK!

Narelle Hargreaves OAM
President ACT Children's Week Committee
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