STUDENTS at Stuartholme School, Toowong, have been focusing on what it’s like to live below the poverty line.
Dozens of students pulled out all the stops last month to highlight the plight of those living on less than $2 a day and to raise funds to support some of Australia’s poorest near neighbours.
More than 50 Stuartholme students took up the week-long Oaktree Foundation’s Live Below the Line challenge recently to live on just $2 a day, with all funds raised for the initiative going towards development infrastructure projects in Papua New Guinea.
It was the first year the school had participated in the event and students raised $17,000.
That total saw Stuartholme presented with a trophy for being the school that raised the most money for the program nationally.
Stuartholme also had the highest number of participants among Queensland schools, as well as the highest number of students placing within the top 50 individual fundraisers with 20 students ranking among the country’s top campaigners.
Along with the presentation of the trophy, five of Stuartholme’s highest individual fundraisers were also awarded with a week-long immersion trip to Western Australia to visit some of Australia’s most disadvantaged rural communities.
Megan Banaghan, from Year 10, raised more than $5000, making her the highest individual fundraiser for the school and ranking her eighth-highest in Australia.
She said she was thrilled to be included in the immersion trip and was excited about the impact it would have on the school community.
“I’m especially looking forward to having my eyes opened and experiencing what life is like for those in disadvantaged communities,” Megan said.
“It will be a truly life-changing experience.
“We are incredibly blessed and I think it will be a very personally challenging experience.”
