吃瓜不打烊

19 October 2020

‘Rise up from the couch – with your boots laced – and turn your hands into signs of love’, says Pope Francis on the Catholic Mission website. October is the month of mission and schools are engaging with Catholic Mission’s Socktober program.

‘ invites students to engage with developing world issues through the universal language of sport. Young people are challenged to “Sock it to Poverty” using the world game of soccer. Through the comprehensive six-week Socktober Challenge, students will gain an understanding of the reality of vulnerable children around the world, kicking goals along the way to provide vital support for their brothers and sisters in India, Ethiopia, Thailand and Cambodia.’

Mark Clarke, Youth and Schools Engagement Officer for Catholic Mission, has been gladdened by the interest from schools. ‘This year we have 95 Victorian schools registered for Socktober, and seven schools have signed up just in the last week.’

‘We celebrate Socktober here at St John’s as an opportunity to live our faith through action. We are committed to building a better world for all’, said Monica O’Shannassy, deputy principal and Religious Education leader at , Mitcham.

Brendan, whose son Chris is a school captain at St John’s, said: ‘The main reason we looked at it was because Chris has always been quite keen on mission and social justice and has been involved with Project Compassion in the past. It was also important to him as school captain. He had already raised funds, so we started looking at the Socktober activities and learning about what life is like in other countries. Chris started collecting plastic to make the football and he used that for a long time over the school holidays, especially, to be honest, when he was getting frustrated with home learning. He would give the footy a big kick!’

‘Making it an online program – that was brilliant!’ said Monica. ‘The way that parents register their children keeps them in the loop as well.’

‘Students have been involved in the virtual program during remote learning – children and families. Wonderful packs were sent to families and then students could set up their own fundraising. They’ve completed the different activities and challenges that have been linked to our geography unit. One of our 3/4 class teachers, Kellie Cumming, included some of the activities from Socktober resources into the RE/geography unit of learning last term, so they’ve been learning about different countries around the world.’

‘This year Socktober has been specifically designed as an online program’, said Mark, ‘with six modules that can be done at home in the family, or in the classroom where it is possible. We call it “the parent journey” because it supports parents to take the journey with their children as they would with maths online or English online or history online. It is a great opportunity for the children but also for parents to learn about the work of Catholic Mission.’

For Brendan: ‘It has been an opportunity to connect with what life is like in other countries, including the poverty that other people are going through. We were sort of fixated on our own issues. Things have been difficult, it has been hard not seeing friends, but it did give us an opportunity to get a sense of what we do have and what we have in common with people in other countries.’