QUEEN OF KINDNESS
Gold Coast, meet your Junior Citizen of the Year. Kaitlin Barwick, 17, is devoted to spreading her message of kindness across the city and she’ll tell you how to get involved.
MEET Gold Coast Junior Citizen of the year Kaitlin Barwick.
The 17-year-old Varsity College student created a group called Squad Eleven, for which she gets other students together to do selfless acts of kindness in the Gold Coast community.
She started the group mid last year and has about 20 students from schools around the Coast join her.
“It’s like a youth group,” Kaitlin said.
“It’s made up of kids from all different schools and all different ages. Some of them are in Year 12 and some are in Year 7.
“I created the group because some kids don’t get the opportunity to do things in the community.
“We go around and do things for the community like clean up at Lake Orr or organise
fundraisers for charities.”
The group meets two to three times a month at suburbs around the Coast.
Kaitlin’s mum, Jenny, wanted her to be recognised for her hard work and initiative around the community and so nominated her in the Gold Coast City Council competition.
On Australia Day Kaitlin won the award for Gold Coast Young Citizen on the Year.
She was away at the state youth leadership camp with PCYC when they announced it but …
“I didn’t think I was going to get it but mum thought she would go anyway,” she said.
“I was at the camp when she called to say I had won. I asked if I could leave the camp to go to the awards ceremony but we were up in the mountains.
“I was so stoked. It was an amazing feeling.”
Gold Coast City Council says she won the award for proving
herself as an inspiring leader through the introduction of new voluntary community initiatives, fundraising and personal
academic and sporting achievements.
Kaitlin is soon to find out how she placed in the Seven News Young Achievers Awards, for which she has been entered in the leadership category.
She has also been given the opportunity to represent and be the “local hero” for an educational program called “Courage to Care” which is designed to encourage youth to stand against bullying, prejudice, discrimination and racism.
She has also been nominated for an award as part of the International women’s Day.
“I am extremely appreciative to Varsity College for the opportunities they have given me,” Kaitlin said.
“I left my previous school as I felt I was denied opportunities, as often students are.”
Kaitlin finishes school this year and is studying hard for an OP1 as she is keen to start university at Bond next year.
“I’m looking at doing a double degree of biomed and law … but I’m not really sure what I want to do yet.
“I would like to do something in science and law. But, I do like writing too.”
In the coming weeks Kaitlin and her friends at Squad Eleven will be heading to a retirement home to do activities and have fun with the residents.