Introducing our Leaders! Jeremy Wood, Tahi Morton and Andrew Rethus...

Hi, my name is Jeremy Wood, I am currently 17 years of age and a year 12 attending Kununurra District High School. I moved from South Australia to Kununurra at the start of year 10- 2012. The end of 2012 I enrolled in the KEFL- Kimberley Education For Life, and now I am in my second year of the program. I am doing my school based traineeship at Coates Hire, where I have gained a heap of experience working on a variety of machinery from trailers to generators to 30 tonne excavators.

The KEFL program is a school based traineeship program, which is a gateway to getting an apprenticeship. It enables you to be in the workforce in your preferred field, whilst also giving you the opportunity to finish school and get your WACE certificate. During the KEFL program you get multiple certificates and also valuable experience to give you a head-start on life outside of school.

The KEFL program is set up in a unique way which gives you the best of all fields; it equals your school life, work life and enables you to have fun. Certificates you gain whilst in KEFL are; certificate II in; Automotive, Construction, Engineering, Business, and Community Services. The certificates are obtained by attended TAFE every Thursday for 2 years, where you balance theory and practical work and gain experience. At TAFE I do everything from general servicing and changing filters to wheel bearings, replacing gaskets to fitting new exhaust systems and refurbishing heads.

KEFL students also gain a Certificate II in Agriculture, you obtain this by attending multiple camps and training focusing on the work a stockman would usually do , this includes; fencing, welding, Mustering, Horse riding, learning to 4 Wheel Drive, learning to drive a tractor, post digging, cleaning, feeding, shoeing and saddling horses, horsemanship, branding, dehorning, castrating and tagging cattle.

A school based traineeship is also included with this program which is a huge advantage into gaining skills for success in the workforce and getting an apprenticeship. Throughout my school based traineeship I have gained a lot of experience working on a wide range of machines such as; Trailers, generators, rollers, telehandlers, forklifts, excavators and the list goes on.

Throughout the course of the year we also do outdoor education, which consists of mountain bike riding, canoeing, kayaking and abseiling.

Our canoeing and kayaking camp is from Lake Argyle dam wall to Cooliman Creek which is about 23km. During the camp we do rescues, cooking, races and other fun activities like jumping off ‘jump rock.’ Last year I completed my canoeing assessment graduating to a Kayak course for this year.

This course has enabled me to apply for apprenticeships and being shortlisted for jobs, but so far I have been unsuccessful. At the end of 2013 I applied for a position as an apprentice Heavy Diesel Mechanic with mining giant MacMahon Holdings where unfortunately I was unsuccessful although it was a great experience to have my first major interview and testing. I have also applied for the Army and Airforce as a mechanic. During this year or at the end of this year I hope to get an apprenticeship within the mining industry or working on heavy machinery.

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Heya, my name is Tahi Morton and I am a Year 12 student at Kununurra District High School. I am 17 years of age and was born in Gisborne, New Zealand. The first 16 years of my life were spent being brought up in Whangarei, my home town. I have spent my last year in K.E.F.L (Kimberley Education for Life) and I could not be happier. The outstanding level of acceptance from group members combined with team-effort activities makes for a very close and cooperative group.

Kimberley Education for Life offers a vast variety of opportunities and experiences, such as abseiling, canoeing and horse riding. I have been challenged time and time again last year, and have reaped the benefits of both experience and knowledge. An example of our challenges and rewards is our 24km canoeing trip up Coolamon Creek. It was a long haul, but, we came out of it wiser and with a nice variety of swimming spots to cool off. This year, my final year, we will be doing the Coolamon Creek trip once again, only this time, in Kayaks. We will also be doing a biking trip from Kununurra to Wyndham.

During my time in K.E.F.L, I have also been provided with a part-time job at Kununurra Diesel Services as a trainee, and have begun my journey to complete my Certificate II in Agriculture and Automotive, and to get my W.A.C.E. I am currently aiming to begin working in the fitness industry once I have finished my two year K.E.F.L Traineeship, as I have developed a passion for fitness. The K.E.F.L  program, once completed, is a valuable asset to any good C.V (Curriculum Vitae).

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Hi my name is Andrew Rethus I’m a year 12 student at Kununurra District High School, I’m currently 18 years of age and this will be my second year in the Kimberly Education For Life program otherwise known as K.E.F.L.

K.E.F.L is a great program with a heap of opportunities and an awesome overall experience. The program offers so much to its students including a school based traineeship, Certificate II in Agriculture, outdoor education, a bronze medallion, skipper’s ticket and much more.

Last year we did a heap of different activities such as the beginning of the Certificate II in Agriculture. We travelled to Bell Springs Station and learnt how to ride horses safely and to control them. First we built cattle yards so we could do a muster. When we had mustered the cattle to the yards we completed branding, dehorning, ear tagging and castrating.

We also did a heap of different excursions for Outdoor Education we learnt how to tie safe knots, how to pick a strong and safe anchor point for the abseiling and how to abseil safely down different cliff faces. We also learnt the safety drills and how to use a canoe. Then we went on a canoeing trip from the Argyle dam wall to Coolaman Creek this took all day but we did stop a lot to swim and practise the safety drills. We put up a flying fox and did a few abseil adventures, it was a great experience.

I was lucky enough to be selected as the only student completing my traineeship with Department of Parks and Wildlife. This traineeship is a two year deal. I have almost completed a Certificate II in Conservation and Land Management and am currently working on my Certificate III. During my time with DPaW I have completed units and professional development in areas such as fire rescue, senior first aid, chainsaw courses, visual inspection of park facilities and treatment of weeds and pests. I am looking forward to getting my firearms license so I can complete aerial shooting activities. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at DPaw and look forward to an awesome future in this industry.

This is Andrew signing out J