Every Thursday morning, five brigades take part in the Cobram Secondary College Advance Program.
Now in its seventh year, this program is a fun and important way to engage with the area’s youngsters.
Taking part in the 2018 program are brigade members from Strathmerton, Yarroweyah, Katamatite, Cobram East & Boosey and Muckatah.
During each session, CFA members pass on their skills and knowledge to 25 secondary college students in the following areas:
- All about CFA and its history
- Wildfire and structural firefighting skills
- Introduction to vehicles
- Community safety
- Fire investigation
- Basic understanding of incident management
- Leadership skills
Last Thursday, the Cobram Secondary College students put on a morning tea for the CFA volunteers, in appreciation of the work they do for the community and for the time they spend with the students on the Advance Program.
"The program is about students learning new skills and building strong community partnerships, which we've done superbly with CFA," said Randall Jones, the Advance Program coordinator at Cobram Secondary College.
"Our dedicated local brigades are really passionate about engaging with the youth in the program.
"Around 30 per cent of students go on to volunteer with local brigades, which is very important to our brigades - joining a brigade gives the students a purpose and a reason to stay in the area, which arrests rural decline."
Photos: Randall Jones