Koch for Kids Festival - Saturday 11 September 2010
The Lagoon, The Esplanade, Cairns
Koch for Kids is a fun day for children with disabilities or special needs and is held in conjunction with the Cairns Rotary Family Fun Day and Duck Race located at the Lagoon on the Cairns Esplanade.
This year we are offering painting activities. There will be 3 Koch for Kids marquees set up on the day beside the lagoon and activities will commence at 10.00am and finish around 4.00pm. A gold coin donation box will be available for donors. We welcome anybody who would like to volunteer on the day, even just for an hour. The more volunteers on the roster, the less time will be required from them!
We will be accepting any children who wish to take part in the day’s activities.
Activities will be:
- Painting on bandanas
- Painting on butchers paper
- Face painting
- Painting on ceramics
Last Year's Festival
Koch for Kids 2009
On a Saturday towards the end of October, Freshwater school was venue to over two hundred children with special needs and their families enjoying the sixth Annual Koch for Kids day. Weeks of preperation by scores of volunteers all came together on the big day to ensure that the children, their brothers and sisters and carers could participate in all the activities and entertainment that were on offer for them.
The on-stage entertainment was non-stop, featuring a variety of talent. Over sixty children from Mr D's Legends of Rock showed their talent with singing and dancing. The audience was also exposed to a range of cultural experiences. The Chinese dancers were graceful and their performance included a spectacular lion dance. The Papua New Guinea dancers made an exurberant splash of colour and energy. Narjet in her beautiful belly-dancing costume, interacted well with her audienc, giving children the opportunity to dance on stage with her.
But all the entertainment was not passive and the children used up a great deal of energy trying their hands at more active pursuits. The players from the Rugby Club were kept busy all day retrieving rugby balls, and were possibly on the scout for new talent for the club. One of the players was heard to mention that the kids got the ball through the hole with more precision than they could achieve. Those who weren't showing their skills with the ball were achieving deadly accuracy in the ten pin bowling lane.
There were long queues for the rides on both the motorbike and the Vespa scooter - and the owners of both must have thought that they were never going to get home, as they were kept busy giving rides long after the packing up was started.
The face painting was much in evidence with even several volunteers sporting most oddly coloured facial hair. Bandanas and ceramics were painted, plants were potted, violins played, there was an obstacle course to overcome by the Noah's Ark Resource Centre, and the grounds were made colourful by fairies, clowns and an improbable patchwork elephant.
Community services were represented by the police and fire service, and what child has never fantasised about letting loose with the fire hose or the police siren? The dogs from the Association of Australian Assistance Dogs Inc. showed their skills and the puppies currently in training were naturally a huge hit. Many a child (and adult) wanted to take one home there and then.
The children learned new skills, made new friends, ate well from the barbecue lunch, and enjoyed ice-creams, cakes and the fruit on offer. The volunteers were kept busy cooking, slicing and dicing as expended energy was replaced. At the end of the day there were plenty of tired but happy children going home who appreciated the effort put in for their benefit.
The Dr Edward Koch Foundation would also like to thank all those who so generously donated financial assistance, goods, services and their time.
Special thanks to the sponsors below for their support of the event
Previous Festivals
Cairns - October 2005, Opened by Steve Wettenhall
Cairns - October 2004, Opened by Warren Pitt, State Minister for Communities & Disability Services
Cairns - October 2003, Opened by Desley Boyle MLA
Cairns - August 2001, Opened by Dr Leslie Clark MLA
Townsville - May 2001, Held in partnership with the Rotary Club, Port of Townsville
Cairns - August 2000, Opened by Desley Boyle MLA
Volunteer Involvement
Volunteers from the general public help with planning and fundraising to make this Festival possible. The administration work provides volunteers the opportunity to enhance their skills and make new contacts in the workforce; thus increasing their chances of future employment. Service clubs and church groups help with activities on the day. Members of the public and staff of the Dr Edward Koch Foundation volunteer their services to ensure the smooth running of the Festival, including provision of food, manning activity stalls and the safe erection of displays.
Organisations throughout both the Cairns and Townsville district wholeheartedly support the Festivals to ensure that the day will be enjoyable for all of the children. The community gets behind the event with companies, individuals and community groups donating money, time and gifts to make this Festival a success.
Volunteer Management
The Executive Officer manages the event with the aid of a Festival co-ordinator. The co-ordinator has responsibility for segments of the events (eg face painting, animal nursery, potting plants and sponsorship). General volunteers are recruited from Volunteering Qld after an extensive interview with the Executive Officer and those who offer after hearing about it word of mouth. Supervision is carried out by the Executive Officer and the Foundation has adequate volunteer insurance and public liability cover. Recognition of volunteers is acknowledged with a Certificate of Appreciation from the Foundation.
Community Impact and Benefit
Benefits to the community are the raising of awareness of the needs and disabilities of people through the support they offer for the day and the enjoyment gleaned by the children and their families who attend the event. An insight and understanding of the problems of those with disabilities will be increased, and will be tangible and long lasting.
An information/sponsorship form the 2007 Koch for Kids Festival is available here.