St Raphael’s student Olivia McLennan was part of a delegation of High School students from Japan, USA and Australia who spent time in Cowra last week as ambassadors for the War and Peace in the Pacific program.
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Speaking at a ceremony held at the Cowra Peace Bell Olivia said she was honoured to be the Australian ambassador for the program.
The program is an initiative of the Australian National Maritime Museum in collaboration with the NSW
More than one hundred students in the three countries took part in the project to discover what life was like at home during WWII in the Pacific.
“Our school focused on the local home-front, particularly the cannery and the ammunition factory,” Olivia said.
“Also the experience of women and local war time stories were focal points of our research.
“Working on this project we were inspired to hear stories from local people.
“Hearing local war times stories enabled us to gain a greater understanding of the impact war had on the men and women who fought on the battle front and the civilians who supported them from the home front.
“This project has encouraged me to look deeper into my own town’s history and has enabled me to fully understand and appreciate the events that shaped my country and the society in which I live today,” Olivia said.
These fascinating stories and insights are featured in the banner exhibition, which will travel to the USA and Japan after being shown at the museum and other Australian venues.
One student from each country was then selected as a Youth Ambassador.
Their three days in Cowra included visiting the Cowra Prisoner of War Camp site and Japanese Military cemetery as well as the Cowra Peace Bell.
The Ambassadors then spent time in Canberra, including visiting Amaroo High School, one of the Australian participants in the project, before visiting Sydney to take part in a Remembrance Day ceremony on Sunday November 11 and to officially open the banner exhibition at the museum.
The 2018 War and Peace in the Pacific 75 Youth Ambassadors were:
- Olivia McLennan from St Raphael’s Catholic School, Cowra, Australia.
- Saya Watanabe from Sendai Shirayuri Gakuen School, Sendai, Japan.
- Brianna Matthews from Station Camp High School, Gallatin, Tennessee, USA.
The ambassadors were joined by five other self-funded students including four students from Station Camp High School, USA and one from St Raphael’s Catholic School, Australia
The program is an initiative of the Australian National Maritime Museum in collaboration with the NSW Department of Education and the USA Bicentennial Gift Fund, encouraging students to go beyond history lessons to investigate the impacts WW11 had on their community.
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