Operation Flinders is a 2014 charity partner of the Crows Foundation. The Crows Foundation donated $16,500 to Operation Flinders, which covered the cost of an eight-day camp for 10 ‘At-Risk’ kids. 

As a result of the Club’s partnership with Operation Flinders, ruckman Jack Osborn and Corporate Account Executive Kirby Overton were given the opportunity to witness the program firsthand. The pair ventured to the Flinders Ranges to attend two days of the most recent camp on Adelaide’s AFL bye weekend. Here is Jack’s take of the trip …

Our journey started early on Saturday morning. We boarded a tiny 10-seater plane to Leigh Creek in the Northern Flinders Ranges. It was my first time in the Outback – the Tasmanian bush back home probably doesn’t count!

Once we’d landed, the pilot ‘parked’ the plane and got on the bus with us. It was funny seeing him just leave the plane there, but it turned out the pilot was one of many people who generously donate their time to Operation Flinders.

We got on a bus and were introduced to (Executive Director) John Shepherd, who has been involved with the program since its inception in 1991. We drove for nearly an hour to Yankaninna Station, 65 kilometres east of Leigh Creek.

Operation Flinders actually owns the land they run the program on. In the past, they’d run the program on other properties but they eventually decided to buy their own land, so that any money or resources invested into the property stayed with the program.

Yankaninna Station is the home base of Operation Flinders. It’s where the whole program is run from and home to the more than 20 permanent/part-time volunteers who make it all possible. A lot of the buildings on the Station are donated, including the shearers quarters where we stayed.

The kids taking part in Operation Flinders never actually see the headquarters.

When they arrive, they’re taken to a spot about five kilometres away from the base. The kids get off the bus and their packs are there waiting for them. The kids pack a heap of stuff, but all of that goes straight into lockers. Once they get off the bus, it turns around and drives off with their gear in it. We saw the lock-up area and it was full of suitcases, thick blankets and luggage from the bus.

The kids get a ground mat, foam mat, bedroll and a heavy duty sleeping bag, which they take home with them once the program is complete. They have four litres of water each to carry in their pack and another litre to hold onto and encourage them to drink regularly. They also get a small food dish to eat from, which they have to wash themselves after each meal.

The kids are required to walk an average of 15 kilometres a day. Most of the kids aren’t fit and some don’t have proper footwear and have to be given boots to wear. They sleep under shelters hung from trees, so at first light every morning they get up and start walking again.

The kids are school students aged 14-18 from throughout South Australia. Most are flagged by their teachers as being ‘At Risk’. They are predominantly kids with recurring issues, where mediation with parents hasn’t helped. Some are running the risk of ending up in youth detention.

In each Operation, there are nine groups of 10 kids. They are usually split into boys and girls groups. Their arrivals in the Flinders Ranges are staggered over three days, with three groups arriving a day. The groups aren’t meant to see each other during the Operation. The organisers have a big 3D map at headquarters showing where each group is supposed to be and the path they’re going to follow.

They run five programs a year with 90 kids in each, so that’s nearly 500 participants annually and 10,000 since Operation Flinders started more than 20 years ago.

Each group is guided by an Assistant Team Leader, who is a volunteer and usually an ex-service person. A lot of them are ex-military, SAS or Star Force, but they don’t tell the kids that until the end because a lot of them have issues with or negative opinions of authority. At the end of the program, the kids usually don’t believe the team leaders. They say, ‘You can’t be a cop. You’re okay!’

Each group also has a mentor – a student who has completed the program successfully in the past. They are aged 16-19 and act as a conduit between kids and the program. The program has two paramedics. They get paid for five days from the SA Government and then donate another five days, which is pretty cool. The medicine on hand is supplied by the Royal Flying Doctors Service.

Late on Saturday after a tour of a few local landmarks, we met our first group – a girls group on their fifth day. And at night, we met a boys group on only their second night. The boys were still fighting it a bit, whereas, the girls group could see that they were on the home stretch and had bought into it.

They say there are different stages the kids go through. They might fight initially, but then they gradually work out who has what role within the group and start working together to achieve the goal of completing the program. The attitude changes from ‘this sucks’ to ‘let’s be the best group’.

There was a lot of Crows talk. The boys group were all saying, ‘Say hi to Tex for me’. There was a footy at the Station, so I had a kick with a few of the volunteers.

We went to a bonfire with the boys group on Saturday night. An Aboriginal elder told dreamtime stories and sang to us. It all came back to respecting elders, community and leading a healthy life. One song was about the Crow and the Magpie, which was quite fitting leading into our game last week.

We felt like idiots singing and dancing around, but it was good fun. The songs have been stuck in my head ever since. I didn’t want to stand there looking ‘too cool’ to be involved because then the kids would think they were too cool for it as well. I definitely got into it even though I stuffed up all the lyrics. I sat around the fire until midnight with some of the volunteers and heard some great stories.

One of the activities the kids do is abseiling. It’s a tough physical activity, but it’s also a big mental hurdle for the kids to cross, abseiling down a 100-foot tall cliff. The kids all think they're tough, but we heard stories of kids breaking down in tears because they were out of their comfort zone and didn’t want to go over the edge. Kirby had a go at abseiling, but I couldn’t because of my back injury, unfortunately. I would’ve loved to.

I went into the weekend thinking we’d spend a lot of time with the kids, but that wasn’t our role. We’d say ‘Hello’ and have a quick chat, but we didn’t want to distract the kids from their task.

As Ambassadors, we were there to see firsthand just how the Club’s support and contribution was being utilised. We gained an appreciation of the Operation itself and heard great stories from the volunteers.

Now, we can talk about the good work that goes on and encourage other people to get involved.
We met some amazing characters. Another Ambassador on our trip was Shaun Lappin from a company called Connected Self. They are helping to set up a similar Operation in the Northern Territory. Connected Self do a lot of after-the-fact reporting, which reinforces that Operation Flinders is the most successful program of its kind in Australia and one of the best in the world.

I’m thinking about going up there and being part of an Operation in the offseason and Kirby has also said she’d love to be an Assistant Team Leader. From the experience, I’ve also got the opportunity to become a mentor, which I’m looking into.