Lions Youth Insearch Camps
Youth Insearch and the Lions Club District 201Q4 collaborate to run peer-led weekend workshops for at-risk youth aged 12-25, focusing on mental health, trauma recovery, and reducing suicide risk. Lions Districts support these, with initiatives like the $28,000+ funded camp, providing meals and a safe environment for participants.
Key Findings from Youth Insearch Reports:
Impact on Youth: 91% of participants no longer felt suicidal after attending, and 89% did not reattempt suicide. Programs also resulted in increased social confidence, improved education/employment engagement, and reduced risk-taking behaviour’s.
Program Structure: The program uses a peer-to-peer, trauma-informed approach, including weekend workshops and support groups.
Lions Involvement: The Lions Clubs provides essential logistical support for these camps, including catering and volunteer support.
Outcomes: Participants report a stronger sense of identity and agency, with many finding a “safe space to heal”.
Evaluation: A study by the University of Sydney confirmed the effectiveness of the program in fostering long-term positive change. For more detailed, recent reports, the Youth Insearch website provides ongoing updates on their impact.
Lions Youth Insearch Camps for our Lions District of 201Q4 at held at Chaverim Camp at Bingera. (about 18km from Bundaberg) Lions volunteers start at 1pm Friday and finished at 3pm Sunday with some having an 2 0r 3 hours travel time each way. Our Lions District has partnered with Youth Insearch to have 4 Insearch Camps. These camps are extra camps that Insearch would not normally do. Youth Insearch does something like 30 other camps all over.
Lions look after the meals and venue costs at our four camps. Youth Insearch provide the counselling, and other necessary staff and trained volunteers. These four camps cost Lions in excess of $28000. Lions Club volunteers role is in the the kitchen preparing and serving meals. There are a lot of meals to prepare and serve. Lions District Youth Insearch Chairman Warren Gavin from Cooroy – Pomona Lions Club has done this job for many years and is on top of all the problems. Warren does a great job and all is organized from a few hundred kilometres away. We like to have 3 to 4 volunteers at one time. It is a modern kitchen but there is limited space so a large number of volunteers at one time is not workable. Generally 50 to 70 meals have to be prepared and served each sitting. The meals are of a good standard. There is a cooked breakfast then morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner, and sometimes a late snack. There is not any time where volunteers are not preparing meals or cleaning up from 5am to 9pm. The youth have roster for clean up and dish washing. Everyone puts in maximum effort at these camps. Lions Club members volunteer from many of the Clubs in our District for this project. Lions volunteers do not interact with the participants except for meal times. Lions members notice the improvement of confidence and general wellbeing of the youth over multiple camps.
Alan and Wayne from Bundaberg Lions Club working in the kitchen.
Weekend Workshop location: Bundaberg Chaverim Camp
Bundaberg Chaverim Camp 2026 dates.
20th March to 22nd March 2026 (Fri to Sun)
12th June to 14th June 2026 (Fri to Sun)
28th August to 30th August 2026 (Fri to Sun)
4th December to 6th December 2026 (Fri to Sun)
Where is Chaverim Camp
Directions from Bundaberg
Travel 20kms along the Isis Highway towards Childers (15 minute drive to Chaverim)
Turn right at Cedars Rd (You will see a mobile tower/pole at this turn)
Travel 2.6kms along Cedars Rd to South Bingera Road
Turn left at South Bingera Road (can be missed easily, if you get to bridge you missed the turn)
The Centre is 0.7kms along South Bingera Road on the right hand side (Sign at the entrance)
Please drive slow on the long dirt entrance.
Gallery Bundaberg Camps Youth Insearch Lions 201Q4
