Echuca College Year 11 student Jane Fish is one of four teens in the Murray Plains electorate to be selected as a Colin Sinclair scholar for 2025.
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The scholarship will allow her to travel to Papua New Guinea on July 5 to walk the Kokoda Track.
Jane said she first took an interest in the scholarship after her friend, who was a previous Colin Sinclair scholar, told her about the trip.
“I’ve been wanting to do it for months because after my friend Cora told me all about it ... I just really wanted to apply for it,” she said.
“Applications opened in March and I had been working on it for weeks because I wanted to perfect it, and then I kept seeing (our careers adviser) and we kept reading over it to make sure it was perfect.
“I sent my application in, then I had an interview on Monday, and then I found out I made it on Friday.”
The track is significant as it is where Australians fought to stop the advance of Japanese soldiers towards the PNG capital of Port Moresby during World War II.
As the students journey along the trail, they will get a small taste of what it was like for the soldiers who fought along the same path many years before.
Jane Fish spoke during Echuca College’s Anzac ceremony about being selected for the trip.
Photo by
JORDAN TOWNROW
As part of her application process, Jane said she took a deeper look at her own family’s history in the military.
“As part of the application process, I researched my family’s military history. In doing so, I discovered a number of relatives who served in both world wars,” she said.
“I also have my two eldest brothers, Callum and Lachlan, former Echuca College students, who are actively serving in the Australian Army, and ultimately piqued my interest in applying.”
It has been two weeks since Jane has received the news, but she is already preparing physically to complete the trail.
In early May, she will be meeting up with the other trekkers for a training hike at Gentle Annie, Whitfield.
She will also be carrying out her own hikes and undertaking incline training in preparation for the trip.
Although it will be her first trip overseas, Jane said she was looking forward to the challenge ahead.
“It’s daunting, but I’m excited, it’ll be a great experience,” she said.
“I’m looking forward to hearing the history and all of the stories because as we’re walking up, we’ll stop at some places for a chat and also immersing ourselves in the (PNG) culture.”
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