DF Gym fighting the good fight for Cairns Safer Streets, community inclusions

A well known local Muay Thai gym is fighting to make sure all kids are included and not left behind.

DF Gym has collaborated with Trinity Bay State High School to begin an after school Muay Thai program for students of diverse backgrounds, who might otherwise not get an opportunity to learn martial arts and self defence. DF Gym Muay Thai instructor Jade Berthelot puts some Trinity Bay students through their paces in a challenging fitness class. Picture: Brendan Radke

A well known local Muay Thai gym is fighting to make sure all kids are included and not left behind.

DF Gym owner Patrick Doherty along with Trinity Bay State High School and Cairns Safer Streets have collaborated in a pilot program in Cairns west to encourage at-risk children, young people and families to be active through a place-based community development approach.

Doherty along with Muay Thai trainer Jade Berthelot put together a class with students from Trinity Bay SHS with different language and culture backgrounds.

Head of Department of Languages Wendy Chiu said it is a great program that needs more acknowledgment.

“The students are of migrant or refugee background, so they are all new to Australia, newly arrived,” Chiu said.

DF Gym has collaborated with Trinity Bay State High School to begin an after school Muay Thai program for students of diverse backgrounds, who might otherwise not get an opportunity to learn martial arts and self defence. DF Gym owner and Muay Thai instructor Patrick Doherty (centre) with Trinity Bay students after a challenging fitness class. Picture: Brendan Radke

“Most of them in this group have been here for less than a year.

“They are very keen to get into community events, sporting but they don’t know how to navigate systems.

“So Cairns Safer Street funding and Patrick from Destination Fitness have provided this program which is fantastic.

“It is straight after school, it gives them a taste of Muay Thai and they love it., they absolutely love it, they now all want to join the gym.

“And this couldn’t have happened without all of these community partners making it happen.”

In a class of 30 kids, with ages ranging from years 7 to year 10, the kids have thrown their hands up and wanted to get involved.

DF Gym also runs Muay Thai classes in a community based program from ages 8 to 15 from Trinity Bay SHS, Harald Falge Park and Mosch Place.

Activities are co-ordinated by the CSS project team, which is a multi-agency, co-located group of state government representatives.

Muay Thai was identified as an activity of choice through community surveys with children and young people living in west Cairns.

The CSS project team partners with community groups and government agencies (local, state and federal) to deliver innovative projects that aim to address underlying causal factors of complex social issues.

“The laughter, the fun they are having, Patrick is a tremendous teacher,” Chiu said.

“It gives them (the students) discipline, it gets them to meet other people.

“Going out and if they do join DF and I think they will because we have the funding.

“But if they do join Destination Fitness, I think it will give them a place to say ‘I am from Destination Fitness’.

“It is like when we have done soccer before, it gives them a different identity and gives them somewhere else to ‘belong’.

“And they are known, Patrick comes here and knows all their names, if they were to join his gym that is the beauty of those types of gym, you become part of the family.

“I am really excited to learn these skills, meditation, concentration, if they get to go to the gym, the boys, especially the boys, get to work with older men.

“All of that mentoring happens, that is really important.”

Originally published as DF Gym fighting the good fight for Cairns Safer Streets, community inclusions