Armidale's Fighting Temptations Aboriginal Youth Group was formed by Jim Parkinson and Glenys Mulley and is in its fourth year and growing. It started with a group of about 20, now, Jim said there are between 30 and 70 kids who turn up every fortnight; and he really needs more volunteers and sponsors to help keep the group going and growing.
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The original group members voted on a name for the club and took inspiration from the 2003 movie "The Fighting Temptations", which was more notable for its soundtrack and ensemble cast than anything, but was about community revival and romance through music.
We run it on a $50 voucher from Coles Supermarket every fortnight, a box of fruit from Armidale Fruit Shop and the Minimbah school bus.
- Lyndon Strong
Jim runs the group with Lyndon Strong and together they are the drug and alcohol team for Armajun in Armidale.
Lyndon said the group was not just a "come and play" space.
"We talk to the kids about drugs and alcohol, we sit down and have a talk to them," he said.
"The drug and alcohol use in Armidale is incredible. It's crazy.
"But we could make a difference with these kids.”
Jim said they never knew how many kids were going to turn up until they arrived.
"We're in partnership with Minimbah Primary School at the moment, and they're going to let us use their old bus to pick kids up," he said.
The group offered the kids a safe environment, a meal, positive mentoring and some culture.
"We're in the process now of organising someone to come out and do some language and Aboriginal dance with them," Jim said.
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Lyndon said they would like to teach leadership roles to some older children.
"So they can mentor the younger ones. Then, when they leave, the younger ones can take over," he said.
"There is homework too. It's run by volunteers and in that group we've got teachers. And anyone can do it. If they want to bring their homework we'll help them out.
"There's the Aboriginal culture, and the fun of it all."
Ideally we would like some more community help. If they could see what we're doing with these kids ... it's 70 kids off the streets.
- Jim Parkinson.
Lyndon said it was a safe environment where kids could be kids for a couple of hours.
They would like to see the group held more than fortnightly, but their biggest problem is their lack of volunteers.
"We'd love to hold it every week but it just gets too much," Jim said.
"And you don't have to be Aboriginal to do this. You just have to be very patient, respect the kids and be able to pass a police check.
"We tell them 'We'll respect you, if you respect us'."
