Community & Business
21 July, 2026
Students making a difference
STUDENTS from St Stephen’s Catholic College are making a difference in Mareeba through their involvement with Rosies, Friends on the Street.
By AMI KAUR
The Rosies mission is to offer friendship, connection, and dignity to people who often go unseen, a cause actively supported by the St Stephen’s community.
Currently, 46 students from Grades 11 and 12 are participating in rotating groups which allows students to step out of their comfort zone and participate in the weekly street outreach.
While a typical outreach includes serving food and drinks to those in need, the heart of this initiative lies in the conversations that volunteers get to have with the community.
This experience also provides a chance for students to develop meaningful friendships with the younger patrons.
Stacey Crockford, the Mareeba Rosie’s branch coordinator and a teacher at St Stephen’s, highlights the impact that these connections have on everyone involved.
“Our patrons really value our youth involvement and are so happy to see young people getting involved in our outreaches,” she said.
“As volunteers, we have witnessed firsthand the connections our youth are making which helps them see the inequalities in our society and replace misconceptions with genuine understanding and empathy.”
This impact was also experienced by Year 11 students, Macy and Jem, who recently attended a Rosies outreach and described it as “eye‑opening”.
“You hear about homelessness, but meeting the people behind the numbers makes it real. What stood out most was how dedicated the Rosies volunteers were, once everyone had received food and drinks they stayed to talk because the conversations mattered just as much as the service,” the students said.
