Kids trained to be good citizens

By NAOMI WASE
THE UPNG Seventh-Day Adventist Church is playing its part to help children become better citizens of the country through its programmes.
“The country needs to change and the only change that can happen is when we have an attitude change,” says the church’s youth elder Arilla Haro.
Haro said attitude change was an important aspect that not only the church need but the country as well.
He said that during a formal dinner of the UPNG Adventist Church youth ministry at the Gateway Hotel in Port Moresby last Sunday.
The dinner was organised for the Pathfinders to complete their grooming and manner honours which is a part of the Pathfindering curriculum.
“But the important message behind this is for them to dress neatly and be able to use their manners,” Haro said.
Pathfindering is a programme in the Seventh-Day Adventist Church where children between the ages of 10 and 15 learn different life skills and attitudes which contribute towards their personal growth which are Christ-centred.
“Our attitude, generally in Papua New Guinea, is a bit of a challenge,” Haro said.
“So we’re trying to broaden out into addressing the national issues as well.
“We want our children to be able to impact that positive change in others as well. So people will start having a change in attitude by looking at things positively and doing positive things,” he said.
Haro said the church was playing its part to instil right attitudes to its children.
Church elder Robert Nemala said the church takes the personal development of its children very seriously because they want to develop children to be responsible leaders in the societies.
He said they wanted children to be responsible so that the seeds of discipline they instilled in them would come back to them later in the future.
“When you look at the country as a whole, attitude and a lot of issues concerning young people are also a concern in the education system, especially, in the primary school system.”
Nemala said as a church, this was one of the greatest contributions they were making to help the children.
He said some families did not have the opportunity, experience or exposure to teach such skills which were important life skills that children needed.
He encouraged parents and guardians to bring their children to church to learn such skills.
“I would like to welcome any children to join Pathfindering either here or in any other Adventist church.
“I can assure them that their perspective can change. Even their learning, their behaviour and their attitude can change.”