David Wirrpanda Foundation mentor Jarrad Oakley-Nicholls last week made a special visit to remote Tjuntjuntjara to promote positive role models to the community.

The former West Coast rookie joined representatives from the Australian Sports Commission and the Department of Sport and Recreation on the journey to the Western Desert community, approximately 700km east of Kalgoorlie.

Jarrad spent the first two days of his visit at the Tjuntjuntjara Remote Community School, meeting with students and sharing tips for healthy living.

Click here to see some photos of Jarrad in action.

“The kids were a bit shy at the start, but then I took them out and played a bit of basketball with them and that’s when the shyness went straight out the window,” Jarrad said.

“They started yarning up and telling me stories and trying to teach me a few words in their language. They don’t speak English much, only when they speak to visitors, so it was good to see our culture still getting passed on.”

As well as sporting activities and Q&A sessions, Jarrad also explained the importance of respect to women and elders to a group of male students.

On the final day, Jarrad enjoyed the opportunity to “go bush” with Tjuntjuntjara elders.

“We went swimming in a freshwater lake and also went shooting,” Jarrad said. “We got two ‘roos and three bush turkeys, and we pulled up about half an hour from Tjuntjuntjara to cook them up and have a good feed.”

The David Wirrpanda Foundation is a charity formed by past Indigenous club great David Wirrpanda which aims to enrich the lives of young people in the Indigenous community  through education, promoting healthy lifestyles and building self-esteem.

For further information, visit dwf.org.au.