Big Week Out

Imagine you’re 15 years old and you’ve just woken up on a dreary winter’s day. It’s school holidays and it looks like it might rain. You spare a thought for the countless things you could do today without leaving the warmth of your room. Instead, you get up and get ready. You get your wet weather gear, put on your ‘Big Week Out’ T-shirt and head out to join your service team for the day.

What could motivate a young person to give up their precious school holiday time to join community projects like cleaning storage rooms, painting windows or gardening in the winter rain?

Big Week Out (BWO) is an inspiring and action-packed week bringing together high schoolers from across Adelaide. Run as an initiative between local churches and SU Australia, BWO aims to empower young people ‘inspired by the love of Jesus Christ, impacting the world through generous acts of service in their local community.’

The week kicks off with a launch night featuring music and sharing on BWO’s mission. Then the service days begin, where participants are grouped into service teams and sent to various community projects at local churches, schools and organisations in Adelaide.

Last year, the team joined Baptist Care SA’s response to a ‘Code Blue’ – an emergency response system activated during extremely cold weather conditions to protect people experiencing homelessness. The BWO team created care packages with handwritten notes of encouragement for those seeking overnight accommodation through Baptist Care SA.

Just as Jesus went into communities, healed the sick and cared for their physical needs, BWO provides young people with the chance to share God’s love in practical ways.

Following in Jesus’ footsteps is clearly gaining momentum as BWO returns from 14-17 July 2025 for its longest program since its hiatus during Covid.

While gardening in the rain might not appeal to all, gaining the chance to grow in faith and serve alongside like-minded people is school holiday time well-spent.

Thank you for supporting ministries like BWO where young people are given opportunities to live out their faith and serve their local communities. For more information about BWO, head HERE.