Fourteen university students have participated in a week-long work camp to give the St Mel’s Catholic Church in Narrandera a spruce up.

There were originally 17 students from Warrane College at UNSW due to give St Mel’s some much-needed attention, but the numbers had dwindled before the camp started.

The work camp provided the students with an opportunity to contribute volunteer hours to the parish while helping tackle a long list of maintenance jobs that had built up over many years.

The camp took place from 29 August to 5 September.

St Mel’s parish priest, Father Chris Heffernan, said the students had made a significant difference to the parish buildings.

“Some dropped out, so instead of 17 students, there were 13,” Father Chris said.

“They did a lot of painting and preparation work, like scraping and sanding, replacing wood and putting the undercoat on.

“The presbytery hadn’t been done for decades, so it severely needed doing.

“The southern side of the presbytery was the worst.”

The outside of the presbytery and convent were among the most urgent jobs, with peeling paint having been left for years and deteriorating further.

Painting was also carried out inside different areas of the convent, while brickwork at the rear of the presbytery was pointed and relaid where repairs were needed.

“These young men provided much-needed volunteer hours around the Parish, completing a range of maintenance jobs,” Father Chris said.

“They worked pretty hard so I’m pretty happy with it all.

“It went very well.”

The students came from far and wide, from many different countries across the globe.

“Some of the students came from different parts of the world,” Father Chris said.

“There were some from Mexico, Bangladesh, mainland China, Hong Kong, New Zealand and there was even one from Tallimba (north of Ardlethan).”

As well as preparing and painting the outside of the Presbytery and Convent buildings, where paint had been peeling off for years, the students also completed some “serious pruning of plants behind the convent and near the church toilets”.

While the focus was firmly on completing work, the students also had an opportunity to see some nearby attractions in the Riverina during their stay.

“They had a bit of a break when they were here – they visited the Malthouse at Whitton and they went to the Narrandera Fisheries Centre,” Father Chris said.

A former Senior Tutor and Old Boy of Warrane College, Peter Stoodley, said the students who completed the work are studying law, engineering and actuarial studies.

“One of the key jobs was to prep and paint parts of the exterior of the presbytery and John O’Brien Heritage Museum,” Mr Stoodley said.

“The young men launched themselves into this task and managed to complete most of it before the inclement weather set in.

“They were guided by Father Chris Heffernan and locals, Terry Lawrence and Tony Andracchio.”

Mr Stoodley said the college had been accompanying young men at university for more than 50 years, “developing the whole person - mind, body and soul”.

“Each year, there is a work camp, presenting an opportunity for the young men to extend themselves and give back to the community,” he said.

“In recent years, this has included building a library in East Timor and building primary classrooms in Fiji and Vanuatu.

“The students return each year from these trips enriched.

“The group remarked at the end of the Narrandera Work Camp how much they enjoyed the work, each other’s company and also the beautiful Riverina countryside - they were fortunate to spot two koalas in the wild, but what impacted them the most was the hospitality of the locals.

“The parishioners were generous in providing morning teas and hearty dinners, which were very much enjoyed after the long days of work.

“The students will return to Sydney with a greater disposition to serve others, deeper friendships and a lifelong connection to Narrandera.”