News Archive

Kirsten Bolinger
Public relations editorial assistant

The theft of outdoor recreation equipment from Avondale College over the Labour Day long weekend will cost $17,000 to replace and inconvenience staff members and students.

Six sea kayaks and other accessories are now missing after the thief or thieves cut a hole in the mesh fencing of the outdoor education storage facility behind Ella Boyd Hall. Avondale's security officer Jon Kennedy says the thief or thieves did their homework. "They waited until the Fit Life Health Centre closed so there wouldn't be any traffic along the road where the break-in took place."

The remaining equipment in the storage facility is now in a more secure but less convenient facility, which will add to the time it takes students to prepare for their activities.

The theft is the second this year and the third in three years. Wayne Miller, senior lecturer in health and outdoor education in the Faculty of Education, thinks the same thief or thieves are responsible. "They know where everything is, they know their way around and they know how to get in." He says the theft will significantly disrupt the outdoor recreation program and "frustrate those of us who just want to get on with the job of training our next generation of leaders." His advice for the thief or thieves: "Enrol in our Diploma of Outdoor Recreation and turn your life around."

Caption: Lecturers David Low and Wayne Miller say the theft of sea kayaks like these from Avondale College will disrupt the outdoor recreation program.
Credit: Ann Stafford