By Grant Hitzman
Indigenous Geelong players will visit Zillmere Eagles Junior AFC next Monday, to treat junior footballers to an AFL clinic and health promotion session.
The Deadly Choices clinic, an initiative of the State Government’s Closing the Health Gap program, aims to empower Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islanders to make healthy lifestyle choices.
Matthew Stokes, Allen Christensen, Travis Varcoe, Steven Motlop, Joel Hamling and Brad Hartman have been chosen as program ambassadors to represent the Deadly Choices Clinic.
The ambassadors’ role is to help teach young Indigenous people more about key health issues and the impact of life decisions on personal wellbeing.
This includes focusing on “saying no to smokes”, resisting the temptations of drugs and alcohol and embracing physical activity and nutrition.
Stokes expressed the importance of his ambassadorial role.
“You understand that the impact you can have on the community and the kids is massive,” he said.
Aboriginal Cooperative chief executive, Tracey Currie, highlighted the role athletes play on youths’ decisions.
“Elite sports players are very good role models to get the message across to 12-17-year-olds,” he said.
The clinic will run from 10am – 1pm, with registration at 9:30am and will be available to kids aged 17 & under.
The Geelong ambassadors will be on hand to run the clinics with AFL Queensland in what should be a fantastic day out for Indigenous youth.
Children can register for the day by going to the 
Deadly Choices Facebook page.
