Kiemi Lai and Amy Vy at Whitten Oval

For former AMES student Amy Vy it has been a long journey from the highlands of Vietnam to the Whitten Oval.

But the 25-year old is now on a pathway to her dream job after securing a role as a Cadet with the Western Bulldogs Community Engagement team.

Amy is helping run the Bulldogs’ community sport and health programs on a contracted voluntary basis for 12 months.

She came to Australia in 2009 as an overseas student. She studied and worked as a hairdresser but then decided her future lay in community development.

Amy studied English at AMES and also did a SLPET course before joining the Bulldogs and studying community development part time.

She first encountered the Bulldogs and the club’s CALDplay Program in 2012 as part of AMES St Albans youth class.

“I love my role here and I love sport. I can play most sports but cricket and footy are a bit new to me,” Amy said.

“I’m enjoying running programs for young women that encourage physical activity and give people an understanding of their own health,” she said.

The Bulldogs Community Engagement Manager Kiemi Lai said Amy joining the club was symbolic of the club’s relationship with AMES.

“AMES has been really important for us in reaching out to local communities. AMES has helped us let young people who are new to Australia understand what we have to offer as an organisation,” Kiemi said.

“Amy is a great role model for emerging communities and what she has achieved shows that it doesn’t matter if you don’t know much about a particular sport if you have enthusiasm and the ability to just give it a go,” she said.