It's amazing what can happen when you least expect it. From a simple word at the right time.
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During a conversation earlier this year in Pittsworth, Queensland, between Rotarian Aub Schulstad from Laurieton and Trevor Shields, the President of the Rotary Club of Pittsworth regarding help for an eighty-nine year old disabled gentleman who retired to the Pittsworth area after living in Papua New Guinea (PNG) for over forty years, President Shields hesitated when he heard the words 'Papua New Guinea'. He then made reference to a major book project the Club was about to undertake for PNG.
The request for help from the Pittsworth Rotary Club came from Angela Sowai Gizoria from the village of 'Pes' PNG to establish a library in a primitive Primary School in her local area near Aitape in the Sandaun (West Sepik) Province of PNG. She was hoping to fulfill a lifelong dream to establish the library to service five hundred students from nine villages.
Educational books, children's books, encyclopaedias, teaching aids such as DVD/CD players, VCR's, video tapes and computers if available and general novels for adults in the villages, were all required. The power to operate the equipment was solar power.
Rotarian Aub Schulstad said to the President of the Pittsworth Club that the Rotary Club of Laurieton had encyclopaedias, educational books, children's books and numerous other items that were no longer required in Australia, maybe they would be of some help.
A phone call was immediately made from Pittsworth to Rotarian Alan Anderson the Community Service Director of the Rotary Club of Laurieton, the person responsible for the Rotary Book Sales and the book collections, to seek his assistance.
He said 'yes' Laurieton could help. President Shields was most grateful for this advice, he said his Club needs all the help it can get as it is intends to fill a twenty foot container.
The next challenge, of course, was how to get the books and other equipment from Laurieton to PNG via Pittsworth.
Work started immediately by the Rotary Club of Laurieton to select the appropriate books and to find some DVD/CD players, tapes and the like that could be made ready for packing. Next came the actual packing of the goods onto two large pallets, but what then, how does the Club get the pallets to Pittsworth? Thanks to the generosity of 'Jim Pearson Transport', Port Macquarie the pallets left Port Macquarie for Brisbane on their journey to PNG on Friday 27 June.
The Pittsworth Rotary Club will take delivery of the pallets in Brisbane and arrange the transport to Aitape, PNG.
During the process of preparing the goods for transport the help of local people other than Rotarians was involved. Frank Helmers from Kendall serviced all the electrical equipment, Kendall Primary School provided an old computer and Barbara Jackson and Lorraine Gill helped with sorting. The person who deserves the greatest 'thanks' is Rotarian Alan Anderson as without his organising ability and dedication to helping others this project would never have become a reality.
The story started as a request for the Pittsworth Rotary Club to help an eighty-nine year old disabled gentleman living in the area. The good news is that the members of the Pittsworth Club did make several visits to the gentleman's home and carried out work on the property as a community service. A good result for all concerned through a simple conversation.
