Scotch College

Fiji project a great experience for Venturers

Members of the Venturer unit enjoyed a great life experience in Fiji.

Words: Calvin Tan – Year 11

Last June, members of the 1st Hawthorn Venturer unit flew into Nadi, Fiji, after more than 18 months of fundraising, including numerous barbecues. The objective of our visit was to build a kindergarten adventure playground in the village of Navutulevu.

We arrived in Fiji to a warm welcome: big smiles and a salu salu (Fijian flora necklace) for all the Venturers and leaders. A quick stop at a local grocery store for supplies and we were on the road heading south towards Navutulevu, the coastal village in which we would spend our next 10 nights.

We were honoured to stay in the previous home of the village chief, ‘Tai’, which had a cold water internal shower, a toilet and beds. The food was specially prepared for us and tasted excellent, compliments of the villagers. Through Heather (Tai’s partner) we arranged and paid for additional food for our stay, so that we weren’t a burden on the limited resources of the village.

The kindergarten children had no play equipment when we arrived, but by the time we departed we had built them a two-metre raised platform (with both a ladder and a cargo net), a swing set, a seesaw, monkey-bars, balancing steps, chin-up bars and a bike track. The children were an integral part of our project, as they were the reason the playground was being built. The kindergarten playground was built to encourage the young Fijian children to attend kinder and start their education at a young age.

The Fijians’ enthusiasm was fantastic, their singing ability enviable and their work ethic admirable. When the Venturers were carrying wood down the road towards the playground, they would offer to help, and they had stamina and strength that was beyond us. The lifestyle of the Fijians is more of labour than of books, and although many of us were not used to the hard physical tasks, it opened up a sort of realisation of another life, which felt somewhat comforting. The Fijian children taught us many skills, including climbing a coconut tree, using a machete and how to cross a reef.

During our stay in the village, the Navutulevuians took us to many amazing sites including the coral reefs, where we felt we were on David Attenborough’s show. The fish and the octopus we could see along the dusky sharp reef, the sharks lurking only metres below, biting off the lines which we reeled in. It was a thrilling experience for those who went fishing, and so was the Rugby tournament between the two local villages. It was such a wonderful experience because of the natural (and rough) way which it was played, without many rules, with full contact – and the village of Navutulevu won!

For me the most memorable part of our service project in Fiji was that no matter where you went, you were greeted and treated with the utmost friendliness. This feeling was contagious among us, and the village became for us another home — our extended family.

The playground was finished as planned on the tenth day, when we checked the last lashings, and watched the children play on it, smiling the whole time. The satisfaction that I felt at this moment is hard to express, but I know all the Venturers shared that same feeling.

We spent a night up river at the village of Namuamua. We gave the school there some hiking equipment we had brought from Australia (thanks – Snowgum!). We also invested Andrew Hopkins and Michael Tham as Venturers, in front of the whole school. The school students sang and performed for us and we sang for them; not quite as well as the Fijian children! Most of the school students are Scouts, so this was a special occasion for us. We were also welcomed into this village that evening with the traditional sevu sevu ceremony and kava drinking.

Before we left for Melbourne there were a few sad moments during a brilliant farewell song by the village chief and the other Navutulevuians. We stayed in a hotel for the last night, and one must say that it was comforting once again to have a warm bath with spa soap, a hotel bed, a pool and a TV. Meals also consisted of a buffet with scrambled eggs, toast and sausages, along with many of the dishes we were familiar with.

However, great as those comforts were, as we walked along beside the tourists, ate the food and swam in the pool, we felt something was missing. Possibly it was the smell of the sea, a waterfall, the great, unique food and the close village atmosphere. Most of all we missed the smiles and constant friendly faces full of continuous excitement, and the activities that we all worked together on, which gave us a great group feeling.

The trip provided many memories and experiences, and it should definitely be a future unit activity. It was only possible with the support of a number of local and Gippsland businesses, and the Scotch Swap Shop.

The planning and organisation of the service project by Michelle Simberg and Robert Evans (with the help of Phil Schneider) made this possible and ultimately made it such a success. The Venturers thank them for their dedication. Our thanks must also go to the business and school supporters. They also made the trip possible, and helped to provide a memorable experience not just for us, but for the children and adults of the village of Navutulevu. GS