Ups and downs of door-knock

I was going to write about the success of our door knock appeal. For the past couple of weeks, we have all been busy distributing collection tins to schools, phoning supermarkets and shops, writing letters, trying to get some publicity and shaking cans in the streets. People have been giving generously. Tevita and I filled more than half a tin just from a quick tour of the stall-holders at the market. The amazing thing is that you don’t have to say much- people see the sign of the Red Cross and it speaks for itself. I was really touched by how many people were willing to give. Although the major push of our appeal is still to come, many tins were filled and waiting to be emptied and counted. Then disaster. On Thursday morning, we arrived to find that our office had been broken into during the night – and all the money stolen. The Police came and dusted for fingerprints, and we all tried to be philosophical about it, but it was very disappointing. Its not so much that the hard work of the volunteers has gone to waste. Its worse than that – its the thought that every person who saw the distinctive sign of the Red Cross and dug deep for 10c and handed it over with a smile has been cheated. Our branch president told us all that we shouldn’t dwell on it, and that the appeal would continue as before. So yesterday afternoon, Ruci and I went out to FSC – the big sugar mill – to collect. The staff there were very generous, and our tin was a lot heavier when we left than when we started. But it still doesn’t make up for what was stolen.

Today is World HIV Testing Day. There was a small celebration held in – you’ve guessed it – Shirley Park, and this time the weather was lovely. Some of the Red Cross volunteers were performing a puppet show about HIV/AIDS, but I was just along for the ride! It was a low-key event, but the speakers were good. The main message of the day was that people should not fear testing. The chief guest stressed that people involved in carrying out HIV testing must ensure that all information is kept confidential. His speech was very interesting as it also focused on HIV and the law (he himself being a magistrate). Afterwards came our puppet show, followed by refreshments, and the the testing began. There were many counselors present, and anybody who wanted to be tested first had to be interviewed by a counselor. While I knew that this was normally the case with HIV testing, I was surprised at how long this took – 10 to 20 minutes per person. After this, the actual sample was drawn out by a doctor, in the vehicle which is usually used by the Blood Bank to collect donations. Before I left the event, Reggie, one of the peer educators from the Hub Centre, drew the Red Ribbon on the side of my face… which I completely forgot about until I was walking down the main shopping drag in Lautoka. I heard someone call out ‘World AIDS Day’ and was quite impressed that the sign was so instantly recognized.

Bank holiday weekend at Nananu-i-Ra

I was beginning to realize that I hadn’t seen any of the other ‘Gappers’ (apart from Kate, who doesn’t count!) for a very long time, and also that this was to be my last long weekend in Fiji: so this weekend I joined Kate, Emma, Chris, Jenny L, Helen, Fiona and Amy (Fiona’s friend from Bonny Scotland) on a trip to Nananu-i-Ra island, just off the North coast of Viti Levu. We stayed at Macdonald’s Beach Cottages, and were pleasantly surprised by the quality of the accommodation – Kate, Emma and I were sharing a small cottage, with three single beds, a washroom with toilet and shower, and a little kitchen with fridge/freezer, gas stove, and all the necessary pots and pans. There was even a little breakfast bar with stools! I had stocked up on instant noodles, baked beans, tinned tuna and a loaf of bread from Lautoka, which lasted me the whole weekend, saving a bit of money. The cottage wasn’t massive, but it certainly wasn’t cramped, which meant that when the heavens opened on Saturday afternoon and a torrential downpour started, all eight of us could sit in there together.

While the beach was not the best, the long jetty more that made up for it! Fishing is banned from the jetty, but feeding the fish (with bread or whatever) is positively encouraged. As a result, you don’t even have to get in the water to see a huge number of brightly coloured fish up close. I saw plenty of parrot fish, swordfish and clown fish. The coral near the jetty looked a bit dead, though when I swam a bit further out there was more to see. I didn’t spend a long time snorkeling though, since the visibility was pretty poor and the deep water was giving me the heeby-jeebies, but Helen, Chris and Jenny said that there was more to see a little further out.

Today it was back to work as usual! The Fiji Red Cross Society used to have an annual national ‘Door knock Appeal’ to raise funds, but due to a disappointingly total last year, they have decided to take a different tack with fund raising for 2008. However, Lautoka Branch has decided to go ahead with its own Door knock appeal, just for the Lautoka area, so there is plenty of work to be done! Today, we were distributing collection cans to the local schools, and some of the volunteers went out into town with cans and stickers to collect donations. Our appeal will continue until the 14th July, so there should be plenty to do over the next few weeks.

Wheres’s Viv been hiding?

Wow! Its really been ages since my last post! I don’t even know where to start!

Basically I moved house last month. I am now staying with a new family, in an area of Lautoka called Topline. My new family includes; a grandma, a mother, her son and daughter (Bill, 26 and Alesi, 16) and their cousin Veresa (19) and two smaller cousins, Sala (7) and Amelia (12). These are the mainstays – other family members appear from time to time! I feel incredibly grateful to have been taken in by such a warm and open family, and I really am touched by their kindness. Within a short space of time, they really have become like family to me, and already I know that I will miss them terribly when I leave.

I have become completely dependent on Alesi – so much so that I have started to call her my ‘manager’! Without her, I would have no idea what to wear, what shoes to buy… etc. Each time there’s a social occasion – or church – I call Alesi in to choose my clothes for me. Without her, I really would have no idea what to wear! I wonder what Dorry would make of it if I was like that back home in Luxembourg…

Work wise, things have been quiet, though they are picking up now. I had a lovely time with the Junior Red Cross clubs at the Sanatan Primary School and the Lautoka Fijian School this week, doing first aid. We went through the priorities of First Aid (Danger, Response, Send for help, Airway, Breathing and Circulation) and the recovery position, with everyone having a chance to practice. We were lucky at Lautoka Fijian School that the weather was nice, so we held the club meeting out in the school ground, where there was plenty of room for everyone to spread out and play unconscious. The students seemed interested, and we are hoping to return soon to teach them about first aid treatment for bleeding and minor injuries.

We have also finally collected the artwork from the Sunshine Special School and the Lautoka School of Special Education, and posted these to the Red Cross National Office in Suva, from where they’ll be forwarded to Bulgaria. The day that we went to collect the artwork from the Lautoka School fro Special Education, I was actually having a bad day and feeling awful – hungry tired and grumpy! But seeing the children’s’ artwork really changed my mood. We had told them that their work could be on any theme; many of them had chosen to draw Fiji. There were some beautiful, colorful pictures of villages and coral reefs… palm trees everywhere! There must be few places in the world with so much natural beauty to draw. Kate and I were really impressed with the quality of the drawings, and hope that the judges in Bulgaria will like them too.

We have a lot of new volunteers at Red Cross, and they have been working on a couple of puppet shows and mekes to be performed on World Blood Donor Day this Saturday (the 14th June). This event aims to promote voluntary blood donation, and the mobile blood bank unit will be there on the day to take donations. They have been rehearsing hard everyday – puppert show in the morning, meke in the afternoon, which is nice because the music is very relaxing! Sadly, Kate and I won’t be there as we are heading up to Nananu-i-Ra island this weekend.