By: Steven Gagau, PNGAA committee member and President Sydney Wantok Association

 “Helpim Wantok” is a project undertaken by the Papua New Guinea Association of Australia (PNGAA) and Sydney Wantok Association (SydWan), the Sydney based PNG Community. It’s a tribute to a good working relationship across the PNG community in Australia. Behind the scenes, committee members from both organisations have worked tirelessly in negotiations and fundraising to get to this point.

 Early in the morning on 9th of February, volunteers from the PNGAA and SydWan mobilised to collect 320 chairs and 160 tables, which had been donated by the University of technology Sydney (UTS). The SydWan hired a large truck and provided volunteer labour to assist removalists load furniture for transfer from the UTS Ultimo campus to a container depot in suburban Sydney. There was so much furniture that two trips were required! From safe storage in the depot, furniture will soon be packed into a shipping container bound for Port Moresby where the University of PNG is eagerly awaiting its arrival.

 Watch this space for a full report in the June 2018 issue of Una Voce. Support to date has been greatly appreciated and includes: donations, the results of the Christmas lunch Silent Auction/Raffles, proceeds of sale from the book The Volcano’s Wife: The Great Untold Story by Amalia Cowley and Pamela Virtue, and both financial and in kind assistance from the Sydney Wantok Association.

 Further support is still needed and your donations are appreciated. Please refer to the Treasurer’s Corner for ways to donate.