PDF Pirini Ponders - August 2019
Greetings to you all,
We have had a busy couple of months with friends and family visits which has been a real blessing. Our daughter Charlotte took a couple of weeks out to visit and we were to spend a weekend camping Solomon’s style, beautiful weather with plenty of snorkeling, swimming and even a mountain climb for those who chose to get up early to see the sunrise.
The Healthy eating and nutrition project has been a great success this month and well received by the staff and families at SWIM. It was great having Emma (from Kingston church Tasmania) stay with us for 3 weeks. She was instrumental in writing up log charts, trialing healthy recipes and cooking with Betty. Emma also helped design and built an outside oven with a chimney and bamboo pipe to the outside which extracts smoke from the cooking hut.
We took advantage of Charlotte’s nursing skills to assist with the staff health checks as part of the program. All staff were tested for glucose, urine (protein), weight and measurements for BMI, blood pressures and information questionnaire around eating and exercising habits. Staff rotated around different stations and finished with morning tea and cake! Later was a presentation on healthy diets and lifestyle choices. Again, well received and participated by all staff.
The Wednesday evening Children’s ministry has started up again with an emphasis on teaching literacy using phonetics, mnemonic actions and alphabet signs for the deaf. Some illiterate adults are also participating, with more than 50 people turning up for the first night. We are excited to see this continue and are thankful to Ana, one of our SWIM family who has taken this on board to do.
The hospital school extensions are complete it looks amazing, they have done a fantastic job and transformation. Ron and the building team attended an official opening and luncheon to celebrate.
Other than that its business as usual with a busy month in July during school holidays hosting multiple teams and ongoing maintenance of the SWIM base property.
We would love to hear from you anytime so please feel free to drop us a line anytime with your news.
All our love and Gods blessings to you,
Ron and Tanya
PDF Pirini Ponders - June 2019
Greetings to you all again from the Solomon Islands for our Winter Pirini Ponderings.
We are thankful for a couple of weeks leave and a break away in New Zealand and Fiji.It was a privilege and proud Mumma moment to be involved in the engagement of our daughter Charlotte to Ben Starr, so now we are looking forward to an Autumn wedding next April. We had a wonderful time visiting Taupo with the girls and loved spending time with our little granddaughter Lily who is growing so fast into a little lady with a very sassy personality. We were a little saddened to see a deterioration in Tanya’s dads mental health and certainly treasured the time we were able to spend with him.
Our time in Fiji was relaxing and we enjoyed a slightly cooler climate before heading back to the Solomon Islands.
We are thankful that in our absence the SWIM base ran smoothly and we are grateful to our staff for their hard work so we could enjoy a break away.
So, to update you on what we have been busy with since our last newsletter. We are working on a joint project with Bethesda Disability center on a Healthy Eating and Nutrition project. This is a pilot and once all the materials have been developed and some model gardens and kitchens complete, we can start training SWIM and Bethesda staff and families, and eventually out into the communities. It’s about the awareness of healthy eating and what we need to see on our plates, less carbohydrates!
We have visited the Mamosa village which is about 90 min drive from the SWIM Base. We identified a need for a water tank project, repairs to the school classrooms and some community toilets. At present the water collection is from a spring into a container, this is all the water that services the village! The plan is to dam the spring and pipe water to a tank so there will be a continual supply. We plan to work on this over the next few months so again if you have a team looking to do a mission trip let me know we can certainly use you.
Our boys are busy working on building a ramp and inside toilet at the hospital school for the students. This is a need that is long overdue, once complete the students who are patients will be able to access the classroom from the hospital and have a bathroom to use.
Other than general repairs and maintenance around the SWIM base and assistance to our local church with some building work and assistance with an upcoming convention, its just business as usual around the place. We would love to hear from you anytime so please feel free to drop us a line anytime with your news.
All our love and Gods blessings to you all
Ron and Tanya
Prayer support
1. Thanks for a great refreshing holiday
2. For our families at home, for good health and safety in their daily activities.
3. For the SIW board as they plan and recruit staff for the SWIM base based on a recent review. May there be those willing to come and serve in the Solomon Islands.
PDF Pirini Ponders - April 2019
Greetings family and friends from the not so Hapi Isles.
You will recall from our last newsletter elections were very much the topic of conversation, particularly the announcement of the new Prime Minister and the repercussions that would follow dependant on outcome of the appointment. Last Wednesday 24th April we experienced rioting and unrest. Thankfully the RSIPF were prepared and able to prevent any major disturbance from impacting on the streets of Honiara. 2 nights of curfew and a liquor ban enforced saw minimal damage was caused. The SWIM base is located on the outskirts of town, so we felt safe and stayed put for a few days. At this time all is back to normal, however this could all change after May 2nd High Court decisions disputing the legality of the election process.
During all the excitement we were fortunate to host 2 returning teams working on various projects on outer Islands. Bethlehem College from our hometown Tauranga continue to do great work out a Su’u school in Malaita. They completed a girl’s shower block enabling the students to shower in private, and a fully functioning toilet block something they have not had in 15years! This is something I’m sure you, like us, cannot comprehend. The teachers reported, tears from the students when they saw water coming from the enclosed shower block.
At the same time a team of 33 CRCA church volunteers from Sydney, Tasmania and Perth were continuing to serve the community of Katova. They are building a High School for the Katova District located in Isabel Province. This project consists of building 50 buildings including classrooms, dormitories, kitchens, administration facilities and staff housing. It’s a massive project but over 400 kids will get the chance to go to high school. They were also able to minister to children and families through a children’s programme. They made great progress and we look forward to possibly seeing some of them again later in the year.
We are very proud of the way our SWIM staff and family have continued to work diligently over the last few weeks during the election process and riots. They didn’t hesitate to take on an extra workload when the base was at full capacity hosting 3 teams at short notice due to a logistical hiccup with Katova team having an unplanned sleep over.
We have continued to serve our neighbouring community in building projects at the local church and school and look forward to starting on repairs and maintenance at the Honiara Hospital School once our container of supplies from Australia arrives. This will involve a new toilet and ramp for the children in hospital and visiting family. Funds raised to complete this project have been raised by the CRCA Cadets and GEMS. Our thanks and appreciation to these children for their generosity in helping the children in the Solomon Islands.
We are also working with the Community Based Rehabilitation programme building and installing disability toilets in communities where disabled have no access to toilet facilities. More on this in the next newsletter.
We mentioned last newsletter Ron had been and visited a village to look at potential projects we can get involved with. This is looking to happen in October this year. We have interest from a small team based in Nelson NZ. Any other small church groups that are considering a mission trip this year and sounds of interest please let me know and I can send you more details. Ideally a building or trade background would be great, but God loves a willing heart to serve and can use you I’m sure in whatever capacity that maybe.
We look forward to a break to catch up with the family and friends in NZ during the first few weeks in June. It is a very hectic time trying to catch up with everyone, especially working around your work commitments, so we look forward to seeing as many of you as possible. If we miss you, know we are only an email or messenger away and feel free to contact us anytime.
All our love and Gods blessings to you all
Ron and Tanya
Prayer support
1. For SWIM base and staff as we face uncertainties and possible continued unrest through the election time
2. For our families at home, for good health and safety in their daily activities
3. For the CRCA church, the board and the committees that meet to determine the future direction of the SWIM base and mission in general based on a recent review
4. For safety and protection over our travels as we return to NZ for a refreshing break
PDF Pirini Ponders - February 2019
Happy New Year and greetings to you all.
We had a great break in NZ for Christmas and loved being able to catch up with many of you again.
We returned to the SWIM base early January which had been badly hit by flooding over the New Year period. We are thankful that no major damage occurred on the base, however the roads are horrendous, so back to 45 min bumpy trips to town.
We had a bad start to the year with our Canter truck ending up at the mechanic’s workshop after taking in water and needing major repairs to a damaged motor. It will be another 6 weeks off the base waiting for parts from Australia to arrive and then the labour. The truck is the SWIM lifeline for many everyday tasks and as many of you would acknowledge the use for visiting teams.
We started the year with a visit from a representative from CRCA Australia who was undertaking a review of the SWIM base and meeting with locals.
It’s been full swing into the school sponsorship programme for 2019. This is always a busy but exciting time to see the eagerness of students wanting to learn. Sadly there is never enough financial support to provide funds for all the children needing school fees paid, but thanks to regular donors
We had the privilege of our Crossroads Prison Ministry Coordinator visit and spend time with our prison ministry worker last week. This was a great opportunity for him to get a better understanding of the work we do here in the Solomon Islands and put some new practices in place to improve the quality of teaching they receive and for opportunities on their release into the community. We are excited and look forward to working more closely with Crossroads going forward.we have been able to cover almost all the fees. If this is something you would consider getting involved with please let me know. This could be a simple one-off donation through a collection in your work place to support a child at university who wishes to study the line of work you are involved with for example.
Ron has been and visited a village to look at potential projects we can get involved with. This village is still very much a traditional village where there are no water tanks or communal bathroom facilities. The classroom roof leaks and all the teacher’s resources are damaged when it rains. Email me if you have a team from your church that is considering a mission trip, this could be something you can get involved with.
The general topic of conversation around town is elections and campaigning. Its interesting how politics works in another culture, we are praying for peace and harmony in the Nation as the voting and elections draw closer, it could become a very tense time. NZ and Australian extra police have been called in, just in case.
We have started attending a new church closer to the base and within our community here so look forward to being able to help out with them and their school both personally and as part of SWIM.
Our daughter Elise is doing really well and has been offered some part-time work, we are thankful to God and all our friends and family for your prayers in seeing such a great recovery.
So we are excited for the new possibilities this year and look forward to catching up with the regular visiting teams in the near future.
All our love and Gods blessings to you
Ron and Tanya
Prayer support
1. For SWIM base and staff as we begin a new year together, for growth and openness in their work and lives.
2. For our families at home, for good health and safety in their daily activities
3. For the CRCA church, the board and the committees that meet to determine the future direction of the SWIM base and mission in general4. The elections here in the Solomon Islands that the right person will be appointed to lead the Nation
.