Vanuatu: from lounging by pool to pitching in

WHANAU: Jen Bockhop and some of the villagers of Utanlang relax after a training session on computer literacy.

A Masterton couple have used their talents, teaching skills and Kiwi ingenuity to transform Pacific village communities ravaged by weather and poverty - and are appealing to their own community to open their hearts.

Jen and Tim Bockhop travelled to the Vanuatuan island of Nguna last month with Volunteer Vanuatu, a not-for-profit organisation helping develop sustainable community projects for the island nation.

The Bockhops spent two weeks in the remote villages of Utanlang and Farealapa, both still recovering from the impact of Cyclone Pam - and helped dig trenches for fresh water, build large-scale chicken coops with bamboo and old netting, repair damaged roofs, and teach members of the community how to use a laptop.

The couple had travelled to Vanuatu as tourists a year ago - but this time there was to be no lounging by the pool, drinking cocktails.

With most of their host villages' crops decimated, houses held together with tree branches, villages having to walk for an hour to find water and children barely able to read due to poor eyesight, Jen and Tim had their work cut out for them.

"We thought we'd tried to see the real Vanuatu when we went last time - but we hadn't seen it at all," Jen said.

"It's hard to comprehend that only three hours from Auckland, right on our doorstep, is one of the poorest nations in the world," Tim added.

"After seeing some of the things we have, you can't go back to relaxing at a resort.

"You do all you can to help."

After spending their first night at a resort near Port Vila, the couple travelled several hours to Nguna, and were welcomed by their hosts at Utanlang.

It was not long before they were put to work, with Tim helping dig an underground trench to channel water from the nearest spring - an hour and a half away - to the village.

With no other access to water, the village women had to trek up the "extremely steep" side of a volcano to retrieve it from the source.

Jen, who has experience in administration and finance, put her skills by use by running training seminars for the villagers.

At their request, she ran sessions on accounting and book-keeping, business management, financial literacy, cooking, and making trousers - using a pattern she drew on a blackboard.

Most rewarding, she said, was teaching them how to use a computer.

"Seeing their faces light up when they saw they words they typed on the screen was huge.

"One of the elders said to me, 'yesterday, I learned to type my name - now I can type a whole letter.'"

The couple said their biggest achievement was the Utanlang Poulet Palace - a 20m by 5m chicken coop fashioned with a swathe of old netting Tim found at Matahiwi Estate, where he works.

Tim said the village had a large population of chooks which "run wild" - with eggs their laid in bushes and destroyed by dogs.

But, thanks to the Poulet Palace, the village can house the chooks safely, and help sustain the community by selling eggs and meat.

"Their crops had been completely wiped out -- so the eggs will help bring in some income," Tim said.

"It's our dream for the chicken coops to eventually pay for a school teacher for Utanlang -- as the nearest primary school is a couple of hours away".

The Bockhops also started building a similar coop in the village of Farealapa after word of the successful Poulet Palace began to travel throughout the Island.

Jen said her favourite part of the trip was spending time with the village people, who, despite having very little, treated them "like royalty", making them beautiful island clothes and catching crab and lobster especially for their guests.

"No-one had ever stayed with them as long as we had.

"They were lining up to hug us as we left."

This weekend, the Bockhops will be holding a public 'coffee and supper' evening, sharing their experiences and inviting people to donate to various Volunteer Vanuatu projects.

At present, they are raising funds for a solar-powered water pump and to repair the roof of the local kindergarten in Utanlang, and will also be collecting glasses, shoes, books and tooth brushes for the villagers.

"Every little bit helps," Jen said.

The Bockhops' presentation will be held on Saturday, 14 November, at 7.30pm at Lighthouse Church, 23 Intermediate St, Masterton. For more information, email jeanette.bockhop@xtra.co.nz.