Last year, marked my first trip back to Papua New Guinea in 19 years. During our trip Evandah and I, alongside From Me, established 7 school libraries throughout the remote villages of Kainantu, Eastern Highlands Province.

From Me is a New Zealand non-profit whose mission is to provide quality education to Pacific children by repurposing resources donated from NZ schools. The From Me team is a team of 4, including 2 Sisters who started the work. These legendary Sisters also spent part of their childhood in PNG and share my deep love and respect for the people of PNG. The impact PNG had on our lives has left us combining our efforts to give back to a nation that gave so much to us.

During our trip, we visited schools which had ‘libraries’ with no books, broken shelves with nothing on them, and we witnessed adults locating their country on a map for the very first time. We’ve never seen children so excited to receive books. Not only were the children excited, but their parents and the wider community were also ecstatic to see us fill classrooms with books. Many of them said it was the first sign of positive change they had seen in their communities in a long time.

We're determined to continue doing the work that we've started, so Evandah and I have committed to complete the Hawkes Bay Half Marathon to raise funds for our efforts in PNG. Our aim is to head back as often as we can and continue sharing preloved resources with our Pacific neighbours.

Every donation, regardless of size, makes a significant impact. Stay updated on our progress by following @frommenz.

Your support means the world to us. Thank you!