Tembari kids fetching water from the water tank tap. (More pics after story.)By ALFREDO P HERNANDEZ
A Friend of Tembari Children
THE High Energy Co, an export-oriented Port Moresby-based fishing outfit, has committed to shoulder the monthly water bills of Tembari Children’s Care.
The arrangement was made after company general manager Thomas Kuo visited Tembari last Friday to find out for himself what more he can do for the center’s beneficiary children, whose number has now grown to at least 175.
Thomas is no stranger to Tembari.
Since last year, he has been donating frozen fish to the center on regular basis to help boost the nutritional needs of the children, who are provided meals twice a day, from Monday to Saturday.
By the way, High Energy exports the fish it catches in PNG waters.
Visiting Tembari for the first time late Friday afternoon, Thomas saw the recently-installed water tank at the Tembari.
This water facility was a donation from RH Foundation, which was finally put up with help from PNG Concrete Aggregates and Associated Builders and Contractors, which supplied hollow (cement) blocks and cement, respectively.
Since there is no water to speak of at ATS Oro Settlement that would be enough to fill up the water tank, Tembari decided to buy bulk water from a private contractor at a cost of K260 per 1,000 gallon delivery.
The 1.000-liter delivery, which was made during the first Saturday of February, was estimated to last for at least five weeks.
The water bill for the first delivery last month and the subsequent delivery last Friday was paid for from funds donated by the Filipino Association of PNG (FAPNG), whose president then was Filipino-Papua New Guinean businessman Joey Sena, an executive of Sena Investments.
The association donated K5,000 last December, which came from the proceeds of FAPNG’s “Hatid-Saya”, a two-day fundraising concert held last September featuring Filipino entertainers.
Thomas said once the present water stock was consumed, the next delivery and those to follow would now be paid by his company.
Incidentally, when Thomas came to The Center, he brought along 20kgs of frozen fish, which our volunteer mothers fried the next morning.
But the fish was not actually consumed by the children.
With permission from Thomas, Tembari sold the fried fish to local people, and the money raised would be used for the daily feeding operations at the center, including buying tinned fish and ingredients needed for the daily meals of the children.
I earlier explained to Thomas that the Tembari children are not used to eating real fish – only tinned fish – as they would choke on fish bones.
The truth is that when we first served the children fish that Thomas donated last year, we had three incidents of choking.
Thomas understood the situation and readily agreed to have his fish donation cooked and sold.
Going back to our water bills, it is really heartwarming that High Energy offered to help us with our water needs at The Center. It would greatly relieve us of the monthly burden.
Thanks a lot, Mr Thomas Kuo!!! More power to you and your company.
The Tembari center water tank, the only one in the village filled with clean water. Thanks to the Filipino Association of PNG (FAPNG) which paid for the bulk water that is now contained in this tank.
Volunteer moms fry the fish donated by High Energy Co, a fishing company based in Port Moresby.
The frying pan and the fish.
A village man drops by to have two pieces of fried round fish at K2 each. The smaller ones are sold at K1. The fellow finished his fish right there, sprinkling it with salt.
Volunteer frying fish. (All pics by ALFREDO P HERNANDEZ)Emal the writer: alfredophernandez@thenational.com.pg
freddiephernandez@yahoo.com
tembarihdz@gmail.com
jarahdz@online.net.pg
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