Photo: Helen Taylor. The Australian ex-pat admits she shed a tear when she saw the Youth of Lae fundraising for Australia's bushfire victims.
In Papua New Guinea, at least 37% of the population lives below the poverty line, making less than $1 (U.S.) a day. Despite that, the city of Lae -- with around 70,000 inhabitants -- managed to raise more than $60,000 to help in the aftermath of the Australian bushfires. It all started when Sheila Harou saw the images from the fires in Australia and decided to mobilize her community in Lae to help their neighbors across the sea. The money raised was donated to the Rotary Club at Merimbula, which gave part of the funds to the Bega Valley Council. Sharon Tapscott, mayor of Bega Valley, was astounded by this big act of kindness: "To read that these people were donating what little they had, I cannot tell you how much this money means to me, not so much in dollar terms but the value in humanitarian terms. It's amazing." In a virtual meeting this week, Tapscott thanked Ms. Harou on behalf of her community and promised to visit the city of Lae once lockdown is over. She also explained how the money will be used. Harou was happy to hear how the money will help the community. "From the beginning, we said we must give from the heart and it must reach another heart, so it feels good that our money is put to good use supporting our neighbor friend and family out there," she said.
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