Party time for Fiji trip

By Paul Pickering
FERNTREE Gully’s own sporting missionary Peter Cole is making an eleventh-hour appeal for the hills community to throw its weight behind his philanthropic tour of Fiji.
In September, Mr Cole will embark upon his third Fijian odyssey in a bid to provide sporting equipment to under-resourced schools throughout the strife-torn South Pacific nation.
For the past 14 months, he has been approaching schools, sports clubs, community groups and businesses asking for donations of second-hand sporting goods and vital funding for his trip.
While he has been overwhelmed by the community’s support, Mr Cole is making a last-ditch effort to fill his shipping-container of goodies before it departs for Fiji.
On Saturday, 15 September, Mr Cole will host a Fijian party at his house with games and raffles to raise funds for the mission.
Mr Cole is looking forward to dusting off his grass skirt and is encouraging others to join him in authentic Fijian garb.
Amid all the fun and games, however, he has not lost sight of the seriousness of Fiji’s current political climate.
“The costs this year are more than ever because of the coup that happened in Fiji last December,” he said.
“All the government ministries have had significant funding cuts and the ministers have been dealt pay cuts to go with it.”
While Mr Cole concedes that his own mission is not a sustainable solution to the lack of educational resources, he says the value of a smiling face should not be under-estimated.
“Sporting equipment is not going to save lives or feed people,” he said.
“But it is a very important part of a kid’s life because when they are playing sport all of a sudden their problems become obsolete.”
The Fijian party will start at 7pm on 15 September.
Mr Cole can be contacted on 9758 7994 to RSVP for the event, or to donate money or sporting equipment towards the trip.