Call for Kiwis to help build Thai home
Judene Edgar is championing a support crew for Habitat for Humanity’s Global Village project in South East Asia and hopes to wrangle some helping hands.
It will be the third volunteer operation Edgar has been a part of but the first time she’s led the charge.
For three weeks in June she and a group of 15 volunteers will roll up their sleeves and head out to Thailand’s Rayong Provence where Edgar says 16 per cent of people still live below the national poverty line.
There, volunteers will mix cement, build walls and install septic tanks to help give families opportunities that could change their lives.
‘‘More and more people are recognising the value of housing right across people’s lives with mental health, physical health and positive outcomes for children, if they’re in a better more stable housing environment,’’ Edgar said.
You don’t need to be a qualified builder to give up your time and volunteer for the project.
‘‘Just need to have the right attitude of rolling your sleeves up. To me that works so well with the Kiwi ethos. This is what we do.’’
Edgar, a former Tasman district councillor, chose Habitat for Humanity because she said the programmes delivered on their promises and continued to support clients after volunteers returned home.
‘‘Habitat is about upskilling locals so that there is this sustainability. There’s local people [from Habitat] you’re working with who understand the local community and who are there all the time keeping these things going,’’ she said.
This time last year Edgar was carting barrows full of bricks in Nepal to help rebuild parts of Kavre’s Panchkhal Valley where 93 homes were destroyed following major earthquakes in 2015. She said the devastation was ‘‘beyond comprehension’’.
Twelve months after the earthquake when Edgar stepped off the plane what she saw was devastating.
‘‘Everything was totally destroyed. There would just be bricks all over the ground and you’re just walking around them,’’ she said.
‘‘There were queues, and I mean kilometre-long queues, of people trying to get petrol, generally a couple of days long.’’
On site Edgar was put to work with 17 other volunteers.
Her skill was carting wheelbarrows of bricks up slopes which were then used to rebuild people’s homes.
‘‘Each day the houses were further built and each day you all work together with one goal. It was the best team working experience I’ve ever had in my life.’’
For more information about Habitat for Humanity’s Global Village projects visit habitat.org.nz.
For information on the Thai project from June 24 to July 1 contact Edgar on 021 541927 or judene.edgar@gmail.com.