Koha due back in Whanganui
Mission ship docks before Pacific project
The ship that Whanganui people fitted out with a dental surgery will be back in port for 10 days in a final push for volunteers and funding before it heads into the Pacific. The boat is the YWAM (Youth With a Mission) Koha, donated by a Tauranga business in 2019. YWAM is fitting out the 48m former cargo ship to provide healthcare and education to people on remote Pacific islands, New Zealand managing director Marty Emmett said.
The ship is due in Whanganui tomorrow, with the arrival depending on tide and weather. It will be open for free tours from 1pm-5pm on April 11, 14, 16 and 18, and 10am to 6pm on April 17.
After its Whanganui visit the Koha will be in Wellington from April 23 to May 9 for fundraising and more tours. YWAM hopes to sail it into the Pacific in July, fully funded and with a volunteer crew.
After its donation, the boat needed a marine survey to fit it for five more years of service. The cost was $300,000. There was still $100,000 to raise.
Volunteer crew and medical personnel were also needed, and Emmett hoped people who came for a tour would help.
“We have such close ties with the peoples of the Pacific. This is another immediate way of reaching out to our brothers and sisters there,” he said.
The YWAM Koha will carry shipping containers that are individually fitted out for medical, surgical, dental and other work. Personnel will provide wound care, dental work, health education and clean water from its filtration system.
The organisation hopes to eventually provide optometry and cataract surgery, and perhaps Covid-19 vaccinations.
On its last visit to Whanganui, in November 2019, a container fitted out for dental work was craned aboard. The container idea was inspired by Whanganui dentist Hadleigh Reid, and fitted out by engineer Jaime Barrett, using donations from Whanganui businesses.
Emmett was brought up in Whanganui. He joined YWAM while studying engineering in Christchurch.