Rosemary (pictured left) was born and raised in Kivori. She has been a ChildFund volunteer for almost six years. She is warm, kind and takes pride in being part of helping build a healthier community. “When people have a health emergency, they run to me. They recognise me as a community health volunteer – it gives me authority,” said Rosemary.
Four hours north of Port Moresby sits Kivori, a small coastal village. The road into the village is rough, rocky, and unreliable – often becoming impossible to drive on when it rains.
In remote villages like Kivori, timely health care is hard to find. ChildFund Papua New Guinea has worked in Kivori for more than six years and in 2021 opened a fully stocked health post. The Kivori Health Post is open one week every month, when district health professionals visit.
During this week, families visit the clinic for tuberculosis diagnosis, routine immunisations, and any other health concerns. In between these visits, Community Health Volunteers (CHV), like Rosemary, are the backbone of healthcare in the community.
As a CHV, Rosemary supports pregnant mothers in the community to access antenatal care. She also identifies possible tuberculosis (TB) cases and encourages children to be tested, diagnosed, and treated.
Before becoming a CHV, Rosemary worked with the village courts to respond to domestic and family violence to ensure that children were safe and protected.
She first heard about ChildFund Papua New Guinea through a TB prevention and treatment workshop. In the last few years though, her attention has shifted from TB to COVID-19. She attended a ChildFund workshop to learn about the symptoms and how families could protect themselves from the COVID-19 through hand hygiene and social distancing.
More recently Rosemary has been advocating to families to get the COVID-19 vaccine. After the training Rosemary went from door to door to talk about the vaccine.
“There are so many challenges. It is a lot of hard work. Sitting and having a conversation though, doing the explaining – that is how I encourage my friends and family. This is what encourages them to get the vaccine.”
Rosemary explained that many parents question whether the vaccine is safe for their children and if there are any long-term impacts. She says that widespread misinformation and lack of access to the vaccine is largely to blame for the low uptake. Only 3.5% of the country is fully vaccinated.
Rosemary and her one-year-old grandson.
“This is my community, and we are very far away from other health posts, so we must work as a team to keep people healthy.”
Once a month they host community information sessions at Kivori about the virus and the vaccine. Slowly, more people in Kivori are choosing to get vaccinated.
Rosemary is happiest when watching her community grow. When asked about her own family during the interview, her one-year-old grandson crawled over and grabbed for her. She smiled and picked him up. “This is my grandson; I call him my booboo.”
Rosemary is one of three volunteers working in antenatal care. “We do home visits to see the mothers and attend the clinics with them. We also support them with transport to and from the community.”
She says that she particularly enjoys the antenatal work and supporting expecting mothers; she loves talking to people in her community and seeing it thrive.
Looking to the future she hopes to see health care professionals stationed at Kivori on a full-time basis. This would mean the clinic could open every day and people in the community could access healthcare when they need it.
“Kivori needs an ambulance,” says Rosemary. “We do many referrals but the road in and out of the community is not very good and it is a long trip. Sometimes people sit in their sickness because they can’t get to the hospitals.”
CHVs like Rosemary are crucial to achieving better long-term health outcomes for the children and young people. ChildFund is committed to working with communities and medical professionals to ensure children and families can access basic healthcare so they can lead health lives.
Auckland, New Zealand – South African adventurers Ron Rutland and Adam Nunn pedalled their last kilometre through the tunnel leading to Eden Park Stadium, as they made the last stop of their epic cycling expedition which started in Tokyo, Japan – the site of the Rugby World Cup 2019 final. The duo arrived just in time to deliver the opening game’s whistle to referee Maggie Cogger-Orr to officially kick-off Rugby World Cup 2021 last month.
AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND – OCTOBER 08: (L-R) Adam Nunn and Ron Rutland enter Eden Park as they deliver the official whistle for the first match ahead of the Pool C Rugby World Cup 2021 New Zealand match between South Africa and France at Eden Park on October 08, 2022, in Auckland, New Zealand. (Photo by Hagen Hopkins – World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images)
Spanning 209 days, 11 nations, and over 16,500km, the Race to Rugby World Cup 2021 successfully raised more than 15,000 USD for ChildFund Rugby, the tournament’s Principal Charity. The journey was supported by World Rugby, DHL, and the global rugby family who cheered for them all the way to the finish line.
This is not the first time for a quest this impressive! Three years ago, Ron Rutland and his then fellow cyclist James Owens cycled from London to Tokyo over eight months to raise funds and awareness for ChildFund Rugby, the then Principal Charity for Rugby World Cup 2019 in Japan.
After departing from Tokyo in March 2022, the cyclists criss-crossed through 11 countries, spreading their passion for rugby and their belief in how it can be used to drive positive social impact. Both rugby and non-rugby communities welcomed the two with open arms. In the South East Asia leg of the tour, Ron and Adam caught up with Coaches and players from ChildFund Rugby’s partnerships in Vietnam and Cambodia. This leg of the trip gave them the chance to witness the impact of the work Partners do, and it was one of the highlights of their trip.
“It’s been the most incredible and also the most challenging expedition imaginable! Just getting to the starting line in Tokyo with all the ever-changing COVID restrictions in the region, was a feat in itself. The restrictions were a constant concern during the first few months of the journey,” Ron recalled how they managed to overcome one of the toughest periods of the trip. “But as the journey progressed, we were able to focus more on our pedalling, the more ‘ordinary’ ups and downs of spending 40 to 50 hours a week in the saddle, and most importantly our fundraising efforts for ChildFund Rugby.”
AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND – OCTOBER 08: Adam Nunn and Ron Rutland pose with match referee Maggie Cogger-Orr who is holding the official whistle for the first match ahead of the Pool C Rugby World Cup 2021 New Zealand match between South Africa and France at Eden Park on October 08, 2022, in Auckland, New Zealand. (Photo by Hagen Hopkins – World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images)
When Ron and Adam finally arrived at Eden Park, a throng greeted them with waves of applause. Also looking forward to their arrival were representatives from World Rugby, DHL, ChildFund Rugby, and, of course, referee Maggie Cogger-Orr who was excited to start the first game with the safe delivery of the whistle.
“It’s been inspiring seeing Ron and Adam travelling towards Auckland, and visiting the rugby community along the way, including many of our partners. We are thrilled that Ron has once again chosen to support ChildFund Rugby in his latest adventure. Their support means that more girls and women will have the opportunity to learn leadership and life skills through rugby, supporting a more impactful tournament legacy,” said Margaret Sheehan, ChildFund Australia CEO, who greeted the duo at the stadium.
After the fantastic wrap-up of this year’s RWC, the Race to Rugby World Cup adventure continues. Not letting himself (and his bicycle) rest for too long, Ron is already back on the road after being assigned to deliver the opening game’s whistle for the Rugby World Cup France 2023 on September 8th 2023 in Paris. Ron is gearing up for another epic ride, and this time it will be a 22,000km-cycling journey to Stade de France, while continuing his support for ChildFund Rugby.
A big thanks to Ron and we wish him all the best over the next ten months!
