ILISAPECI TUIVALE
When Emosi Vivia saw Mere Tamoi, a stroke survivor, returning from the river, his heart sank as he walked her to her home because he saw the difficulty she encountered every day.
This meeting encouraged him to build a house especially for her to fit her needs and accessibility.
The Lomani Au Home, a first for Nabuna Village, Koro was inspired by Mr Vivia’s encounter with Ms Tamoi.
Mr Vivia, originally from Saqani in Cakaudrove had visited Nabuna village during a funeral and that was where he met with Ms Tamoi.
“After the funeral, I was walking along the village when I met her along the way. After 20 minutes of returning, I saw that she was still standing on the same spot that I had met her on, so I offered to walk her to her daughter’s home where she stayed. When I dropped her off at her home, I noticed that she encountered a lot of difficulties in terms of accessibility.
“I was inspired to build her a home because she had to go to the river every day to bathe and had difficulty in climbing the steps at her daughter’s home. These were the basic necessities she needed in order to live a peaceful life, especially at her age,” Mr Vivia stated.
For the 68-year-old grandmother and stroke survivor, the help from Mr Vivia and the villagers of Nabuna came as a blessing in disguise.
“I am so overwhelmed and grateful for the kindness and thoughtfulness shown towards the construction of this home. I used to face so much difficulty in terms of going to the bathroom and I also have to wash my clothes in the cold water at the river. But now, all that is of the past because I have everything I need inside my new home,” Ms Tamoi said.
While officially opening and handing over the home, Ministry of Forests’ director of operations Central/Eastern Division, George Vuki commended the villagers of Nabuna and Mr Vivia for this initiative.
“I want to reiterate the Hon. Prime Minister’s message that no Fijian will be left behind. I acknowledge the vanua of Nabuna for taking on this initiative as your own instead of waiting for any form of government assistance.”
“This act of love for the elderly should be practised by everyone and I thank every person involved in the construction of this home,” Mr Vuki stated.
The new home has been furnished with a bed, a cooking area with bathroom amenities inside the home and Mr Vivia hopes to expand this idea to other villages in Koro.
Materials for construction of the home were donated by Mr Vivia with the help of villagers of Nabuna.