Teenager helps build classroom for remote school

IN a remote Papua New Guinea village with no reliable water, electricity, phone reception or medical facilities, stands a brand new school building made possible in part by a Brisbane teenager’s generosity.
Jordanna Muddle, 14, used her 13th birthday party in 2018 to raise A$2000 (about K 4,419.89) by asking guests to donate to her GoFundMe campaign instead of giving presents.
The money bought a crucial chainsaw.
The school building opened on Jan 4 and Jordanna and her family travelled to Utukwaf village, Northern, where they saw just how lacking the village was in basic infrastructure.
The Muddle family plan to return to Utukwaf with more funds and at the top of their list is establishing a reliable water supply.
Jordanna’s mother, Anna Megueria, said the nearest major shops were a three-to-four-hour boat ride away from Utukwaf and there was no regular public transport, so equipment was scarce.
“The NoRoads Adventures Foundation (the charity the Muddles worked with) bought a chainsaw with our money, delivered it and conducted training to the villagers on how to operate it,” she said.
“The chainsaw has gone to a different community until May to build a new classroom and then it will come back to Utukwaf so they can build some teacher accommodation.”
Jordanna said she was “speechless” when she and her family arrived in the remote village.
“We went on a boat to the village and as we walked through, a lot of people were saying ‘welcome’ and ‘thank you’ and there were kids running around, so excited we were there,” she said. “There were so many people at the school building opening, they were singing and dancing and everyone was so thankful.
“The school meant a lot to them, you could see it on their faces and the way they acted. It was really spectacular and I felt very humbled,” Muddle said.
The family plan to return and further improve living conditions in the village. – Brisbane Times