Snapshot:

Q. What are we doing?

A. Building the Katova High School which is in the remote province of Isabel in the Solomon Islands. This involves the construction of around 50 buildings, a dam, kilometres of pipe for water supply, and resourcing of the school.

Q. Why are we doing it?

A. Only 20% of children get to go to High School in the Solomon Islands. The Katova High School will ensure that all children in the Katova District get the chance for a secondary education.

Q. Are we a building team or a mission team?

A. Construction of the Katova High School allows us to share the blessings and wealth that we have in Australia and New Zealand with those who do not share the same standard of living that we do. In addition, this project is a conduit for outreach. Faith is grown through team members who participate. The gospel is shared by building teams and supplementary programs were run for children, youth, ladies and men. Once the school commences in 2024 we will have Christian youth workers residing in the boarding school and working to harvest a rich return on their sharing of the gospel.

This project started in 2015 and is led by Wamberal Christian Reformed Church in Australia. Over 350 Australians have participated in over 20 trips.

We have not been able to travel to the Katova district since 2019. In our absence, we have empowered and supported the local Katova committee to progress the construction of the High School. The local committee has secured funding from the Japanese government and completed two boarding houses. Funding has also been pledged by the Australian, New Zealand and Chinese government for the Dining Hall, Ablutions, Admin Block and staff housing. The SWIM teams will complete construction of the classrooms and the water supply project. We have ten complete buildings on site and are well on the way to commencing grades 7, 8 and 9 in 2024.

God has blessed us immensely. This land was dense jungle in 2015 and now a High School is being raised out of the ground. Matthew 17: 20 says that if you have the faith of a mustard seed you can move a mountain. The Katova Project is testimony to this faith journey. We literally have moved mountains and built a High School.

This photo shows Ralph and Jack heading to Samasodu where they are right now. They are doing some checks on the school site and on the tools and equipment we left there 3 years ago. This is in preparation for our upcoming trip in April 2023.

As we continue to plan for the April project, we are seeking assistance with the following items:

Bibles – We plan to bring 1,000 bibles with us in our containers for the ladies, youth and children’s programs we are running. A preliminary email in relation to this request was sent out a few weeks ago and the response has been amazing!

School Furniture – The classrooms we are building need to be furnished. We have looked at some second hand items and most are not appropriate to be re-homed in the Solomon Islands. As a result we are looking at purchasing new furniture. The cost to furnish four classrooms is $20,000.
Transport and logistics – We are sending two shipping containers over to the Solomon Islands from Wamberal in NSW. This costs just short of $30,000. We need to send over tools, materials and many team resources.

Building materials – We have a Lucas Mill on site that we purchased some years ago. We mill our timber requirements on site with the assistance of a local milling team that we have trained to operate the Portable Timber Mill. However, using milled hardwood for floors and to clad a building takes time. Significant time savings are gained by using yellow tongue flooring and weathertex cladding. We are also sending over roof sheeting in our containers. Cost to purchase these items is around $40,000.

Sponsoring a team participant – Each participant who comes from Australia has to pay at least $2250 each to join the team. This covers airfares, food, accommodation and transport. Not every participant can afford this. In particular, some of our younger team members. There are opportunities to sponsor a team member.

The Katova High School Project has ATO endorsement and donations are tax deductable. If individuals or churches are able to provide financial support for any of the above expenses it would be greatly appreciated. If you can assist then please contact the project coordinator, Rod Peet on 0412 058 848 or email samasodumissionprojects@gmail.com

You can find out more about our current and previous trips by visiting our Facebook Page via this link Katova High School Project – Samasodu Village – Solomon Islands | Facebook

If you are interested in joining our April team then please send an email to request further information. At this stage we have 29 participants confirmed. We still would like to see a few more qualified builders, teachers, musicians and trades people join the team.

Keep praying for us and our Solomon Island friends.

Regards,  Rod Peet (Solomon Islands Work Group [SWIM] Chairperson)