February 14 - 20, 2024
For Janine, all paths lead to Fiji By SIMONE KERWIN
◆ PURSUING HER PURPOSE: Former Wangaratta resident Janine Atkinson has been volunteering in Fijian villages for about 18 years.
◆ HOME, SWEET HOME: A Fijian child in front of Janine Atkinson's home, a "$10,000 tin shed".
IT was during a holiday to Fiji that Janine Atkinson unexpectedly happened upon the future direction of her life. The former Wangaratta resident had worked in Melbourne as a teacher for 30 years, before her Fijian vacation introduced her to the lifestyle that would become her own. “While on holiday, I was being served by Fijian people, and I felt uncomfortable about that; I felt I should know more about their country while I was staying there,” she said. “The people I met at the resort suggested I should go into the villages, and when I did, I saw needs there that I thought I could help with.” Janine was captivated by the gratitude and resilience exhibited particularly by the Fijian children she met. “They live a simple life, but they are so happy; they have family around them, and have strong faith,” she said. However, Janine also saw that many children did not own shoes, which often led to painful foot infections, and that they had very few books available to them. Deciding that her teaching background could be put to good use in the villages, she began volunteering 18 years ago, and is still loving her life in Fiji, where she lives in a “$10,000 tin shed” in Namosi. “Village life is wonderful,” she said. “The ladies collect firewood, we wash our clothes in the river, and in the evenings we sit around and sing along with the guitar and tell stories.”
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