Running the Race Together – Pacific Theological College

Fellowship through competition and fun was foremost on the women’s minds when the Pacific Theological College’s Women’s Sports Day rolled around.

It started with a costume march, where the four groups – Teams Green, Blue, White and Yellow, led by a Commander walked 100 meters of Vuya Road from Etina Havea Kindergarten to the College main grounds.

Opening the Sports Day PTC Principal Rev. Dr Upolu Luma Va’ai encouraged the women to focus on working together and shoring each other up.

Reverend Leinamau Seru of the Presbyterian Church of Vanuatu and a Master of Theology student shared on the importance of running the race and fighting the good fight together.

The women ran the 100 meter races, the sack races, and ‘putting the coconut back in the basket’ race. They raced to eat huge hanging buns, sprinted through relays, and with ‘coconut frond canoes’. They brought on the best of their ‘cheer-off’, danced, and sang.

By midday the day had come to the end and the Team Green celebrated a sweet win.

The bigger prize of the day, fun and bonding had been won by all.

‘We wanted something different for the Women’s Fellowship, different from the Worship that we do all the time,’ said Fellowship President Etenaunaaletuitoga Kamu Wright.

‘The Sports day was that something different, it gathered the women, doesn’t matter they lost or won.’

‘We noticed from the previous years, women stayed in their own national or ethnic groups, stayed in their own house and did not integrate or mingle.’

‘You don’t know your neighbor or their problems and so we cannot help each other.’

‘We want to live together as sisters, working together as one big PTC family.’

‘Living and working closer together as a community promotes healthy living within the community.’

‘We are only here two years and we can learn from the various cultures from across the Pacific.

‘I’ve learnt cooking methods of other Pacific Island countries and using flowers from my Tahitian sisters.’

‘We are really happy about the Sports Day because of the level of participation and even those that we hardly saw around, the support staff of the College and there was sharing, laughter and fun.’

Two weeks later, the Fellowship worked together on a Fun Night and fundraised more than FJD 2000.

‘The money will be invested in developing women’s skills in various areas like crafting.’

Ends….