Variety Mini-Bash Helps One Young Man

Be the Best he Can Be

Car-nuts on a mission to buy and fit specialist equipment

Samisoni Fuavao is a 14-year-old schoolboy who loves playing the drums, watching rugby and interacting with his mates.

But playing with the kids at his Otahuhu school is just that bit tougher for this young man, for he’s got cerebral palsy, which affects his ability to control his own movements and effectively communicate with those around him.

It also makes everyday activities just that bit more complicated – even going to the gents requires help, help it’s getting harder to find as he grows into a sturdy young lad.

Which is where the men and women on September’s Variety Mini Bash come in. They’re running raffles and sausage sizzles, approaching sponsors and fixing lawn mowers to pay for a Rifton Support Station, which will help Samisoni get to the loo without the intensive help he currently needs – and without straining the backs of his teachers as he inevitably grows taller and heavier.

Samisoni goes to Otahuhu’s Mt Richmond Special school, alongside 130 pupils living with a variety of disabilities. Despite facing extra hurdles most of us can barely imagine, he uses a Rifton walker to get about, enjoys table tennis and table cricket, and uses an Evolve Stander and a treadmill to help strengthen his legs.

“Samisoni’s a friendly young man who loves to be part of anything going on around him, and his playful smile can really light up a room. But we need the right equipment to help him be the best he can be, and we’re delighted that Variety – The Children’s Charity can help," says Mt Richmond Special School principal, Kathy Dooley.

Participants on the Variety Mini Bash will raise the nearly $6000 required and fit the equipment on site come September 20.

To find out how to donate to Variety – The Children’s Charity and help Simisoni and other kids like him, log on to https://minibash2013.everydayhero.com/nz/samisoni.

Variety Mini Bash – September 20-22

Simisoni Fuavao with his sister, Tulip, and Bash co-ordinator Murray ‘Mojo’ O’Donnell

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