In the News

Receiving Houses from Service Work after Tsunami

On Saturday the 23^rd of January 2010, about 40 men from the Pesega 5^th Ward of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gathered together at Saleapaga, Lepa to build a house for Faato’ia Viiga’s family.

Faato’ia Viiga’s family was very concerned about building a house after everything was lost, including the life of a child, in the tsunami that hit on the 29^th of September 2009. This is one out of 40 families for which houses have been built and prepared for by the LDS Church.

This group of Elders and High Priests gathered at 4am at Pesega for their trip to Saleapaga. Before departing, they were quickly divided into groups and instructed by those who had construction skills.

They diligently worked for the whole day, with only a short break for lunch. They leveled the foundation, set up poles, mixed and poured cement, and put up the tin roof. A job that usually would take a week or more to finish was completed in one day by this group of volunteers, which included many retirees.

Of the 40 houses that the LDS Church has planned to reconstruct in areas destroyed by the tsunami, 30 have either been completed or are currently under construction, with 10 left to go. Many of these houses were built by volunteer service by members of the church from different stakes and wards throughout Samoa, like this group of diligent men.

Despite the aches and pains from their service that day, they still felt blessed to have the opportunity to offer their services. When asked if they would do it again, their answer- without a delay- was an enthusiastic “Yes!”

Others who wanted to attend but couldn’t due to other circumstances, say that they do not want to miss the blessings of serving those in need.

Viiga’s family was very grateful and appreciative to the Church and the group of 40 priesthood holders for their new fale.