Thirty Mount Maunganui College students will have to get used to cold showers and life without Wi-Fi when they spend 10 days on the Samoan islands of Savai’i and Upolu in June.

The college’s Malo Uma Pasifika culture group – which includes students with family links to Niue, Fiji, Tuvalu, Tokelau, Tonga, Kiribati, Rotuma, Samoa and Torres Strait plus Pākehā and Māori – are heading to the Pacific country for a cultural experience.

And while there, they will deliver donations of rugby gear from back home in New Zealand to children at Palauli Sisifo College.

Trip co-ordinator Clare Wilson said the 10-day trip, with 10 supporting adults, will be a chance for the mostly senior students to immerse themselves in a different way of life in a foreign country.

“We’re going for 10 days and want to have as many cultural experiences in that time as we can.

“One of the things we’re really looking forward to is going to the high school on Savai’i where they have very few resources and their main sport is rugby.”

Rugby gear

Wilson had already visited the school on Savai’i to discuss the trip with its deputy principal.

“She told me that she would love any donations of rugby gear that we could bring – but at the same time, we’re fundraising for ourselves because to take 40 people to Samoa is expensive,” said Wilson.

The Mount College 30-student group, who will head to Samoa in June. Photo / Supplied

Her advance trip also enabled her to brief the kids on what to expect. “I know just how basic the facilities are where they’ll be sleeping,” she said. “There’s not going to be Wi-Fi and the showers are literally a cold water pipe out of the wall. It’s very different.

“The kids there certainly don’t have phones like ours do. I think to go and have an authentic Samoan experience is very important.”

Wilson estimated about $10,000 is needed to pay for food alone during their trip. The group has been selling ice blocks at school, held a movie night and working at weekends to raise money.

“We had a sausage sizzle at Bunnings and it was actually pretty fun,” said 16-year-old Year 13 student Aperila Ioelu, whose family is from Samoa. “We even got donations from people who didn’t buy sausages.”

Fundraising

Until they head away on June 20, the Malo Uma Pasifika culture group is collecting rugby gear and working on the performances it will give in Samoa.

“I’m looking forward to learning more about a different culture, trying new food and making new friends and new memories,” said 17-year-old Year 13 student Milina Selau. “I’m excited to go to the school to perform for the kids and to see them perform.”

Any donations of rugby gear can be dropped at Mount Maunganui College and donations can be paid directly to Mount Maunganui College Board, Acct no: 12-3486-0032080-00, Ref: Donation 2025 Samoa.