“The Rotary motto is “Service above Self” and since I first came to Fiji in a service capacity as a Peace Corps volunteer, it was a natural step to continue my service through Rotary,” she said. She gets a lot of satisfaction out of the kind of work she is involved in today. The church she grew up in placed a really strong emphasis on service to the community. “Our youth group was always out at soup kitchens, painting houses for the homeless, working at fairs and fundraisers, and joining mentoring programmes.’ The experiences opened her eyes to many things and empowered her. “There were a lot of Returned Peace Corps Volunteers in the congregation and their stories definitely made an impression on me. “My life is guided by Gandhi’s timeless saying, that you must be the change you want to see in the world,” she said. Her experience in Fiji being a Rotarian will send her back to the America for a Masters degree in international development, with the hope of continuing and improving her current field.
When her term with the Peace Corps ended, Molly Powers was recruited by FIJI Water to work with the local community around the area in Yaqara
Good Golly Miss Molly!
6/13/2009
Not sure about the “…sure like to ball” bit in this hit rock & roll song someone recorded way back in 1956 in the United States.
But it might be perfect to describe a happy-go-lucky Boston girl who has made Ra Province her home.
Molly Powers is funny. She is a ball herself and is up, close and personal about so many things.
Molly gets culture-shocked in Boston these days when she visits because she calls Fiji home and wants it to remain that way for a very long time.
She now eats like a kai Ra, speaks like a kai Ra and even goes deeper into the local dialect. She likes the endless sunshine because Boston, Massachusetts is too cold for her.
The 28 year-old first came as a Peace Corp Volunteer and served in Naiserelagi, located close to Ra Province’s administration capital, Nanukuloa, in 2005.
Her life changed. Her community work, apart from her official engagement as an Environment Education and Resource Management Advisor, began in Naiserelagi.
Her total feelings for Fiji changed there, as she made her way deeper into the local community, teaching everyone about saving the planet and making time to become better persons, as per the ideals of the Peace Corp movement.
“I felt something quite unique about Fiji when I first stepped on her soil,” she said. “I have stayed.” Her Naiserelagi work has earned her the name “Naiserelagi Girl”.
“I worked within the Tikina at local schools, with women’s groups, youth groups, at the Ra Maternity Hospital, and Nanukuloa Provincial Centre, helping wherever I could in terms of development, promoting the international cooperation goals of Peace Corps,” she said.
When her term with the Peace Corps ended, she was recruited by FIJI Water to work with the local community around the area in Yaqara. She made the transition to the FIJI Water Foundation in Suva and got herself highly involved with community projects her employers became a good part of.
The Peace Corp goal had already pushed her towards humanitarian work. It was among the main reasons why she joined the Rotary Club of Suva East. Molly’s induction ceremony began in September 2008 and has become an outstanding member winning many awards in recognition of her work.
One of awards was “Best Rotarian of the Year” which was given for outstanding achievement in running the club’s newsletter. It gave her an international recognition because her work beat 48 other clubs in the whole district to win the top award.
“I never knew about Rotary and what they do before I came to Fiji,” she said. “I had actually thought it was more of a fraternity than a service organization.”
Comparing Rotary in Fiji to the US, she said Fiji clubs were more active at grassroot level.
“Here, Rotary is a great group of service-minded professionals who are actively engaged in supporting and implementing positive community change.”
She joined the movement when she visited Korovou Prison during some volunteer work by members of Rotary Club of Suva East club at the kitchen.
“Commissioner Naivalurua gave us an introduction to the Yellow Ribbon programme and I saw that club members were doing the same kind of work that has always been very important to me,” Molly said. “It was like I was already a member of this club, but I didn’t know it yet.
“The Rotary motto is “Service above Self” and since I first came to Fiji in a service capacity as a Peace Corps volunteer, it was a natural step to continue my service through Rotary,” she said.
She gets a lot of satisfaction out of the kind of work she is involved in today. The church she grew up in placed a really strong emphasis on service to the community.
“Our youth group was always out at soup kitchens, painting houses for the homeless, working at fairs and fundraisers, and joining mentoring programmes.’
The experiences opened her eyes to many things and empowered her.
“There were a lot of Returned Peace Corps Volunteers in the congregation and their stories definitely made an impression on me.
“My life is guided by Gandhi’s timeless saying, that you must be the change you want to see in the world,” she said. Her experience in Fiji being a Rotarian will send her back to the America for a Masters degree in international development, with the hope of continuing and improving her current field.
Molly is youngest of five children and is her mother’s only child. Her siblings travel the world and they live in the Dominican Republic, Germany, England and the US.
“Fiji is definitely a big piece of me now,” she said.
It will definitely remain that way for a long time yet.
