An opportunity to invest in a good institution

 I don't normally use this blog for fundraising, so let me say up front, "this post is about fundraising." I'm not making an appeal for funds for Kathy and me, though a report and thank you note will be in another post soon to be posted.

So, if you aren't interested in reading a fundraising note, now would be a good time to surf elsewhere. Do so with my blessing and thanks.

As most readers of this blog know, Kathy and I have invested a significant chunk of our lives in the ministry of Pacific Islands University (PIU). PIU is not operated by Liebenzell Mission (LM), though it was founded by LM and maintains a close relationship with the mission. Kathy and I serve with LM.

A combination of integrity and lack of space prevent me from going deeply into all of the causes for this, but PIU is in a difficult situation.  A couple of reasons I can mention are the devastation Typhoon Marwar caused to the campus and the ongoing deterioration that a tropical climate brings to buildings and equipment. As the former defacto maintenance director on the campus, I can speak with some authority about the latter. You can see some pictures and read more here.

When I was in that maintenance role, I noticed that it was important, when things were in the process of deteriorating, to reverse that momentum. Even if the upward progress was small, it was significantly better, for morale, than watching the campus rot, erode, and be blown away. A significant step forward that the school made was taken not long before I went there to serve as President. The installation of a solar panel array on the library roof not only brought a significant saving in utility costs but also enhanced PIU's position in the community as an institution that was helping to care for the vulnerable environment of Guam. All the public generation of electricity on the island is by diesel generators. Solar power makes great sense in that isolated tropical island environment. 

The two entropic forces I mentioned, above left the solar array inoperative. Currently, the school does not have funds to repair the system.

The new President of PIU, Ian Richards, is raising funds to restore the system and continue the repairs that become necessary from those relentless forces. The figures President Richards was given indicate that the money invested in repairing the solar-power system (some of the repairs costs are covered by warranty) would be paid back in utility savings in less than three months.

If you are willing to join Kathy and me in investing not only in fixing a broken solar system, but in helping President Richards to reverse the downward momentum in campus infrastructure, please visit the site I mentioned above, https://lmusa.org/give/piu/. Funneling funds through the fund at LM will make your gift totally tax deductible and allow LM to assume the clerical work of responding properly to your donation. (Truth in advertizing: LM uses 10% of project donations to pay for their administrative costs.)

Whether you invest financially in the project or not, please invest time in prayer. While Kathy and I were on Guam, I had the opportunity to talk to a graduate who had been in a couple of my classes. He and I had used some COVID relief funds to build picnic tables to maximize students being out in fresh air during the days when the virus was spreading. My friend was rightly pleased that our tables had survived the storm. :) He is currently working at the school, as part of the Student Development Team. He told me about his brother, who is teaching school out on one of the "out-islands" of Chuuk. I used to call this guy "my cousin" because he had a gap in his teeth, like me. I'll call these brothers "M and M." They are what it's really all about. Micronesia needs young servant-leaders who, M and M, teach and encourage from the viewpoint of a Biblical worldview. 

That's a power far greater than what is produced by a bunch of solar panels.

Thanks.

An Update on the Aftermath of Mawar: Guam, & PIU

May 31, I posted about the devastation Typhoon Mawar wrought on the Pacific Islands University Campus. See here.  

I am taking a moment of your time, today, to give you an update.

Some time ago a major storm system, a derecho, hit the little community where I live. The power grid was seriously impacted. I remember seeing utility vehicles and crews from Florida and other far away places, that had come to repair the infrastructure.

Guam is 4,000 miles from Hawaii and twice that distance from the mainland. Bureaucratic, as well as

economic and geographic hurdles have to be overcome to bring in help from off-island. In short, recovering from an event like Typhoon Mawar, stresses all available systems. It takes a while.

Even the site that gives information about Guam recovery efforts is "Coming Soon."

Here are some anecdotal reports: 

• June 1, "Still don't have power, water or cell service.I can drive around and get cell service but trying not to waste gas." (a friend)
• Today (keep in mind Guam is 14 hours ahead of EDST) the Pacific Daily News reported that "The Guam Power Authority utilities restoration passed the midway point as of 1 p.m. Monday, according to the latest update released by GPA."
• From further away the Wishington Post reported 3 days ago, "About half of the island remains without water, and about 65% is without power. It may be weeks until the utilities are fully restored."

The last I heard PIU is still part of the "doesn't have it yet," part of Guam.

I talked with PIU President, Iotaka Choram, a couple of days ago. He was at a car dealership using their signal. The school is trying to get some estimates on what repairs to the campus will cost. PIU is just one of many looking for such information. Through the kindness of a supporter of PIU, some of the staff has been able to set up an off-campus "office," where they have access to a cell signal and wifi. I'm expecting an update from that office, soon. I'll pass it on when I get it.

Perhaps one indication of the current situation is that GovGuam is currently running ads to hire "Debris Inspectors."

The bottom line is I don't know much more today than I did when I wrote the last post.

• I do know that the school is planning to continue offering "Acredited, Affordable, Accessible, Transformative, Christian" higher education to the people of Guam, Micronesia, and beyond. I don't have any information as to when the school plans to resume instruction.
• I am convinced that the need for this kind of education in Micronesia and the Micronesian Diaspora is great.
• I know that just about everyone associated with the school has a big job in front of them personally, as well as in regard to PIU. This picture of the roofless Classroom 2 is illustrative. Having begun to clean up, lets one see the damage more clearly. The corner hasn't been turned. It hasn't even been reached, yet.
• I know that not only is the school damaged physically. It is shut down fiscally. No classes means that the normal flow of income is cut off. 

I mentioned seeing trucks and crews from far away that came to my home area after a major disaster some years ago. In the case of Pacific Islands University, you and I are the help that needs to be on the way. Liebenzell Mission of the USA, a mission agency with a deep history of working with PIU, has set up a fund for bringing aid to this beleaguered, indeed clobbered school. I encourage you to visit https://www.liebenzellmission.org/give/piu/#typhoon. You will see instructions there as to how you can make a tax-deductable donation to help put the roof back on and students back in the classroom above.