Help on the Way to North Korea
A CONTAINER load of hospital equipment from the old Gosnells Hospital was sent to North Korea last week as part of an aid program for orphanages and hospitals in Pyongyang. The shipment was organised by Amaroo Care Services property and assets manager John Hansen.
Mr Hansen raised $17,200 with help from suppliers, residents, staff and local churches to buy the container and ship it to North Korea. “It was a joint community commitment to make use of a resource which we were unable to use in Australia,” he said.
The equipment included hospital beds, patient transfer trolleys, operating lights, mattresses and linen. Volunteers and Amaroo staff spent about 152 hours cleaning the gear and packing the container. Mr Hansen said Amaroo had been looking to provide a home for the equipment after the organisation bought the old hospital last year.
He found out about the work of aid organisation GO Consultancy, which has helped three orphanages and six hospitals in Pyongyang. Mr Hansen said GO Consultancy head Greg O’Connor had received the highest civilian award from the North Korean Government “There have been only three of these awards given to anyone outside of North Korea,” he said. “Greg has a real heart for the people and he ensures that any aid that’s delivered is put to the best use for the people, not the government there.”
Amaroo chief executive officer David Fenwick said the equipment would be welcomed by North Korean hospitals.
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Fundraising (December 2008)
John Hansen, Manager Property & Assets had the idea of donating the equipment from the old Gosnells Hospital to Korea because it had been superceded in Australia and can’t be sold here. He made contact with the mission agency which is active in North Korea and supports hospitals and orphanages with donations of aid, including food, clothing and equipment. The Amaroo Board supported this plan.
Greg O’Connor from the mission says the doctors in the hospitals there are excited about this gift. There is just one small snag. We need to raise the $15,000 to pay for the container. John Hansen invites you all to a presentation on 5th February at 3 pm at Nancye Jones to meet Greg O Connor and see a DVD about some of the projects they have been involved in. One is an orphanage.
The picture on the left shows some of the gorgeous North Korean children after two months in the orphanage receiving proper care. Admin and Maintenance staff had a Breakfast in December at Dots Cafe to raise money for the cause. The photo on the right shows Monique Van Den Elzen- Clerical Assistant, Robbie Heerama- Maintenance and Tina Foster, Resident Services Co-Ordinator.
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