A family’s little helper

By Vatapuia Maiava 22 November 2016, 12:00AM

We hear many adults complain about how rebellious this generation of youth are but every now and then we run into a young person with a genuine heart to help others.

Lasi Avelima, a young girl from the village of Letogo, is one of those unique youths. Spotted sitting at her roadside stall, she explains how all she wants in life is to help out her family.

Aged 17, Lasi is a year 12 student at Vaimauga College and says that earning money from selling crops is really worth it.

“My family earns most of our money from this stall,” she told the Village Voice.

“We make up to $60 a day from sales so earnings from a roadside stall aren’t too bad. Everything we sell here comes straight from the family’s plantation.

“We sell different types of bananas, pumpkins and other crops that we grow. We even take some to the market place to sell when we have a lot.”

Lasi says that her family takes care of all their needs through the stall because no one has a job.

“The money we make goes towards our daily shopping as well as bus fares for school,” she said.

“I am currently schooling but when I am on break then I come out here and help my family out. No one in my family has a job so I do what I can to earn some money for everyone.

“This is the only way our family makes money and we have been doing this for a while now. It’s really good money.”

Lasi is all but grateful for what they make from their vegetable stall because it puts her through school.

“I am the eldest of my siblings so I try and set an example for them,” she said.

“The money we make from sales is what puts me and my sibling through school. I start selling at seven in the morning and finish up at around four in the afternoon.

“I like helping out my parents.”

Asked for her ultimate dream, Lasi says she wants to become a doctor so she can help out her family.

“My dream for my future is to become a doctor,” she said.

“I really want to be a doctor to help people who are in need and also to earn a bit of money to take care of my family.

“We barely make enough to live on so my dream is to provide more for those I love.”

By Vatapuia Maiava 22 November 2016, 12:00AM
Samoa Observer

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