Help the people of Vanuatu smile again!

This is personal. For every dollar that you, my friends and family donate, I will match that donation myself to a maximum of $1000. Here's why...

A few years ago I visited Vanuatu. From the moment I touched down, what amazed me was that there was a smile for you on the face of every person there.

It didn't stop there though. From the one kind lady who offered to wake up first thing on a Sunday morning and come to work to help us, to the person who drove about an hour just to return my lost belongings - the people of this happy nation did everything to make sure there was a smile on your face too.

In the few days I spent there, I realized why Vanuatu was judged as the happiest place on earth.

The smiles & the happiness of the people of Vanuatu are contagious. In the world we live in today, we need that. We need them.

During the weekend though, everything changed.

Cyclone Pam, which to us was a little more than a wet weekend, ripped through this tiny island nation and devastated it.

It put 60,000 children in the need of assistance as per a UNICEF report and badly damaged more than 90% of the housing in Port Vila, the capital. Yes - ninety percent.

They need our help now.

Please help me fund-raise for the cyclone relief effort of the Red Cross. What the people need now is shelter, food, water, and first aid.

New Zealand Red Cross has already sent funds, 1,200 tarpaulins, 900 water containers and 240 first aid kits to Vanuatu, along with a Red Cross aid worker specialising in providing emergency shelter. They need to send a lot more.

This is where we come in.

For every dollar that you, my friends and family donate, I will match that donation myself to a maximum of $1000.

Thanks to GiveALittle, every cent we donate will go directly to the relief fund as this platform takes no fees.

All money donated here will go directly to the New Zealand Red Cross.

Cmon guys, we need the people of Vanuatu to continue smiling, even if its just for the sake of the rest of us.