Stu and Bernie Back

11 MArch 2005

Stu and Bernie Back

A week before the Hong Kong Sevens kicks off, the 'black and white' of New Zealand rugby, Bernie Fraser and Stu Wilson, will rekindle an age-old rugby partnership and play side-by-side in the Manila 10s, while supporting a local not for profit with a Kiwi connection - Give A Life Foundation.

Give A Life, a foundation started by Kiwi and New Plymouth Boys' High School old boy, Stephen Jarvis, is raising funds to provide medicine and life saving equipment for Philippine children and has recruited the two rugby legends to help assist it with its plight.

An avid rugby supporter and Philippines resident, Stephen sought out the old boys realising their passion for the game, coupled with his passion for helping the country's under privileged children, would be a great way to bring awareness to the cause.

The opportunity for Fraser and Wilson to be reunited on the rugby field while helping change the lives of less privileged children was a challenge they could not refuse.

New Zealand Rugby's Fraser and Wilson will attend a lunch and charity auction on Friday, before joining forces with the Manila Eagles to challenge incumbent British Club of Bangkok on Saturday 8.00am local time.

The money raised at the auction will go towards life saving medicine and equipment for the children of the Philippines.

For more information, photos from the games and charity lunch, or to lend support to Give A Life, please contact:

Stephen Jarvis Give A Life Charity Foundation 0063 2 899 1000 0917 899 5562 www.givealife.pcom.ph

Give A Life All Children have the right to live like children Background Information

Stephen Jarvis, a businessman from New Zealand, has been living in the Philippines for nine years. In December 2001 he held his birthday at a local Manila hospital, throwing a party for the sick children. During the festivities Stephen and his family witnessed a young boy die, simply because his parents could not afford to buy vital medicine.

Responding to the request from his son to "do something"; this event proved the catalyst for Stephen to form the Give A Life Foundation. He discovered many of the children were not dying from incurable diseases, but because basic medical equipment and medicines were not available, or parents of the children could not afford it. In many cases, doctors had to reuse needles, wrap premature babies in clingwrap to keep them warm, or dig into their own low salaries to buy medicine to save children's lives.

Stephen learned that the majority of equipment needed was taken for granted in New Zealand hospitals, easily accessible and cheap. Simple equipment such as oxygen gauges, which many hospitals in the Philippines are dangerously short of, cost as little as NZ$100.00, and can save the lives of hundreds of children.

Using his resources in the television industry, Stephen produced a Give A Life infomercial, which immediately saw thousands of people respond with donations. As the charity's profile has increased, several private companies have made Give A Life their charity of choice, funding the opening of new wards, equipment and medicines.

Give A Life has raised almost $NZ two million dollars (78 million pesos since 2001. The foundation has funded ventilators, incubators, antibiotics and cancer drugs, sponsored chemotherapy cycles for children with cancer and renovated wards at several hospitals.

However, Stephen says that the work has only just begun. Give A Life sponsors over 12 hospitals in Manila and three in the provinces and all are severely under funded and overcrowded. Their equipment is ancient and all suffer from a lack of basic medicine.

To find out more about the foundation, visit www.givealife.com.ph For only $NZ120.00, a child does not have to die.

ENDS

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