Sometimes, life can be full of hard strokes of fate. 

In the case of John Tavaga, this might even be an understatement. 

The Samoan who is living in Rarotonga, the largest of the Cook Islands, is currently fighting for his live after a tragic motorbike accident.

He had moved to the Cook Islands recently after another misfortune had his life to the very foundations. Being only 29 years old, Tavaga’s wife Namea McNamara had passed away after she had lost her battle against cervical cancer.

John Tavaga is not an unknown face in the Australian rugby scene as he has played for Wauchope Thunder Rugby Club in the past. 

The team and staff have expressed their solidarity and support for the man who is described as “truly the nicest guy you can meet” by his former coach Marc Minor in a recent interview. 

At the moment the Thunder are going to stand behind the family and assist in any way we can,” he said to Macquire Port News last week.

Indeed, in this hour of darkness, John can still count on his family and friends.

 A “Go-Fund-Me”-page, created by close friend Carolina Gomez Stewart from Sydney, Australia makes it possible to donate money in order to bring John to New Zealand, where a better medical care would without a doubt increase his chances of survival dramatically.

“Right now John needs to be transported from Rarotonga to New Zealand as soon as possible, where he can get the medical support he needs as he is at a stage where anything can happen”, Carolina Gomez Stewart explains on the page.

While family, friends and people concerned of the man’s calamity already procured a sum of approximately 32.000 $ since the site’s launch on the 30th of July, a lot more has to be done to ensure a transportation to New Zealand for John Tavaga: “The total cost to transport John in his current condition along with on-going medical expenses is roughly at $100k. Any donation will help John to get to NZ as he fights for his life”.

As Ms Stewart points out in her explanation of the tragic case, any imaginable amount of money would help to secure her friend’s criticalcondition. “We thank and appreciate any donations and will keep everyone updated with John’s status”.

Donations to support John Tavaga can be submitted under https://www.gofundme.com/john-tavaga