ISSUE 14 | MARCH 2017
Rīpeka Whero Aotearoa
www.redcross.org.nz
Photos below: No Limits Reunion January 2017
Photo above: Volunteers/staff at the Multi Ethnic Parade on March 4th.
DECEMBER 2016- MARCH 2017 What a busy year 2017 has been already! We started off by hosting the ‘Welcome Back Garden Party’ for all Red Cross volunteers on January 21st. Because the weather was too unpredictable to hold this at our outdoor venue, the Taranaki Service Centre got transformed into a magical garden with all the outdoor trimmings and jazz music – a lovely afternoon had by all. Five days later the No Limits youth programme reunion day took place at Fitzroy Beach for all October 2016 participants. This summer Taranaki Red Cross was once again the chosen charity at The Seaside Market on Ngamotu Beach, where we were given a free community stall on February 5th and March 5th. Thank you to our Red Cross Taranaki Area Council for organising this. Showing that Red Cross represents cultural diversity we took part in the Multi Ethnic Parade on Saturday 4th March and had a Red Cross First Aid stand at the Extravaganza event at the Racecourse. March is our busy appeal month where as well as holding our ‘Duck Race & BBQ Fundraiser’ on the 19th March, volunteers are mobilised to run a street collection and raise funds so Red Cross can be on the spot straight away when there is a disaster, and also to continue our community programmes in New Zealand. If you have an hour or two on the 29 th – 31st March we would love you to help us out.
What’s Coming Up March 19th: Duck Race & BBQ Fundraiser, Puke Ariki Landing 11am. March 29th - 31st: Annual Appeal Street Collection. April 8th: Taranaki Area Forum, 10am2pm, Fitzroy Surf Life Saving Club April 25th: ANZAC day: Red Cross wreaths May 8th: World Red Cross Day/ Red Cross Information Session, 12-2pm, Taranaki Service Centre May: Volunteer quiz night. Date TBC. June 1st: Winter Warmer packs distributed.
Taranaki Service Centre, 116 Gill Street, New Plymouth. Phone (06) 759 4697 / newplymouth@redcross.org.nz
www.redcross.org.nz
TARANAKI ISSUE 14 | MARCH 2017
DUCK RACE
STREET COLLECTION
On Sunday March 19th we are hosting our Duck Race & BBQ Fundraiser for the second time. This year we're doing things bigger and better with 600 rubber Red Cross ducks being released at 11am from Huatoki Plaza all the way to the finish line at Puke Ariki Landing.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!!
This is a fun family event where lots of spot prizes will be handed out as well as prizes for the first three ducks to finish, the lucky last duck, wacky hair duck, All Black duck, and Whanua duck. There will be a BBQ with $2 sausages, face painting for children as well as a human duck race. Our MC for the event is Ashtrin Haimona from ‘Ash and Aidan’. We would like to thank our sponsors: Coreys Electrical, Taranaki Hard Core, Mega Bounce, Life Pharmacy, Our Place, The Hour Glass, Polpetta, Novotel, Crossfit New Plymouth, The Warehouse Bell Block, BLITZ tennis, McDonalds, Jamberry, Body Shop, Prohibition, Book Island, Centre City, Tasman Toyota, Chaddy Charters, TSH Audio and Video and The Mad Butchers. There is an extra competition to go into the draw for an $80 dinner voucher by submitting your best ‘duck face’ photo. This can be uploaded on social media by using #nzrcduckfaceduckrace or simply send us your photo by email. We also have a limited edition of souvenir ducks to purchase for $5.
All our tickets sold out last year so we are hoping the same this year. Hire 1 duck $5 or 3 ducks for $10. All money raised goes towards New Zealand Red Cross to help vulnerable people in our community.
Wednesday 29th – Friday 31st March Between 11am – 7pm in New Plymouth Two hours of your time can make a big difference. Help collect for our street appeal and support Red Cross to do good in your community and overseas. Most of our services don’t receive government funding so we rely on the generosity of people to help us fundraise. If you can help out please contact us at newplymouth@redcross.org.nz or on 06 759 4697. Thank you in advance!
VOLUNTEERS THANKS Pam King – for donating a bike helmet to former refugees being resettled in New Zealand. This has been taken to Palmerston North. Sandra Lister – for home made teddy bears which were donated to 4 seasons on behalf of Red Cross. Beautiful donated homemade porcil doll donated by Mrs Gwen Holl. This was raffled off and won by Faren Taylor lucky number 107. Money raised $221.40 To all our wonderful volunteers who have helped us sell duck race tickets. Thank you to everyone who helped us out at The Seaside Market. Thank you to students David Codd and Thomas Hadley from Francis Douglas Memorial College for organising a roster for y12 and y13 students to help out at our Red Cross Marfell Breakfast Mentor programme.
Where in the world are our aid workers?
Peter Scott – Nuku’alofa Tonga Donna Collins – Solomon Islands Amanda Patterson – Suva, Fiji Daniell Cowley – Suva, Fiji Ana Zarkovic – Myanmar Vuli Guana – Suva, Fiji Cate Keville – Port Vila, Vanuatu Corinne Ambler – Suva, Fiji Olivia Warrick- Pacific region Tom Newton – Suva, Fiji Lemau Afamasaga – Suva, Fiji Kevin Duignan – Vanuatu Holly Griffin – Suva, Fiji Clare Shave – Pacific Region Graham Duggan – Ukraine Gail Corbett – Kenya, Nairobi Ezekial Simperingham – Malaysia Lucy Gallagher – Malaysia Lucy Gallagher – South Sudan Barbara Turnbull- Afganistan Malanie Ogle –Jakarta,Indonesia Felicity Gapes – Myanmar Fleur Collins – Lebanon Andrew Cameron - Afghanistan
Thanks to YMCA Youth Army and Boys High for helping us with the Multi Ethnic parade on 4th March.
SPECIAL NOTICES Volunteer Lewis McLeod has free compost. Contact us if interested. New Plymouth Meals on Wheels – watch out for your new name tag which will be in your run folder. Hawera branch: Hand knitted beanies and teddies were given to Ngati Ruanui Health Care who were ‘delighted’ to receive them for their clients. In December the Hawera branch delivered 70 tins of biscuits to single household families. Waitara group supported a fire victim family in December with basic personal essentials. Congratulations to Don Reeve who celebrated his 90th in February. It was with great sadness that we acknowledge the passing of Peter Wright (NP branch member), Mary Frank (Hawera branch member) and Wyn Stockwell (NP Meals on Wheels).
Taranaki Service Centre, 116 Gill Street, New Plymouth. Phone (06) 759 4697 / newplymouth@redcross.org.nz
www.redcross.org.nz
TARANAKI ISSUE 14 | MARCH 2017
TARANAKI AREA COUNCIL UPDATE Happy New Year to all Taranaki Red Cross members, I hope 2017 has started off well for you and your loved ones. The Area Council kicked off the year on February 16th by hosting the second Taranaki Red Cross Member Induction/ Information Session at the Service Centre. Several new faces attended and got an overview of Red Cross activities in Taranaki. A week later, on February 22nd, all five Area Councillors and six Red Cross staff members were given the chance to receive Psychological First Aid training, a new course that will soon be rolled out across New Zealand. We were taught a variety of useful skills to support people in post-disaster situations and look forward to sharing the information with you soon.
The team proudly showing off our Psychological First Aid Certificates. This month our Area Councillors will be out in full force helping with the various March fundraising activities – such a fun and satisfying time! Behind the scenes we’re also busy planning the 2017 Taranaki Area Forum, which is scheduled for Saturday April 8th at the Fitzroy Surf Life Saving Club. Please pencil this date in your calendar and keep an eye on your mail box for an official invite. The Area Forum is a meeting place for the entire Taranaki Red Cross family (volunteers and staff members of Humanitarian Services, Retail and First Aid) and we sincerely hope to see as many of you there as possible. This year people who ‘Bring a Mate’ will be awarded a prize so have a think of someone interested in Red Cross and bring them along. Many thanks for your continued commitment and see you soon! Inge De Leeuw, Area Council Chair
CRAFTY YARNERS Thank you to the Crafty Yarners for their knitted items for our upcoming Winter Warmer packs: hot water bottle covers, gloves, beanies and blankets. Featured below are Lynne Gilroy and Diane Rayner, two of the nine knitters.
NO LIMITS! REUNION The No Limits! Reunion Day for the October 2016 participants took place on 26th January. We had a great day, enjoying sessions facilitated by Fitzroy Surf Club, Daisy Day Surf School and the School Community Officer NZ Police. We are grateful for the support and mahi (work) we receive from our community partners for this programme. We enjoyed a yummy bbq lunch, which was organised by the YMCA Youth Army. Nga mihi nui, thank you.
WAITARA’S WRAP IT WITH GOODNESS The Waitara Red Cross group took part in The Warehouse Bell Block ‘Wrap It with Goodness’ project in December and raised a total of $435.60 to go towards youth projects within Waitara and the Taranaki region. In ‘Wrap it with Goodness’ Christmas gifts purchased from The Warehouse are wrapped in return for a gold coin donation – all monies raised are given back to local community groups. Rebecca Johnson who organised the Waitara team said it was “a brilliant, cheerful fundraiser that we would welcome the opportunity to do again in the future”’. A massive thank you to those that took part and to the YMCA Youth Army for their volunteers.
RANDOM ACT OF KINDNESS: In December 2016 Soroptimist International on Devon Street made and donated 30 small Christmas cakes for Red Cross to distribute. Four New Plymouth Meals on Wheels drivers Sally Ballott, Gay Clough, Lewis MacLeod and Bill McArthurdelivered the cakes on their runs in time for Christmas. Recipients were very happy to receive these cakes as many of them live alone and have no family around.
The Reunion Day was supported by Youth Leaders; Daniel McWatters, Katie Adlam, Kiana Burkett, Alissa Plasmeyer and Nathan Nelson. Thanks once again for the support. Our young people who attended felt encouraged to see your familiar faces and it was awesome to see them try new things with mentors at their side.
In February a blanket, socks and razor were purchased for a homeless gentleman who was a Pinnacle Health referral. Thank you to Jennie Reed who baked him some cookies and donated some polo fleece shirts.
It was heart-warming to see the No Limits participants reconnect with their camp mates, and korero (talk) about their adventures and achievements they made.
Come and join our closed group on Facebook! To find us type in the search bar:
FACEBOOK GROUP
New Zealand Red Cross – Taranaki
Taranaki Service Centre, 116 Gill Street, New Plymouth. Phone (06) 759 4697 / newplymouth@redcross.org.nz TARANAKI ISSUE 14 | MARCH 2017
RED CROSS NOVEMBER EARTHQUAKE UPDATE NZ Red Cross has raised over $3m from the November 2016 Earthquake Appeal. On 14th December 2016 ‘The Damaged Home Grant’ of NZ$1,000 was launched and available for people whose residential homes received either a red or yellow sticker, or were required to evacuate their homes for seven days or longer following the 14 November earthquakes. As well as the launch of grants, the major activity has been outreach / door-knocking. Here in Taranaki we have had many generous people in Taranaki contribute to this special appeal. Some of these include: Folk for Kaikoura - between the 8th and 12th December, in venues far and wide (Wellington, New Plymouth, Hawkes Bay, Levin, Auckland, Christchurch and Nelson), musicians from all over the New Zealand folk community got together for a series of special one day/night only concerts. Hosts played for free so that families in Kaikoura and surrounding areas received help they needed. Folk for Kaikoura played at The FITZ in New Plymouth on the 10th December raising $530 (total of $7,865.57 nationwide). Thank you to musicians Erin & Frank John who were the organisers here in New Plymouth. STOP in Charitable Trust raised $500 in December, NZ Tattoo & Art Festival (Brent Taylor) $2173.50, ABC Educare raffle $113.70 (Nicola Hooper), St Chads Ladies Fellowship who donated $100, Frankleigh Park Kindergarten $40, Taranaki Cathedral Church of St Mary donated $1,379.73 in January and $2,027.46 in February, Okato Co-operating Parish who donated $200 in February.
www.redcross.org.nz
VOLUNTEER PROFILE Lauren O’Sullivan (featured in photo below) is our spotlight volunteer, currently in her last year at Sacred Heart Girls College. Lauren began volunteering with Red Cross last October as a youth leader for our youth programme No Limits! Since then Lauren was selected to represent Taranaki at our National Youth forum in Christchurch and more recently Lauren helped spread awareness of our work at the Red Cross Seaside Market stall. Once she finishes high school Lauren is interested in youth work and we are looking forward to working with Lauren for future youth projects.
RED CROSS YOUTH NEWS National Youth Forum The Red Cross Nation Youth Forum took place on 17-19 February and Kiana Burkett, Lauren O’Sullivan and Taranaki Youth Coordinator Nicola Earl were fortunate to attend. It was held at the beautiful Mount Cheeseman, about a 2 hour bus drive out of Christchurch. There were 50 Red Cross youth members, 10 Red Cross staff in attendance, Jenny McMahon (NZRC National President) and Naomi Akamatsu (International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Society) who also facilitated sessions. A new National Youth Panel was elected at the forum, and we are pleased to congratulate Kiana on her election to the panel – tau ke Kiana, awesome! We all left the forum feeling motivated and very excited for the future of rangatahi (youth) involvement within the organisation.
TE REO MAORI: “Ahakoa he iti, he pounamu”. “Although small, it is a treasure”. (i.e. you may feel like a small part of the organisation, but what you offer is of great value).
BREADTAG PROJECT FINISHED As of December 1st 2016 we are no longer collecting bread tags – thank you to everyone who took part in helping us with our collection. In only a few short months we managed to collect approx. 152 kg or 390,150 tags!! As a result four disability supermarket trolleys were purchased with branch funds (Waitara New World, Pak N Save Hawera, Countdown Hawera, and Pak N Save New Plymouth). The tags are now being used for youth projects and for a Waitara girl’s Wearable Arts project.