Jerry Nasalio and Sara Toloi from the Salvation Army
Last evening we had visitors from the Salvation Army (SA): Jerry Nasalio and Sara Toloi. They gave us an insight into some of the work of the Sallies in Porirua East and brought along their posh new van for us to inspect.
Sara’s work is fairly conventional: she runs the food bank, for which there is a high need in Porirua. It is open Monday to Friday, 10.00 to 1.00 pm. Families are able to obtain food boxes three to five times per annum, the size being dependent on the size of the family. Each box contains enough supplies for a week. If families need help more often, they are referred to the SA budgeting service and/or a social worker. Countdown is a generous donor to the food bank.
The Sallies have been running a community finance programme for several years, but Jerry is in charge of a new venture, a mobile food shop, and an ethical financing service for needy families. It has been running for a year, here and in South Auckland.
In low decile and immigrant communities, unscrupulous high-interest third-tier lenders have been preying on vulnerable families. The Government (Kris Faafoi in particular) took some action to stem this scourge but the problem remains. Jerry’s goal is to ‘disrupt the market’ and offer a better alternative to those families who have to borrow to get by.
Client families are able to obtain appliances and food on credit from the SA, and the loans are interest-free. There is a preliminary needs and budgeting interview in the mobile office, which establishes the weekly repayment. The SA then orders the goods which are then delivered to the family. Countdown’s existing online shopping service is used for food supplies.
Families that are living beyond their means may have their applications declined and are referred to other SA services such as housing or budgeting.
Jerry’s worst ongoing problem is that many families cannot understand even the simplest financial issues and are therefore vulnerable to predatory lenders. Educating them is a big part of Jerry’s job, but he is making progress.
For the club, this was a useful insight into the problems faced by the neediest members of the community.
Best way to use leftovers?
I'm sure you've got some excess ham at home or cold roast potatoes.
What are some of your favourite ways to use leftover food from Christmas day? Share below.
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️
Poll: Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?
Just a bit of a fun poll to get you thinking.
If you had to live out your Christmas days, would you prefer it was a summer Christmas or a winter Christmas?
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61.9% Summer
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36.6% Winter
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1.5% Other - I'll share below
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