Anita | Fairfield, Waikato

** This story talks about family violence.  For specialised help free call 0800 456 450 or www.areyouok.org.nz/i-need-help/ **

“I’ve got that many stories like that. But I’ve always been scared of flying, and I flew down here to see my kids. It’s a huge thing for me.

I’ve always been scared of flying. So, I’ve held it off for years, and then my kids really wanted to get me out of the situation I was in, so they wanted me to come down and stay with them. So I braved it, and jumped on the plane, as horrible as it was. But I’ve really enjoyed it. It’s cool. 

I’m going home tomorrow. I’ve got six kids. I’ve got 12 grandchildren. So, in this visit I got to meet one of the grandchildren that I’ve never met before. So that was really cool. And to just come down and see a bit of Christchurch that I’ve never thought that I would ever get to come and see. It’s been really cool. My family, my children, and my grandkids, they’re everything to me. They’re what keeps me going. I’ve been through a lot in my life, and my kids are what keep me going,

I grew up in Morrinsville and didn’t really have the best of lives. I was married to a gang member. Endured years of abuse, and finally, after 20 years I got away from that. It still took a long time, but now I’ve come out the other side, and just got my kids to keep me going.

It just got to the point where I thought that I was going to die. So, it was either, I die trying to leave, or I’ll just die there. So, that’s what I ended up having to have the courage to do.”