Rachael | Papakura
“Just recently I had taken a lovely lady out for lunch, and she hadn’t been taken out for quite some time actually, and yet she does so much for the community, and I just wanted to say thank you for taking me under her wing, and doing what she does for me and the church.
I think it’s extraordinarily important because you lose connection. You lose self-esteem, especially with people that tend to close themselves off, stay in their house, they don’t have anybody to talk to; just finding that connection, you know? So, it’s a matter of ones reaching out to the community, and just saying; hey you know what, I get you, understand you, and we’re here.
My hopes for coming today (to the community meeting) is finding a way where we can all work together as a net core group, with everybody that’s attended today, and knowing where we can utilise the different ones here that can fit into specific programs that we’re trying to achieve. Our special event days that we have here in Smith Ave. We’re wanting to uplift, inspire, bring out the best in everybody within this area, teach them. Teach them things like our Māori classes, our Sunday School, our youth, you know, getting them involved, getting them connected with us. That’s, that’s why I’m here today.
So, my friend Mau she is extremely well known here within Smith Ave, actually within the community. She’s a sparky by trade, she’s a builder, she’s a, oh my goodness, she does everything. It’s people like her that need to be recognised more often, and as a community, I feel we’re very, very lucky and fortunate to have her here. She also runs what they call Circuit Breaker every Friday night from 6:30 to 8:30, at the Smith, Smith Ave hall, and it’s, it’s about empowering women, and knowing who they are Christ, you know, what our gifts are within the Word. Also, she’s there to motivate us, and she loves us too, to see the bigger picture, what’s in front of us, and the teaching tool is, yeah it’s amazing. It’s overwhelming, but I would like to see her be recognised more often within the connections that we have with the resources, and with the people that come through, whether it be council or whoever. It’s nice to have that recognition for somebody who does so much. Sorry, I’m getting nervous, for someone who does so much within this community.
So, I was born in Hastings. Originally brought up in Porirua, little beach area called Titahi Bay, and I have eight siblings. We were a low-income family. We struggled quite severely but saying that, my parents became Christians, and then became pastors, and I am a Christian now. My, my belief in God is, is overflowing, and I love anything that revolves supporting people, caring for them, doing whatever I can to support then, whether it be in our church, in our family, or in the community. That’s my passion.”
