December 03, 2013
Auckland City Mission opens food bank at Nga Whare Waatea marae
The Auckland City Mission opens its foodbank at Nga Whare Waatea in Mangere this morning in what city missioner Diane Robertson hopes is a smarter way to address poverty.
The marae-based foodbank is a partnership with the Manukau Urban Maori Aucthority, and comes out of university research commisisoned by the mission into the challenges faced by people living in poverty.
Ms Robertson says the typical food bank user is a mother with two or three children who has got caught in a debt trap meeting family obligations.
She says before people are given food, staff will check whether they have other opportunities or entitlements,
"Every single person we give food to has no one else to turn to. If we didn’t put food on the table, those children would go hungry tonight. People sometimes look at our clients and say they’re lazy, they’re bludgers, they don’t get a job. I don’t think they know how hard these mums work to put food in their children’s mouths and how depressing it is and how badly they’re treated and how badly they feel by having to go round and beg for charity," Ms Robertson says.
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