Join the goody-goodies
Home » Magazine » Good, issue 4 » Join the goody-goodiesHelping those less fortunate hangs right up there with the angel on the list of all things Christmassy—and one of the country’s three city missions is a good place to start.
Photo: flickr.com/photos/littlesister/ / CC BY 2.0
Mathieu Holt, an Auckland City Mission fundraiser, says his mission needs help—but not with stuffing the turkey. “We only have one volunteer spot still open for Christmas day,” he says: “The chef.”
So, if you reckon you can whip up dinner for 1,500 people, give Mathieu a call. If not, never mind. If you can wrap presents, rattle a bucket, even busk for someone else’s festive supper, the Mission will be just as grateful. “It’s hard to find people to do these behind-the-scenes things,” says Mathieu. “But that’s where we really need the help.”
The Auckland City Mission gives out 25,000 Christmas presents every year, so if you can help with the logistics much Christmas cheer will be bestowed upon you. Mathieu suggests getting everyone in your office to bring in a present, “especially for teenagers as we’re always short on those”. You could also volunteer to pick up other people’s presents or get a group together to wrap them.
The annual street appeal on December 12 is also in need of help. The buckets are lined up and waiting for people to move and shake them. “No one wants to ask people for money,” says Holt. “But we find people really want to donate on collection day—they just need to be able to find a bucket to put it in.”
If you find standing around a bit boring, what about standing and singing? “We want to get buskers at collection points throughout the city,” says Mathieu. “So if you have a talent we can use, we’ll take it off your hands.”
If the only singing you’ll be doing in the lead-up to Christmas is under your breath while you wait for the office printer to do its thing, well, great. “The best volunteering you could ever do is to work a couple of extra hours and give us the money,” says Mathieu. “We need money more than anything.”
What will you get out of all this bucket-shaking, street corner-warbling and overtime-clocking? More fuzzies than a two-year-old polarfleece. “Some kids will just stand there shaking when they get their present; they’re so excited,” says Mathieu. “Often it’s the first one they’re ever been given and they don’t know what to do with it. It’s a really good feeling to help with that.”
Feel-good contacts
Auckland City Mission, 09-379 2395, info@aucklandcitymission.org.nz
Wellington City Mission, 04-477 5960, enquiries@wgtncitymission.org.nz
Christchurch City Mission, 03-650 635, margaret@citymission.org.nz
