Mercury names recipients of its Tauranga Community Fund
01 SEPTEMBER 2023 – Ten community groups have received a share of $10,000 from Mercury’s Tauranga Community Fund.
The recipients of Mercury’s Tauranga Community Fund July round each showed a connection with:
• Manaakitanga – caring for our communities and people and putting people at the heart of the decision.
• Kaitiakitanga – taking up the role of guardian and protector of our environment, for future generations.
• Sustainability – improving, growing, learning and adapting in smart ways to make a difference
“We’re pleased to support the community in Tauranga and the wider Bay where many of our team live, work and play,” says Mercury General Manager Customer Operations, Fiona Smith. “It’s a privilege to be able to help these groups with some financial assistance to help them achieve their goals and aspirations in this community.”
The successful recipients were:
Pāpāmoa Coast Kindergarten
Community-based, not-for-profit early childhood education centre, Pāpāmoa Coast Kindergarten told Mercury that sharing kai is one of the ways they teach tamariki about giving, being thankful and bringing people together. Simple gestures like baking scones for morning tea when they have visitors or making sweet treats to say thank you to volunteers had been stifled when their oven stopped working. Mercury’s funding will support them to buy a new oven and resume this aspect of teaching.
Homes for Hope
Over the past 20+ years Charitable Trust, Homes for Hope have provided foster care for more than 300 tamariki who have experienced trauma. They aim to provide a stable and nurturing environment to restore mental, physical and emotional health and to build self-worth and enable these young people to flourish. Mercury’s funding will help them to purchase a new clothes dryer for one of their homes and a new shower unit for another.
The Daily Charitable Trust
The Daily Charitable Trust feed 1800 local students per day through holding the contract for the Ministry of Education Lunches in Schools. But over and above that they also deliver 200 lunches extra lunches per day to the 4 local schools who were unfunded through the government programme for students that their schools have identified as in need. Mercury’s donation will go towards vehicle costs to complete this daily run of 74km per school day.
Good Neighbour Aotearoa
Through their Food Rescue operation, Good Neighbour Aotearoa collect food from 13 local supermarkets every day which is good enough to eat but not good enough to sell. They then sort and re-distribute to community organisations to help them connect with their clients and whanāu. Good Neighbour Aotearoa estimate this diverts between 2 and 2.5 tonnes of food from landfill each day. Mercury’s donation will go towards the running costs of their vehicles.
Bay of Plenty Shoebox Christmas
This Christmas 3,500 rangatahi will receive an unexpected gift thanks to Bay of Plenty Shoebox Christmas to match children under the age of 13 up with donators who are provided some details like gender and age to
purchase a suitable gift that can fill a shoebox in time for it to be delivered anonymously. While all the gifts are funded my individual donors the organisation still has to fund administration costs, and Mercury are pleased to be able to assist by paying for their insurance this year.
Menzshed Katikati
Since 2017, Menzshed Katikati have provided a safe and supportive environment for people to come together and do woodwork and metalwork projects for the community. From fixing broken furniture and items of sentimental value, to a project to construct 4000 predator traps over the next two years for local groups controlling pests in the Kaimai Ranges. They’ve recently been offered new premises and Mercury are pleased to be able to assist with the cost of upgrading the power supply to 3-phase.
PIPS Inc
PIPS Inc is an in-school education programme teaching tamariki in seven kura in the Mt Maunganui and Papamoa area life skills of gardening and growing their own food. Mercury have provided funding for some new gardening equipment, seeds and soil and two worm farms.
Linkt Community Trust
The Ōtumoetai Social Supermarket was established by Linkt Community Trust in November 2022 with the dream to see a connected, kai secure community in Ōtumoetai and provide a place where the community has access to affordable, safe and nutritious kai. Mercury’s funding will pay for a commercial display fridge to maintain and extend the shelf life of fruit and vegetables.
Mainly Music at Ōtumoetai Baptist Church
Having recently celebrated 25 years, Mainly Music at Ōtumoetai Baptist Church provide interactive music and movement sessions for young families to gather, relax, bond with their children and make connections with other young families. Towards the end of last year the church hall was repurposed and converted to the Ōtumoetai Social Supermarket meaning that the space is no longer available for the children to play in after the structured music sessions and a new playground was needed. While they’ve nearly finished the project; Mercury’s funding will help them complete it with bark mulch and a swing.
House of Science
The Tauranga branch of House of Science currently has 37 member schools who access their library of science kits, each containing 5-8 activities / experiments and lesson plans for teachers to support tamariki to be curious, ask questions, innovate and challenge the status quo while gaining an understanding of science concepts and processes. One such kit is called Electric Future and it has learning activities which educate tamariki about alternative and renewable energy sources. Mercury’s funding will contribute to the purchase of this kit for the library.
The next round of the fund opens on 1 November with applications closing on 30 November.
For more information head to www.mercury.co.nz/tauranga-community-fund
ENDS
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