Rc link newsletter 2014 issue 2 v5 hr

Local Highlights

Diocesan School for Girls students assembling a bike.

Students build bikes for refugees Thirteen Kiwi kids from refugee backgrounds now have shiny new bikes thanks to an initiative from Diocesan School for Girls, Auckland, supported by New Zealand Red Cross. For many children from refugee backgrounds this is the first item they have ever owned. The project was part of leadership development and learning that runs across all year levels at Diocesan, which teaches students valuable skills including perseverance, ingenuity and leadership.

Social Media What was popular in July 2014

Hampstead school children showing off their new mittens knitted by Red Cross members.

Branches knit mittens Tinwald, Rakaia and Methven branch members knitted 256 items for lowdecile primary schools and Plunket in Christchurch. Many children wrote to Red Cross members thanking them for the mittens saying they are warm, comfy and that they love the colours. When Pat O’Brien ran the project in 2013, she realised there was a need for it to continue. Pat says she is grateful to members who volunteered their time to knit. “It is a perfect way our members can contribute more to the work of Red Cross.”

Red Cross book sale

Volunteer Linda Gieseg sorts through books, Photo: David Unwin, Fairfax NZ.

The annual Red Cross book sale held in Palmerston North raised over $100,000. The money raised will support a range of programmes including funds for disasters, the Red Cross curtain bank, refugee services as well as first aid courses and meals on wheels.

Facebook: Most popular post I would like to personally thank all New Zealand Red Cross volunteers and also our 5000 members, who also volunteer countless hours of their time. You are the backbone of our organisation and we couldn’t do it without you.

- Tony Paine, Secretary General

Issue 2 2014

Twitter: Most Popular tweet Globally the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement has 17 million #volunteers. We couldn’t be here without them! #NVW2014 Followers: 10,892

Followers: 6,335

FOLLOW US AT

www.facebook.com/NewZealandRedCross www.twitter.com/NZRedCross

Where in the world are our aid workers?

Currently in the field: Felicity Gapes - Yangon, Myanmar Judy Owen - Juba, South Sudan Cate Keville - Port Vila, Vanuatu Graham Duggan - Mount Hagen, Papua New Guinea Graham Zinsli - Ruwayshid, Jordan

Sarah Jensen (right), with Debi Potten.

Brave 12-year-old saves accident victim

Dean Manderson - Apia, Samoa Gail Corbett - Gaza, OPT Guru Dev Singh - Nairobi, Kenya Louise Humphreys - Beirut, Lebanon Ana Zarkovic - Honiara, Solomon Islands Jacqui Dixon - Juba, South Sudan Anne Maree Delaney - Suva, Fiji Shirley receiving her Red Cross Active Service Award. Photo: Feilding Herald.

Volunteer’s years of service lauded Dedicated long-serving meals on wheels driver Shirley Ellery received a Red Cross Active Service Award, which recognises her 40 years of active service to New Zealand Red Cross. Shirley, who is 80 years old, has been volunteering as a meals on wheels driver in Rangitikei since she was 30 years old. She says she started volunteering because it was an act of community service.

Joshua Herron - Dakar, Senegal Janice Zachan, Jill Carberry & Shirley Johnson mending curtains. Photo: Warren Buckland, Hawkes Bay Today.

Curtain bank ready for winter New Zealand Red Cross Napier branch members have been busy fundraising and preparing curtains for those who need them in Hawkes Bay. The award-winning Curtain Bank initiative, supported by Red Cross, started nearly five years ago and has since donated 6,055 curtains to 589 homes in Hawkes Bay.

Rosemary Fenton - Hanoi, Vietnam Peter Winthrop - Wellington/Fiji Ellie Seo - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia VIEW CURRENT AID WORKERS AT

www.redcross.org.nz/what-we-do

National Office PO Box 12-140, Wellington 69 Molesworth Street, Thorndon Wellington Phone: 04 471 8250 Fax: 04 471 8251 Email: hello@redcross.org.nz www.redcross.org.nz

S

arah Jensen was making her usual walk to Feilding Intermediate School when she heard crying coming from a nearby bike alleyway.

On investigating the cries, she was shocked to find Debi Potten who had crashed her bike into a deep hole in the alleyway, falling head first onto the concrete.

Sarah called for help from her classmates Aliyah Samson and Gloria Graham, who had all been taught first aid through a New Zealand Red Cross People Savers course a few weeks before.

“I was wondering what I should do but then I saw a phone and it clicked to ring an ambulance,” says Sarah, her Red Cross training immediately kicking in.

Instinctively taking the lead, Sarah directed students to go out and wave down the

ambulance, as well as sending others to notify teachers of what had happened.

Aliyah reassured Debi, helping move her gently into the recovery position and asking what she could and could not move.

Gloria moved objects out of the way to keep the pathway clear and accessible for when the ambulance arrived and made sure Leanora, Debi’s daughter, was calm, assuring her that everything was going to be ok.

“The girls were really good,” says Debi, “they asked all the right questions and made sure I was breathing.”

Debi, a nurse, was released from hospital that day, with minor injuries keeping her off work for a couple of weeks. She jokes about spending her day off at work, but in a reversed role!

“If the girls weren’t there I probably would’ve gone into shock and passed out. They acted more like adults than

12-year-olds – they did really, really well.

I’m so pleased they were there and able to help calm down Leanora.”

Red Cross community trainer Kate Robinson is proud at how well the students she taught responded.

“Who knows how this situation may have panned out if the students involved had not done the course. I love working with students and knowing that what we are doing is going to one day help someone, that it’s making a difference.”

The girls all agree how important the People Savers course was in giving them the confidence to act quickly.

Sarah says her confidence has grown. “It was a good experience because now we all know we can help again.”

Red Cross presented Sarah, Aliyah and Gloria with first aid certificates during an in-class award ceremony.

A message from Tony Paine Kia ora koutou

Message from Jenny Thank you all for supporting Tony Paine as he has travelled across Aotearoa to explain the 2015 Annual Plan and be available to answer questions. It was good that Tony could move around and be available to so many at a time with changes in the staff structure and a jump in the move back to a membershipbased organisation Within New Zealand, the main changes members will see in the next months are the full integration of the refugee services team into the New Zealand Red Cross structure, the promotion of disaster management information across all our activities, and the adoption of a single plan for each area, incorporating the budgets and activities for humanitarian activities (members and staff ), social enterprise (retail and first aid) and area council guidance.

During what is now AGM season, can all continuing branch executive members and area councillors please ensure new appointees are well introduced, not only to Red Cross but also to the roles and responsibilities they have accepted. The philosophy of ‘no surprises’ goes a long way to harmonious and well-functioning committees.

The theme for the centenary planning has been finalised – a “Century of Care”. It is a retro theme so we can look back into the past as we move forward and look into the future. 2015 will be a year when we can highlight the role Red Cross plays here in New Zealand. My thanks to all those who are embracing this opportunity on behalf of us all.

The National Council meeting dates have been set for the 1 and 2 November.

Dr Jenny McMahon National President

I’d like confirm appointments to the new management roles I announced recently. For some staff, volunteers and members this will mean working alongside a new person and I appreciate this is a time of change and building new relationships. It will also mean

farewelling managers who will, unfortunately, be leaving New Zealand Red Cross. This is a tough time for people in this situation and I am sure you will be as supportive as you can. I appreciate that for some of you it means the end of long and close working relationships.

In particular I would like to thank and acknowledge the work of Ken Birdling in Wellington, Sue O’Donnell in Hamilton, Cami Arend in Auckland and Sarah Ward in Auckland. They have all contributed much to Red Cross and our communities.

People in the new roles, even though they

“New language, new culture, new everything”

Daniel Gamboa Salazar with his proud mother Carmenza Salazar.

From evading Colombian terrorists to speaking in front of more than 150 guests at Parliament it has been quite a journey for former refugee Daniel Gamboa Salazar.

Daniel, 20, is a former refugee who told his story at a World Refugee Day event at Parliament on 19 June.

“They (Red Cross) have given me a lot and now they come to me asking me to help other refugees. I feel so happy,” Daniel says.

The annual event was hosted by Immigration Minister Michael Woodhouse in association with New Zealand Red Cross and the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

Colombian born Daniel says local terrorists would line up the boys at his primary

school and take away those they wanted for fighting.

His mother owned a successful restaurant and was forced to pay the terrorists money for protection, he says.

“One day they came to the restaurant and asked her to keep some guns and she said no.”

They fled over the border to Ecuador that same day, Daniel says. “We left everything behind.”

The pair thought they would be safe but struggled to find money for food and faced racial discrimination when trying to rent a house.

Now studying at Victoria University, Daniel says he had not heard of New Zealand before moving here.

Daniel says the first thing he noticed about his new country was the fresh air when stepping off the plane.

“It was a new language, new culture, new everything,” he says. “I decided to take as many opportunities as possible.”

New Zealand Red Cross launched two new reports on the day focusing on Health and Wellbeing and Youth and participated in World Refugee Day events in Auckland, Palmerston North, Nelson and Hamilton.

Centenary planning Planning towards our 2015 centenary celebrations is well underway.

Here is a sneak preview of the centenary artwork, which will be launched later in the year.

are all existing staff, will be given an in-depth induction to their work. We are working to ensure everyone in the Red Cross family understands the new roles and relationships required to make the structure work.

The new structure is part of a wider change as we re-orient Red Cross towards a more united organisation, where we work together to ensure Red Cross in your part of the country is rising to the challenges of mobilising local people to help meet local vulnerability and needs.

Northland Community Services Manager: Nancy Kareroa-Yorke Northern Humanitarian Services Manager: Amanda Aye Waikato Bay of Plenty Humanitarian Services Manager: Rachel O’Connor Mid Central Humanitarian Services Manager: Sonja De Lange East Coast Community Services Manager: Debbie Cullen Central Humanitarian Services Manager: Shane La’ulu Tasman Marlborough Community Services Manager: Gabrielle Humphreys Canterbury Tasman Humanitarian Services Manager: Carol Ball Otago Southland Humanitarian Services Manager: Sue Price

RedNet member access We are pleased to announce that we have created a simple login process for members to easily access RedNet, our internal online sharing space where we post Red Cross news and updates.

We received feedback that the login process was problematic, so we went

What would you do if you were forced to flee your home because of war or persecution?

Today there are 51.2 million people around the world forcibly displaced from their homes.

To highlight the growing plight of refugees around the world, we have launched Seeking Sanctuary, New Zealand’s first refugee camp simulation, to be held on 7–8 November 2014 in Auckland.

Over a period of 17 hours, representing the 17 years on average refugees spend in refugee camps, participants will flee from a simulated conflict zone, cross a patrolled border and seek shelter in a refugee camp.

Seeking Sanctuary has been designed in collaboration with local refugee communities, Red Cross staff, volunteers, international aid workers and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

Together we can increase awareness and understanding of the refugee journey and raise much needed funds for our work with refugees in New Zealand and around the world.

REGISTER ONLINE AT

www.seekingsanctuary.org.nz

New Zealand Red Cross Link Newsletter

Appointments to new roles:

back to the drawing board. We hope our new solution will make your life easier and help us get as many members as possible accessing our intranet.

If you haven’t already received your login details, keep your eye out in your email inbox. We look forward to sharing even more news with you about the New Zealand Red Cross family.

Member Spotlight Who am I? Jessica Braim Why did you become a Red Cross member?

When I started volunteering I was looking for an organisation that was based on morals and principles that I agreed with and gave me an opportunity to work in my community to help others.

How long have you been with us?

Two years.

Staff Profile Who am I? Ed Williams How long have you been a part of New Zealand Red Cross?

Two years.

What do you do?

I work as a Project Partner campaigner, which means most days, rain or shine, I am out and about trying to provide as many people as possible with the opportunity to show their support by making a small regular donation.

What is your favourite part of your job?

No two days are the same! It’s amazing; I get to meet all sorts of different people and I enjoy hearing all the different stories about Red Cross, and how it’s helped in so many different ways.

Why New Zealand Red Cross?

I like the variety of services New Zealand Red Cross is involved in – from the local programmes helping the vulnerable, through to the international humanitarian relief provided to those in the midst of a conflict or disaster.

Are you involved in any other aspect of Red Cross?

I volunteer at events and am a member of my local welfare response team based up in Katikati. I also help out with fundraising events. These can be anything from Red Rose day to the recent Book fair to Red Cross Collection week.

What’s the best part of your involvement with us?

It’s a cliché answer but the team I work with, the experiences, skills and knowledge I’ve gained are just incomparable. The people you meet and the team you work with they become your second family. They’ll support and encourage you and are always ready with words of, dare I say wisdom? I will just say that being a volunteer for Red Cross is one decision I have never regretted.

Biggest indulgence?

Chocolate, chocolate and lets think... chocolate, as my mother so wisely says ‘Jess, you’ve never met a chocolate you don’t like!’

DO YOU WANT TO NOMINATE SOMEONE WE SHOULD ALL KNOW ABOUT?

communications@redcross.org.nz

Issue 2 / 2014 | www.redcross.org.nz