Five local organisations doing great work in the Taupō, Tūrangi and Rotorua communities have received significant gifts from the Geyser Community Foundation.
Geyser’s Executive Officer, Annette Burgess said The Tindall Foundation provides Geyser with funds to distribute to local charitable organisations in the Rotorua and Taupō District communities in its Families / Whanau programme area.
“All funding applications are assessed by Geyser’s Distribution Advisory Committee (DAC), a group of six volunteers representing the Rotorua and Taupō communities, who give their own time and expertise in considering the applications.
Chair of Geyser’s DAC, Ann Nicholas said this year, four community organisations in the Taupō and Tūrangi communities received gifts totalling $41,000 from the Geyser Community Foundation.
“This year, most of the total funds available was gifted to organisations working in the Taupō District community.
“Another highlight is that two recipients are new, which means we are reaching further into the local community.
“The local groups to receive support this year were:
• Tūrangi Foodbank received a gift of $15,000 to help with administration and operational expenses like wages and rent.
The Foodbank provides emergency food parcels to those people experiencing food insecurity in the Tūrangi and southern Lake Taupō area. The service supports a broad range of people in the local community, including families, the unemployed, sickness beneficiaries, single parents, retirees and many more, most of whom (88%) identify as Ngāti Tuwharetoa.
• Safe Tūrangi received $12,000 for its Child Restraint Seat project.
The organisation’s main purpose is to contribute to the safety and wellbeing of the local community by working with safety organisations, particularly Neighbourhood Support, NZ Police, Community Patrols, Fire Service, Coastguard, Blue Light and many more not-forprofit organisations.
Following discussions, it was found that there was a great need for a Child Restraint Seat programme to be established in Tūrangi as an alarming number of whānau were driving around with no restraints or if restraints were being used, they were not installed correctly or were the wrong size.
50 Child restraint seats have been provided to local whānau since August 2023; it is anticipated that 209 infants under four years of age will benefit from this gift.
• Taupō Budget Advisory Service (TBAS) received a gift of $10,000 for administrative and operational expenses.
TBAS offers free, confidential and non-judgmental financial mentoring to a growing number of people in the Taupō and Tūrangi communities. They support, encourage, teach and advocate for financial wellness, using their unique professional skills in money management to help clients identify for themselves how their actions and decisionmaking has a direct connection to the financial situation of their household, and therefore a strong influence on the health and well-being of their family / whānau.
• Pregnancy Help Taupo received $12,000 to help with administration and operational expenses.
Pregnancy Help Taupō provides free high quality second-hand clothing for babies aged 0 – 5 years in Taupō, Turangi, Mangakino, Broadlands and Reporoa. With the belief that no child should go without seasonally appropriate clothing or other essential equipment needed for them to thrive, the organisation ensures that every whānau in the local community has equal access to these items.
In addition, they aim to connect the people they support with other services such as playgroups, support groups and healthcare services to further improve their well-being and meet their needs.
Pregnancy Help Taupō received $15,000 last year.
In Rotorua, Grandparents Raising Grandchildren (GRG) received a gift of $12,000 to help with administration and operational expenses, such as wages and rent.
The purpose and kaupapa of GRG is to empower grandparents and whanau care families with what they need to raise resilient and healthy children, and young people with positive life outcomes. The majority of these families are raising tamariki and rangatahi who have been impacted by trauma; they can’t be raised by their parents and the only alternative is state / foster care.
Caregivers are mostly grandparents but also include older siblings, aunts / uncles, other whanu and great grandparents. The majority of caregiver families experience considerable social, educational and economic disadvantages and desperately need support tailored to their needs as grandparent and / or whanau care families. GRG’s priority is to ensure more caregiver families have access to the right support, information, advice, advocacy services and caregiver education programmes in the Rotorua community.
GRG received a gift of $15,000 last year.
Geyser Trustees have approved gifts totalling more than $550,000 to charities and community groups in the Taupo and Rotorua District communities since first being appointed Local Donations Manager by The Tindall Foundation in 2013.
Applications open again on 1 March 2025.
13 June 2024
For more information please contact:
Annette Burgess
Executive Officer
Geyser Community Foundation
Telephone 07 349 7496
Mobile 0274 308 876
Email annette@geysercf.org.nz
Web www.geysercf.org.nz
To unsubscribe, change or update your email address:
Please send an email to info@geysercf.org.nz
