9th September 2017
In New Zealand, seeing a homeless person used to be rare and shocking. I remember when the only homeless person I ever saw was an older man who used to sit in a bus stop on Victoria Street, his bare feet absolutely ravaged. That was in 1992, when Victoria Street still boasted a few amazing Op Shops and the record shop where I purchased Chris Knox' album 'Seizure'.
Do you know someone who
might end up homeless?
If
this person does not have the internet, can you show them how to use it at a
local library? They may also need assistance regarding what they are entitled
to ask for if they are on a benefit.
If
they are over 65, find out if they are eligible for pensioner housing and get cracking.
Emergency
Housing -
Get in contact with the Ministry of Social
Development (WINZ) and ask for the person in charge of emergency housing. Do not allow them to fob you off – they
are busy and if they can get rid of you easily they will. If you are assertive
and willing to go to the next level then you are more likely to get the
assistance you need.
Once you are dealing with the person in
charge of emergency housing, you need to apply for it.
If they are not helpful, ask to speak to
the Service Centre Manager. If the Service Centre Manager will not help, then
say you will be speaking to your local MP.
Follow up: if you have said you will
contact your local MP, then do it. Follow through.
If at any stage you can’t handle this on
your own, then contact BAIS. This is a Beneficiaries advocacy group which may be able to
assist you.
Check out what is available locally - for example in West Auckland we have VisionWest Community who offer short and longer term accommodation: http://www.visionwest.org.nz/housing
In South Auckland there is Lifewise:
https://www.lifewise.org.nz/
https://www.facebook.com/lifewiseNZ
I'd love to check out the Lifewise cafe called Merge - it's on K Rd in Auckland.
https://www.lifewise.org.nz/merge-cafe/
This is from their website -
"Lifewise encourages Aucklanders from all walks of life to come together over a meal at the Merge cafe. Those who are hungry and those who hunger to make a difference; we encourage you all to eat from the same table, over great food and good company. And with a goal to end homelessness in Auckland, every dollar generated by Merge goes towards supporting people who experience homelessness"
VisionWest and Lifewise rely heavily on donations and volunteers, so feel free to donate if you can. They do it all, not just housing!
In New Zealand, seeing a homeless person used to be rare and shocking. I remember when the only homeless person I ever saw was an older man who used to sit in a bus stop on Victoria Street, his bare feet absolutely ravaged. That was in 1992, when Victoria Street still boasted a few amazing Op Shops and the record shop where I purchased Chris Knox' album 'Seizure'.
I was a student and worked part
time in Pizza Hut (a miserable restaurant experience for a waitress). I got the
homeless man some wool work socks and gave him $5 which was a lot for me at the
time. He was vacant from himself, obviously mentally unwell. He took the socks
and seemed baffled by them. I was grateful that we were in New Zealand, a
country that cared for those who had been laid low by difficult circumstances. I
felt that this man must have rejected assistance to be in the situation he was
in, yet I still had compassion for him.
I couldn’t imagine what it would be like
if we had a ‘Fisher King’ kind of
country and felt sorry for America. The
Fisher King was a 1991 Robin Williams vehicle that details a traumatized homeless
man’s quest for ‘the holy grail’. I remember feeling sure that Aotearoa would
never allow such a thing to happen to our mentally unwell.
In the late 1990’s I realised
that the face of Aotearoa was changing as immigration increased. I enjoyed so
many of the great things that a multi-cultural society can offer – suddenly the
whole world was coming to New Zealand!
Rents increased and yet I didn’t imagine I
would need to own a home in order to have somewhere to live. I thought that
there would always be places to rent. In the last six years I started to
understand why America has ‘trailer parks’!
It seems that many an investor took Robert
Kiyosaki’s (Rich Dad, Poor Dad)
advice and decided that a ‘property portfolio’ was the way to go. I wouldn’t
mind this if property owners had integrity regarding the places they rent out,
but many are overpriced hovels.
I am continuing to focus on what is
wonderful in life and love my country. Aotearoa is beautiful and I hope that it
remains so even for those who don’t have a property portfolio.
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