Most of the donations raised to help Cyclone Gabrielle North Island flood victims remain unspent. That’s about $30m. The Red Cross has spent only $5m of its $24m Disaster Fund donations. The March Lotto fundraiser draw is sitting unused. That’s another $11.77m. People in disaster zones – the supposed beneficiaries – want to know what’s Read more
Auckland Bishop, Steve Lowe, has thanked everyone for donating to his Catholic Caring Foundation’s flood and cyclone appeals. Lowe reports that 69 grants have been given to charities and agencies throughout greater Auckland to help families, people and communities in need. “The outpouring of generosity throughout the country and overseas has been humbling,” he says. Read more
A mother of four has been plunged further into debt after her government-provided home was ruined in the Auckland floods. Jayde Jones’s Kāinga Ora home was built on a flood plain, and lifted off its foundations when a historic deluge swept across the city. Jones believes the state housing agency should pay to replace her Read more
An email from the principal of Dunedin’s newly renamed Trinity Catholic College calling Auckland’s deadly floods a “silver lining” has been leaked to the media. Principal Kate Nicholson’s message has hit the headlines – just when she hoped to duck from media about the school’s scandalous past. Expecting the reason (sexual abuse) for the former Read more
There’s a long recovery ahead for Auckland, says Catholic Caring Foundation manager, Ann-Marie Parker. “Homes have been totally destroyed, leaving many families literally with just the clothes on their backs. They will have to begin to rebuild their lives from zero,” she says. But, besides being left with nothing, Parker is concerned that many will Read more