Radio equiment for Otahuhu Maori wardens

Thomas from Otahuhu

The Otahuhu Maori Wardens would like to apply for a grant to buy new radios and equiment

Every New Zealander needs a Third Place

Preston from Waltham

Title inspired by this article:
thespinoff.co.nz...

Kia Ora,

Thank you for the opportunity to apply and for your work providing resources to community projects and organizations.

This turned into more than I was originally going to share, so I'll lay it out for you:

…View moreTitle inspired by this article:
thespinoff.co.nz...

Kia Ora,

Thank you for the opportunity to apply and for your work providing resources to community projects and organizations.

This turned into more than I was originally going to share, so I'll lay it out for you:

• INTRODUCTION
• PURPOSE
• WHY WE DO IT
• WHAT WE'VE DONE
• AN EXAMPLE
• WHY WE'RE APPLYING
• WHAT WE'D DO WITH FUNDS
• THANK YOU

• INTRODUCTION:
My name is Preston and I'm the Exchange Operator (the less intimidating version of "Operations Manager") at Exchange Christchurch. The locals know us as "XCHC".
xchc.co.nz...

• PURPOSE:
Exchange was set up as a charitable trust (now a Social Enterprise) in the post-quake context to give people a place to gather and particularly to be creative, develop creative practices, or engage with others through creative events and activities. We do this by providing 4 types of spaces, a "Makerspace" where artists/creative can affordably work together in shared studios (currently about 30 residents). Once you produce your creative work, you need to Showcase it, so we have a venue/gallery for the community to use to showcase their ideas and host events. While showcasing, you obviously need the public, so we have an on-site Cafe/Bar to support the events and give people a place to experience art/creativity in a casual, fun and exciting way. Finally, we have Accommodation, to encourage traveling/international artists to come and contribute their creativity to our Christchurch community, connecting us with talent and ideas from all over the world.

• WHY WE DO IT:
There is no doubt that creativity and the freedom of expression has a profound effect on our mental health and positively influences those around us. This recent article is good evidence of what we do:
medium.com...

From a city-wide perspective, creativity adds diversity to the economy, resilience to its communities and sends a welcoming and innovative message to the rest of the world. We've been privileged to be one of if not the only entity willing to take this risk in Christchurch; a not-for-profit cafe that pays their staff the living wage, sources locally, gives work experience to people who have had serious upsets in their lives and just need some support to get back on their feet AND an arts organization that has not been grant reliant for the last 3 years. This means funding has been able to go towards other groups that need it, and we can self-sustain our impact.

• WHAT WE'VE DONE:
We've hosted over 500 community/creative events, 80+ showcased exhibitions (mostly by emerging artists), and have had over 60 creatives working out of the studios.

• AN EXAMPLE...
...of sustaining this creative ecology can be seen in our upcoming event this Saturday, Everybody Eats, Everybody Helps.

Inspired by Everybody Eats in Auckland providing food for the homeless, I saw the need for Christchurch to address the issue locally and support our street whānau as a community. Working with peoples creativity, I often sense the embarrassment of some because of the stigma that exists around wanting to be an "artist"; I could see the connection, people often form preconceived negative ideas about the homeless without ever taking the time or having the space to better understand them. So I decided to host a potluck event at XCHC welcoming the street whānau for the day and give the community, who has often felt helpless with the issue, a chance to get close to them and show their support by gathering together and having some kai and korero.

As a part of this event, I thought we could bring an artistic element of the streets into our venue so they feel more at home; street art. Young artists in our city are begging for opportunities to create the art they're good at. This is often opposed in the city unless it meets a criteria/commissioned etc. We opened the venue for a day and let over 30 people come and engage with creating a street art exhibition as a community, and 7 murals from professional artists have been installed. The youth involved said they've never been given this freedom before... until now. We're fundraising to pay the artists for the materials and their time.
We were interviewed here:
blog.watchthisspace.org.nz...

We now have some sponsors and are not only eating together as a community, but providing haircuts, skill building, hygiene care, and fundraising for a local charity that wants to develop the Everybody Eats model in the city.
The event here:
www.facebook.com...

This has been just the last 2 weeks, and we'll be doing something completely different for the next 2 weeks. It's the nature of community development, open, inclusive, and adapts to what shows up when its needed.

• WHY WE'RE APPLYING
Exchange Christchurch turned 4 yesterday and has always been/is still on a shoestring budget, making it hard for us to get ahead.. sometimes even just getting the lighting or signage we need.

We've gone against all odds, surviving as a cafe outside the CBD (actually across from the abandoned AMI stadium) surrounded by industrial businesses and lower decile neighborhoods, 2 parking spots, expensive rent, paying our staff the living wage, and myself being the only point of contact/operations of this 4-in-1 social enterprise/hub; we may be missing opportunities to even better serve our vulnerable communities (YOUTH).

I can't remember the last time we had more than $10k in the bank, but I also can't remember when it mattered. We do what we do because we love it and it needs to be done. $6k will help us do it that much better :)

• WHAT WE'D DO WITH FUNDS
We would use the fund to get some equipment and lighting to make the venue more welcoming and practical for our communities events. We also need a new website to better tell the stories of the people we've positively impacted and things we've done. Help with marketing means we can also finally reach the people who don't yet know we exist but may be desperate for a "third place".

He aha te mea nui o te ao. He tāngata, he tāngata, he tāngata
What is the most important thing in the world? It is people, it is people, it is people.

• THANK YOU
From myself, the community, the XCHC team, the resident artists, and our mascot cat Walter.

View 1 more…

CoffeeKai2.pdf Download View

Requesting a grant to help with speying and neutering of domestic cats in Westland

Elisabeth Neighbourly Lead from Westland District

In Westland, speying and neutering of domestic cats is particularly difficult because of the distances (up to 277km to get to a vet) and high costs $150-$220 (depending if male or female) which many people here can't afford. This is an especially bad situation because unwanted cats can become …View moreIn Westland, speying and neutering of domestic cats is particularly difficult because of the distances (up to 277km to get to a vet) and high costs $150-$220 (depending if male or female) which many people here can't afford. This is an especially bad situation because unwanted cats can become feral cats, threatening native birds (and mice and rats to be fair). Other parts of NZ have special programmes for getting domestic cats speyed or neutered at very affordable prices... could we too?
The request is for a grant to fund a vet to travel here (perhaps the SPCA Mobile Vet clinic) and carry out speying and neutering at much-reduced rates, in each town. Thank you for your consideration.

Alleyway lights as there are none

Jayda from Glenfield

The alleyway that links Stanley road to beaudine avenue hasn’t any lighting , it’s a main thoroughfare for most of the glenfield college students in the area as well as a quick link to walk to the mall for whom live in windy ridge etc area , it’s very steep and can be very slippery in the wer…View moreThe alleyway that links Stanley road to beaudine avenue hasn’t any lighting , it’s a main thoroughfare for most of the glenfield college students in the area as well as a quick link to walk to the mall for whom live in windy ridge etc area , it’s very steep and can be very slippery in the wer , so when it’s dark you have to walk slowly , whicih in the dark is scary , it would keep many people safe from harm haveing some lighting

Volunteer's Training

Mina from Flat Bush

Mercy Parklands loves to support our compassionate volunteers to the best we can such as providing trainings, particularly the Spark of Life Certified Practitioner Course training (3 days course- $150.00 for the course fee & workbook). Spark of Life Philosophy is a philosophy that enriches the …View moreMercy Parklands loves to support our compassionate volunteers to the best we can such as providing trainings, particularly the Spark of Life Certified Practitioner Course training (3 days course- $150.00 for the course fee & workbook). Spark of Life Philosophy is a philosophy that enriches the life for people with dementia and giving joy and renewed energy to carers. Whilst it was first developed for people with dementia, the philosophy is now applicable in all areas of life (work, family and community). Based on the testimonial of our volunteers, our Mercy Values with the support of Spark of Life Philosophy is very noticeable and it really makes a positive difference to the residents.
Currently, we have 148 volunteers and the number is continuously growing. The volunteers are mostly engaged with our residents, providing one on one or group interaction to support them in the activities that are meaningful to them which meeting our resident’s emotional needs.
The volunteers offered their time to listen, help and inspire. To build, to grow and to learn. There was no competition, they expect no pay, yet the value of their work knows no bounds. They have known the unexpected joy of a simple hug. Despite of their busy schedules with work and family commitments, for our volunteers- caring for others is not just a one-time decision, but can be a lifestyle. Our organisation highly values our volunteers and we would like to give something in return to their kindness that can help them to improve their knowledge and skills that they can use for their future and/or everyday life. We appreciate if you can assist us in this way.

Please visit our website at www.mercyparklands.co.nz... to see how our Mercy Values and Spark of Life Philosophy work in action.

Send all Titahi Bay Intermediate's kids to camp

Jude from Titahi Bay

Titahi Bay Intermediate wants to send all 190+ of our kids to their September camp. Our wonderful Porirua community is socially and ethnically diverse. 33 of our kids will miss out on this opportunity to physically, socially and emotionally challenge themselves and create life-long memories if we …View moreTitahi Bay Intermediate wants to send all 190+ of our kids to their September camp. Our wonderful Porirua community is socially and ethnically diverse. 33 of our kids will miss out on this opportunity to physically, socially and emotionally challenge themselves and create life-long memories if we can not find money to pay for them. Another 20 kids come from families who have two, or in one case three kids at the intermediate. Our school support group would like to fund one child for those families. We want our kids to have equal opportunities. We are holding a Quizz night, a comedy night and plan to sell hangi meals, but we need help!!! $10,000 is a lot to raise, but the experience and sense of inclusion it will provide our kids is priceless.

Oakura Playcentre - creating a vibrant and productive outdoor environment

Rachel from Spotswood

At Oakura Playcentre, we have created a plan to transform our outdoor area to maximise its use and benefits to the community. The idea is to connect children/whanau with a) the natural environment, lifecycles and the production of food b) ways to grow, process, eat and share the food we grow; and …View moreAt Oakura Playcentre, we have created a plan to transform our outdoor area to maximise its use and benefits to the community. The idea is to connect children/whanau with a) the natural environment, lifecycles and the production of food b) ways to grow, process, eat and share the food we grow; and c) create a more resilient community hub – a place people could turn to in case of natural disaster, for example.To do all this, our collaboratively developed plan encompasses: fruit trees and gardens to provide food for community; water tanks for play but also for emergency water use; landscaping and installation of materials/equipment (re/upcycled) for authentic play; etc.We have already had 5 fruit trees, numerous other productive plants and a trailor-load of mulch donated to us and we are currently fundraising for an extensive civil defence kit. We are planning to work with Taranaki Timebank to increase our volunteer labour capacity. Should we receive an AMI Community Grant, we would use the funds to (in order of priority): purchase remaining fruit trees, raised garden beds and other materials to support these (espalier posts and wires, garden edging, etc); purchase and plumb rainwater collection tanks, including appropriate filters; landscaping (pathways etc) and integrated play equipment to provide opportunities for children to interact with the new vibrant and productive landscape.Oakura Playcentre is a charitable organisation and is cooperatively run by its members. It is a welcoming and inclusive environment, providing opportunities for interactive play and learning, adult education, and peer support for approximately 30 families, from Oakura, New Plymouth and surrounds.An AMI grant would allow us to achieve our goal of creating a vibrant and productive landscape that inspires and nourishes the Playcentre whanau and the wider community.www.facebook.com...

Disability ramp needed

John from Te Aroha

We're the Te Aroha Dramatic Society Inc that operates the Te Aroha Little Theatre. Everyone in the Society is a volunteer and we're registered as a not-for-profit incorporated society. We're in real need of a disability ramp that will enable disabled and elderly folk in our town to …View moreWe're the Te Aroha Dramatic Society Inc that operates the Te Aroha Little Theatre. Everyone in the Society is a volunteer and we're registered as a not-for-profit incorporated society. We're in real need of a disability ramp that will enable disabled and elderly folk in our town to navigate the four steps into the main front doors of the theatre. We currently have to lift wheelchair users and assist people with disabilities or with zimmer frames into the building. We've been quoted $500 for a customised, removable ramp that can be positioned by us when we stage our 3 or 4 community productions each year.

Kapiti Summer School

Rachel from Raumati Beach

The brainchild of 2 Kapiti residents, Kapiti Summer School holds its inaugural event 12th-20th January 2019. With more than 50 expert local tutors and 60 courses lasting from 3 hours to a few days and ranging from calligraphy, Indian cooking, pottery and kite making to bee keeping, butchery, oil …View moreThe brainchild of 2 Kapiti residents, Kapiti Summer School holds its inaugural event 12th-20th January 2019. With more than 50 expert local tutors and 60 courses lasting from 3 hours to a few days and ranging from calligraphy, Indian cooking, pottery and kite making to bee keeping, butchery, oil painting and whisky tasting, Kapiti Summer School aims to attract attendees aged 18+ from Kapiti, holidaymakers coming to Kapiti and others travelling here especially to take one of our courses. With the motto, "Fun classes with new friends" Kapiti Summer School applies to AMI Community Grants for $500 to help towards marketing this exciting community venture. Rachel Kirsopp, Marketing Director (Voluntary)

Special Olympics Manukau

Erin from Avondale

I would like to apply for a grant to raise money to send special Olympics Manukau athletes to Abu Dubai world summer games in 2019.

Wilton Playcentre vegetable garden

Laura Neighbourly Lead from Wadestown

Wilton Placentre provides Early Childhood Education for children from birth to school age. It is run by volunteers (parents/caregivers).

At Wilton Playcentre, we have a strong culture of teaching tamariki about sustainability and how to look after the environment.

One of the ways we teach …View moreWilton Placentre provides Early Childhood Education for children from birth to school age. It is run by volunteers (parents/caregivers).

At Wilton Playcentre, we have a strong culture of teaching tamariki about sustainability and how to look after the environment.

One of the ways we teach this awareness is by growing vegetables on site. We have two small planters with a few herbs and some vegetables growing as part of our learning programme.

We would like to apply for AMI grants to build a vegetable garden in an underutilized area of our property. This would allow us to broaden the learning opportunities for our tamariki and make our community grow stronger bonds.

If our application is successful, we will use the money to purchase a garden bed, mulch and compost; and a rotating compost station. Some of the money will be used for landscaping, as the area does need to be cleared to build the raised bed. A photo of the area to be used for the vegetable garden is attached to this application.

This project will support learning for tamariki about environmental awareness as well as transferring skills regarding how to grow vegetables and fruits. It will provide learning opportunities for collaboration, communication and planning skills; they will learn about what vegetables grow at different times of the year, how to look after plants and the impact the environment has on birds and insects; the importance of bees and pests on different crops.

Working together to build the garden and keep vegetables growing (which we harvest and share at kai time) will help us build relationships among adults and children, keeping our community strong.

South Auckland Free Community Fruit and Vege Stands

Swan from Otara

This grant would help our 100% resident led project heaps! We need flyers printed to distribute to residents to inform them of the initiative that is about to roll out, Waterproof signage for all our stands. We have zero funding and all our projects are resident led. This would be a huge help!
…View moreThis grant would help our 100% resident led project heaps! We need flyers printed to distribute to residents to inform them of the initiative that is about to roll out, Waterproof signage for all our stands. We have zero funding and all our projects are resident led. This would be a huge help!

www.facebook.com...

Sands Wellington-Hutt Valley - supporting bereaved parents

Catherine from Woburn

Sands Wellington-Hutt Valley (www.sandswellingtonhutt.org.nz) support bereaved parents and whanau in the Wellington and Hutt Valley community following the loss of a baby or infant. One aspect of the services we provide to the families are support meetings twice a month; one in Johnsonville and one…View moreSands Wellington-Hutt Valley (www.sandswellingtonhutt.org.nz) support bereaved parents and whanau in the Wellington and Hutt Valley community following the loss of a baby or infant. One aspect of the services we provide to the families are support meetings twice a month; one in Johnsonville and one in Lower Hutt. These support meetings connect bereaved parents and provide them with the opportunity to talk about their baby/ies and their experience. Many parents comment that they appreciate meeting other bereaved parents who have walked a similar path and just 'get it'. We also hold a Baby and Child Memorial Service annually where people in the community come together to remember their babies. We provide space where bereaved parents are safe and supported. As we are funded only by donations and grants the money would go towards costs to hold these support meetings such as; room hire, hot drink supplies, milk and chocolate (we always have chocolate at a Sands meeting), and holding our community events such as the memorial service and Global Wave of Light during Baby Loss Awareness Week. Thank you for your consideration, Sands Wellington-Hutt Valley Committee.

Mt Albert Primary School PTA - Lighting

Rachael from Morningside

We are the PTA at Mt Albert Primary School. We love our school and want it to be presented and recognised as an important historic landmark for our community (the school will celebrate its 150th anniversary in 2020). We also want our school to be safe for staff and secure. We are lucky to have a…View moreWe are the PTA at Mt Albert Primary School. We love our school and want it to be presented and recognised as an important historic landmark for our community (the school will celebrate its 150th anniversary in 2020). We also want our school to be safe for staff and secure. We are lucky to have a grand old main school building which sits at the entrance to the school. Unfortunately it is very poorly lit. The only available lighting presently comes from the lights inside the entrance foyer (see picture). However, these lights are turned out when staff leave, so that the entrance to the building and the staff carpark that is immediately next to it are in almost total darkness in the evenings. This is a safety concern for staff when leaving the school and other groups using the premises in the evenings. It is also an issue from a security perspective more generally.
We would love to be able to use a grant to install external lighting for the front entrance, to help make the school safer and more secure. Lighting would also transform the main building into a positive focal point that the school and the surrounding community can take pride in.

Volunteer's training

Mina from Flat Bush

I am a volunteer coordinator in aged care facility.I am applying for this grant to support our volunteers to have the trainings that they can use in all areas ( work, volunteering and family) like the Spark of Life training, to enrich other people's lives and make a positive difference in …View moreI am a volunteer coordinator in aged care facility.I am applying for this grant to support our volunteers to have the trainings that they can use in all areas ( work, volunteering and family) like the Spark of Life training, to enrich other people's lives and make a positive difference in each individual.
Unfortunately, as a non profitable organisation , we need financial assistance in this project that we want to provide to our volunteers.
And this will be an ongoing training with the continously growing numbers of volunteers.
All the best to your wonderful project and I believe who ever you choose, it will go to a
loving actions.