Christmas for Tauranga's homeless men

SPECIAL DAY: Ten of Tauranga's homeless men enjoyed a Christmas lunch thanks to the Tauranga Moana Nightshelter Trust and the work of manager Annamarie Angus (right), pictured here with overnight supervisor Wetini Tapara. PHOTO/GEORGE NOVAK

It is the first Christmas Day in years for some of Tauranga's homeless men who enjoyed a traditional lunch with friends and family at the Tauranga Moana Nightshelter.

Ten men sat down with their guests for a full Christmas lunch of ham, roast vegetables, salad and the essential pavlova for dessert.

Decorations covered the walls of the shelter, donated by Kmart and festively installed by a local church group last week.

Flowers and Christmas crackers lined the lunch table with a present for each man sitting under the Christmas tree.

The men enjoyed a rare sleep-in, being allowed to spend the whole day at the shelter and invite a guest each, manager Annamarie Angus said.

"I think it meant a lot to them being here. Not just wandering the streets trying to find things to do."

For some it would be the first Christmas Day they had spent with friends and the people they cared about around them, she said.

"They get to be a close family. They are quite supportive of each other so it's like coming home to their families."

Ms Angus usually spent Christmas with her own family but had been looking forward to providing Christmas at the shelter.

"I was looking forward to it really because they appreciate it a lot. And having the first Christmas with these guys who might not've had Christmas in a long time."

The highlight for her was being able to provide a present for each man from donated gifts including new t-shirts.

Some men who had been through the shelter and were now in housing or back with their families also joined the lunch to catch up with everyone.

Maori Business Association chairman Mike Minnell had organised and cooked the meal with donated food and the help of friends and family.

"It was just an idea to help people in the community on Christmas Day," he said.

He put the appeal out for food donations on facebook and received a huge positive response from people.

His friends and family were happy to get involved and help out and it was a great way to share Christmas Day with others, he said.

Ms Angus said members of the public had been dropping off donations and "Christmas treats" for the past couple of weeks for the men which went towards creating the special day.

Mr Minnell's team and Ms Angus worked in the morning to set up the lunch but left the men to themselves for the meal.

They wanted them to be able to enjoy the day as a group together, Ms Angus said.