Mount Mellick owner Carl Willetts, Mount Mellick manager Sean Major, Greg Bopf of Ray White Tauranga, and Mark Roy of Ray White Bayfair. Photo / Kelly O'Hara
Well-known local musicians are performing at a concert and businesses have donated prizes for a swanky charity auction in two fundraisers for people impacted by the Mauao landslide.
The Mount Landslide Charity Auction is donating funds to the families of the six people who died in the January 22 landslide and to the Mount Maunganui Surf Life Saving Club. The Mauao Landslide Fundraiser concert will raise money for the Tauranga Mayoral Relief Fund.
The charity auction, to be held on April 11, sprang from a conversation over a beer between Mark Roy of Ray White Bayfair, Greg Bopf of Ray White Tauranga, Mount Mellick owner Carl Willetts and Mount Mellick manager Sean Major.
The four men wanted to support and help those affected by the landslide.
“We felt we needed to do something to give back to the community,” Roy said.
“The local support has been overwhelming. Everybody’s getting on board.”
Auction items include a Land Rover Defender weekend with an off-road experience at Red Barn, two hot laps in the Aston Martin Vulcan at Highlands Motorsport Park, $4000 from Z Fuel, a $5000 package from Wharekauhau Lodge, and premium hospitality packages.
Rugby league teams Manly Sea Eagles, Gold Coast Titans and New Zealand Warriors have donated rugby jerseys.
Nine local music acts would also be performing.
Mount Mellick owner Carl Willets said he and Major wanted to open the Mellick’s doors and rally everyone to give back.
“We’re blown away by the support, and we can’t wait to see the community pack it out for a positive day.”
Ebbett Prestige organised the Land Rover Defender weekend, which sales and brand manager Des Martin said was the least they could do.
“Pulling together as much money on the night for the families doesn’t replace those who have gone, but hopefully it helps make decisions for them going forward a little easier.”
The Mauao Landslide Fundraiser at Totara Street featured two events: the Rock and Roll Warm Up on April 24, 8pm to midnight, then the main event on April 26, from noon to 11pm.
Totara Street director Jay Munro thanked the 100 artists and acts who volunteered, but said only 24 could be selected.
Local acts such as Tiki Taane, No Reply, Dan Sharp, the Gunsmiths and more would be playing across the two-stage set-up.
Munro said Totara Street knew “we wanted to do something” within a few days of the landslide.
“There’s a little bit of disbelief, and it’s still kind of hard to appreciate what went down. It’s the ones who died, their families, and the first responders I feel for the most.”
He said there would be special performances at both events.
Tiki Taane said he saw Totara Street’s Facebook post announcing the event, and he “jumped into their comments” to volunteer.
“We all want to help in some way and feel that providing our musical services while bringing the community together is the best way for us musicians to do that.”
Taane said the music community was feeling the sadness and grief around Mauao and the families who lost loved ones.
“Playing a few songs and helping out with the event is something us musicians can do easily, especially with the awesome support and infrastructure of the Totara Street team.
“Hopefully we can raise a few thousands of dollars while creating a healing space, full of great music and vibes.”
Mount Mainstreet chairwoman Jo Veale said it was nice to see community organisations take the lead on these events.
“We’ll always support anybody down our main street putting on an event like this.”
Woolworths New Zealand customers also donated more than $106,000 to mayoral relief funds during a week-long round-up for disaster relief.
Woolworths New Zealand donated a further $10,000.
Of that, $32,000 would be donated to New Zealand Red Cross.
The remaining $84,000 would be divided between mayoral funds for Whangārei District Council, Thames Coromandel District Council, Hauraki District Council, Western Bay of Plenty District Council, Tauranga City Council, and Gisborne District Council.
Bay of Plenty MP Tom Rutherford said the fundraising events were a testament to the people who called this place home.
“This is what the Bay of Plenty and Mount Maunganui community does.
“In the most challenging and desperate times we’ve been experiencing, we all come together to support one another.”
Tauranga Mayor Mahé Drysdale said the Tauranga Mayoral Relief Fund had received $200,000 from central government and about $13,000 from donations.
As of March 13, $100,225 had been allocated, and funding would remain open until available funds were exhausted. The council would not divulge who had received funds.
The Western Bay Emergency Response Fund had $278,000 to allocate, although some of that was in pledges that have not yet been received.
Team lead Matty Nicholson said $93,000 had been directed to local organisations, which included Mount Maunganui Surf Life Saving Club, Rural Support Trust, Rapid Response Team, Student Volunteer Army, Māori Wardens, and Mount Mainstreet.
Nicholson said an additional $100,000 had been set aside to meet future needs of affected organisations.
Fundraising efforts were ongoing, and the fund would remain active until funds were fully allocated.
The Western Bay Emergency Response fund did not operate through a formal applications process, Nicholson said.
Five partner organisations – Acorn Foundation, TECT, BayTrust, Tauranga City Council and Western Bay of Plenty District Council – had been working to identify and meet funding needs.
Bijou Johnson is a multimedia journalist based in the Bay of Plenty. A passionate writer and reader, she grew up in Tauranga and developed a love for journalism while exploring various disciplines at university. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Classical Studies from Massey University.