Haidee Kalirai (left) and Angela Wallace team up to prepare just one of the many rooms in Awhina House. Photo / George Novak
Haidee Kalirai (left) and Angela Wallace team up to prepare just one of the many rooms in Awhina House. Photo / George Novak
The opening date for Tauranga's first women's shelter is getting closer as community donations pour into Awhina House.
General manager Angela Wallace said there was a great buzz in the community over the shelter and everyone had been "extremely generous" with their time and items.
As the Bay of PlentyTimes went to catch up on the progress, Wallace and the Tauranga City Council community development team were setting up the 12 new beds that had been given to the house by a furniture shop at a discounted price.
Wallace said setting up these beds was a special time for the shelter as it was a part of their core value of giving people "a nice bed and a roof over your head".
The Tauranga City Council's community development team leader, Dani Jurgeleit, said the team was fully behind what Awhina was trying to do as it embodied the ethos of the team.
Bed linen, couches, toiletry packs, and even bathrobes have been donated by local businesses and an abundance of pillows was donated by the local men's shelter, who had too many.
But it was not just businesses offering donations, Wallace said. Some special members of the community were also keen to drop off any items they could.
A prime example of this was when the shelter told the community it needed some compost and a hose for its garden.
