Te Awahou Kai volunteers Linda Lake (left) and Melissa Paterson. Photo / Supplied
Te Awahou Kai volunteers Linda Lake (left) and Melissa Paterson. Photo / Supplied
It was two hungry tamariki knocking on Foxton resident Linda Lake’s door five years ago that jolted her into action.
For Lake, it was natural to feed these children, but she soon realised there was a wider need in Foxton for a service that provides furniture, clothing, food and, mostimportantly, love and respect to whānau who are struggling.
Te Awahou Kai started in Lake’s home. She picked up donated goods and then gave them to people in need. Te Awahou Kai soon grew out of her home, and moved to an empty class at Foxton School. From there it has moved a few times, taking advantage of empty spaces, which the volunteers filled with donated goods and aroha.
Lake understands the challenges people on the margins face because she has been there herself. She knows that more than just kai, people need love, respect, and a chat over a cup of tea and a biscuit!
A friendly wave from Lake was what drew Melissa Paterson into Te Awahou Kai more than three years ago and she has been volunteering there since. Paterson loves seeing the look on people’s faces as they pick up their free food and she knows the work she is doing is making a world of difference to their customers.
Lake and Paterson volunteer more than 30 hours a week each, picking up donated goods, delivering food parcels, supervising their wonderful team of volunteers and, of course, serving the people who pop in.
Lake and Paterson love what they do, but they acknowledge that despite their best efforts the demand for their services in Foxton has grown in the past three years. Lake and Paterson have a strong friendship full of laughter and tears, forged through years of helping others to help themselves. They are unsung heroes of the Foxton, bringing their community together for the single purpose of supporting one another through the tough times.
Te Awahou Kai relies on community donations and is thankful to all the organisations such as Just Zilch and Hope Kēte and the food industry that help them operate. At present they are short of food and would love individual whānau and businesses to donate their surplus kai to support the people of Foxton.
