Far North generosity praised after mystery $500 foodbank donation

No gift was ever more gratefully received than this $500 for the Far North Community Foodbank.

Kaitaia's Far North Community Foodbank has been working hard to meet increasing demand this Christmas, and indeed for much of this year, due to Covid-19, but the good news is that the generosity of the locals has continued unabated.

That generosity reached a new level recently when someone made an anonymous donation of $500, a spokesperson for the foodbank saying on Facebook there had been "a problem" in terms of the ability to cater for teenagers for Christmas - but no longer.

The money was stuffed down the side of a box that was delivered to the People's Centre, from where it made its way to the foodbank.

Foodbank chairman Misikone Vemoa said donations, in cash and food, were not unusual. The people of Kaitaia were very generous, but this contribution was extremely welcome, and well timed. And the community's ongoing support was very much needed.

The active involvement of a number of iwi organisations in helping to meet the needs of families who were struggling had eased the pressure a little, as had the recent distribution of Christmas food boxes around the Far North, but this year had not been an easy one.

"We are seeing people we haven't seen before, and that is continuing," he said, "and the need isn't easing."

He had no more idea than any else regarding what 2021 might bring, but was hoping it would be better for a lot of people than the year that was about to end.