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Anne Po-Wihongi's community in Mangere includes people of all races, ages and religions. But it doesn't matter to Anne who they are.
"Young girls who get pregnant and thrown out of home, they can come to me, or I'll go and find them."
"People whose houses have burned down
and they have nothing left, I can find blankets and food, or they come and stay at my house."
"There are a lot of people in the community who need help and don't know how to find it. That's what I do."
And the help comes in a variety of ways. Some local Pacific Island women were keen to go swimming, but didn't want to show their bodies in swimsuits. Anne arranged that they could use the local pools dressed in whatever made them comfortable.
She also helps Mangere residents whose lack of English puts them at a disadvantage in court or at hospitals.
Anne, who speaks eight Cook Islands dialects, aalso often gives advice to people needing benefits or Government assistance, and provides transport when people have to get to the doctor or church.
Anne is helped in her work by Bill, her husband of 24 years. They grow fruit and vegetables to give away, and collect furniture and household items from friends and contacts to give to those in need.
Anne's seven years on the Pacific Islands Advisory Board (PIAB),as well as experience as a Justice of the Peace, have made her aware of deficiencies in the level of help available in communities.
She visits people who are ill or live alone, to make sure they are well. Often she offers one of Bill's alternative remedies, made from herbs in the couple's garden.
Anne came to New Zealand from the Cook Islands in 1972, when she was 19. She worked as a cleaner at Greenlane Hospital, and then, with a customer service qualification completed, moved to Middlemore Hospital.
"I helped set up PIAB at Middlemore. There were big numbers of Islanders, but we had no teeth."
Helen Wong, who nominated Anne for an Unsung Community Hero award, says Anne's involvement in the community has earned her the respect of many.
"In her roles at the hospitals, and from her own experience, Anne witnessed the hardships and challenges that new immigrants face when settling into Auckland. Bill and Anne are ordinary New Zealanders who give their time, energy and effort to those who live around them."
