As a White Ribbon Ambassador, I am always interested in hearing about ideas that involve raising awareness and getting the word out there about domestic violence.
I recently had the fortune of meeting Kahira-Rata Olley who set herself a huge goal in order to highlight domestic violence and sexual abuse. She will be running 250km from Rotorua to Flaxmere in Hastings, encouraging people along the way to speak up against violence of this nature.
The run will begin on November 25 and will run around 50km each day until she reaches Flaxmere on Sunday, November 29. The final day will conclude with a whanau fun day featuring a number of guest speakers.
Kahira is a survivor of childhood sexual abuse and domestic violence as a young mother, and her goal is to get the message out there that it is not okay to live in that situation. She tells me that if her speaking out about this can help just one person to walk away from an abusive relationship or to reach out for help, then her efforts have all been worth it. Somehow during the course of our meeting, I managed to offer myself into running alongside her for as much of the run as I can. Keep an eye on my Facebook page and upcoming articles about how the training is going.
To follow Kahira or to give a koha, visit the Facebook page "Running To Stop It".
Papakainga/Housing Development
I was pleased to attend the recent opening of a development on the Ranga-Bidois whanau papakainga which has seen three new houses built for the wider whanau.
It is a great example of a Maori-led housing initiative, which was completed with the support of Whanau Ora, Te Puni Kokiri, the Social Housing Fund, Te Runanga o Kirikiriroa and with whanau contributing by way of labour and finance through a bank. This has provided the whanau with not only assets, but also the experience and knowledge needed to plan, fund and implement developments like this. What is exciting is knowing that the whanau are now able to provide assistance to others who may wish to follow the same path.
The Maori Housing Network which has been set up under Te Puni Kokiri to support developments and initiatives similar to this was also launched that day. Over the past four years, Putea Maori funded the building of 95 new homes, meanwhile infrastructure support was given to 110 new houses and 126 existing whare. Additional funding secured in this year's Budget will be able to help more of our people with housing and papakainga development similar to this.
For information on this funding, you can contact the Maori Housing Network on (04) 819 6766 or 027 555 2266, email maorihousing@tpk.govt.nz or visit www.tpk.govt.nz or any Te Puni Kkiri office.
A reminder that my Eruera St office is now closed, and my team can be contacted on 0508 924 274 or email mpwaiariki@parliament.govt.nz. We look forward to being in my new office at 212 Old Taupo Rd by the end of the month.
