Gifts bring cheer to kids at refuge

Te Whare Oranga Wairua - Māori Women's Refuge Taupō collect Christmas gifts from Contact’s Wairakei site: (left to right) Rob Akuhata and Ashley Mailer from Te Whare Oranga Wairua, Mike Stevens - head of geothermal generation and Sam Shortland– community relations advisor at Contact.

Contact Energy got into the festive spirit collecting Christmas gifts for Te Whare Oranga Wairua - Māori Women’s Refuge Taupō.

As part of its ongoing partnership with the refuge, Contact has organised presents for children who will be staying at the refuge over Christmas.

Their particular focus was older children, who often receive fewer gift donations than younger kids.

Te Whare Oranga Wairua manager Aleen Henderson-Hanley said the donations helped bring some cheer to whānau going through a tough time.

“It’s so wonderful that Contact is helping us to make Christmas a bit better for the women and children in our refuge.

“Christmas can be a hard time for a lot of people, so this is a great initiative to help those who need it most.

“We usually get lots of gift donations for the younger children, so it’s fantastic that the older children staying with us will get to feel some extra love, too.”

Mike Stevens, Contact’s head of geothermal generation said the team was happy to help.

“We’re really proud of our partnership with Women’s Refuge and that we can provide them with support over the Christmas period.”

“Our people at our Wairakei, Te Mihi and Te Huka sites did a fantastic job organising gifts for children spending Christmas at the Taupō Women’s Refuge, from toiletries to arts items and sports equipment.”

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