Sages help to support seniors

 

BY JULIA WADE

In alignment with both Elder Abuse Awareness Week (June 15–22) and National Volunteer Week (June 16-22], a valuable local community organisation launched a new initiative to enlist ‘sages’ to help with some of society’s most vulnerable citizens, the elderly. 

Social support and advocacy group Te Whai Community Trust presented ‘Te Whai Sages Senior Support’, a new programme aimed at improving the lives of Mangawhai’s oldest residents, to a broad range of health, support and advisory organisations at a morning tea event held in Mangawhai Museum on June 19. 

The programme was developed after Te Whai and other organisations noticed a lack of local social services for the aged, especially in relation to social isolation, loneliness and advocacy, Te Whai services coordinator Kiri Eriwata says. 

“Over a few months we’ve been working towards filling the gaps in our area to bring a free, quality service to Mangawhai seniors especially for those who are not independently mobile or whose living arrangements have changed or due to bereavement,” she says. “We hope to give our elders a sense of purpose, that is one of the main things.”

‘Te Whai Sages’ aims to help improve the well-being of Mangawhai’s older citizens by offering a range of services including education and advocacy programmes for issues such as legal matters and transitioning to residential care, and specific support groups for widows and widowers, grandparents parenting grandchildren as well as targeting elder abuse and neglect. 

Trained volunteers, ‘Te Whai Sages’ can also initiate home visits and outings for those who are isolated in their homes to help reduce feelings of loneliness and depression, a vital service as Kiwis over 65 pose one of the highest suicide risks in New Zealand. 

Providing a facility for local and regional organisations to base their services and to heighten the Mangawhai community awareness of the ageing population is also a goal. 

The initiative will also be an opportunity to assess the real needs of the aging community, providing reliable evidence to help with applying for future funding to ensure the service will be sustainable. Initial funding to begin the programme came from a Mangwhai Opportunity Factory Shop grant.

Te Whai secretary Sue Poynter says the turnout from interested social services, who will both refer potential clients as well as provide training for volunteers, having a number of future ‘sages’ signing up to volunteer already ‘is fantastic.’ 

“We’re new to this and need their help. By working together, we can build this service so it meets the needs of the senior people in Mangawhai.” 

 Interested in becoming a Te Whai Sage or want to know more? Please contact Te Whai Trust, 0210 247 8003, tewhaitrust@gmail.com, facebook Te Whai Community Trust Mangawhai or drop in to the office, Pioneer Village Schoolhouse, Molesworth Drive, Mondays 1pm-4pm or Thursdays 9am-12pm.

In her welcoming blessing, Te Whai services coordinator Kiri Eriwata says “What is the most important thing in the world, it is people, it is people, it is people…” 


“Volunteering shouldn’t be an onerous demand on your time but a reciprocal rewarding experience.”
- Sue Poynter