As the nation went into lockdown, Tukau Legacy thought about how they could make the best use of their winter clothing stock during this challenging time. As a charity, they decided they will help clothe those who needed it the most.
Clothing the people of Te Tai Tokerau in love.
"We've decided that with our winter clothing that we will distribute that at no cost to people who might need it, as we know a lot of people have lost their jobs so there's a lot more demand for clothing. And with the shops shut and people unable to shop on reduced income, we think that's going to be a real high need this winter," Tukau Legacy kaiwhakahaere Season-Mary Downs says.
While in level 4, Tukau Legacy has put some thought into how they can help families whose situations may have changed due to the lockdown.
"It's been an overwhelming response of whānau nominating other whānau, and that's the cool part that we do is let whānau be involved in part of addressing the issues."
It is not only the vulnerable who have been nominated for these clothes.
"Some of the responses range from what I consider to be the most high-need and vulnerable, to people who are just wanting to acknowledge those who are on the frontline and those who may have recently lost their jobs due to Covid and are finding themselves in a tight space financially."
Despite the circumstances, the charity is looking forward to the future.
"One thing that we are hoping is that once we have distributed all of our clothing that we have in stock, we'll buy in a whole lot more. And those who can afford to buy clothing will continue to support Tukau. They will come up and buy up large, and we can continue to do the work that we are doing in the community with the people who are supporting us through clothing."
The products will be distributed to the families nominated as soon as New Zealand lowers its alert level to level 3.