Southland
Spirit Army Leader Gerry Forde says his organisation is delighted to have received some encouraging words from Prime Minister Bill English.
Mr Forde met with the Prime Minister this week to discuss the Army’s efforts to assist struggling families in Invercargill.
“The signature Spirit Army approach is to provide personal and individualised support to families living under the breadline so it was great to hear from the Prime Minister that this accords with the Government’s social investment philosophy.
“The Prime Minister believes that the key to tackling disadvantage is treating needy families with respect, building good relationships and then working with families on a one-by-one basis.
“That is what the Spirit Army is doing,” Mr Forde said.
“Simply throwing money at people or rolling out a one-size-fits-all programme is not the way to deal with entrenched disadvantage.
“The most important soldiers in the army are the mentors who visit a family weekly, earn their trust and help them deal firstly with the deep-seated trauma and anxiety often found at the very heart of the parent’s struggle.
“Poverty is complex and so are families – for one family the big issue is budgeting, for another control of children, for another the son needs a job or they need to fix the house or section but don’t know where to start,” said Forde.
Around the family and mentor the Spirit Army is a network of support with volunteer groups organised to provide firewood, cooking lessons, veggies, meat, babysitting, budgeting emergency meals, putting in a veggie garden, section makeovers, clothes making, trade skills, even a bank for interest-free loans so families can clear credit card debt.
The families also build friendships amongst each other to create their own support network. Families then give back to the group in a way that suits their talents.
The Spirit Army has 50 active regular volunteers and 300 followers on Facebook plus anonymous donors to public campaigns like the Easter Hamper appeal.
There are 23 families in Invercargill being supported by the Spirit Army, and this number will grow with more helpers and support, said Forde.
Forde insists that no volunteer should offer a skill or attend a working bee if they wouldn’t enjoy doing so.
The point of contact for people interested in helping is the Spirit Army facebook page, or Gerry Forde at [email protected], 021 516 393