More than 14000 free meals given to Otara community
Members of the Otara community have eaten more than 14000 free meals thanks to the Ōtara Kai Village project.
Residents, food banks, The Ministry of Social Development and Foundation North are backing the initiative which aims to help struggling families.
Swanie Nelson, local Board member and Ōtara Kai Village Founder, said Otara was one of the suburbs the most severely impacted by Covid-19.
"We had the highest wage subsidy requests and the highest requests for the emergency care packages."
The mainly volunteer group works with retailers and manufacturers to support locals impacted by COVID-19 and redistribute food that would otherwise go to waste.
Residents, community groups and students from colleges in the district prepare free meals during the week in a container donated by Panuku by the AT Otara Transit Centre.
A cafe along with a Maori and Pacific boutique are open to entrepreneurs wanting to start their own businesses and to community groups running fundraising ventures.
Live Q&A: Garden maintenance with Crewcut
This Wednesday, we are having another Neighbourly Q&A session. This time with John Bracewell from Crewcut.
John Bracewell, former Black Caps coach turned Franchisee Development Manager and currently the face of Crewcut’s #Movember campaign, knows a thing or two about keeping the grass looking sharp—whether it’s on a cricket pitch or in your backyard!
As a seasoned Crewcut franchisee, John is excited to answer your lawn and gardening questions. After years of perfecting the greens on the field, he's ready to share tips on how to knock your garden out of the park. Let's just say he’s as passionate about lush lawns as he is about a good game of cricket!
John is happy to answer questions about lawn mowing, tree/hedge trimming, tidying your garden, ride on mowing, you name it! He'll be online on Wednesday, 27th of November to answer them all.
Share your question below now ⬇️
Calling All Puzzle Masters! Can You Solve This?
When John was six years old he hammered a nail into his favorite tree to mark his height.
Ten years later at age sixteen, John returned to see how much higher the nail was.
If the tree grew by five centimetres each year, how much higher would the nail be?
Do you think you know the answer to our daily riddle? Don't spoil it for your neighbours! Simply 'Like' this post and we'll post the answer in the comments below at 2pm.
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Head here and hover on the Following button on the top right of the page (and it will show Unfollow) and then click it. If it is giving you the option to Follow, then you've successfully unfollowed the Riddles page.
What's your favourite recipe for courgettes?
Kia ora neighbours. If you've got a family recipe for courgettes, we'd love to see it and maybe publish it in our magazine. Send your recipe to mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz, and if we use it in the mag, you will receive a free copy of our January 2025 issue.