This article was first published in eMessenger in October 2020.
We consider ourselves an advanced civilised society that has made great changes over the ages. So it is with some sadness that every year for the last ten years World Homeless Day has been observed in many countries and on every continent except Antarctica.
World Homeless Day emerged from an online discussion with people working to respond to homelessness and its purpose is to draw attention to the needs of people experiencing homelessness locally and to provide opportunities for the local community to get involved in responding to this need.
Cars, footpaths, doorways, and bridges are homes to millions around the globe, who with their few belongings, try to find a place of their own where they can feel safe. We know that Maslow’s hierarchy of needs tell us that people’s most basic need is for food and shelter. Without safe secure accommodation and food security, people cannot deal with anything else in life.
We also know that the housing crisis in Aotearoa New Zealand continues to impact on the health and wellbeing of Kiwis. In June 2020 there were 18,520 applicants on the Housing Register– this is an increase of 50.4% since June 2019. This is an increase of 14% in the last quarter.[1] With the rising economic pressures on whānau the number of people on the Housing Register is more than likely to continue to rise, despite increases in the public housing supply.
There are 35 registered Community Housing Providers across the motu – country, and three are Methodist organisations: Airedale Property Trust, Wesley Community Action and Christchurch Methodist Mission. Community Housing Providers own, lease or manage properties that are rented to people off the housing register. Lifewise, Wesley Community Action and Christchurch Methodist Mission also provide wrap around services to support the tenant to maintain their tenancy.
Source: Ministry of Housing & Urban Development Public Housing Quarterly Report June 2020
Housing First offers individuals or families who have experienced homelessness a home first, and then provides them with additional supports and services for as long as they are needed. This is a collaborative approach with local service providers working together to provide housing and support services. Housing First is provided by Lifewise in Auckland, and Rotorua, and by Christchurch Methodist Mission in Christchurch and Blenheim.
Source: Housing First Christchurch Facebook photo – real people and their real story
Methodist City Action, our Methodist Mission in Hamilton, have a partnership with the Hamilton Christian Men’s Shelter and provided good nutritious food for the guests who were able to stay 24/7 during the COVID 19 lockdown. The men found that with this regular and better nutrition they were feeling healthier and were better able to manage their addictions. Johann Hari says that everything we think we know about addictions is incorrect as he explains the Rat Park experiment in his Ted Talk[2] and he says, “The opposite of addiction is not sobriety. The opposite of addiction is connection.” You can watch the Ted Talk by clicking on this link: https://www.facebook.com/TED/videos/420092665469384
Lifewise’s Piki project is a small social enterprise with each piki designed and sold by someone with a lived experience of homelessness. It provides a way for people to supplement their income and to develop meaningful social connection. Read more about this here: https://www.lifewise.org.nz/piki-project/
I hope you have heard of Wesley Community Action’s Wesley Rātā Village. This project includes the construction of affordable rental houses and the creation of an intentional community. There are 30 existing homes at the village and four new homes have been built and new residents welcomed in. Good progress has been made on another 21 homes and more new residents will be welcomed in November this year. Young people on the Kiwi Can Do job skills training programme are hosted in the old hospital building and they help build the new homes. A wide range of Hutt Valley community initiatives take place in the village. These include the Aging Well Network for older people who are isolated or impacted on by dementia the Rātā playgroup that provides a space for parents, babies and children to play and learn and a 14 week Incredible Years programme for parents. You can read more about this by clicking on this link: http://www.wesleyca.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/WRV-Results-Report-August-2020.pdf
Source: Wesley Community Action Facebook page - Wesley Rata Village in Spring
Christchurch Methodist Mission is also creating an intentional community. Christchurch Methodist Mission leases the former Churchill Courts land in Guild Street from Anglican Care and put 16 relocatable houses on it for 15 families. The other building will be a community house to provide a place for neighbours to gather and have opportunities to build a community. The Central South Island Synod has made a significant grant towards the community house at Guild Street.
Methodist Mission Southern has two youth transition houses where 16 – 19 year olds, who would otherwise be homeless, are supported to successfully transition to independent living. The supportive environment enables young people to learn essential living skills, creating education and employment pathways and building their resilience. You can read more about this service by clicking on this link:
Methodists have a strong heritage of social justice. John Wesley tells us that everything belongs to God, and that God’s resources placed in our care are to be used as God sees fit, which is to meet our necessities of life and then to help others in need. One of MCNZ’s principles is “to work for any who are oppressed in Aotearoa New Zealand, keeping in mind the implications of the Treaty of Waitangi. To share resources with the poor and disadvantaged in Aotearoa New Zealand and beyond.”[3]
As Methodists, we need to ask how we are going to use our resources to help others in need? How are we going to respond as a church to the housing crisis? How are we going to help those people experiencing homelessness? How are we going to be a voice for those without a voice? How are we going to help others in need?
Carol Barron, The Methodist Alliance National Coordinator
[1] https://www.hud.govt.nz/assets/Community-and-Public-Housing/Follow-our-progress/Quarterly-Reports-2020/Housing-Quarterly-Report-June-2020.pdf [2] https://www.facebook.com/TED/videos/420092665469384 [3] http://www.methodist.org.nz/administration_division/mission_statement