We Say – Every penny counts

Every penny counts

The generous response Kiwis have shown collectively and individually to Tonga is the sort of good news story we need at the moment.

As the pandemic continues to roll on, Covid is taking its toll on our lives in more ways than we could have envisaged two years ago. It is no longer just a health issue – it’s affecting our personal finances, children’s education, lifestyles, employment, relationships … the list goes on. But the fact that we can put all this to one side for a minute to dig into our wallets to help our Pacific neighbours is something of which we should be proud.

When Warkworth Lions Club members took to local streets to collect donations for the island kingdom, now covered in layers of ash from the underwater volcano Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai, they were moved by people’s generosity. As club member Peter Henderson put it, “It wasn’t a hard sell at all”.

As a nation, we had last week given around $3 million in aid in the form of drinking water, food, engineering equipment and tools to clear debris left by the tsunami. But the dollars and cents dropped into the Lion’s buckets are no less significant. They represent personal compassion and humanitarianism. As with the Christchurch earthquake, there is a ‘there but for the grace of God go I’ feeling when natural catastrophes of the scale seen in Tonga strike. These disasters don’t discriminate between rich or poor, creed or colour – they can happen anywhere, at any time and to anyone.

We know there are people in our communities who have family and friends in Tonga. It must have been a harrowing time waiting for communications to be restored so they could ask that first vital question, “Is everyone okay?” We hope the donations from Mahurangi and the nation go some way to show that they are not alone and that others around them care.

To donate to Warkworth Lions’ Tonga appeal, see story. Alternatively, the Aotearoa Tonga Relief Committee can be reached through its Facebook page and NZ Red Cross is also accepting donations.