It is the driving force behind a plan to build module eco homes for families in need.

The Ahuru Mowai Housing Project has the twofold aim of increasing ownership of energy-efficient homes and boosting employment.

Ahuru Mowai plans to build seven module homes in Ida Road (Kaiti) and two others in Wainui.

"We're still about heart but doing that in a different way,'' said Minister Tom Crawford from the Oasis Community Church, (formerly the Mega Life Church). "We are rising again as Oasis Community Church and one of our projects is the Ahuru Mowai Housing Project."

"It is also a time to show our humanity," says project director Lizz Crawford. "Poverty Bay has the highest rate of whanau or families in need of healthy, affordable housing to rent or own.

"Our vision is for everyone to have a place to call home in Aotearoa."

A Wainui Road house owned by the church will be sold to co-fund the project.

The project will feature Green Magic Homes from Mexico. Research into Earthcube houses from Vietnam is also being carried out.

Green Magic Homes structures are covered by soil and rich greenery, making them energy-efficient and energy-saving while keeping a temperature-balanced interior. Earthcube houses are made of single-use containers.

"The foreign homes are cheaper, especially if whanau are trained to do some aspects themselves."

A New Zealand Green Magic house had been built in Horokiwi, Lower Hutt and in the next few months, people would be undergoing training to build them.

In Napier and Hastings there are 615 people on Housing New Zealand's waiting list and a shortage of 1800 homes.

About 440 children and their families will spend this winter in a motel in Hawke's Bay - one of the country's least affordable places to live.

Source

• gisborneherald.co.nz
• greenmagichomes.com
• radionz.co.nz

The exhibition is open from 11 November 2018 - 31 March 2019 at Our Lady's Home of Compassion at Island Bay in Wellington.

Eight Sisters of Compassion responded. As the disease worsened they were joined by a further eight sisters. The cases were so severe that very thorough organisation was required to cope with the crisis.

Sister Clotilde was placed in charge of the sisters and was given authority to have the worst cases admitted to hospital.

She had a motorcycle with side-car reserved for her use. Boy Scouts were placed at her service to take messages to the depot or to her sisters.

By the end of the first week, the sisters moved from Island Bay to Berhampore where their nursing skills were badly needed.

About this time Father Gilbert, acting on the advice of Doctor McEvedy, closed St Patrick's College and sent the boarders home.

Two college dormitories were offered to the Minister of Health as an emergency hospital and were placed under the direction of the Sisters of Compassion.

The hospital was open for one month. There were 48 beds, and the sisters and volunteers nursed 91 men of every denomination. 54 survived and 37 died.

Many of the sisters contracted influenza and during their illness meals were provided by the Sisters of the Sacred Heart.

Sister Natalie, who was in charge of the nursery at the Home, caught the flu when visiting her brother. She was the only sister to die from influenza.

Suzanne Aubert was in Rome during this period and the flu was one of the reasons which delayed her return to New Zealand.

She wrote that she was happy with the work the sisters were doing in caring for the sick.

The Exhibition is on display at the Home of Compassion at 2 Rhine Street (off Murray Street), Island Bay, Wellington, from Tuesday to Saturday 10am-3pm. Click here to see exceptions.

Source

• Supplied: Juliet Palmer
• Image: compassion.org.nz

Kristof is a passionate advocate of social issues and new technologies, and has recently launched a social game in partnership with Games for Change that can be played on Facebook to raise awareness and aid for global crises.

Similar to FarmVille, Half The Sky Movement will enable players to make micro-donations to humanitarian efforts worldwide as well as contribute to causes in other ways. Continue reading