He aha te mea nui o te ao? He tāngata he tāngata he tāngata.
What is the most important thing in the world? It is the people, the people, the people.
It’s certainly our Haumaru Housing people - our tenants, staff and all those we work with - who make our village communities so special. After the floods and Cyclone Gabrielle, everyone’s continuing to do their bit to help one another out. Thank you for all you’re doing as good neighbours, supporting fellow tenants and lending a hand where needed. The units that were impacted during the severe weather are now undergoing repairs and, whilst there’s been a focus recently on getting those units habitable again, please do continue to log any repair jobs in the usual way. Just a reminder that flood-damaged items should be disposed of due to possible contamination, rather than rehomed or given away. Our advice from the experts is that porous items can grow mould, so it’s very important that such items are not moved back into the newly refurbished units.
I’d like to remind everyone that the Community Managers will be commencing the annual tenancy checks shortly. These are undertaken to ensure that all the units are structurally safe and provide healthy environments for our tenants. As part of the process, you’ll be asked for up-to-date contact details of your next-of-kin or Power of Attorney (in case we ever need to contact them in an emergency). It would be helpful if you could have this information readily to hand when required.
This month, we’re saying farewell to our Haumaru handyman, Andy Ferrer, who’s leaving us for pastures new. Many tenants will have met Andy over the years, and I'd like to say a sincere thank you to him for all his hard work. We'll be announcing his successor in the coming weeks.
And finally, our Haumaru cookbook containing recipes and pictures donated by tenants has been completed. Thank you for all your contributions. This unique collection will be available on request from your Community Manager.
Happy cooking!
Ngā mihi maioha
Gillian Schweizer,
Chief Executive Officer
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Live stronger for longer
Otara Court tenants turned out in force on 1 March for the first of a new 10-week pilot programme of Strength and Balance classes. Held in the neighbouring Otara Hall, the session was facilitated by instructor, Beth Collings of Age Concern, who assisted tenants in practising the correct exercises for building strength and balance to improve their flexibility, general fitness and wellbeing. It’s been proven that people aged 65+ can significantly reduce their risk of falling by doing regular, specific exercises that build the strength and balance of their legs and core (stomach, lower back, and hips). The session was greatly enjoyed by everyone taking part and, if the programme proves successful overall, we’ll look to work with Age Concern on a wider roll-out of the sessions to other villages in due course.
If any other tenants from Hills and Otara Courts are interested in attending these free classes, please come along on Wednesdays, 10am-11am. We have a cuppa afterwards (so bring something to share, if you’d like).
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Wider roll-out of food scraps collection service
Food scraps are too valuable to waste and Auckland Council is making it easy for households to keep them out of landfill. The council has been collecting food scraps from residents in Papakura since 2018 and will be rolling out the service to other parts of the city in stages this year (starting in Waitākere in April/May). Each tenant will receive:
- a food scraps collection bin (23-litre) - this bin is collected weekly from the kerbside on your usual collection day
- a kitchen caddy - a smaller bin to collect food scraps in the kitchen before transferring them to the main food scraps bin outside
- a starter set of compostable bin liners - these fit into your kitchen caddy and help keep your caddy clean and reduce smells.
Our Marne Road tenants in Papakura are now very used to this process and say it’s easy to do. Further information about the new system will be distributed to tenants in advance of the service starting in each village.
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No time to waste…
If you’re concerned about potential leaks in or around your unit, please can we ask that you report this as soon as possible, to prevent the risk of much greater water damage later on. For example, water cylinders sometimes have a slow leak that can cause a lot of damage under the floor or in the wall if left unattended. This would also lead to high water bills, which we’d all like to avoid of course. Please let us know as soon as you can via the Service Desk.
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Preparing to stay healthy over winter
Everyone aged 30 and over will be able to access the new COVID-19 bivalent booster from April as part of the Government’s plan to keep people safe and take pressure off our health system. The new bivalent vaccine will replace the existing Pfizer booster and is considered likely to be more effective against Omicron sub-variants. Bivalent vaccines work by combining two strains of a virus, which prompts the body to create antibodies against both strains, providing a greater level of protection.
From 1 April, anyone 30+ will be eligible to receive the bivalent vaccine, as long as it’s been at least six months since their last COVID-19 booster or positive COVID-19 test. People at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19 will also be able to receive an additional booster, regardless of how many doses they’ve previously had.
1 April is also the start of the flu vaccination programme for 2023, so you’ll be able to get both vaccines at the same time. Getting boosted is important for your health and for helping to keep people out of hospital over winter, so book your appointment now by visiting www.bookmyvaccine.nz or calling the COVID-19 Vaccination Healthline on 0800 28 29 26 (8am to 8pm, 7 days a week).
Also, a reminder that if you test positive for COVID-19, or live with someone who’s got COVID-19 and you start to feel sick, you can get free COVID-19 antiviral medicines direct from many pharmacies without a prescription (best to call the pharmacy rather than going in). Antiviral medicines reduce the likelihood of having to go into hospital due to severe illness, but they must be started within five days of becoming ill in order to be effective. See COVID19.health.nz for further information.
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Are you enrolled to vote?
It’s been announced that the 2023 General Election will be held on Saturday, 14 October 2023. Make sure you’re enrolled and ready to vote. You can enrol, check or update your details on the Electoral Commission website at: vote.nz/enrolling/enrol-or-update/enrol-or-update-online/
And a reminder that there’s still time to be counted in the 2023 Census if you weren’t able to complete it on 7 March. Forms can be received up to the end of April or thereabouts. By taking part in the Census, you help create a better understanding of your community and what it needs. See census.govt.nz for further details.
