We will remember them.

Every year since Challenge 2000 was started in 1988 we have commemorated those who served and sacrificed themselves to secure our future and have translated how we can commit ourselves to creating just and peaceful world that they strived for. We are committed to serving others, and to building a nation of justice, love and responsibility where the dignity of every person is recognised and safeguarded. Challenge 2000 is a ‘yes’ organisation and we attempt to live out the Anzac spirit in our time and place.

Whanau at the Johnsonville service

On Anzac day we remember. We remember the lives lost. We remember those who returned, changed forever. We remember the loneliness and struggle of those left at home. We remember the huge effect WW1 had on our small country and how being Anzacs shaped our identity. We remember those affected by other wars.

Lano and Matt at the Wellington Anzac service

Our staff, gap students and whanau attended the service in Johnsonville at 10am and the 11am service in Wellington. Challenge 2000 wreaths were laid by Mele Kilino-Lapana, Matt Bentley and Lano Afutoto on behalf of our whanau. It is encouraging to see our young people taking the lead and engaging in such a fundamental part of our identity.

For the first time on our new site, we held a commemoration event that included a prayer service and drama in Johnsonville. We were delighted to have so many people unite as a community and remember those who served. There was plenty of behind the scenes support from our volunteers, college students and university students. Students from Bishop Viard, St Mary’s and Wellington Girl’s were in each day in the lead up lending a hand to ensure it all went

Muscians in their element

smoothly. These amazing students baked all the Anzac biscuits, prepared the costumes and ensured they fit the cast of twenty-five, painted crosses and learnt all the old songs to be performed in the drama and service. The Anzac spirit was very much alive in the build up and the students reflected on their own family experiences of war.  There were younger ones passing through during the day and students took this opportunity to share their own knowledge and explain the importance of Anzac day. We also had a number of volunteers come in throughout the week and offer their support and services, including an ex gap year student and her family who worked their magic with the artwork.

Brett Hudson reading the names of fallen soldiers from our Johnsonville whanau

Greg O’Connor reading The Ode

Wellington put on a great day for us and we were pleased to host 170 people made up of familiar and new faces. We were grateful to have our local MP’s Greg O’Connor and Brett Hudson attend and participate in the service by reading The Ode and the names of fallen soldiers from our local Johnsonville whanau. Jill Day, Deputy Mayor and Peter Gilberd, Northern Ward City Councillor were also in attendance along with representatives from the local Anglican and Catholic parishes, residents from the local rest home, representatives from the Police and The Johnsonville Charitable Trust.

Young solider being picked up for training

The family awaiting news of their beloved soldier

The programme begun with our drama set in Johnsonville where a young man volunteered to “do his bit” in 1915. We were taken on his powerful journey, one of courage, love, and sacrifice. His love story was like many others, letters exchanged throughout the war, holding onto the hope that they would one day be back together and moving forward with a promising future. This moving journey ended with a letter from a nurse who was with the young man when he died in combat “the death of these brave men who had given the last full measure of sacrifice in their country’s cause, comes as a noble inspiration to us”.  The service followed this and there was not a dry eye in the crowd.

The sing-a-long!

Following the service there was an opportunity for our guests to share stories over tea, scones, Anzac biscuits and cucumber sandwiches. And in the spirit of the time there was a sing-a-long of the old time songs – great to see the young and the old get involved and enjoy the tunes.

Te Po, Peter Gilberd, John Robinson, Jill Day, Savesi Apolo.

Thank you to everyone who attended our service. Anzac day reminds us of the bravery, loyalty, tenacity, love and service that our soldiers are known for. We remember the great sacrifice that was made by many to bring peace and to build this nation of ours.  It falls upon each one of us now to make a commitment to serve and to sacrifice and to live positively today so we are a country that those who served before us could be proud of.

Some of the amazing cast!

We would also like to take the opportunity to thank the following people for their support of the event. Elizabeth Kennedy for the beautiful wreaths, Tim Gordon for directing the drama, Jamie McCaskill for his musical expertise, Hire master for the use of the marquee, Wellington City Council’s Barrie Hutton for setting up the sound system, The Johnsonville Charitable Trust for their ongoing support and all of the actors, actresses, musicians and behind the scenes people who made this such a great community event.

In response to the November 2016 earthquake in Kaikoura, Challenge 2000 initiated a youth and community development project to support the young people and community of Kaikoura.

Who am I?

During school holiday periods we send a team to deliver a youth and community programme which supports the local community. The programme is tailored to meet the needs and expectations of the young people which maximises engagement, learning and fun!

We sent our talented team of stars off last week on a stunning Wellington day. Phil, Courtney, Sue, Junior, Sio, Savesi and Mele were excited to spend a week in beautiful Kaikoura community.

Our team were welcomed with open arms and twenty five young people (each day!) full of enthusiasm and energy. Each day was full of adventure and laughs..

Imagination mask time!

A variety of activities were enjoyed with the highlights being the opening sports and activities day (can we interest anyone in a game of pukana or bob sled ready!!??) mini golf, making pizzas, mask making, going to a Powhiri to welcome another group to Kaikoura, and to top off the week an “amazing race” with different challenges throughout the town.

Mini golf champ

There was also time for reflection and our team noted one of their highlights was having the opportunity to listen to the young people talk about the earthquake and how it has affected them 16 months on. They were thankful for such a high energy, balanced and special group of young people.

A huge thanks to the Interislander who sponsored our team’s journey to and from Kaikoura, we are grateful for your support.

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We would like to invite you all to our ANZAC day drama and commemoration service. We hope you can come together to remember what was, to be grateful for what is and to work to build a better New Zealand.

With the support and guidance of Tim Gordon, our young people have written and will be performing a powerful and educational drama set 100 years ago at the end of WWI.

We welcome you all to come and gather as a community to remember our fallen heroes. The programme commences at 2pm and will be followed by afternoon tea. This is a family friendly event so please bring all your whanau!

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

If you are aged 13-18 check out our creative arts workshop 23 – 17 April! The programme is a collaboration between Challenge 2000, Taiohi Morehu and Hutt City Council. The I+CHOOSE+ME Tukuna Kia Rere programme will be operating these holidays in the Walter Nash centre. It has been run out of Naenae and Stokes Valley communities so far and the feedback has been fantastic! If you are interested register now by emailing faafetaiavei@challenge2000.org.nz or joshua.peauafi@huttcity.govt.nz 

Earlier this week we celebrated the opening of our new space in Pember house in Porirua. We were grateful for the community support which was reflected in the guest list! This included a number of community leaders – Mayor Mike Tana, the Kapiti Mana Police area commander, Tracey Thompson and the police district iwi co-ordinator, Te Roera Puna. We were also thrilled to have Julie Nevett a business partner who sponsored the project attend along with a number of College representatives and our staff members. 

Steve O’Connor and Mayor Mike Tana.

Steve O’Connor, our director opened the event. We were honoured to have Mayor Mike Tana speak, he shared his excitement of having the hub up and running in Porirua as well as reflecting on his past work with youth. There was an excited buzz in the air, which is an indication of the many great things to come from this new, central space in the heart of the Porirua CBD. 

Our Challenge space is located on the 4th floor of Pember House, just around the corner from the Porirua City Council. The office had been freshly painted and re-furnished with brightly coloured rugs and couches, photos and posters on the walls and pot plants nestled in the corners. The office is bright and cozy, and it is clear that it will be an important hub for the amazing work that we do, as well as a welcoming place for Porirua youth, their whanau and our community partners. 

The office in Porirua will be used as a base for the work that we deliver in the community. We have had involvement with young people in Porirua for over 25 years.

The new hub is open!

We have provided youth justice services, youth and social workers for all the Porirua Colleges, holiday programmes, provided community service opportunities and lots more! Being based here physically will make us more visible and accessible for the community and those accessing our many programmes. 

Our staff, young people and volunteers at last have a place to call home and we look forward to strengthening our relationships in the Porirua community. 

Tina May Wilkins is the senior social worker running the hub – we asked her about the vision of the hub and here is what she said…

“Tena Koutou Katoa, Tālofa, Fakaalofa atu, Malo e lelei, Ni Sa Bula Vinaka, Kia Orana

Today we welcomed our new Gap year participants to the Challenge 2000 whanau. We are pleased to welcome eight young people who are full of energy, have a diverse range of skills and ready to make a difference in our community! We’ve changed things up this year in our Gap programme – the programme is made up of Gap students and interns who are recent University graduates.

We are lucky to have such a talented group on board who are passionate about working in our community and really making a difference. Watch this space to see how our programme progresses throughout the year – we have lots of exciting opportunities lined up for our fresh 2018 group and you won’t want to miss out on seeing what they get up to!

Want to help our young people in College?

School is back!  We have been racing around with last minute enrolments, settling in the young people to the youth houses, buying uniform kits, sorting out stationery and attending Powhiri…!

Challenge 2000 has relationships with many of the Colleges in the Wellington region. We have social workers and youth workers in Nae Nae College, Taita College, Mana College, Aotea College and Bishop Viard College. We also have students at Newlands College, Onslow College, Rongotai College, St Patrick’s Town and St Patrick’s Silverstream, St Mary’s College and St Catherine’s College and some students in Alternative education centres. Many of our young people in our youth houses attend Colleges and we are responsible for ALL their needs – including school uniforms, sports gear, stationery, extra curricular activities… the list is endless!

Many students we support also come from families that live in poverty. Who do they call? Challenge 2000! You might think WINZ can help, only problem is if families have taken out a loan before they can’t get another one….or if they haven’t they have to pay it back. It’s hard to pay even $2.00 per week back when you already can’t afford to live……so once again Challenge steps up and steps in…..we buy the items that are necessary for our young people to succeed. Lots of people talk about what they can do to help those in need, want to help but don’t know how and want their donation to GO DIRECTLY to those who need it most. Well Challenge 2000 has significant caring, positive relationships with hundreds of young people and their families AND we do make a difference.

So PLEASE have a think and you can help sponsor a young person by donating so we are able to purchase the items required for schooling and sporting! OR if you have sports gear or old school uniforms from any of the above Colleges that are in good condition let us know. Contact us directly on 04 477 6827 and speak to Megan or Bridget, or email us – meganratuki@challenge2000.org.nz or bridgetpoutasi@challenge2000.org.nz

Our Todd Employment Unit is funded by the Todd Foundation. The unit is made up of young people seeking employment who need support and guidance to move into the work force. We develop an individualised plan with each young person and coordinate counselling, mentoring, confidence building, health changes, up-skilling and work experience as needed. Our staff who facilitate this unit have a range of diverse skills and experiences to ensure the holistic needs of the young people are addressed.

We have many young people come to us who are seeking employment but need help to get them going in the right direction, sometimes they have a few ideas but aren’t sure which direction to take and other times they need support to explore the opportunities to see what appeals to them. Sometimes literacy and numeracy barriers are identified so we take steps to ensure these needs are met, this will look different depending on the individual.

We currently have ten young people in the unit each undertaking their individualised plans. Take James* for example, he is tossing up whether to pursue a career as a musician or a builder. We developed a plan for James so he is able to gain experience in both these industries. Throughout the process we also provide one on one mentoring and support to enable James to make a decision about what pathway he wants to take. Another example is Susan*, she came to us seeking employment but unsure where to start. One on one mentoring helped Susan explore what was important to her and what she was interested in. After a couple of sessions Susan realised a career in the NZDF was something she wanted to pursue. To support this decision, we work closely with Susan to develop a plan to ensure she is ready in every way possible to achieve this goal. The plan includes; supporting Susan to obtain her full drivers licence – including driving lessons and practice with a timeline to sitting her full licence, developing a fitness and well-being plan – including eating, exercise and rest. We are also working with another young man Jon* who just missed out on University entrance this year. We are working one on one with him so hopefully with additional academic support he will achieve the level required and attend University in the second semester.

A recent project was undertaken with Parry Builders. Our young people worked alongside an experienced builder to complete jobs in the wider Wellington region. We were pleased to receive such great feedback “The boys have been a pleasure to work with. Hardworking, polite and willing to learn. Having extra sets of hands through the fencing installation process has made my life so much easier and I would not hesitate to get them on board to work with me again. Thanks so much Challenge 2000 for providing some real champions to help me out” – Kelvyn Parry, Director of Parry Homes. Check out the photos below, great work by our young people!

We are fortunate enough to have significant partnership relationships with a diverse number of employers/businesses who are willing to take on our young people and provide work experience and part or full-time employment. These connections allow our young people to gain relevant work stills and to try out jobs in an adult way – an essential part of the transition to employment and adulthood.

A huge thanks to the Todd Foundation for supporting us to help our young people to gain the necessary skills, attitude and experience to build their aspirations and obtain fulfilling employment.

*Not their real names