Two situations that need each other!

By Pauline Stewart.

There's an 'interesting' initiative being implemented - St John's Op shop in Whitianga is the giver, the Anglican Trust for Women and Children in Auckland is the recipient, and the local Furniture Removal Company 'Move It' is connecting the giver and receiver. Putting it together is Rev Gill Reid, Vicar of St Peter the Fisherman, Anglican Church.

Real need: The Anglican Trust for Women and Children (ATWC) is desperately trying to help families impacted by the Auckland floods in January, and the need for furniture and other household goods is ongoing.

Real excess: St John's Op Shop in Albert Street, Whitianga gets more furniture donations than it can handle. Rev Gill knows this through her Knitting Group, whose members knit clothing for the ATWC but also work in St John’s Op Shop as volunteers.

“I'm also the St John's Chaplain,” says Gill. “When I found out about the furniture situation, I suggested maybe we (St John's) could get the surplus furniture to ATWC.” Long story short - Move It takes surplus furniture and other needed goods from St John's Op Shop to ATWC when it makes a trip to Auckland using any spare space in their van. “My role has been to get everyone talking to one another,” says Gill. “There have been two deliveries so far. I have also taken two full car loads of linen and clothes that have been donated as the result of a message put out around my people and the Op Shop.”

What a great trio of connection this is - one part of society having too much as in over supplied, and one other part of society not having enough and a business who is able and willing to assist to meet the two needs. Thank you to Bea Cox and St John’s Op Shop, to Move It, Josh and Kylie Shepherd with the deliveries to Auckland and to Rev Gillian Reid and the knitters. You saw the need and acted.

Caption: The ‘Move it’ boys loading the truck from St. John’s Op Shop with the surplus quality furniture and goods to go to Auckland.