Moving to an unfamiliar country can be isolating and nerve-racking. So fortunately there’s Refugees as Survivors NZ to support the mental health and wellbeing of people with refugee backgrounds settling in New Zealand.
And The Good Registry is super excited that our good givers can now forgo gifts for themselves to support RASNZ’s awesome work! RASNZ joined The Good Registry as a charity partner last month, so we wanted to share a little more about the work they do.
RASNZ is New Zealand’s leading mental health and wellbeing service provider for people of refugee backgrounds living in New Zealand. They provide clinical support as well as community-based activities and clubs that build connections and social relationships.
RASNZ provides support to 1,400 people from refugee backgrounds each year, involving them in community projects to boost their self-confidence and build their sense of identity. They help their clients thrive in all aspects of their life — whether this is helping clients to find employment or to find a safe and accepting area to live, it’s about making a positive difference in their lives.
Mackenzie Koppel, the fundraising and communications manager from RASNZ, shared how past trauma can affect an former refugees’ present and future lives, whatever form it may be. “It’s more than seeing a psychiatrist,”she says. The events of the past don’t disappear once the client flees; the trauma sticks around and can affect how they adapt to a new society. Through clubs and sports teams, these individuals can create connections, build their confidence, and learn new skills.
Donations RASNZ receives from The Good Registry contribute to these community-based activities, such as the women’s sewing club and the youth sports team. It also helps the charity to do advocacy work, to raise awareness and to challenge stigma.
Mackenzie says: “In the past couple years there’s been a lot of negative light placed on refugees. We try to paint them in a positive light, exactly how they deserve to be portrayed.”
To learn more about our new charity partner, visit their website, or if you’d like a simple way to support them to improve the lives of our newest New Zealanders, you can do that at The Good Registry, by pledging a birthday or other occasion, or with Good Gift Cards.
We have created two simple ways to give:
- Create your own Good Registry for a special event (e.g. a wedding or a birthday) and ask friends to donate to a charity you choose, instead of buying gifts.
- Give Good Gift Cards instead of traditional gifts, to enable others to make donations to charities they care about.
You can hear from people who have used Good Registries and Good Gift Cards to help charities like RASNZ, on our inspirational Giving Wall.
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