West Auckland students choose to 'give back' to community

Instead of heading to the latest Saturday night party, a group of West Auckland students chose to give their skills and time to help some of the vulnerable members of their local community.​​

The students are part of the MC4 leadership programme, which caters to seven schools in West Auckland, taking Pacific students on a 17-week leadership journey.

MC4 coordinator Jeremiah Tauti says there aren't many Pacific leadership initiatives in the area and this programme is determined to fill the gap.

"In West Auckland, there's hardly any programmes for our Pasifika youth. Out south, there's a plethora, there's hundreds, the market is saturated out there.

"We're just a little pea in the pond that's trying to do our thing for our community in West Auckland.

"It's those stories, it's the hope, it's seeing our young people thrive, our families thrive and our communities."

The MC4 programme partnered with Kai Avondale to provide warmth for vulnerable communities during the cold winter months. Every fortnight, Kai Avondale provide food for the homeless and vulnerable people in their community.

Tauti says the choice was given to the kids, as part of the 'service' aspect of the programme.

"We asked ourselves 'what is the best way to teach the kids leadership' and that's through service."

Tauti alludes to a Samoan proverb ​​"O le ala i le pule o le tautua" ​​which translates to ​​"the pathway to leadership is through service". ​​​​​He says this was a key aspect in how they shaped their approach to their visit.

​Though Saturday nights are often reserved for leisure, the students of the MC4 programme attended one of Kai Avondale’s events for rough-sleepers and those needing extra food support​.

On a chilly night, the MC4 young kids were able to bring warmth to the Avondale Community Centre as they assisted with giving out food and through a series of singing and dance performances.

"I may not be able to know what it's like to be in their shoes, I want to know what their stories are and their backgrounds so I can help more people in my community." says Eunice Taivai of Henderson High School.

It was a night of learning for the kids, who say the lesson of the night was learning to empathise with the struggle of others.

​"I learnt everyone is going through their own thing, and if we can come together as a community, we can ease that pressure a little bit more." says Jivanni King of St Dominics Catholic College.

"I learnt no one is greater than the other, everyone is the same. God didn't make us all perfect, as we can see he bought all these people together - and they have a plan for them," says Joel Tuaimalo-Vaega.

​Tauti commented on the success of the event, saying that the kids will take away valuable lessons from the night.

"We want to build that empathy - it's one of the main values we need to instill into our young people today.

"If our young people can walk away with empathy, with care, with love we can transform our community."