Hallmarks of community spirit
Hamilton Estate Community Hall is a tiny speck of a building tucked in behind Waiuku’s main thoroughfare.
However, for Grace van den Brink it has been a central hub for her whanau and the community for many years.
The former New Zealand Steel Social Club has been the base for Te Marama Hou Ministries Trust (TMHMT), started by van den Brink’s parents Richard and Ari Taikato, since 1985.
The trust was founded on Christian principles, with a strong focus on tikanga Maori, TMHMT director van den Brink said.
‘‘It started on the good seeds of sharing hope and all those good things for the people.’’
Every Sunday, the hall would be filled with kaumatua reciting karakia, bands playing music and people singing waiata.
Today, the trust provides education classes, social services and a community garden for the public to use and is also home to the Waiuku Rugby League Club.
When league was reintroduced to Hamilton Estate more than a decade ago, the trust had three criteria for its return - the club was to be smoke-free, alcohol-free and violence-free.
‘‘We want to promote healthy people, because of the all problems that had happened that’s why it got shut down,’’ van den Brink said.
With plans for the Waiuku League Club to shift to Waiuku Sports Park, a multi-sport complex development, TMHMT has bold new plans for Hamilton Estate.
Last month, van den Brink presented a 10-minute deputation to the Franklin Local Board outlining the plans.
She said the trust would like to build a new facility to cater for community events, social and medical services and education courses.
The plan was for Hamilton Estate to run like a marae - with papakainga for emergency housing and an expanded community garden with raised gardens and fruit trees.
Although, the estate sits on council land, van den Brink said it was important to acknowledge the ancestral ties to local iwi, Ngati Te Ata.
Despite plans not being confirmed yet, the trust has already started fundraising for the project.
‘‘We’re a step ahead, we’re just doing it anyway,’’ she said.
When walking around the streets of Waiuku, van den Brink said she often came across young teens asking for money.
‘‘What you need to ask me is there any jobs, is there any jobs.’’
She said the trust wanted to encourage young people to contribute to their community.
‘‘We need to pass those things on to our children to give them a better footing in life - they’re looking for role models, they’re looking for good examples.’’