Wardens put out call for more recruits

Maori Wardens are seeing a noticeable rise in suicide rates and are keen to recruit more wardens so they can better support those struggling in South Auckland.

‘‘[For us] as Maori Wardens, community safety is paramount,’’ Thomas Henry says.

Henry has been a warden for almost 11 years.

‘‘Just about every second day we are attending a suicide,’’ he says.

‘‘It’s sad when you have to take a family up to the mortuary because he’s committed suicide. Times are getting tough in South Auckland. We’d like to see our community being active, get more people involved. If we can take one person off the road or off drugs, we’ve done our job.’’

He says it’s is important to look out for signs to help a person that might be in need.

To family members and guardians he says if a person they know becomes very reclusive, or are not their normal selves, ‘‘something is up’’.

‘‘Some of the kids we pick up don’t want to go home because of the stuff that’s happening inside their house,’’ he says.

‘‘We try and deal with it and we get a colourful word sometimes, but we’re quite used to it.’’

He says they’re here to help everyone, not just Maori. No two days in the life of a warden are the same.

‘‘You could be escorting the Prime Minister, foot patrolling around the local shopping centres, helping park cars at an event or even attending a funeral.’’

They’re supported by the Police so a lot of the training is done by them, Henry says.

To become a Maori Warden you have to be of at least a third Maori descent and be 15 years or older. They are on the lookout for new members and have organised a recruitment day on July 1 at the Otahuhu Town Hall from 1pm.