#ILoveKaitaia continues to spread love
Kaitaia is continuing to focus on the positives after a spate of violence led to the label of the ‘murder capital’ of New Zealand.
Hundreds of posts can be found under the ILoveKaitaia hashtag which local woman Naomi Austen-Reid started to flood social media with positive aspects of her town.
‘‘A lot of people use it all the time now which is quite cute, even with a photo of them at the beach.
‘‘I tried to like or comment on all of the posts but there is just too many now, I underestimated the power of social media.’’
She wishes to thank the people who have supported the kaupapa.
Sade Murray says the ‘murder capital’ tag for Kaitaia affected her so much she was determined to help children in the town.
‘‘I thought how dare you say that, you don’t live here.
‘‘The hashtag has been a positive thing to reflect on and focus on the positives, we want to give our children different things to think about.’’
She doesn’t deny the area has problems but she says she loves her community and wouldn’t live anywhere else.
Koha for our Kids in Kaitaia is a Facebook group created by Murray to provide items of clothing, food and other items for local children in need.
With over 800 members Murray says the group also provides a safe place for people to ask for things they may need.
Kaitaia Intermediate has also created a video with students sharing their views on why they love Kaitaia.
The video now has over 8000 views, over 100 shares and been liked by close to 150 on the school’s Facebook page.