Life just got lot brighter for 150 kids

Nearly 150 children from families in hardship have been sponsored as a result of a partnership with children’s charity Variety.

With unprecedented demand for basic items this winter, Variety appealed for support from outside its donor base for the first time.

The Herald this week spoke to some of the households seeking help with essentials such as warm clothing, bedding or school uniforms.

And at last count, families had signed up to provide sponsorship worth about $45 a month for 146 children on Variety’s waiting list. Another 453 donors had also signed up.

The charity and the Herald also received countless offers of shoes, meals, beds and other items which the charity does not have the capacity to distribute.

Variety chief executive Lorraine Taylor said the new donors had cut its waiting list to about 250: “It’s been so encouraging to see that members of the public have rallied and actively wanted to support families.

“I think increasingly there has been a sense that this is something that happens to a certain type of person. And I think the stories over the last week have revealed the problem . . . impacts many demographics.

“I think it’s really important that we do shed a light on the issues. These are everyday New Zealanders . . . ”

Most of the demand for assistance was concentrated in Auckland, where families had been hit hardest by rising housing costs.