Festive feast or famine at the Tauranga Community Foodbank

Alan Plunkett. Photo/File

With Christmas only a fortnight away, most of us have a pretty good idea what we're going to eat on the big day.

On the menu is likely to be turkey or ham, fresh vegetables or salad and some Christmas pudding with a good dollop of cream.

And just to round things off there may well be a cheese board or chocolates on offer.

But for many in the Bay such sumptuous fare will be a distant dream as they struggle to feed themselves on a day-to-day basis, most often through no fault of their own.

What they get to eat on Christmas Day, or any other day for that matter, is dependent on the generosity of folk who donate to the Tauranga Community Foodbank.

Without any shadow of doubt it's their lifeline - which is why the Bay of Plenty Times holds an annual Christmas Appeal for the foodbank.

Last Christmas the appeal raised a record $107,519.05 with schools, businesses, community organisations and individuals donating $50,895.05 in cash and 28,312 in food donations valued at $2 each.

This year there are high hopes that folk will dig even deeper into their pockets to ensure the volunteers at the foodbank have enough money in the kitty to keep going for another year.

Under chairman Alan Plunkett, the 40 or so volunteers work tirelessly to put food on the table for those in need, some having worked for the organisation for more than 20 years.

Former bank worker and motelier Plunkett came on board three years ago and has wasted no time getting to grips with the challenges and responsibilities of keeping it afloat.

"Probably the most pressing issue at foodbank when I arrived was its very low profile in the city," he told the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend.

Alan Plunkett. Photo/File

"There was a lack of awareness by the locals of our existence and our operating methods, but the Bay of Plenty Times annual appeal and its publicity has been the major contributor to righting this situation."

This year has been especially challenging, with the organisation being forced to vacate its Dive Crescent building in October after it was affected by toxic, black mould and asbestos.

Volunteers were given an hour to move out of the building such was the concern over the potential threat to their health.

Some later underwent medical checks but were given the all clear.

It was an unsettling time for all concerned, not least for those dependent on food parcels, but within a week the Foodbank found a safe new home in Brook St behind Fraser Cove.

The new premises are twice the size of the previous building and house around 18 freezers and one large chiller.

The freezers were supplied earlier in the year by groups including Lions, Lionesses, Rotary, Freemasons, community groups and local businesses.

Plunkett says the demand for food parcels is constant with around 140 a week, or 7000 a year, being handed out.

So far this year in Tauranga more than 5000 parcels have helped feed 16,263 people, of whom 9595 were children.

Typically a box for a family of five has 13 tins of canned food, a packet of cereal, five packs of noodles, 10 eggs, potatoes, two cups of milk powder, a bag of pasta, rice, 10 pies, four bread loaves, condiments, two rolls of toilet paper, fresh vegetables, and two bars of soap.

Extras can include a packet of biscuits, a bottle of juice, shampoo or a cake mix.

Plunkett says local bakeries, churches, community gardens and various individuals and organisations are just some of the many "very generous providers".

Contributions also come from those who can ill afford to make them including former clients of the foodbank.

"The parcels go to solo mums and children or solo dads, welfare and sickness beneficiaries, the homeless and women's refuge.

"There is a lot more hardship out there than you realise and people are very grateful for any help they can get."

Photo/File

Foodbank manager Nicki Goodwin told the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend there is a belief in the community that it is focused on helping beneficiaries to the detriment of other needy individuals.

"This couldn't be further from the truth," she says.

"We're not just here for people on benefits; we're here for everybody in our community who needs help for whatever reason that may be.

"We often attend meetings of groups and find many people have this misconception about what we do, so we're trying to re-educate them that we're a community foodbank open to everyone in the community.

"One of the messages we would like to get out to the community is that whether you are receiving a benefit, whether you're a wage earner, whether you're a superannuitant, if you find yourself in circumstances where you are struggling please, please make contact with us to find out about getting help."

Goodwin says typical of the people the foodbank helps was a married man with several children who visited the facility for the first time.

"He was really, really nervous and embarrassed as he'd never accessed any charitable service like us before and was so relieved to find the process wasn't as daunting as he thought it would be.

"He was able to walk out with enough food for the family for the next few days until he got paid and the sheer relief on his face was wonderful."

Such stories bring a smile to the face of Alan Plunkett whose involvement with the foodbank is born out of his Christian values as a practising Catholic.

"I have always helped others with whatever skills I seem to possess and charity work was a natural progression when retirement arrived.

"I love the work I'm doing now and if I see a need and can help then I will continue while I'm able."

The 68-year-old was born and brought up in Napier in a family of five children.

Music and sport played a big part in his early life which included a spell working at the Public Trust before 13 years with the ANZ bank.

This was followed by 13 years' running the Garden Court motel with wife Sharon then five years at Molloys Menswear in Tauranga.

Nicki Goodwin describes Plunkett as "a fun person to be around with strong morals and values around family and community".

"Alan expects a lot from himself and is always ready to give that extra time and effort.

"He has a great board of trustees who also share these traits so he runs a very successful team."

Goodwin says Plunkett always looks on the positive side of life even when things go wrong, such as the time he decided to get fit by walking to the foodbank and taking a bus home.

"Well the walk to work went fine but the bus trip home afterwards took several hours due to him catching the wrong bus.

"He said at least he got the chance to have a good look around the city so he is most definitely a cup-half-full kind of guy."

Plunkett himself is reluctant to take much credit for the success of the foodbank, preferring to heap praise on his team of volunteers who perform such tasks as managing the storeroom, stocking shelves, packaging items, putting together food parcels and collecting donations.

Five volunteers are rostered to work in the foodbank each day plus a driver who collects donations from around the city.

"The attitude and demeanour of all volunteers has made a huge difference to an efficient and friendly working environment," he says.

"We have volunteers in their 80s, some from disability groups, and occasionally some working off some small debt to society.

"The work they do is at best menial but always important, with some having been with us for years and still enjoying their time at the coalface.

"They all work incredibly hard but we could always do with more so if people want to help out they should come and put their name down."

Plunkett says that, despite extensive publicity, there are still many people in Tauranga who are unaware of the foodbank and why it's needed.

"Many still do not know we exist or how we run and the reality is we need as much help as we can get.

"We now have a new, onerous target of finding an additional $40,000 a year to cover rent, rates, insurance etc.

"So our future is like the horizon - you never quite reach it."

For his part Plunkett intends to remain at the helm of the foodbank for the foreseeable future.

"As stated before I am a Christian and a Catholic and if I see a need and can help then I will stay on while I'm able for a while yet, God willing."

Which is music to the ears of Ms Goodwin.

"Oh my gosh, he would most definitely be hard to replace," she exclaims.

"We work so well together and the foodbank would lose a real asset if he were to step down so he isn't allowed to!"

With such a ringing endorsement, the Tauranga Community Foodbank is clearly in very safe hands.