To nominate an Unsung Hero for their community service and for terms and conditions go to: www.unsungheroes.org.nz
Zita Tuffley reckons being practical in times of stress and crisis is what victims of crime need.
Since 2001 the self-employed 42-year-old Herne Bay woman has been a volunteer worker with family violence organisation Shine.
Last year, believing she had more to offer the community, she joined Victim Support where she was chosen as one of the few to deal with families affected by homicides.
What people often need in emotionally-charged situations is just information, she said.
"You just have to walk them through the process. Sometimes people need to know about the funeral process, a simple thing like that to make it a little easier for them in a terrible situation."
Past the initial contact, Ms Tuffley said she kept in contact with friends and families, supporting them through the justice system.
With every callout - whether it's domestic-violence related, kidnappings, aggravated robberies or homicides - she said she tried to remind herself that for volunteers it was important to show compassion without taking the trauma on board personally.
But there are times when the horror of situations can be difficult to deal with. "Anything to do with children - it pulls at the heart strings."
Being Maori was a factor in why she decided to start volunteering in the first place, she said. "A lot of victims are Maori. I wanted to make a difference and I think a lot of them can relate to me."
She was nominated by Victim Support's Shanta Millikin, who said: "It's about being able to be a bit of strength and light to give people the direction they need to re-empower themselves. Zita is a strong woman who does that."
The Unsung Community Heroes series is run annually in the The Herald and on nzherald.co.nz in partnership with P&O Cruises. We invited nominations from readers to recognise people who selflessly work to make a difference in their local communities.
Some will be selected to feature in the paper and on nzherald.co.nz. Five will be chosen to join a P&O winter cruise.
