A 72-year-old scrimping to get by, who feels little enjoyment in her golden years. A 67-year-old who only drives when it’s essential and feels like a ‘prisoner’ in her home, and an 88-year-old saved from the ‘bones of his backside’ by a Lotto win. These are the stories of three
Elderly are going hungry as the rising cost of living makes some prisoners in their own home
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To make ends meet she has cut back on her food budget and scrimps to get by.
“I just buy the basics, the only fruit I buy is bananas.”
Mutlow is waiting to go to the hospital as she needs hip surgery. This has affected her mobility and trips into the city on the bus are off the agenda.
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“I used to love walking around and looking at the shops.
“I would maybe get a burger or something to eat but now I haven’t got any money anyway to even do that.”
Days are spent watching TV and her neighbour and good friend Mary Smith sometimes takes Mutlow to get groceries or to doctor visits.
These outings stop her from going “crazy”.
‘Some can’t just go out and get an extra part-time job or work overtime’
Rotorua Salvation Army corps officer Hana Seddon says the number of people aged 65 and over receiving support in the past 12 months is up 30 per cent compared with pre-Covid levels.
“We agree with the trends other social agencies are seeing. They can’t just go out and get an extra part-time job or work overtime or do other things those in the younger age bracket can do.
“Sometimes they are isolated and away from whānau as their family may have moved away or are overseas so it’s a bit harder to get support.”
Seddon says there are issues around whakamā or shame as people felt they have lived their whole lives without asking for support.
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“It can be quite a tender subject and we are really, really open to those who need help in a friendly, confidential manner. We exist for people like that and that is why we are here.
“Our cupboards are always full and people can come in Monday to Friday.”
She says about 300 Christmas food hampers were given out in December and several went to elderly people who were left in “tears”.
“There was just so much gratitude and joy.”
Another initiative is its 55-plus group which met every Tuesday from 10am to noon. Seddon says it is a great opportunity to meet others, do an array of activities and enjoy some kai.
The battle to survive on a pension
Mary Smith, 67, who likes to help Mutlow, is also battling to survive on her pension.
“I look for the cheapest food and it’s depressing going to the supermarket because the prices are always going up. I paid $10 for a two-litre of oil last week when it’s usually $6.”
She eats a lot of sandwiches and gets creative with casseroles to stretch meals out. After paying rent, she is left with about $150 a week for food, petrol, car registration, WoF, doctor’s appointments, prescriptions and necessities.
So Smith limited her driving to essential travel.
“I am a prisoner in my own home.”
Her flat mirrors Mutlow’s and is full of knick-knacks and photos of family and loved ones. It’s damp and cold and the wooden window frames are starting to rot.
From the ‘bones of my backside’
A small Lotto windfall saved fellow neighbour 88-year-old Robert Francis from the “bones of my backside”.
He used to be left with as little as $40 to $60 a week to live on and is grateful for his good fortune.
“I felt like a huge burden was lifted off me.”
However old habits die hard and Robert will often opt for a blanket instead of using the heater in winter.
Francis has a tiny garden at the front entrance to his place. A lone silverbeet is wilting in the sunlight while a flock of pigeons sit eagle-eyed on a string of powerlines watching his every move.
They are his one indulgence and he feeds them, and a contingent of sparrows, wheat every day.
‘Some absolutely going hungry’
Rotorua Whakaora co-founder Elmer Peiffer says they are helping twice, if not three times as many people 60 and over than last year.
The organisation runs a free supermarket for people in that age group on Fridays for one hour and numbers are growing.
It has 120 older people registered with about 50 to 60 visiting each week and some in the community are “absolutely going hungry”.
“For a lot of them, their pensions only cover the very basics for food. Their incomes are set in stone so there is very little leeway.
“So they’re not able to get fresh produce, some canned goods, frozen veges, or whatever the case may be.”
He says those items are popular at the supermarket and some people walked out in tears because they had got food.
“They were in desperate need of it while others have been utilising our service for some time now and there are elderly bringing their friends.”
Loved ones need to ‘step up’
Rotorua Budget Advice manager Pakanui Tuhura says those aged 65 and over who can no longer work are the most “vulnerable people in our society as they are on fixed incomes”.
“Although they may be asset rich they don’t necessarily have the cash flow to cover unexpected or unplanned debt. They may go into debt through a mistake in managing their money (for example misreading a rate demand or they take out a loan (or even re-mortgage their home) to support children and/or grandchildren.
“Non-payment of rent and power incurs penalties so to avoid this they pay these and cut back on food which doesn’t have a money penalty but most certainly a health and wellbeing cost.”
He says if a person is going without food to pay other bills it means they have run out of resources and that scenario does happen.
“A good start is to recognise that you have done all you can for yourself and you need help. There is plenty of help available from whānau, friends and the community and accepting this help is not something to be ashamed of.
“They need to be clear that accepting this help is their right as someone who has lived a long life and contributed to their family, friends and community throughout those years.
“Don’t try to go it alone and find the solutions alone.”
Isolation is a trap with only negative impacts and loved ones also need to step up and help, he says.
“Regular visits from whānau and friends for a cup of tea are welcome events, and taking and leaving food is part and parcel of being good manuhiri. First and foremost they are people who are entitled to courtesy and dignity.
“Sooner or later all of us will become elderly and unless we want to end up in a similar situation we all need to plan for the lives we want to live in retirement. Kiwisaver and similar retirement schemes are important financial tools but in the end, we need to ensure that how we treat people in this situation is how we would like to be treated when we get to that age.”
‘It can take a lot before we hear a cry for help’
Retirement Commissioner Jane Wrightson says its research undertaken as part of the Review of Retirement Income Policies has pointed to growing numbers of people struggling to get by in retirement.
That data reveals 40 per cent of people aged 65 and over have virtually no other income besides NZ Super and another 20 per cent only have that, and a little more. Even with NZ Super, close to one in three people do not think they will have enough for retirement unless they continue working past 65.
“This issue isn’t going away – currently, one in five retirees are still paying a mortgage, and we are looking at 100 per cent more older people paying rent by 2048 compared to 2020. As a society, we need to keep talking about these issues.
“Retirement is a concept that is often out of sight, out of mind until we reach it but we need time to prepare and plan.”
Wrightson says it is “heartbreaking to think that people who have worked, raised children, and paid taxes their whole lives, were struggling to get by”.
“This is a wicked problem many years in the making and is part of why I believe that NZ Super is so critical. We need to plan long-term to ensure our older people can retire with the dignity they so deserve. This can’t be achieved by one agency or one government alone, we need collective, ongoing action.”
In her view, society respects elders and feels responsible for their wellbeing but views need to be adapted to changing times.
“It’s no longer just are you healthy, are you socialising ... It’s are you affording everything okay? Do you need help paying your bills? We need to make this a priority.
“We can’t assume people are coping financially – it can take a lot before we hear a cry for help.”
