Two years ago, Teisha Paratene moved into one of the poorest neighbourhoods in Tauranga.
"I pretty much wanted to pack back up and move out. You would see women fighting women, teenagers, adults, gangs. They all fought on our front lawn," she said.
"Probably disgusted would be the better word, and then the fear kicked in, that this is not really where I want my kids to be playing."
Instead of turning her back on the place, Paratene and her family decided to make a difference.
"We initially started by dragging our barbeque onto the front kerb, started providing a meal and got the neighbours out to join us."