KEY POINTS:
Nobody wants to grow old alone. But oceans away from the family-based culture they grew up with, many of Auckland's elderly Sri Lankans do.
So Thanga Mahasivam, a retired school teacher who moved here with her family in 1986, spends 30 hours a week keeping the elderly connected.
She saw the need for a networking system when the community was rocked by tragedy in 1998.
An elderly Sri Lankan woman, in Auckland and alone, committed suicide.
Within a year, Mrs Mahasivam had formed the New Zealand Tamil Senior Citizen's Society.
Friend and Auckland University lecturer Rhema Vaithianathan said the elderly's isolation came from vast differences between Sri Lanka and New Zealand.
"A lot of older people tend to leave Sri Lanka with their families. But in New Zealand the kids tend to go to work and the older people are isolated. In Sri Lanka there would be a much larger extended family.
"They live mainly in villages, and all the relatives tend to live in the same village. But in New Zealand your relatives might be halfway across the city. So it's a very different culture here because they don't have those networks."
Mrs Mahasivam said the group now had more than 90 members.
Liaising with and looking out for that many people took time, but it was time she gave without complaint.
"I always wanted to help.
"After leaving the country without my parents, I knew I always wanted to do something for others. And I thought, whenever I have free time, I should do something."
Ms Vaithianathan said her friend was a quiet achiever, working tirelessly to help other people.
"She's very low key. She's one of those people who if she sees a problem, she'll just go fix it. She's very practical, very compassionate."
