Today we report Apumoana Marae is keen to offer sanctuary to a local family, as its way of helping look after its community.
Marae spokesman Eraia Kiel said, in the past, the marae was a place for the less fortunate to take shelter.
It is willing, and apparently able, to help at least one family at a time - which may be a drop in the ocean when looking at the problem as a whole but could mean the world to that family.
The marae committee sees a dire need so is stepping up in the absence of any other immediate solution to the problem.
I recall the same argument when free school lunches were a hot topic.
Some were adamant feeding kids was the parents' responsibility, not that of the government or the taxpayers.
Which is all very well. But what about those starving kids whose parents just weren't feeding them?
Did we let children go hungry to prove a point? No. I think the same logic applies here.
Yes, the Government needs to urgently address the situation but in the meantime there are people without a roof to keep them warm and dry.
At least Apumoana Marae, like many other groups and individuals in our community, are trying to make a tangible difference in the here and now.
Without the community helping itself, imagine how much worse things could be.
