‘They are grafters and really do the hard mahi’

As Aucklanders struggle with the city’s extended lockdown, a joint effort has seen a marae, a social enterprise and a Viaduct restaurant team up to help those in need. Alexia Santamaria reports.

If you’ve driven down Robertson Rd in the South Auckland suburb of Ma¯ ngere East any time since the start of the Delta outbreak, you may have seen a long queue of cars having items placed in their boots or through their back windows.

Smiling teams in full PPE hand out everything from fish heads to groceries, sanitary products and veggies – all the essentials for a community hit hard by Covid-19.

The white boiler suits are connected to Papatu¯ a¯ nuku Ko¯ kiri Marae, which describes itself as

‘‘a vibrant and accessible innercity marae upholding valued traditions, tikanga and strong community relationships’’.

Getting out and supporting

Ma¯ ngere locals goes to the heart of the marae’s kaupapa: providing loving arms and a non-judgmental space for anyone in need.

Nearly 30 years ago the marae set up extensive community gardens on a hectare of land, and went on to produce organic food using traditional Ma¯ ori values and ethics with Te Waka Kai Ora (National Ma¯ ori Organics

Authority of Aotearoa). That supply of veggies was invaluable when lockdown hit. Many wha¯ nau were in dire straits, and the Papatu¯ a¯ nuku Ko¯ kiri team stepped up immediately with food deliveries and support.

This time, the marae had extra support from Everybody Eats – a community restaurant initiative in Auckland and Wellington that redirects food destined for landfill to three-course meals and brings together people from all walks of life on a ‘‘pay as you feel’’ basis.

Lionel Hotene, who runs the marae’s operations with wife Val, knew Everybody Eats founder Nick Loosley.

‘‘The friendship and mutual respect was instant with Lionel,’’ says Loosley. ‘‘We think very similarly about food and community, and I could immediately see what they were doing was incredible.’’

The Everybody Eats restaurants were unable to open due to lockdown, but still had access to rescued food from Kiwiharvest, Auckland City Mission, Fair Food and Farro.

And volunteers were more willing to help than ever.

Keen to see unused food put to good use, Loosley proposed a new project: ready-to-eat dinners for families in need. ‘‘We were so keen to work with Lionel and Val and the team. What they do, it’s part of their culture, it’s in their blood – it’s that reciprocity, that giving back, that looking after people. They wake up in the morning and don’t even realise the impact they have on so many families around them. They are just so humble, and they lead from the front – they are grafters and really do the hard mahi.’’

Loosley says their expertise was essential.

‘‘We specialise at serving food in a restaurant environment, giving people three courses of plated food. But I don’t know the first thing about getting takeaway meals out on this scale to a community like Ma¯ ngere. To do this effectively we needed to partner with someone like the marae, in order to deliver the hard work we do on our side. Lionel and Val really know their community, so this was ideal.’’

Locals soon learned to check the marae’s Facebook page for a description of meals that would be available for pickup at 5pm – think nutritious meals like cornbeef hash with cheese sauce and broccoli, or pork and spring onion with ginger and carrots on soysteamed rice.

A couple of weeks into the operation, a central Auckland restaurant pitched into help.

Kristian Lloydd, one of the owners of Saint Alice Bar and Eatery, says he and his business

‘This means we can help lift at least one stress for some people three days a week. ’ LIONEL HOTENE OF PAPATU¯A¯NUKU KO¯KIRI MARAE

partners Callum O’Brien and Andrew Roborgh were keen to help Loosley, with whom they had gone to school together.

‘‘We were actually scheduled to go and cook at Everybody Eats at Gemmayze St when lockdown hit, so I called him and asked what we could do instead,’’ says Lloydd.

Saint Alice wasn’t opening for level 3 takeaways, and had staff available.

‘‘It kind of just went from there. Both myself and Maia Atvars – our head chef – are part Ma¯ ori, and in the Far North, where I come from, this is very much how it goes,’’ says Lloydd.

‘‘The whole team feel really strongly about giving back. At home it’s normal, it’s just what you do, so it was great to have the opportunity to do it here too.’’

When produce comes in from food-rescue partners, it’s taken to Everybody Eats headquarters in Onehunga for sorting. Once Loosley and the team have seen what they have to work with, Atvars and Everybody Eats executive chef Jamie Robertson plan a menu, which is cooked and delivered to the marae.

‘‘It’s just amazing,’’ says Hotene. ‘‘People are doing it really tough out here, and it hasn’t been easy for Ma¯ ngere being at the epicentre of the cluster.’’

He says many people have lost jobs. ‘‘Being able to provide this food is amazing. I wish there were more people like Nick and the team from Saint Alice. This means we can help lift at least one stress for some people three days a week.’’