By Anglican Family Care | Posted: Friday April 24, 2020
As you will all know by now New Zealand moves to National Alert Level 3 from 11.59pm next Monday 27 April - a welcome progression in the government’s plan to eliminate COVID-19. This update in status will not mean any immediate change for Anglican Family Care. Our staff will continue to work from their homes and provide support to whānau and tamariki through phone/video calls, texting and emails, which continue to temporarily replace the usual home visits. Our communication channels will remain open, and we are still responding to new referrals and working to support Otago families.
I am optimistically anticipating that Anglican Family Care will reopen our offices in Dunedin, Oamaru, Alexandra, Wanaka and Balclutha when the nation enters Alert Level 2. We will wait for further guidance from the government but in the meantime, robust planning has commenced around a return to work protocol for all AFC sites. When the time comes, we will be prepared. The health, safety and wellbeing of our people and the needs of the whānau we support are, as always, at the core of this planning. It is very reassuring to see that as a nation we appear to be heading in the right direction in minimising the damage caused by COVID-19, although I acknowledge that there will still be very challenging times ahead for many. Whilst we joke about our desire for takeaways and haircuts, we know that our nation’s journey to recovery will not be without pain, and as an agency, we must be prepared to play our part in responding to the need.
As ANZAC Day is upon us, we commemorate the many New Zealanders who were killed and honour those who returned having served in our defence force across many global and regional conflicts. Conflicts that although very different in nature, scale and impact have drawn the best of our country in terms of spirit and a desire to work together for the common good. An opportune time then, perhaps, to also reflect on the analogous links to the current collective response of our nation in facing an entirely different type of foe. He waka eke noa- we are all in this canoe together, without exception.
Stay safe, stay home (for just a little bit longer…) and stay well.
Ngā mihi nui