For 17 years the Pakuranga Chinese Association has been a lifeline for the increasing number of older Chinese migrants that make the Howick Local Board area home.
“In a new country and culture, unable to speak English or get around while children were studying or working, a lot of people were lonely and unhappy so a group of us set up the association to help,” says association spokesperson Barry Hung.
“Providing the education and information they need to adapt to a new environment and improve their quality of life is at the heart of what we do and over the years we have really expanded the range of services, activities and projects we have to offer.”
Among them are free English classes, seminars to learn more about New Zealand culture, education and political system as well as environmental protection groups.
“We also organise opportunities for people to participate in sports, music and dance activities and outings to meet and make new friends,” says Mr Hung.
“By giving them opportunities to do the things that all Kiwis do in an environment they feel comfortable in, makes them feel much more part of this community.”
These days the association boasts around 800 members, primarily elderly residents from China, who meet four to five times a week.
Activities include table tennis, calligraphy, painting, folk dance and waist drum groups, ballroom dancing, a choir and music.
Celebrating diverse cultures
Celebrating the Chinese culture as well as bringing other cultures is another important part of the association’s work.
For the past three years, Mr Hung organised the entire programme for Howick Local Board’s Chinese New Year celebrations and in September last year, the association partnered with the local board again, for the inaugural Moon Festival event.
“The local board has a real focus on celebrating the diversity of its community and we’ve been very happy for the support and trust they have in our association to deliver these multicultural events.”
Mr Hung says the group’s members have been heavily involved in the line-up of these events and really enjoyed sharing their culture with others but also learning about other cultures.
One of the six main focuses identified in the Howick Local Board Plan 2017 is to be a community that values cultural diversity.
In the 2013 Census, 39 per cent of residents in the local board area identified as Asian, with Chinese and then Indian the two largest Asian subgroups.
