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Helping out wins hands down

 

11 MF-helpinghands2Kindness and the art of giving, intrinsic human qualities that illustrate the benevolent side of humanity, have become the underlying philosophy of a new online community.

Mangawhai's Helping Hands, a social network group aimed at helping others in the form of gifting needed items, has been developed especially for the Mangawhai community by a mother and daughter team.

Recent new-comers to the area from the Hibiscus Coast, Suzie Rogers and her 14-year-old daughter Mikayla, along with husband-father Greg, say the idea, inspired by the ‘Pay It Forward’ philosophy, is to encourage people to embrace the power of giving.

“Our group is about caring for others, sharing what we have, no matter how great or small and about expressions of love through good deeds and kindness towards others in a myriad of ways,” Suzie says.

“Paying It Forward creates a powerful ripple effect within a community… kindness and generosity become highly infectious when one takes on the Paying It Forward mentality.”

The Pay It Forward philosophy, repaying a good deed to another person instead of the original giver, is a concept woven deeply into humanity’s history, appearing in literature even as far back as ancient Athens. In 317BC, the theory was the key element in a prize-winning play, summarised in letters by Benjamin Franklin, was the feature point in the movie Pay It Forward, and has been officially formed into an actual movement.

In 2007 a Pay It Forward Day was established, spreading to over 70 countries, including New Zealand, and inspiring over five million global acts of kindness.

Inspiration for Helping Hands came from Suzie and Mikayla’s involvement with the Hibiscus Coast Pay It Forward Facebook community group.

Suzie says she joined while working for a homeware distribution company where she witnessed large amounts of product waste.

“I thought it was so criminal that a lot of items used to end up in the bin,” she says. “I thought ‘others could use all those things’ so I used to gift them to Pay It Forward.”

Both online community groups promote environmental ideals of reusing unwanted belongings and caring for people in their local area and wider community. The idea is to gift clean, useable furniture, clothes and toys to others who are in need of such items.

“People can also request things they need and someone can then respond,” Suzie says. “Gifting and requesting food is also accepted although people can be embarrassed from asking [for food] but we offer a safe environment, no judgement.”

However, users must be true to the philosophy of Pay It Forward. “Whatever is donated cannot be sold on,” Suzie says. “Items must be passed on.”

Most people she says adhere to the philosophy but says there are a few individuals around willing to take advantage.

“While at Hibiscus Coast, we gifted a range-hood which was picked up by an individual and then we saw it in a second hand store for sale,” she says. “We contacted Pay It Forward and found out the person who we gifted the hood to had sold it on… they were eventually kicked out of the group.”

To help guide users of the site, Mikayla recently posted a summary of the spirit of the social network.

“All we ask is that people are not greedy, everyone uses their manners and nothing is to be sold on. Everything is free. We are a non-judgemental group, we promote kindness within the community, generate positivity, and do not accept any form of bullying or negativity,” she says. “We believe any act of kindness can make a difference to anyone in our community.”

GIVING: Promoters of kindness, Suzie and Mikayla Rogers believe in the numerous benefits attached to paying forward and helping someone else in need.

“From what we get we make a living, from what we give, we make a life.”

- Winston Churchill

- BY JULIA WADE

 

 
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