Helping people in rural communities like Brian and Eunice

Taranaki couple Brian and Eunice woke in the middle of the night to find a surge of mud, water and debris from a burst dam sweeping through their rural home.

With virtually all their belongings swept away, Work and Income immediately arranged an emergency grant for clothing. The usually independent couple reluctantly also applied for assistance with a bond for rental accommodation.

While sorting the detail, case manager Raewyn Johnson discovered the couple had none of the basic equipment to set up their new home. After some convincing, she and a colleague took the couple to a local chain store where they filled a trolley with household items. Then it was off to the local hospice shop for a couple of beds. “The total cost of the grant was comparatively small but you’d think we‘d given them the world!” says Raewyn.