H o w i c k & Pa k u r a n g a Profiles, travel, fashion, health and beauty, food, interiors and more VOL 53, NO 8 | WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2024
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www.times.co.nz LEAD STORY
MISSION OF HUMANITY AND HOPE P
THRILLS AND SPILLS Zoe Walker in Black Flash.
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Times photo Wayne Martin
56 Sites Ranging from 500m 2 to 1200m 2 | Titles due approx January 2025
akuranga’s Helen Manson has concluded a mission looking into human trafficking for international Christian relief and development agency Tearfund. Manson, who attended Macleans College, is a humanitarian photographer and storyteller. For the last 13 years, she’s been covering global issues across 47 countries. Projects have ranged from famine, refugee settlements, post war environments, child sponsorship and micro-enterprise, to trauma counselling and disaster zones. Recently, she was on assignment for one of New Zealand’s largest aid and development agencies, Tearfund. “My job is to learn about, and then help bring to life, the work of the incredible local organisations they partner with around the globe,’ Manson said. “One of the biggest humanitarian challenges our world is currently facing is the fight against the fastest growing criminal industry – human trafficking.”
She went to three countries for Tearfund to find out what’s being done. “The Pacific Islands are known to most Kiwis as an island paradise – and they are. Yet it is here that Tearfund, funded by Kiwis, works alongside a local organisation called Homes of Hope – a restorative care shelter and training facility for survivors of sexual abuse and human trafficking,” said Manson. “There, survivors as young as 11 recover with the help of counsellors, social workers, and a community of women who have been through similar experiences. The residents learn valuable life skills like sewing, baking, cooking, housekeeping, farming and agriculture; skills that will allow them to build a different future.” Once safety nets are in place in the villages and homes, the women and girls reintegrate into the community. Some decide to study at university, others find jobs or some start their own small businesses.
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