Speech
Wellington City Mission Annual Review launch
Ladies and Gentlemen, I greet you in the languages of the realm of New Zealand - English, Maori, Cook Island Maori, Niuean, Tokelauan and New Zealand Sign Language.
Greetings, Kia Ora, Kia Orana, Fakalofa Lahi Atu, Taloha Ni and (Sign)
Specifically I greet you: Father Des Britten, City Missioner; Warren Allen, Chairman; Michelle Branney, Chief Executive; members of Parliament; City Councillors; Staff and Supporters of the Wellington City Mission; people of Wellington.
It is a pleasure for Susan and me to join this evening's occasion, and to help celebrate and acknowledge the work of the Wellington City Mission.
As Governor-General now for almost a year, I frequently attend events where we recognise the work of New Zealanders helping New Zealanders.
It is an important part of my mandate to support and recognise leadership within the community. This is the part of my role I enjoy the most.
That is because it connects me with exceptional New Zealanders like yourselves whose chosen path in life is committed towards helping others in need. My respect for these people has only increased with the great number I have met.
Indeed, the past year has demonstrated to both Susan and me that we are extremely fortunate in New Zealand to have so many individuals who are motivated by the needs of others.
The Wellington City Mission is a magnet for exactly these kinds of people. And the people of Wellington and its regions, are all the better for it.
A perusal of this year's Annual Review showed me how the work of the Mission has adapted over its 102-year history to respond to the changing needs of our society
It demonstrates that Wellington City Mission is as concerned for the welfare of our elderly as it is for the futures of our disaffected youth, our unemployed and our at-risk families.
While the Mission is founded on Christian care and compassion, it provides support regardless of religious belief. And reflecting that our country—and Wellington in particular—is now made up of people hailing from all parts of the world, the Mission also offers support regardless of ethnicity or social background.
We can measure the work of Wellington City Mission in a myriad of ways. In the number of families who were supported in a given year, in the number of young people helped back into study, in the number of Ezee meals sold, in the number of seniors who benefited from home visits.
These are important measures, as they record the very tangible results that this Mission is achieving.
However, the best measure of the Mission's work can only truly come from the experiences of those who have directly benefited from its support.
This, after all, is what the Mission is all about. It is about giving every New Zealander the opportunity to enjoy a reasonable standard of living, to live in the knowledge they are secure and free from violence, to know that they will have food to feed themselves and their families, and to have reason to look forward to a bright future.
These are the measures of a compassionate and a humane society. And the work of the Mission is important in helping our nation realise our potential to be such a society.
I would like to thank the Wellington City Mission, and all those who continue to support its work, for helping to make a difference in people's lives.
You are an example of what we can achieve when we work together to support our communities.
I began speaking in all the New Zealand realm languages. May I close by speaking in Maori issuing greetings and wishing you good health and fortitude in your endeavours.
No reira, tena koutou, tena koutou, kia ora, kia kaha, tena koutou katoa