The testimonies from some of our volunteer teams’ experiences express the satisfaction of giving back to the community and testify to the valuable work Volunteering Auckland does.
The Art of Living – Twin Streams Restoration
“Today a group of Art of Living volunteers went to McLaren Park to plant trees in the community. Even though the weather did not look too promising, there was a great turnout as people sacrificed about an hour and a half out of their day to give back to the community. This was part of the United Nations Millennium Goals Development Programme. It was a chance for everyone to meet and have a few laughs while doing something good for the community. 200 trees were planted and before we knew it, all the trees were in their new homes forever. Even though this may have seemed like a small feat, it all helps to make our planet a better place. This also helped us to become more aware of trees and plants in our communities and environments and to take more care as we pass through our day. We all had a sense of peace when we looked back at all the little trees in the ground.”
BNZ Volunteers at the Auckland Zoo
"One
Thursday nine volunteers from BNZ spent the day helping out at Auckland Zoo. BNZ employees can take two days paid volunteer leave in addition to annual and other leave. They are encouraged and supported to get involved in their local communities and charities. The volunteers started their day at 8am in the siamang enclosure at the Zoo for some weeding. As Jo Koller, Product Manager Transactional Banking said: “It was like gorillas in the mist… a very fine rain fell while we were weeding in the siamang enclosure, with the siamangs over in quarantine making their territorial calls... very cool!” They also met the famous Awani, who, according to the zookeeper, is about to be introduced to a girlfriend. The highlight of the trip for the group was the opportunity to enter the cottontop tamarinds’ enclosure while the five tamarinds were inside. The tamarinds watched from the comfort of the tree branches as the BNZ team worked on removing flaxes. All in all, the team had an amazing time and enjoyed being part of the great work going on at Auckland Zoo."
