Red Cross Reaches 100,000 Grant Recipients

New Zealand Red Cross has distributed earthquake grants to 100,000 recipients – a quarter of the Greater Christchurch population.

Bamford Primary School is the 100,000th recipient of a grant from the New Zealand Red Cross 2011 Earthquake Commission. The decile 2 school in Woolston received a Christchurch Schoolchildren’s Grant worth $35,148.

Commission Chair Sir John Hansen will present a congratulatory plaque to the pupils and principal at Bamford Primary today at 2pm.

Sir John says it is an incredible achievement.

“When the members of the Commission started out in 2011 we never thought we would distribute grants to 100,000 recipients,” he says.

“It speaks volumes about the generosity of people in New Zealand and overseas who donated the money that has enabled us to help a quarter of the population of Greater Christchurch. We will continue to support the people of Christchurch through the grants and programmes that are currently available and those being developed for the future.”

Bamford Primary principal Colin Hammond says the Red Cross grant is a blessing for Christchurch schoolchildren and their families, who put on a brave face despite being hit really hard by the quakes.

“A number of our pupils are still living in garages and broken homes and are still feeling shell-shocked. Their families are under financial pressure and would struggle to pay for the activities that the grant will subsidise," says Mr Hammond.

Bamford Primary has used some of the grant to help fund a recent Year 1-3 trip to Ferrymead Historic Park. It will use the rest to subsidise a “Break from the Quake” camp in Wellington, a trip to Hanmer, and outings to Willowbank, Orana Park and the Antarctic Centre.

Also planned is a community hangi, a disco, and programmes to help some of the more anxious children.

Mr Hammond says most of the school’s fundraising streams have dried up so the grant is a “light at the end of the tunnel".

New Zealand Red Cross has been actively involved with the people of Christchurch since the September 2010 quake. Its outreach team has made 3632 visits and 5164 door knocks and the recovery team has distributed 43,500 torch radios.

The New Zealand Red Cross 2011 Earthquake Commission has distributed $86m in grants. The New Zealand public and overseas donors contributed a total of $128m to the Red Cross Earthquake Appeal, which is now closed. Seven million dollars has been spent on programmes and most of the remaining funds are committed to existing grants that are still open.

ENDS

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