Dunedin Church Caravan Ministry
Since March 2021, our caravan ministry has been operating every Sunday morning from 9am - 12pm at The Oval, Kensington, South Dunedin. In that time we have served over 1000 people. We have a team of six core volunteers serving free breakfast and beverages. This includes soup & buns, cereal, toast, hot & cold drinks and also packaged meals and food packs for homeless people living around The Oval and those in need.
We have 25 regulars every Sunday who come rain, hail or storm, and our clients find solace from daily life or poverty and addiction. We are a place of peace and relaxation where they can sit and eat and share their innermost thoughts with people they trust. We have various community groups that support us and The Caravan is known in the streets as somewhere to eat and share company in a safe and caring atmosphere. We are well respected in the community and also by community charity groups.
We recently established an agreement with a 'Bakers of Bond' bakery that provides free bread every Friday for our church community support services. Part of this bread goes to the Caravan and part to the food packs each week for community families. The Caravan Team aim to provide a special Christmas dinner every Christmas and special occasions going forward. Recently the new Mayor of Dunedin visited the Caravan as they were serving on Sunday morning to meet our team.
There is a need for this service and we are happy to serve our community and be part of the change that is needed for the homeless and vulnerable people of Dunedin. We are also partnering with ADRA NZ and other community groups to support the homeless and needy in the immediate area, and hope to expand to other areas as we hope to get more volunteers.
- Pr Peter Taivairanga and The Caravan Team
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