CARITAS AOTEAROA NEW ZEALAND

MEDIA ALERT

5 May 2016

Cardinal to launch beneficiary advocacy event in Upper Hutt

Cardinal John Dew will celebrate Mass on Tuesday, May 10 to launch an Archdiocesan ‘Benefit Impact’ event aimed at assisting and advocating for those in the Wellington region on a benefit.

St Joseph's Parish in Upper Hutt will welcome beneficiaries to the event being hosted by the parish from 10-13 May.

Jointly supported and run by Wellington Catholic Social Services, Hutt Valley BEST (Benefit Education Service Trust), and Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand, the Benefit Impact will ensure that families living in poverty are receiving all the assistance available to them.

“We know that many families in our parishes and communities face real material hardship and often find it very difficult to ask for help,” says Cardinal John Dew.

“We see this as a very practical way to assist and also to better get to know people in need.”

People currently receiving a social welfare benefit will be able to check their benefit details with a trained benefit advocate, and are invited to visit the parish between 10am and 2pm on Tuesday and Wednesday, 10-11 May. Where it is helpful, beneficiaries may be asked to come back for an appointment with Work and Income staff on Thursday and Friday, 12-13 May.

Hutt Valley Work and Income offices are putting on additional staff for the week in anticipation of the Benefit Impact event.

Cardinal John Dew says the Archdiocesan Benefit Impact is a contribution to the Jubilee of Mercy called by Pope Francis this year.

“By reaching out to struggling households in our communities, we are being true to our mission to become a ‘poor church for the poor’.”

ENDS

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