In 2019, Martin Sloman stood up at an Electra business breakfast and talked to a room of local business owners about kindness. He is a counsellor from Paraparaumu Beach, and at that point he had an idea and not much else. No trust, no list of past recipients to point at, nothing to suggest the whole thing would still be running years later.
The Kāpiti Kindness Trust was formed the following year, and one of the first things it set up was a monthly kindness award. We said we would donate a gift box to recognise recipients, and that arrangement has never needed a conversation since. More than 70 boxes later, it still runs the same way.
How it works
Anyone in Kāpiti can nominate someone. A neighbour, a colleague, the person who has been driving someone to appointments for two years without being asked. The Trust reads the nominations, picks one person each month, and turns up to say thank you properly. We pack a gift box full of goodies from Kāpiti producers, so the recognition comes with something made by the same community the recipient has been looking after.
Most people who receive one seem a bit puzzled by the fuss. They were doing what needed doing, for someone who needed it. That reaction tells you most of what you need to know about who gets nominated.
Some of the people who have received a box
These are a few of the recipients the Trust has recognised, in their own words.
- Karen, The Lighthouse Church in Paraparaumu. Recognised for consistently supporting residents with appointments, shopping, advocacy and companionship.
- Ross McDougall. Ross runs a medical supplies company. He supplied Koro Don’s portable breathing machine and batteries upfront, paying for all of it himself, without knowing whether he would ever be repaid.
- The owner of Waikanae Butchery. Recognised for generosity, community spirit and helping others without expecting anything in return.
- Mediterranean Foods Kāpiti Trattoria & Deli. Recognised for their breakfast campaign, welcoming Kāpiti Coast residents to a hot breakfast regardless of budget.
- Justin, a long-time co-op volunteer. Recognised for years of volunteering with the Kāpiti co-op, helping wherever he sees a need, and providing meals and support for people who need them.
- Denis Wood and The Shed Project Kāpiti. Recognised for helping people all over Kāpiti and for his work with The Shed Project, which has provided training and employment for differently-abled and disadvantaged people since 2014.
- Claire Roper and the Kids Market. Recognised for driving the volunteer-run Kids Market at the Ōtaki Market, where young entrepreneurs can make and sell their own products.
- Toni. Recognised for running community quiz nights that raise funds for good causes and bring people together.
- Justin, PAK’nSAVE Kāpiti. Recognised as someone whose name keeps coming up on the community pages for going out of his way to help others.
Read that list again and notice how ordinary most of it is. Lifts to appointments. A hot breakfast. A quiz night. None of it makes the news but all of it is the reason this place works.
The $2 idea
The Trust asks people for $2 a month. Martin worked out that if everyone in Kāpiti set up an automatic payment for that amount, it would come to more than $1.3 million a year going back into our district, supporting people through a hard stretch.
That is the part we like most about how the Trust operates. Small amounts, from a lot of people, over a long time. It does more for lasting change than one big gesture ever will, and the Kāpiti Kindness Trust is one of the best examples of that we know.
If you want to set one up, their account is ANZ 06-0730-0395753-00, and you can find out more at kapitikindness.co.nz.
Know someone who should get the next one?
Nominations take a few minutes on the Trust’s website. If someone around Kāpiti has been looking after other people and would never mention it themselves, that is exactly who Martin and his team want to hear about.
We will keep packing the box.
