Introducing, Bald Angels.

Here at Whitelaw Weber we take great pride in supporting our clients. Knowing that our clients are achieving goals, smashing glass ceilings & paving their way forward is very inspiring. For a long time (over seventy years!) we’ve been behind our clients supporting them, and every day we count ourselves lucky. To celebrate the fact that we get to work with such epic Northland businesses, we have bought back our client profiles so that we can share these businesses & their adventures with you. It makes us very proud to be able to share the great things our clients do across industries. 

Introducing; Bald Angels, who have been an integral part of our community for over ten years.

Bald Angels provide support to many whanau, children and rainbow rangitahi (young people) across Northland throughout the year, through food boxes, donations of clothes, furniture, living supplies, and assisting in their relationships with partner agencies. Sadly, Bald Angels is much needed in the Northland community - Northland has some of the worst statistics for child poverty, rheumatic fever, hearing loss from untreated ear infections, and skin disease exacerbated by poverty and the sub-tropical climate. Sadly, our region also has some of the highest incidences of youth suicide, truancy and youth unemployment.

Each Christmas Bald Angels provide kai boxes to families in need -providing relief, creating family meals, encouraging health and wellbeing; and providing memories of a great Christmas for families.

We’ve been working with Therese & the Bald Angels team for several years now. Professionally as their accounting team & treasurer for the charity, but also through fundraising, collecting donations, donating jam for the Christmas Kai Boxes, and community events.

Because it’s the season where things can be a little bit more difficult than usual for families, we thought we would share this epic charity who provides so much support to whanau in our community. Here’s what Therese had to say about the Bald Angels journey.

Who are you, & what do you do?

We are Ngā Anahera Pakira-Bald Angels Charitable Trust. We believe ALL tamariki (children) deserve to thrive. Our vision is that all tamariki have hope and are empowered to be their best selves. We mobilise the community & partner with many organisations to not just deliver emergency support across Te Tai Tokerau, but to deliver programmes that empower and manaaki (care for) our rangatahi (young people).

What was your biggest challenge in starting your charity, & how did you overcome it?

I was my biggest challenge! Mental illness and fear both mobilised me and crippled me. The way the people responded to the first fundraiser in 2012 was beautiful and motivating and it gave me strength and a belief in the power of community. To this day, the generosity and aroha shared by the community is the fuel that powers this charity. 

What’s your favourite part about being in Northland?

He tangata, he tangata, he tangata….the people, the people, the people. 

And of course, the landscape and culture. The wairua, the waterfalls, the beaches, the beauty.

What’s the hardest part about running a charity in Northland?

The inequities and challenges that so many of our taitamariki (children & young people) face are overwhelming. Whether it’s exclusion through poverty, diversity, race, addiction, or isolation, our tamariki experience hardships and trauma that would crush most of us. Being a part of their lives is a privilege, but it’s also very, very hard at times.

The actual work is what drives us, but we need money to keep us functioning. It needs the business basics to be maintained at all times. Finances, communications, reports, data, accounting is hard work.  That’s a constant hard discipline.

What’s your proudest moment of 2024 so far?

Being awarded a Kiwibank Community of the Year award alongside many other worthy community groups was pretty special. But the proudest moment was when a teen autistic boy told us he felt like he could truly just be himself with us. He felt safe.

Can you offer any advice for someone wanting to start a charity? 

Invite the community to engage and lead the Purpose, Principles and Vision. Ask good questions: Is there a problem? Does it need fixing? Whose voices need to be heard?  How do create safe spaces for those voices? Can we bring value to the space?

Make sure you are resourced with good business & cultural advisors with a supportive community network, because burnout and failure can hide sneakily around the corner.

How has working with Whitelaw Weber helped you & your charity?

The Whitelaw Weber team have become integral to the success of this charity. Not only providing weekly bookkeeping support and monthly Performance Reports, but being on hand to advise on employment issues, budgets, and full annual accounting.

For someone who is all about the mahi and not about the numbers, having our Anahera Pūtea (Money Angels) on board has been integral to our success. As volunteer Board Treasurer for many years, Annikas’ mix of wisdom and compassion has kept these angels flying in the tough times.

Beyond the numbers and business, the WW whānau have supported fundraisers, worn wigs, shaved heads, dressed up, joined in and contributed hundreds of food & gifts items over the years.

 What’s one piece of business software that you can’t live without?

 Is Whitelaw Weber considered business software? We can’t live without them. (Lol)

We manage all our admin and meetings in Teams. All accounting is in Xero. We’d be a bit of a mess without them.

How can people support you?

We are only scratching the surface. So much more needs to be done. With some big pūtea (funds) we could make a real sustainable difference.

There are projects sketched on mind maps that could change the future for many kiwi kids; for the culture and future of Te tai Tokerau; for the health and wellbeing of our communities.

Meanwhile, we need ongoing funding to cover operational expenses. Fuel, rent, office equipment and people resources all need to be funded if we are to continue delivering over 6000 support connections to vulnerable tamariki every year.

Bequeaths, donations, project sponsorship and partnerships are all appreciated.

To discuss partnerships, reach out to Annika (Whitelaw Weber) or Thérèse tw@baldangels.org.nz

To read the Bald Angels Annual Report:

https://www.baldangels.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/ANNUAL-REPORT-2023-24-v4-compressed.pdf

To see what Bald Angels are up to, follow this link:

https://www.baldangels.org.nz/projects-campaigns/whats-on/

Therese & Bald Angels are currently collecting donations for this year’s Christmas Kai Boxes & gifts. If you would like to donate gifts (unwrapped) for their collections, you can deliver these to any of our offices. Our team will ensure that they get to Bald Angels.

To donate to Bald Angels Trust Bank Account: 03-0351-0240110-00 (NZ Tax Deductible).