After a long stretch of silence, friends of The Free Store have regained their ability to connect with others through having their phones topped up.

This idea came about after Lyall Bay Community Church received funding from the Ministry of Social Development to help those in their locale. Inspired by the adjacent community’s actions, teams from Blueprint and The Free Store got together to imagine what would be most helpful to their friends isolated in the central city.

After talking with other organisations about their community initiatives including The Wellington City Mission, they decided the best course of action would be to provide mobile phone top-ups to those who were living alone. Soon after, the Ministry of Social Development approved a $5,000 grant to top-up 100 phones with $50 each.

Rose Morris, leader of Blueprint Church, was glad to have a part in giving this gift. “We have been privileged to be super connected at the moment; but that is not the case for many people in our community. To be able to provide such a tangible tool for connection was beautiful,” she said.

The project involved 15 people from Blueprintʼs Chapter Intentional Communities getting together for an evening, and topping each phone up individually. There were a few hiccups along the way, as Rose described: “Mobile phone companies arenʼt built for mass actions of compassion. They kept thinking we were trying to commit some kind of fraud.”

The volunteers involved in this work were inundated with texts from the recipients of top ups, with messages of thanks. “Thank you so much! This will help me stay connected with my classmates!” one person said. Another appreciative person, “Now I can call my mum who doesn’t text.” ‘

This blessing for the community came on the heels of other projects to help connect people during lockdown. Those with internet access could join daily Zoom hangouts over the weeks of Levels 4 and 3, and people were paired up to support or be supported by another member of the community through phone calls.

Alana Hathaway — General Manager of The Free Store — has been at the forefront of organising these things, and has been encouraged by the community’s care for each other. “One of the cool things is how people have stepped up to support; the ways people have got alongside one another,” she said. “It’s been cool to see that without the food, community and connection has still been so important.”

By Tessa Guest