New Zealander of the Year: Charity Kindness Collective bringing moments of joy to kids ‘stoked’ to win 2023 Community of the Year

Thursday, 30 March 2023

Kindness Collective, finalist for Community of the Year, is a national charitable initiative that brings 'moments of joy' to New Zealand whānau. (Video first published March 2023.)

National charitable organisation Kindness Collective is “stoked” to have been named Community of the Year at the 2023 New Zealander of the Year Awards.

The collective, which uses community to connect disadvantaged New Zealand children with what they need to thrive, was up against Pathway Charitable Group and Achieving @ Waitakere at the annual awards evening on Thursday night.

CEO Sarah Page told Stuff the team was “really stoked”.

“It’s really exciting. It’s a room full of exceptional human beings doing exceptional things, and we’re chuffed just to be included.”

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Kindness Collective has been named Community of the Year.

She was also a semi-finalist for the local hero category, but to take the win for Community of the year is, “really exciting because it’s all about our community. And for us our community is not just our teams, it's our social workers, the principals, all the whānau we work with”.

Sarah Page and her son Max at the Joy Store, an initiative run by the Kindness Collective.

Community of the Year was one of seven categories celebrated during the evening, including the coveted New Zealander of the Year. The annual awards celebrate great New Zealanders from all walks of life and have been presented since 2010.

The event on Thursday night was hosted by Scotty Morrison and Toni Street and presenters included Prime Minister Chris Hipkins.

For Kindness Collective, which has a full-time team of six staff, but a wider community team that includes “donors, individuals, brands, businesses and social workers around the country”, the win was validation that what they do “matters”.

As a charitable organisation that aims to connect children and whānau around the country with everything they need, but as well as day-to-day essentials provide what Page calls, “moments of joy”, which includes the “fun stuff” like Christmas, school projects and other celebratory events that families would otherwise not be able to afford.

Over Christmas, for example, the Kindness Collective opened a toy store for 10,370 children and gifted about 35,000 presents.

“We operate like a matchmaking community. We match those in need with those who have a bit more to share,” Page explained.

And being that little bit different means Kindness Collective can “fill the gaps” with initiatives like build projects, providing pyjamas to thousands of Aotearoa children and special toy stores.

And Thursday night’s award, says Page, is recognition not just for the team, but for “everybody”.

“It’s a nice way of thanking our community that works really hard to help whānau and children around the country have what they need.

“It’s another way to highlight that it’s important, and we all need to take care of each other and community is everything.”