Auckland City Mission spreads Christmas cheer with lunch for hundreds of people

Saturday, 25 December 2021

The team gave away hundreds of freshly cooked meals.

The annual Auckland City Mission Christmas lunch was back on Saturday and hundreds of people were able to walk away with a hot meal, and some presents for the children.

The annual event was cancelled last year because of Covid-19 but this year, while people couldn’t sit together to enjoy their meals, they were able to walk away with takeaway packs from Nando’s.

Two of the restaurant’s branches on Queen St in the CBD and Manukau were able to provide about 300 takeaway packs, filled with all the Nando’s trimmings one would expect if they dined at the restaurant.

More than 300 people were fed with takeaway meals on Christmas Day, from Nando’s CBD and Manukau restaurants.

“There’s coleslaw, half a chicken, drinks from Coca-Cola and all the other extras,” Patrick Abbot, Nando’s area manager said.

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Nando’s area manager Patrick Abbott says they had planned for this event for months.

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Nando’s Queen St staff were on site since 10am, preparing the meals for takeaway.

“It’s unfortunate that we couldn’t provide the sit in option where people could sit and enjoy meals together, but we’re glad that we’re still able to feed people regardless.”

Auckland City Mission has been holding its Christmas Day lunch for many years, feeding thousands of people, including some of the region’s most vulnerable.

People were able to book in advance to help maintain Covid-19 safety protocols, and picked up their meals from 12pm at both Nando’s outlets.

Chris McDonald, from Te Atatū Peninsula, had been attending Auckland City Mission Christmas lunch for six years.

He was one of the first at the Queen St restaurant on Saturday, picking up a meal for himself and a mate living in Rānui.

“I love it, it's what Christmas is all about, and I appreciate it so much,” McDonald said.

He caught a bus to get to the city and was grateful for the meals provided for the less fortunate.

“I like coming for the company, it gives me something to do. And the meals are delicious, they do a really great thing here.”

Helen Robinson from the Auckland City Mission said they were incredibly proud to be able to hold the event this year, despite the pandemic.

She said it was only possible because of their partners, including Nando’s.

“Leading up to this event, we also had distributed 8000 food packs, which included Christmas meals that people could cook at home themselves,” Robinson said.

“And we distributed presents to 19,000 children.”

Last year, because of Covid-19, the mission cancelled the big Christmas Day lunch but held small lunches around the city.

In 2019, about 1600 people attended the Mission's annual festivities at The Cloud on Queen's Wharf.