HEART Action and News Blog

On Wednesday 12 August 2026, an important kōrero was held at St Mary’s Church in Glen Innes, which focused on the topic of faith and its intersection with family violence. It was run on behalf of the HEART Movement by Priscilla Bilby, a Clinical Nurse Specialist with the Family Violence Intervention Team at Te Toka Tumai/Auckland & Starship.

At our December 2025 hui, HEART Project Fund Kaitiaki allocated funding to support the young people of TS ACHILLES Navy Cadets, a cadet unit based here in Tāmaki. We recently heard back from Georgia Bilby on how the koha has been put to use, and the difference it's making.

On Wednesday 15th July we were so excited to host Penni and Jazriel from The Village Collective for their MAAMA Training at the Reserve Tāmaki. We hosted the training with Tāmaki Youth Council (Gloria Tuitupou)

At our June hui, HEART Project Fund Kaitiaki approved a new initiative from Change Agent Julia Friedewald - a community BBQ bringing neighbours around Taurima Reserve, Point England together to connect, timed with the opening of the reserve’s new playground. It’s a simple idea with a powerful goal: turning strangers into neighbours.

Recently, Team Ngākau Aroha o Tāmaki took part in the Walking Netball 2026 Summer League competition at ANC. The season created a space for wāhine in the community to connect, build confidence, and enjoy being active together through friendly competition and whanaungatanga.

On Wednesday 29 April 2026, the HEART Movement hosted the SHINE Respond Family Violence Prevention session at Tāmaki Community Development Trust.

Children were playing, there was laughter everywhere, and at the same time there were also some really heartfelt conversations happening between the community and all the different organisations. It felt like a true snapshot of community life, and it was beautiful to witness healthy relationships in action across this space.

On the 20th of March 2026, I had the privilege of attending the LifeKeepers Suicide Prevention Training at Tāmaki Community Church, where the day ran from 8:30am to 5:00pm and was guided by facilitators Jordan Makea and Sophina Vilisoni-Heather, whose passion for the kaupapa and depth of knowledge could be felt throughout the entire experience.

Mana Wāhine Week 2025 lit up Tāmaki from 28th September to 3rd October, bringing together hundreds of wāhine for six days of wānanga, creativity, movement, healing, and connection. What started as an idea quickly became a powerful reminder of what happens when wāhine gather with purpose and aroha.

Funding was obtained by Rākau Tautoko from the Maungakiekie-Tāmaki Local Board to support the HEART Movement, which we are calling the HEART Project Fund. This funding allows us to allocate up to $1000 to Change Agent ideas, per bi-monthly hui. Kaitiaki of the fund make decisions on allocations, and the hui and ideas are supported by the Secretary.

Since June 2021, Men’s Koru has been going strong under the guidance of HEART Change Agents Rev. Joel Carpenter and Isoa Kavakimotu. The goal was to create a space for tāne in Tāmaki to share and connect in a “No Judgement, No Advice” environment.

The HEART Project Fund allocation for May 2025 was awarded to Te Whakamanamai with connection to local organisation Tāmaki Community Development Trust. Read on to learn about the incredible space that Te Whakamanamai has become. We are privileged to support such a wonderful and valuable kaupapa.

We are keen to get involved in more community events so were excited to be invited to the Grace International Pop-Up Market on 12th July 2025, where all proceeds from stall fees were to be sent to Mailangi Bible College in Fiji.

Some of our Change Agents got together on and created an info table at Te Oro Tekau - Te Oro’s tenth birthday celebration.

We were super excited to kickstart our HEART Project fund for 2025 with the community kapa haka rōpū based at St Mary’s Glen Innes called Puhia te Pū.

Change Agents Jo Flavell and Ren Joe obtained a small amount of funding to create a few sessions for local māmā who wanted to connect and kōrero about the journey that is motherhood.