Skylight Earthquake Resource Awarded

24 June 2011

At a national awards ceremony earlier this month, Skylight received a special commendation from the annual New Zealand Workplace Health and Safety Awards for When Trauma and Grief Come to Work.

Skylight responded to the February earthquake in Canterbury by pulling together in the space of only a week an employer handbook titled When Trauma and Grief Come to Work, then distributed 10,000 copies to Canterbury employers and others. This initiative delivered material that was directly relevant to the needs of thousands and did it in double-quick time.

The Skylight staff were both honoured and humbled by the award.

“It is fantastic to have our work recognised, but given that it was for such a tragic and massive event as the Christchurch earthquakes, it was a privilege to be able to help,” says Bice Awan, Skylight’s Chief Executive.

When asked how it was possible to offer such a complete and practical resource so quickly Skylight’s Publishing Manager and author of the resource, Tricia Hendry, replied “Because it’s what we do.”

This speed of delivery called on Skylight’s valuable experience gained including from assisting in the aftermath of disasters such as the Victoria Bushfires of 2009, the Pike River Mine explosion, Queensland’s flooding earlier this year and the September earthquake in Christchurch.

As Andrew Thompson, a social worker with children’s hospital Starship commented:

“You have obviously worked extremely hard and fast over the last week and your Trauma and Grief Handbook is the best that I have seen.”

The scope of recent disasters has meant that Skylight has expanded the range of its assistance and resources to anyone affected by grief, trauma and loss.

ENDS

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