The Palms Shopping Centre Gives $100k to Community Groups

The Palms Shopping Centre Gives $50,000 To Dogwatch, $100k Total To Community Groups

The Palms Shopping Centre is delighted to announce that Dogwatch has been voted the overall winner of $50,000 in the $100,000 Community Assistance Campaign, the centre’s initiative to provide practical financial assistance to deserving community groups.

Having received more than 350 nominations, The Palms Shopping Centre’s challenge was to create a shortlist of 20 community organisations for the public voting round. Community support was enthusiastic, and nearly 15,000 votes were cast over the two-and-a-half week voting period.

Dogwatch was a clear winner, receiving an overwhelming number of votes from the general public. To rally support, the members of the Dogwatch team called on their wide network of members, friends and families, including other internet organisations and affiliated groups from near and far. They even produced over 5,000 flyers which they distributed by hand throughout the Christchurch community asking for public votes.

Last week, their efforts paid off, when the unsuspecting non-profit volunteer organisation received a surprise visit from The Palms Shopping Centre manager Keryn Ward, who told the team the good news and presented them with the winning cheque.

Dogwatch manager Pam Howard says, “It was such a surprise to see The Palms team at our gate bearing a $50,000 cheque. It was quite a surreal experience. We are so thankful for this generous funding, we were in desperate need and it couldn’t have come at a better time. “

So far this year Dogwatch has rescued 153 dogs, compared with 88 by the same time last year. The approximate annual running cost of Dogwatch is $130,000 and climbing. The vastly increased number of animals has pushed the facility beyond its limits as it cares for the numerous dogs abandoned because of the severe quakes. It is an organisation that receives no government funding and relies completely on public donations.

“We plan to put this funding toward the $200,000 project expansion of our offices and development of the long-planned isolation block of kennels. We also plan to create a food storage shed with concrete floors to solve the rodent problem that has developed following the earthquakes,” says Mrs Howard.

Keryn Ward says, “We were delighted with the public’s choice of winner and were thrilled to present Dogwatch with the $50,000. It is a very deserving community organisation that touches the lives of so many people in Christchurch.

“The $100,000 campaign has been a humbling experience and we have had the pleasure of meeting people in wonderful, hard-working community organisations. While there is still a lot of rebuilding to be done, this initiative has helped pull the community even closer together and really shows the resilience and determination of Canterbury’s people.”

Mrs Howard says, “This is a brilliant campaign and it’s amazing to see a business putting back into the community. All of the winning groups really appreciate The Palms’ efforts, knowing that they too have been affected. We are so grateful for this positive experience which has allowed us to make new connections. It really shows that the community is thinking about one another and working together.”

Joining Dogwatch with a share of the $100,000 Community Assistance Campaign fund are five other community organisations, which each received $10,000: Sumner Surf Life Saving Club, Student Volunteer Army, Freeville School, St Paul’s School and the Canterbury Caledonian Pipe Band.

The Palms Shopping Centre has been busy preparing the centre for its reopening and recently announced a new date of 8 September. For the latest updates on when the centre will reopen, visit www.thepalms.co.nz.

About The Palms

The Palms Shopping Centre in Shirley (four kilometres from the Christchurch CBD), is an asset in the AMP Capital Shopping Centre Fund (ASCF). The Fund has 11 properties under management with a total fund size of over A$2 billion.

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