Baking for christchurch

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ribzuba, Feb 26, 11:10pm

evorotorua, Feb 26, 11:58pm
It's so fantastic. People are good. It's just so wonderful to see everyone doing what they can in a time of great tragedy.

lythande1, Feb 27, 2:10am
People need money not cakes.

elliehen, Feb 27, 2:47am
I've taken to checking the occasional post to see where the poster lives....and to give more credence to those on the ground, or in contact with friends and family there.

lythande1, it's not an either/or - it's both.

510, Feb 27, 3:10am
Exactly, my sister in Wellington was rung to do baking for people 'manning' phone etc & doing support work around tourists being evacuated from ChCh & waiting for visas etc.

pixiegirl, Feb 27, 3:36am
That sums it up exactly elliehen.Spot on

andy644, Feb 27, 3:42am
I saw someone who'd been given a home baked biscuit say never had a biscuit meant so much to them in their life! A small gesture like that, can mean more than words.

ribzuba, Feb 27, 10:55am
thanks guys.the baking I am doing is going to people in linwood who have no power, water or sewerage, lost their food in the quake and dont have much money.so yeah they are extremely grateful!

cookessentials, Feb 27, 5:43pm
Every little thing helps and there is always alot of love that goes into baking...far more practical right now...the cash is rolling in and will be distributed accordingly.

winnie231, Feb 27, 6:17pm
Writing as someone who has survived the quake but lost everything I owned, you can be assured that cake is just as needed as money at the moment!
I don't even have a sweet tooth ... but the slice of homemade fruitcake I was given by friends yesterday as I sat at their kitchen table, pouring my heart out over a cup of tea, was one of the nicest things I've ever eaten.

dollertree, Feb 27, 6:43pm
If you give them money they will buy cakes, so why not give cakes especially home baked, fresh something that will make there day over the cup of tea. There is nothing that taste more perfect than home baked.

lythande1, Feb 27, 6:53pm
Idiot.

You can't pay a power bill with a cake. People aren't working at the moment. Some may not be for some time as workplaces were affected. They'll buy cakes. Sure. They are buying camping gear actually.
Read this:
ew Zealand Red Cross also supports this view for the following reasons:

1. One of the most important factors that can support the recovery of an affected community is the restoration of livelihoods or the generation of economic activity. Importing household goods or donated items into a country bypassing existing market structures and systems can damage local retailers and businesses and affect market prices especially in poorer communities.

2. Collecting, storing and shipping donated goods takes time. More often than not by the time the goods are ready to be sent or have arrived in the country a few weeks later the emergency relief phase is over or the priorities have changed. What sounded like a good idea at the time is now out of date.

3. The relief requirements of a disaster are best determined by the affected populations through the relevant Government or mandated agency in the affected country not third parties or external agencies. This ensures that any assistance is based on assessed need not assumption and the response is coordinated. Assessments and distributions that are not properly coordinated can create unnecessary tensions between communities.

4 Unsolicited or unwanted aid especially containers can clog up ports and logistics chains creating delays and distracting relief staff and resources from more important or relevant tasks. This is widely known as the "second disaster". Commonly organisations especially Red Cross or NGOs that are mandated to coordinate and deliver relief are left with large quantities of goods that aren't required, sometimes at great cost.

5. Years of experience have taught the Red Cross the types of emergency aid that may be required during a disaster or conflict. These items which can include tarpaulins, blankets, kitchen sets, jerry cans etc. are available in warehouses in large quantities throughout the world. Across the Pacific region there are over 80 pre positioned shipping containers stocked with such standardized items and they are brand new. In Auckland New Zealand Red Cross has stored enough emergency relief items for 5000 people.

6. When disaster relief organisations such as the Red Cross ask for cash to support their disaster activities it is not because they are being greedy it is because buying or sourcing goods locally or utilising standardized internationally recognised relief items is by far the preferred and proven option.

7. Cash is more easily collected , transferred, distributed and accounted for.

korbo, Feb 27, 7:13pm
Winnie....I cannot agree more, a homemade biscuit, or slice of cake is so welcoming.
I remember when my mum passed, I was so touched by homemade baking. sure money wasnt the issue here, but for some of my friends, the baking was done with so much love.
Why then did my grandma's etc, send baking to the NZ troops in the war, because they knew it would help their moral......

Sooooooooo, all people who love baking and can do so, and live close to people in need. KEEP ON BAKING...IT HELPS THE NATION TO SURVIVE...
iF I lived closer that is what i would be doing.
mmmm. still may do it and send somehow.....

margyr, Feb 27, 7:28pm
well done #1, i am sure the baking is going down a treat. this will at least get straight away to people, sure money in the long run is what is needed but this takes time to be given out by the agencies collecting it. Probably along with the baking there are alot of hugs being given which will be of great comfort.

blt10, Feb 27, 7:59pm
So true Korbo.

tinaq, Feb 27, 8:07pm
Im with you

elliehen, Feb 27, 9:10pm
People are talking about small comforts, helping morale, self-help local delivery to needy people in worst affected suburbs - not dumping unwanted food on the Red Cross.

Bake AND donate :)

cookessentials, Feb 27, 9:47pm
Quite frankly, to call someone who wants to help by baking an idiot disgusts me...who died and made you God?
As winnie says, the comfort that comes from a little something home made and made with love and care can mean the world to someone who has lost everything. Bung a $5 note in their hand and see if that makes them feel better!....the money IS flowing into the area and it WILL be distributed. The offer of a warm bed, a roof over ones head, a hug, a cup of tea, a oiece of cake or just a shoulder to lean on is so vitally important and I say good on you #1 to be able to offer this...well done you.

elliehen, Feb 27, 10:35pm
This was worth bringing over here from the Friends thread.

cookessentials, Feb 27, 10:44pm
absolutley, thank you elliehen.

ribzuba, Feb 27, 10:49pm
yeah, money is important, but right now some of the places i have visited people are to scared to leave there house or they just dont want to.some people cannot get out of the area they are in because of flooding and liquefaction.they have no power and water and they NEED food.baking in other cities is being co-ordinated by people outside of the red cross and you will find that it is ordinary people and churches that are making sure the baking gets to where it needs to go, not the red cross.

bedazzledjewels, Feb 27, 11:14pm
I wonder where this concept of giving baking as a way of comfort came from, historically. Maybe for New Zealanders it was in sending Anzac biscuits to the troops during war. It's certainly well ingrained in the NZ psyche - well, women anyway.

ribzuba, Feb 27, 11:23pm
maybe also stemming from the reason why baked items generally also being comfort food?? sending food in the war seems like a good start to the tradiition

elliehen, Feb 27, 11:45pm
I think it's all to do with instant warmth - both inside the body and out.Knitted things represent comfort and solace too.

pixiegirl, Feb 27, 11:50pm
Absolutely - keep going guys you are doing a tremendous job.