Kura Kai

It is so great to have the AsureQuality team back onboard for 2025 as our Kura Kai partner! As a company, AsureQuality support their hapori/communities through their volunteer programme, where every AsureQuality team member has the opportunity to donate a day of their time while still being paid. With over 1800 people across Aotearoa, that’s 14400 hours to help make a difference in our communities, and Kura Kai is fortunate to be part of this. Ka rawe Kaitiaki Kai (AsureQuality)! 💚

✨ Exciting News from Kura Kai! ✨ Nau mau, haere mai.  We are thrilled to welcome Kelly Kingston as our new Kura Kai Engagement Manager! Kelly brings over 13 years of experience in business ownership and team leadership, with a strong passion for community engagement.  As a business director, she fostered an award-winning workplace culture and her experience as a business mentor! Kelly is also deeply involved in the community as a Board Member of the Mount Business Association and a Facilitator for She is Unleashed - Tauranga. And if you think Kelly isnt busy enough, she still finds time to volunteer cook for Kura and is our NEW Volunteer Coordinator for the Mount Maunganui and Pāpāmoa area. We feel super lucky to have Kelly in this role and she will undoubtedly help strengthen our community initiatives and we are excited for the postive impact she will bring to Kura Kai. Kelly will be working alongside Katie as she transitions into the role over the next month so join us in giving Kelly a warm “ Kia ora” 👋🏻💚

Planning your next team building event for Kura Kai? Did you know that we have pre-populated meal label templates on our website designed by the awesome Maimoa Creative! In two different sizes, these printable labels even have space for you to add your business/organisation logo. Simply head to the link below or and use them for your next cook up! https://lnkd.in/eQY9Ctk8

Sharing from our wonderful team of volunteers in Kura Kai - Katikati – we absolutely love this kaupapa! ************************************************* Social cooking days with Katikati Kura Kai! We are starting social cooking days on Tuesday the 18th March from 10.30 am for around 2-3 hours (finish time depends on completing and packaging meals). Our venue is the kitchen at Te Rereatukahia Marae which has space and equipment perfectly suited to a cooking event. We are not aiming to produce huge numbers of meals, but instead aiming for a fun, social time where we can regularly produce meals to keep topping up the Kura Kai freezers. This will take the pressure off those individuals who are currently running at full steam in their own kitchens. You don’t need to be a chef to come along, you don’t even need to be a great/good cook. Many hands make light work - there’s always a variety of jobs to do when producing meals for our families needing help. Prepping veggies, making sauces, labelling packages, stirring, frying, roasting and toasting. All help is much appreciated. Please reply here or message Sara 021 287 4444 to pop your name down to join us. We’re ok if you can only commit to one cooking day at a time. We’d love to see you regularly if you’re keen on that too. At this stage we’re aiming for the third Tuesday of each month - dates are always needing to be flexible in case the marae has other needs for their space. We are incredibly grateful to Te Rereatukahia Marae for allowing us to use their kitchen 💚 To the Katikati Community Centre for being the hub for the rescue food we cook with 💚 For Katikati College for being the Kura for our Kai and their amazing support of meal production through their classes! 💚 Sara and the Kura Kai Katikati team.

It’s only a couple of weeks into the school year and we are already seeing a massive need for meals across the motu. We would love some more support to get our freezers topped up for rangatahi and their whānau - every single meal counts! Here are some ways that you can help: - If you are already a volunteer and have some meals ready to go, please reach out to your local coordinator. - Not a volunteer yet? Head to our website where you can register. You can do this as an individual or a group. Cooking kai together is a great way to connect as a team! Our website is full of information to help you support our kaupapa - for more details, check out the links in our bio or head to www.kurakai.co.nz We would love your support. Arohanui 💚

Did you know that you can now access editable Kura Kai templates straight from our website? With options to include the logo for your school or organisation, you can use these awesome templates to advertise your next Kura Kai cook up, mufti day or fundraiser. They can even be used for communications like newsletters or updates on your social media! You can check out the different options on our new Resources page - just head to our website to find out more! https://lnkd.in/grrDAj7p

The awesome team from Baygold celebrated their annual kick off day with their first ever cook up for Kura Kai! The kitchen was humming and thanks to 20 team members, 58 meals were cooked with aroha for the freezer at Te Puke High School. A huge mihi to Carina, one of our regular volunteers, who organised the afternoon of giving back to their community. We hear some team members loved it so much, they are keen to get on board to cook more meals for us in their own homes!! Ka mau te wehi, Baygold! Want to get in on the action too? Head to our website to register as a volunteer! https://lnkd.in/gQ5-UnXx

2025 is here! With schools starting to welcome rangatahi back for Term 1, now is the time to kickstart the year with Kura Kai! We would love to see some more businesses and groups jumping in to support our kaupapa. Organising a cook up is a great way to bring people together and give back to your community - check out our tips below: - Head to our website to touch base with your local volunteer coordinator for advice and to arrange pick up dates. - Grab some trays. Places like New World and Mitre 10 usually have a good selection on hand. Check out our awesome pre-printed labels from Maimoa Creative - great for bulk cook ups! - Get busy in the kitchen with some delicious meals like the awesome options on our website thanks to VJ Cooks Ltd. Some organisations choose to prepare kai onsite, others get their teams to cook at home and organise a collection point - whatever works for you! - HAVE FUN! Make an afternoon of it, get the team involved and try out some new recipes! As always, if you need any advice or support, check out our website https://kurakai.co.nz We can’t wait to hear from you! 💚

And that’s a wrap, whānau! A huge thank you to each and every one of you who have supported us in 2024. The Kura Kai team will be taking a break to rest and recharge with our friends and family. We will be back on board from January 27, ready to hit the ground running for Term 1! Have a safe Christmas and new years - see you in 2025! Arohanui 💚

2024 has been a huge year for Kura Kai - here’s a small snippet of the amazing connections we have made across the motu! Ko koe ki tena, ko ahau ki tēnei kīwai o te kete. 
You at that handle, and I at this handle of the basket.