Who we are…
Te Ora Hou is a network of faith-based youth and community development organisations working with young people, their whanau and communties in many places across Aotearoa.
We have been operating all over New Zealand for over 30 years. Over this period Te Ora Hou has had projects in most of the main urban centres and many provincial and rural communities as well. Hundreds of people connected to Te Ora Hou have led many different projects and services working with thousands of young people and families.
Through all of this we have learnt some things and hold on tight to the stuff that seems most important to us.
We are passionate about what we do and why we do it.
What makes us distinctive…
- We are indigenous to Aotearoa
- We are faith based
- We are focused on young people in the context of their whanau and communities
- We are committed to serving and volunteerism
- We are committed to building long-term quality relationships
- We are committed to the principles and practice of social justice
- We are committed to learning from what we do and from others
What we believe…
We believe people are created to realise their God-given potential and sometimes they need someone to help them realise that potential.
We see great wisdom in the tikanga passed down from our tupuna and want to pass this on to future generations. We value Te Reo, the language of our people and want to nurture and develop it.
We find inspiration in the life-changing power that faith in Christ has brought to people throughout history. We find strength, comfort and courage in our faith – which we share with anyone interested – but we don’t force it onto others.
We do not claim to be experts or miracle workers – but we have learnt some things and are committed to doing the best we can with the resources and networks available and the collective skills and experience we share.
We are not committed to growing a big organisation – small is often beautiful, keeps us connected to our neighbourhoods and responsive to the changing needs as they arise.
We love our neighbourhoods and are committed to seeing them become happy, healthy places that people are proud to be associated with.
