Fundraising for Waipuna Hospice has taken a major hit over the last six weeks, with the Hospice Shop unable to trade.

It will be up and running again in Alert Level 2, but Waipuna Hospice needs volunteers to help prepare and staff the shop once open.

'Volunteers are how we turn second-hand goods into first-class care,” says Waipuna Hospice retail manager James Turner.

'The challenge is that our shops rely almost entirely on older community members to run, so we are limited in the number of our volunteers who are available because of the potential risks to their health.

'Therefore, we can't operate at the same capacity without new volunteers.

'Anyone who is able to work under Alert Level 2 is welcome.”

Currently, volunteers are operating within work bubbles, swapping over summer stock with winter clothing.

'We are lucky that we are between seasons, as it means we still have a stockpile of clothes to open with despite clothing donations not being permitted under Alert Level 3.”

Once open, Waipuna Hospice's six charity shops will be fully COVID-19 compliant, with measures including appropriate PPE for volunteers and plastic screens at the counter. Social distancing and contact tracing practices will still be adhered to.

'There is also a process where all donations have to be quarantined for 72 hours and decontaminated, so we need more volunteers than usual to help with the extra work required to keep everyone safe.”

More Government announcements about how retail stores will operate in Level 2 are yet to come and may have an impact on Waipuna Hospice shops.

According to Waipuna Hospice's 2018-2019 annual report, $3.8million was earned through Waipuna Hospice Charity Shops alone.

That year, shop volunteers donated 74,672 hours.

'Money from shop sales makes up around 35 per cent of our income, which is a huge bulk of it.

'We always receive fantastic support from the community, which has helped us provide those at the end of their life with the best care possible. We use every dollar.”

Volunteers can donate as many hours as they wish, and both temporary and permanent roles are available.

To apply, visit: www.waipunahospice.org.nz/shopvolunteer, email: volunteers@waipunahospice.org.nz or phone Elizabeth on: 027 207 1450.