What we do

We bring our mahi to life through two main strands. MADE to Lead is our structured community leadership programme that supports everyday people to grow their skills, confidence and impact. Alongside this, the Manaaki Collective is our wider network that brings together emerging leaders, volunteers and grassroots partners — backing each other, sharing resources and taking action where it’s needed most.

Our programmes & initiatives

MADE to Lead

Manaaki Collective

MADE to Lead

Community Leadership Programme

MADE to Lead is our two-year community leadership pathway for people who have faced some of life’s toughest challenges but want to turn their story into hope and action for their whānau and wider community. Many of our participants have been on the receiving end of help and are now stepping up to lead change in their own communities.

This programme backs emerging leaders with training, connection and support, helping them build the skills, confidence and networks they need to turn their story into hope and action for their whānau and wider community.

MADE

“Make a
Difference
Everyday”

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Module One (six months) is all about personal healing, growth and laying the groundwork for strong, community-led leadership. Participants get mentoring, pastoral care and training that supports mental, emotional and spiritual wellbeing.
Our programme is accessible for all learning styles – including people who haven’t finished school or who are neurodiverse – so everyone can build confidence, skills and strong relationships in their own way. There are also opportunities for practical group outreach projects and volunteering, so participants can put what they’re learning into action and make a real difference in their communities.
Module Two (12 months) is about growing confident, practical leadership and communication skills. Building on the personal growth of Module One, participants deepen their spiritual maturity, strengthen their emotional resilience and step up into real-world leadership opportunities.
In this module, they explore their unique gifts, develop public speaking and relational skills, learn different leadership styles, and build healthy habits to sustain their mahi for the long haul.
Alongside this, participants keep building strong connections with each other and the wider community, and take part in hands-on outreach and volunteering to grow their confidence and make a real impact where it’s needed most.
Our graduates go on to lead support groups, share their stories through our online platforms and other community initiatives, and step into roles of leadership in their workplaces and communities. Many continue their studies, sit on Trust Boards, and become role models and people of influence for their whānau and wider community.
They stay connected and supported through the Manaaki Collective, so they’re never walking the journey alone.
We start each year with a new intake of people into Module One, beginning with an intensive 4-session emotional healing programme (Flourishing People). Training happens fortnightly on Tuesday nights, between February to November with a graduation celebration in December. Every session begins with a shared meal - connecting over good kai is very important!
The programme is designed for whānau who have experienced challenges in their lives but want to heal and grow as a person and make a difference in the lives of others.
You need to be:
- aged 18+
- committed to attending regularly
- open to spiritual & emotional growth
- recommended by one of our graduates or community partners

Our Stories

Manaaki Collective

Community Support Network

The Manaaki Collective is our growing network of MADE to Lead graduates, volunteers, and grassroots community groups. It’s all about collaboration – working together to meet real community needs, sharing resources, and looking after the people doing the mahi so they’re not doing it alone.

The Collective offers care, connection and practical support for leaders and volunteers – helping prevent isolation and burnout so community leadership stays strong for the long haul. We also provide an umbrella for informal groups that need one, as well as sharing our tools and expertise to support their work – like our wellbeing workshops and Caring for the Carers. We also provide a platform for people to share their Stories of Hope online, shining a light on local heroes making change happen every day.

Manaaki:
care
support
uplift
respect

These whānau support groups are led by our graduates and are happening in homes and community venues all across Auckland. Whānau come together to share kai, find belonging, support, accountability and purpose.
Practical workshops designed as resources for our graduates and community partners to help strengthen their mahi with their own people. Each workshop is shaped to meet the real needs of specific groups – like young mums, rangatahi, or whānau with gang backgrounds.
Key workshops include:
- Flourishing People – Building resilience and wellbeing after trauma
- Flourishing Relationships – Strengthening relationship skills to reduce conflict and break cycles of harm (e.g. couples affected by family violence)
Workshops and support for those doing high-trust, high-stress mahi in the community, helping prevent burnout and reduce isolation
Mobilising volunteers and networks for community events, crisis response, and practical awhi for whānau in hardship.
Our “Stories of Hope” digital project shares the real-life journeys of everyday people who have faced adversity and now lead change in their communities. When someone feels ready to tell their story, we help them record and share it on our platforms – inspiring hope and showing what’s possible for others walking a similar path.

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FREE Flourishing People workshop starts on February 3

EXPLORE OUR LATEST

Upcoming Events

Info Night Dinner

Tuesday 27 January 6-9pm
Elim Community Hub (old chapel)
128 Mahia Rd, Manurewa
If you want your life to be different in 2026, join us for our info night to find out if our FREE "MADE to Lead" community leadership programme might be for you.

REGISTER
Flourishing People

FREE workshop - 5 Sessions
(Four Tuesdays + one Saturday session)
Starts Tuesday 3 February 6-9pm
Elim Community Hub, 128 Mahia Rd
A free emotional healing workshop for anyone ready to heal, get unstuck, and move forward.

REGISTER
MADE to Lead 2026

FREE Community Leadership Programme
New intake for 2026
This programme backs you with training, connection and support, helping you build the skills, confidence and networks you need to turn your story into hope and action for your whānau and community.

REGISTER

Testimonials

“What’s really integral with this programme is people from this community, delivering for this community. You’re taking people who know their own and raising them up to be leaders within their own spheres & contexts. Leadership,change and rangatiratanga, it really starts with us – we are all leaders, particularly if we are parents because it starts with the whānau.”

Elyse, Family Violence Educator, Cultural Advisor & Board member
"Finding this group has been such a huge blessing. I had been praying for solid leaders I could learn from, be mentored by, and grow alongside—and then I found my tribe. I was hungry to grow, to soar, to share the gifts God has given me. I longed for a team to pour into, and one that would also pour into me—and that’s exactly what this group is."

Melissa, changemaker, founder of “ProLove” and community leadership programme participant
“Being in this community leadership programme has been awesome, so grateful. I am the quiet type – hard to open up to people, but this programme has made me feel safe, comfort, healing in myself and has driven me to push more to help our community. I am a carver and I’m planning to use my skills with the community. So thankful to be in this programme. Where I come from we say Atāwai wōlō.” (a huge thank you in Pukapukan)

Ali, new to our community leadership programme in 2025
“The community leadership programme has walked me through a journey of inner healing. I’m thankful there were leaders who cared for us, who put in their time and effort and resources. If it wasn’t for them I probably would've been stuck in my past. I’ve come to the realisation that it’s not all about me and what I can gain… I’m being mentored for a generation that are spiritually malnourished. We are being equipped to go out there and be the love and light…”

Kasalina, Community group leader
“Joining the community leadership programme, I’m so thankful that they taught me so many things about who I am… they’ve done so much for me, peeling back the layers and layers, to be able to truly get into the nitty gritty of who I’m meant to be. It gave me a place to ask all the questions that I had… so thankful that I know who I am now, and I’m so much more confident…”

Paul, young leader who joined our community leaders programme when he was 16
“I got so much out of the leadership programme. I learnt it’s about being a leader in your own house before you can do it in the community. Not just ‘do what I say’, but lead by example. I now know my calling, and that’s to work in the community with inmates being released from prison, that I can connect with through my past as an ex-gang member, a person of unforgiveness, drug addiction, depression, and quite a few other things. Those have become skills I can use to help those people.”

Rob, Leader of multiple community initiatives working with whanau
"I am so glad to be part of the Leadership Programme. I have faced so many different challenges over the recent months and feel stretched to meet so many needs and demands. The programme is consistent and that's what I like. It keeps me encouraged and focused. I honestly do not know what I would have done without the support, I think i would have drowned in my problems."

Alisi, community leader and changemaker
“The tools I have learnt have helped me discover my creative talents and true worth, which I have implemented into my work... I would love to acknowledge the beautiful team who have helped me get to where I currently am today. All the one-on-ones, awhi, support, behind-the-scenes followups and heartfelt trainings - I am truly very blessed to be a part of this.”

Angel, Community Mental Health team leader