Arapohue Rural Retreat: a place for rest, respite and equine mentoring

The Dugdale Charitable Trust (DCT) is generously offering to double your donation (up to $15,000*) to re-roof the 'School House' located at Arapohue Rural Retreat in Northland. This older, two-story building will be the headquarters and an accommodation facility for the equine mentoring programme being developed alongside the healing and recovery respite being established by Wild Side Charitable Trust (WST).

This unique feature of Arapohue Rural Retreat will be for children and youth experiencing difficulties in their home life or at school to have the opportunity to spend time with the four ‘healing horses’ — Deva, Divi, Brushka and Lacey.

“From experience working with people and horses, I have found that the positive effects of equine mentoring teaches responsibility, aids personal growth by mirroring behaviour, builds relational confidence, establishes understanding of cause and effect, and encourages communication, love, respect and acceptance”, says proposed Equine Mentoring Manager, Vania Lamont.

Your donation will contribute to the start of the restoration, repairs and maintenance to this old classic structure, which was a school in its heyday, as part of the Arapohue Bush Camp. As with many of the other houses and cottages on the property, which are in the process of being re-roofed and restored, the School House will once again be a magnet for young people who need some direction and loving encouragement to become self-assured adults in a topsy-turvy world.

To celebrate the one year anniversary of WST purchasing this magnificent property in August 2020, one of the trustees, Chris Dugdale will match your donation dollar-for-dollar until a threshold of $15,000 donated funds is reached.

In other words, if you or your organisation donates $50, DCT will match it by also donating $50 so we will have $100 going towards the School House re-roofing project.

If someone donates $5,000 it would be matched by $5,000 so we would have $10,000.

Dugdale Trust have committed to matching all donations in August and September up to a *total of $15,000 donated by others. They will match with $15,000, making $30,000 available for the re-roofing.

All donations above the $15,000 threshold will be allocated to the many additional restoration projects urgently needed.

WST was formed in 2017 and has a solid board of trustees and advisors. In the past year, the Centre Directors, registered tradies and volunteers have been restoring buildings and creating a large community vegetable garden and orchard to feed not only future guests, but will divert surplus to nearby foodbanks. In preparation for the Centre 'officially' opening for residential guests in the near future, the Trust is working closely with other local organisations serving the needs of Northland, and in fact New Zealand.

The months of August and September 2021 are yours or your organisations opportunity to make a worthwhile, tax deductible contribution to an exceptionally worthy cause.

https://givealittle.co.nz/donate/cause/arapohue-healing-and-recovery-centre-new-rehab

Thanks, and kind regards,

Ray, Janet and the team at Arapohue Rural Retreat