Chocolate Factory Farewell Tours - Fundraising for Gumboot Friday

Hello New Zealand,

THIS GUTSY NEW ZEALAND, our people, our ex-Cadburys Staff are taking back our old home, our Chocolate Factory in Dunedin, to raise awareness to the connection between mental illness and redundancy. Funds on this page will be put towards the Gumboot Friday fund so we can get counselling to our Kiwi Kids straight away.

The day you are made redundant is not the end, this is the beginning and you become so vulnerable as a person because you may not have the same networking connections around you. There are two key words that we learnt that need to be associated with redundancy, respect and compassion. Redundancy is a subject that is not talked about in this country when it comes to mental health, redundancy makes people feel ashamed and not talking about it makes people feel even more ashamed. If YOU KNOW someone who has been made redundant please reach out and make sure they are doing ok. You could be the difference that lifts someone from feeling ashamed today New Zealand.

Redundancy does not just affect the person being made redundant it filters out wards affecting our Kiwi Kids as well. By supporting the Gumboot Friday fund we are raising money to make sure we have the support in place now for our Kiwi Kids. More than ever right now we need to start talking about this New Zealand.

My name is Megan Fairley, I worked at Cadburys Dunedin for 17 years and was a Front Line Leader on the 2nd Floor Nightshift during the redundancy process, my partner also worked at Cadburys, he was there 37 years. I have battled mental illness for the last two and a half years, so now we are telling our story to help support other New Zealanders and to help break the shame connected with redundancy, and bullying in New Zealand.

Our old Cadburys Chocolate Factory building has stood for over 150 years in New Zealand, like hell do we pull it down without celebrating our amazing culture and using this opportunity to help other New Zealanders.

More details on our Chocolate Factory Tours and fundraising efforts can be located at @project hope & beyond on facebook.

Thank you for supporting. Megan & the Project Team. xx