The Salvation Army Oasis promotes ‘weaving your way to wellbeing’ this Gambling Harm Awareness Week, 30 August – 5 September 2021

With the theme ‘Weaving your way to wellbeing’, The Salvation Army Oasis is focusing on helping people weave wellbeing and strength into their lives through healthy activities this Gambling Harm Awareness Week.

The theme is based on the whakataukī ‘Nāku te rourou nāu te rourou ka ora ai te iwi – with your basket and my basket, we will sustain everyone’. In the same way that weaving transforms harakeke into a stronger and more useful item, weaving tools or activities that build wellbeing into our lives can help us to overcome challenges and move away from gambling harm. By sharing these tools, we can make friends and whānau stronger too.

Share with The Salvation Army Oasis and receive a free care package

The Salvation Army Oasis invites people across Aotearoa to get involved in Gambling Harm Awareness Week by sharing the ways they keep themselves and their whānau well. Anyone can take part by sharing their activity – a photo, video or a written account – on The Salvation Army Oasis website (oasis.salvationarmy.org.nz), on our Facebook page (facebook.com/OasisReducingGamblingHarm, or at participating Oasis centres (where Covid19 lockdown rules allow).

The first 100 people to share will receive a free kete/care package filled with goodies to build wellbeing, based on the four walls and foundation of Sir Mason Durie’s Te Whare Tapa Whā – taha wairua (spiritual wellbeing), taha hingenaro (mental and emotional wellbeing), taha tinana (physical wellbeing), taha whānau (family and social wellbeing), and whenua (connection to the land). There are also 15 high-value spot prizes, including a Kindle Paperwhite, Apple AirPods, a Samsung Galaxy A12 phone, Google Chromecast 2018, JBL Live 400BT headphones, a Lenovo M10 2nd Gen tablet, Fitbit, Logitech speakers, Panasonic Lumix FT30 Touch camera and more.

Tools to move away from gambling harm available now on Oasis website

The Salvation Army Oasis has recently launched two online tools available at oasis.salvationarmy.org.nz.

The first is an interactive gambling harm quiz — a questionnaire that gives each user personalised feedback on their answers, including how their gambling compares to other New Zealanders.

The second is the recently launched webchat, where visitors to the Oasis website can chat live with a trained gambling counsellor — a great resource for people who are unsure about gambling counselling or facing barriers to face-to-face support.

The Salvation Army Oasis provides free counselling and support for gamblers and their loved ones across Aotearoa at all Covid-19 alert levels. During alert levels 3 and 4, anyone affected can access support via phone, videocall, email, text and webchat. Face-to-face appointments are available at alert levels 1 and 2. Visit oasis.salvationarmy.org.nz or call 0800 53 00 00 to be connected to your nearest Oasis centre.

For enquiries contact: The Salvation Army Territorial Media Officer, 021 945 337, email: media@salvationarmy.org.nz