It starts with the will to make a difference.
Full Bellies opened its doors to 6 Children in March 2022 as a registered charity and became a charitable trust in December 2022. The idea came over a coffee with a principal who informed Kate that the issue was right in front us, the children in the Northwest of Christchurch living in financial hardship did not receive funding from the Government schemes and were arriving at school hungry, tired, and unable to engage or learn in their school environment- this was the moment it all began.
Kate and Mike Pauling along with Kelly Hames originally operated for first 12 months out of their residential home in Christchurch, hallways rapidly filled with trestle tables, and very quickly it became apparent this charity was growing and was very much needed in Christchurch.
Our Brand came next, along with our superhero ideology of making Tamariki have superhero figures to aspire too
Our Lunch bags contain a different superhero sticker each week, so children are aware of the brand, it’s a big part of who we are as a charity.
Fast forward 6 months on and we established a Trust around the Charity, Rebecca Connolly, Craig, and Rochelle Waghorn joined Kate, Mike, Kelly, and Olivia (admin) in the Full Bellies programme. These are very passionate people all with big skill bases and operate in the Charity on a Monthly basis, check out the Bios on our team!
March 2023
The shift to Full Bellies HQ in Lake Brynwdr Lane – we are situated in burnside and extremely central to our schools and volunteers, part of our vision was to create a hub for volunteers to want to come too, a happy place full of positivity and hope. We are proud that we have done exactly this, Sunday Avo’s have become quite the social occasion at HQ – you are more than welcome to pop on down and say hi.
Full Bellies is forever changing, and we are always adapting our processes and procedures to ensure we are operating in the most efficient way. Growing from 6 food bags per week to 854 in 18 months has meant expanding our volunteer base to an amazing 92 People – Home bakers, drivers, and preppers. It’s a village and a place that oozes happiness and purposefulness where everyone has a clear goal to foster a sense of empowerment and community. We are incredibly proud of our results in schools and proud of our village so if this lights a fire in you please get in touch via the contact’s form.
Watch our story
Our virtues of Superhero’s
Encourage our tamariki to be courageous and brave to try and overcome fear when exposed to new situations, new emotions and new people in their lives.
Enabling our children to realise, with hard work, they can grow and improve in every aspect of their life. A smart child has the ability to learn through process not just intelligence.
Kindness is at the very core of the Full Bellies charity; being compassionate is infectious and gives children a sense of belonging and feeling happy.