Auckland Campus Residence

It can be difficult for thirteen young people to all agree on where to go and what to do. Every week the students take turns to run a meeting and one of the things they decide is the outings for the coming weekends. They have to factor in the cost of the events and make sure everyone gets a say in what they do.

Without realising, our young people are learning how to stay active, how to share an opinion, how to live within their budget, how to negotiate, how to explore their environment, and the importance of connecting with friends. They are GREAT at it!

This is why, as we say farewell to Anuishka, Harry, and Adam at the end of the year, we are confident they are ready to move into bright futures. We trust they’ll look back at their time in the residence with fond memories.

Anuishka says goodbye

I wanted to say the biggest thanks to the village staff for being in the village. I heard getting closer to next month for finishing by this year. I want to say from my dream. I have my bags are ready to go but I saw village staff and students were standing and having a nice conversation with others. It just feels like wanted to have a long chat with us but suddenly I heard the train is coming. I want to say thank you for looking after me in the village and being kind to you all in your heart. I just want to back to see those memories in the village from last year and this year. I want to give you kind words. (You are the best and bring kindness to the lovely staff who are amazing and give you the biggest heart for you all.) The train officer came out and did a loud whistle near the train that signal in my ears that I have to go now. One thing to tell you that I will see you in the future and I will keep in touch with you all. I grabbed my bags and went inside the train and sit on near the window. The train is closing the door and ready to go to see my future in real life and ready to take off. from Anuishka

Harry says goodbye

Hey everyone,

I don't want to say goodbye because it sounds too cringey. But I'm glad to get my chance to share my message to remind you of the good and bad memories we lived in our village. I'm delighted that I have no regrets after graduating high school in the village. I started learning how to sign language and with support from the village. I never laughed so hard from that time when I was learning sign language and still laughing hard now, and my tummy hurt because it was hilarious to see people use facial expressions to resemble other people and many jokes. You can see them every day, and you get to know them more than meeting them at school. It feels like they are a second family to me.
Of course, sometimes there was lots of drama in the village, and after that, we grew mature. We did lots of cheeky things. One of those foolish things is, we stole milk from the fridge and ran away like crazy thieves without staff knowing because we love milk. Despite this, if it were not for dramatic or cheeky stuff in the village, I feel that it is not an authentic village. It shows they are real themselves and interesting to see them differently. It is not always perfect every day. We all were not too fond of our duties in the village but think about a good way that it is worth it to learn lots of new things and improve better habits in the future. They always can build a better future with maturity. The activities are my favourite part of the village. I love seeking new adventures. We all must go out and seek fun times rather than boring life in our comfort zone. Too many memories I couldn't tell. We went shopping, ice skating, bowling, golf, swimming, museums, cinemas, big arcade games, zoos, cultural festivals, amusement parks, meeting new people, and many other things. It was unfortunate we couldn't go further anymore because of covid, but I have no regrets.
I was waiting for the day to arrive. We, who are going to leave the village; I can see we are happy, knowing that from tomorrow onwards they do not have to do duties, long meetings, sleep-restricted, filling the leaving form to go shopping or somewhere, no more village rules. Still, we feel like when we thought that they were going to miss all the wickedness, unnecessary gossip, times we laughed, cried, screamed in joy, devoured food fast, and all that. Lastly, I don't know what to say anymore. It's just… the village is so unique and unforgettable.I'm grateful for the friends who helped me and kept me in good company from stress for some reason. Lots of ups and downs, but they always cheer me up without hesitation. I was a bit irritated but grateful at the same time. Thank you for your support, funny times, long conversations, and everything. I would like to thank all the staff members. I admire you for your hard work, motivation, positive kindness, respect, sharing moral values, sharing stories about their life, ensuring we are safe, and driving us to the activities. They drove a long way to drop us at home on their off work before the covid lockdown. I want to thank everyone. I was actually trying to be a good person to you all; I tried to be. I want to sincerely apologize for my acts, deeply thankful, deeply grateful for you all. You are all awesome.
See ya later, cool, swag, peace out!