Six months on from the devastation caused by Cyclone Gabrielle, a local Gisborne family has had their spirits lifted, thanks to the generosity of Phil and Maria Wilkens – owners of the local panel beaters, DJ Mac Panel & Paint.
The idea to recondition and donate a vehicle to a family in need came to Phil and Maria as they talked about how they could help their community devastated by the destruction caused by Cyclone Gabrielle.
Putting their organisational and repair skills to good use, the couple approached repair partner AA Insurance who donated a written off vehicle, which the panel beaters fully reconditioned and restored. Maria and Phil worked with local charity, The Sunrise Foundation, to design a nomination process for deserving families to share their stories and to assist in selecting the winners, and the “Wheels of Hope” concept was born.
Maria says, “After purchasing our business last year and moving to Gisborne, seeing the devastation in our new community was heartbreaking. We wanted to use our skills and networks to give back to a local family and we were delighted by the generosity of AA Insurance and the Sunrise Foundation who helped us bring Wheels of Hope to life.”
Local family Steffanie and Shane Miller were selected to receive the vehicle from more than a dozen worthy nominations.
The Millers and their two young daughters lost all their possessions in Cyclone Gabrielle when their house was flooded shoulder deep, pink stickered and had no insurance cover. After the recent heavy rain, an 80-year-old tree subsequently fell over and landed on their car – their last remaining possession.
Elated by the news of their win, Steffanie says, “The aftermath of the Cyclone has been a really tough period for the whole of Tairāwhiti Gisborne, and we are blown away by the generosity of DJ Mac Panel & Paint, AA Insurance and all the sponsors involved. A new car is going to make a huge difference to our lives.”
AA Insurance Head of Motor Claims, Beau Paparoa, says, “As one of our key suppliers in Gisborne, we were thrilled to be able to support DJ Mac Panel & Paint and this fantastic initiative by sourcing the vehicle with our partners Turners. We have also offered the Miller family a 12-month comprehensive motor insurance policy to get them back on their feet and keep their new vehicle safe.”
“Being able to support a local family through Wheels of Hope has been so rewarding. Our hope is that it inspires others to consider how they can rally around their community in times of hardship,” concludes Maria.
About AA Insurance
AA Insurance is an independently operated, New Zealand-based joint venture between the New Zealand Automobile Association Limited (NZAA) and Vero Insurance New Zealand Limited (VINZL). Since 1994 we have demonstrated trusted expertise in home, contents and car insurance in New Zealand, and in 2018 introduced commercial small business insurance. We underwrite our own policies and sell direct to New Zealanders. Our 1000+ employees look after 500,000+ customers with more than 1,000,000 policies.
We proudly partner with Variety New Zealand – the Children’s Charity (as the lead partner of its Beds for Kids programme), Student Volunteer Army and support grassroot school sports via our Big Little Sponsorship sports grant in partnership with Eden Park. We are consistently recognised in industry awards and honours, including being voted the Reader’s Digest Most Trusted General Insurer for 13 years running, named Canstar’s 2023 Home and Contents Insurer of the Year and Outstanding Value Award winner, and currently ranked 7th amongst 100 of New Zealand’s most successful companies in the Kantar Corporate Reputation Index (since 2015).
Find out more at www.aainsurance.co.nz
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