Hastings Family Store in Black and White for Cyclone

Hastings Family Store banded together with the Hawke’s Bay community for Black and White Day on 6 April, to display their support for those impacted Cyclone Gabrielle and the devastation caused across the region.

The initiative was started by local residents and supported by the Hastings District Council. It encouraged schools, businesses and individuals to wear black and white and stand together in support of those who were personally affected by the cyclone.

Black and white is familiar to Hawke’s Bay residents, as it’s the colour combination of the region’s representative sports teams.

Hastings Family Store staff dressed up in black and white, decorated the front window in black and white and had black and white clothing at the front of the store for customers to purchase.

The solidarity of the people in the region is apparent as the Family Store is still receiving financial donations towards the cyclone relief.

‘That’s pretty cool that people see us as something to donate to, even though we don’t have special cyclone relief advertising going on out there,’ said Hawke’s Bay Area Family Store Manager Fiona Kelsen.

There are still many families displaced from their homes and volunteers out there helping people to clean up silt on their property.

A few of the volunteers at the Family Store had damage to their property and many others felt the impacts in other ways, such as experiencing power cuts.

Fiona said what she noticed on Black and White Day was all the smiles as people noticed the efforts of the community displaying black and white.

‘Whether or not your house was affected, it still hurts. Lots of us grew up here, and it’s hurt our area. It was to show everybody hurting or going through something that Hawke’s Bay is still united,’ said Fiona.