HELPING HAND

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 66, Issue 5601, 5 April 1943, Page 4

HELPING HAND

PRISONERS OF WAR FINE SERVICE BUILT UP None of the patriotic services has a greater humanitarian appeal than those carried out for the National Patriotic Fund Board by the Joint Council of the Order of St. John and the New Zealand Red Cross Society for the sick and wounded and for our prisoners of war. There are over 8000 New Zealand prisoners of war, and to cater for them, as well as to serve their next-of-kin, an efficient organisation has been built up in this country which is doing work that deserves to be widely known. Food parcels for New Zealand’s prisoners of war are packed each week; this service alone represents a heavy expenditure. Until the time arrived when the parcels could go forward from this country in a steady flow, arrangements were made with the Canadian Red Cross to send the parcels on New Zealand’s behalf. The despatch of the parcels from New Zealand began at the end of 1941. At the start the rate was 3000 parcels weekly. About the middle of 1942 this was stepped up to 6000 a week, and from the beginning of this year it was increased to 8000 standard 111 b parcels a week. The parcels are forwarded in cases, each containing eight parcels, and the contents are as follows:—Tin of Chesdale cheese, tin of honey (or golden syrup as a substitute), tip of jam, tin of condensed milk, coffee and milk or malted milk, tin of butter, two tins of assorted meats, approximately a half-pound each of sugar and dried peas (with dried mint), packet of sultanas, two ounces . of tea, tin of specially prepared chocolate the same as for the emergency ration. The packing is done on the chain system. Up to January of this year 283,000 standard food parcels had been packed and shipped from New Zealand. CENTRAL PACKING DEPOT The whole of the packing of these parcels is carried out in a special depot in Wellington. Five days a week, every week, teams of approximately 32 ladies each pack 1,600 parcels in about four hours. In addition, small teams of voluntary workers assist at night time in the packing of the dried peas and sugar into cardboard cartons. All told some 1,800

ladies give their services voluntarily for the food packing.

Another important service is the censoring and the repacking of parcels next-of-kin fcre permitted to send quarterly. For this purpose depots have been established at Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin. These are faithfully staffed by voluntary workers, whose duties consist of receiving, opening, checking, and censoring the parcels sent in to ensure that they conform to requirements. After the parcels and the addresses have been examined, they are carefully re-packed and sewn in cloth or calico coverings and returned to the post offices for transmission overseas. Between them the four depots are handling over 32,000 personally addressed quarterly next-of-kin parcels a year.

An enormous amount of additional work is involved in the sending out of special prisoner-of-war coupons to all next-of-kin each quarter, as well as the appropriate Red Cross label and the many and constantly changing instruction sheets for the guidance of next-of-kin in the making up of their parcels. Careful records have to be kept of the contents of every parcel and the dates recorded when the parcels leave the various depots. When parcels are lacking in some item and are not up to the weight limit of lllbs, the packers add knitted woollen comforts and other articles. If there are any next-of-kin who through economic circumstances are not in a position to send parcels regularly or who cannot afford a satisfactory parcel, the Joint Council, where necessary, takes over the full financial responsibility of sending complete parcels so as to ensure that the prisoner does not suffer. In addition, the ' various branches throughout New Zealand have assisted next-of-kin with their parcels by providing clothing and knitted garments. When it is known that the next-of-kin are not in a position to include chocolate in a prisoner’s parcel, this is included at the packing centres, provided there is room for it in the parcel. For next-of-kin in general arrangements have been made for them to obtain approximately 81bs of chocolate each quarter. ENQUIRY OFFICE SERVICE

The growth of the prisoner-of-war enquiry office is indicated by the fact that when it commenced operations there was only one lady on the office staff at headquarters. There are now 15. In addition, there are the many voluntary yzorkers who assist, both day and night, and also the permanent and voluntary staffs in the other depots. Throughout the four prisoner-of-war enquiry offices approximately 150,000 communications are despatched during the course of a year. Many thousands of International Red Cross 25 word and express message forms are handled on behalf of persons living in occupied and belligerent countries and prisoners of war. Another important service is the handling of book parcels for prisoners of war. Books may be sent individually ad dressed, but all must go through the prisoner-of-war enquiry office for censoring and despatch. In addition, the Prisoners of War Enquiry Office has forwarded many hundreds of text and study books for which requests have been made, and these have been sent without charge where there is knowledge that the next-of-kin are not in a position to defray the cost. Besides the individually addressed books, the Joint Council agreed to supply early in 1941 atFthe cost of 5s per man y, year books and games for the various camps where New Zealanders are interned.

The prisoners-of-war service has also helped next-of-kin by making it possible for them to obtain many articles for their quarterly parcels which they would not have been able to get in the ordinary way, and it keeps them advised of all the latest information concerning prisoners of war.

The total cost of all these services is financed through the National Patriotic Fund Board. The burden on the funds for this purpose has been relieved by a Government grant this year of £340,500, but to meet the total estimated expenditure on behalf of prisoners of war for this year it will still be necessary to provide £108,750 out of patriotic funds. The Joint Council is doing a splendid job, and by responding generously to the patriotic appeals citizens help to maintain not only this service, but also the many activities carried out by the patriotic organisation and the welfare organisations allied to it on behalf of *New Zealand’s combatant forces.