Zita Tuffley reckons being practical in times of stress and crisis is what victims of crime need. Since 2001, she has been a volunteer worker with family violence organisation Shine. Last year, believing she had more to offer the community, Zita joined Victim Support where she was chosen as one of the few who deal with families affected by homicides. Zita says what people often need in emotionally-charged situations is just information.
‘‘You just have to walk them through the process,” she said. “Sometimes people need to know about the funeral process, a simple thing like that to make it a little easier for them in a terrible situation.’’
Past the initial contact, Zita said she kept in contact with friends and families, supporting them through the justice system. With every call-out, whether it’s domestic-violence related, kidnappings, aggravated robberies or homicides, Zita reminds herself that it is important for volunteers to show compassion without taking the trauma on board personally. But there are times when the horror of situations can be difficult to deal with.
‘‘Anything to do with children — it pulls at the heart strings,” Zita said.’
Being Maori was a factor in why she decided to start volunteering in the first place.
‘‘A lot of victims are Maori. I wanted to make a difference and
I think a lot of them can relate to me.”
Zita was nominated by Victim Support’s Shanta Millikin, who said: ‘‘It’s
about being able to be a bit of strength and light to give people the direction they need to re-empower themselves.”