About Karen Johns

I live in Auckland, New Zealand. I grew up in Taranaki as one of four daughters of Gordon and Shirley Johns (nee Wilkie). I began to research my family background in 1985 and found reference to Antonio in the register of Aliens ! in the National Library in Wellington. This led me to find his application and certificate of nationalisation at the Alexander Turnbull Library. It was here we found Antonio’s Birth place – Figueira Da Foz.  I remember my father coming with me to the National Library where we looked it up in the atlas and Dad bursting into tears and saying “I kenw he was born by the sea!!” Where does the sentimentality come from?? 

In 1989 I went to Portugal and visited Figueira Da Foz and with the help of some lovely staff at Coimbra University found the birth record of Antonio – Rua Da Canas in Figueira Da Foz.  I had no way of verifying this and could find no other leads so I went to the Algarve and worked in a cafe for a couple of months until my friend Richard  joined me.

Since then many members of our family have been to visit Figueira Da Foz – Peg and Neville and Penny from Sydney, Owen and Sue and Hannah from New Plymouth, Tim and Jackie from Australia. 

This has led to a number of the next generation connecting back to the De Faria name – and I hope to have their input to this blog.  So how exciting it was to have Manuel contact us due to Jan the family networker putting our information on a website.

 

More about Karen

I am working at Manukau City Council as a team leader of eight Community Advisors- a great group who work hard in each ward of Manukau to support community groups and link people to what they need  to carry out work they feel is important.  We have just completed over 60 meetings throughout Manukau to inform people about the new Super City and give them the opportunity to have their say – we printed 3000 information packs, held over 68 meetings – several in other languages, and had 1800 people have the opportunity to be informed face to face – and this is just through my team – they are awesome. We think Otara is going to be the new capital of the Supercity as they have managed to generate about 500 submissions – holding a stall all week in the  courtyard… the South side are saying ..we are here – and don’t ignore us.

see www.manukau.govt.nz

note: Hoturoa was the rangatira and commander of the Tainui waka. As they paddled down the harbour they heard what sounded like people calling out to them. They later discovered that the calls were not human but came from many birds (he manu kau noa iho) – hence Manu-kau ( it is just birds)

The Hunger Project

I am the Country Director for The Hunger Project in New Zealand. We are a small organisation in New Zealand but globally The Hunger Project is one of the most effective agencies in the world. What attracted me to The Hunger Project is that the countries where the project is operating do not have any satff or workers from other countries – the whole programme is about helping people to mobilise and change their conditions for themselves.  So you or I can’t go and help ( or other westerners on inflated United Nations salaries). They just need our money – and this goes on training trainers who hold workshops with villages facing long term hunger.  Through this training people are encouraged – especially the women – to take small steps and gaining confidence – taking larger steps so within a few years they are able to transform their social and economic conditions.  see the THP website for more information; www.thp.org

 

Team management and Leadership Programme

I am currently halfway through a year long programme with LandMark Education – the purpose for me was to gain new ways of undertaking projects through effective teams – I have pretty much operated on my own in my working history – many of my old  managers will agree!  Through this programme I have learned about how I sometimes get in my own way – and as a result I can see where if I created teams and invited people to join me we can achieve so much more.  With the trip to Portugal my new perspective is to see that it is not about me going to Portugal – but me being a means of reconnecting our whole family past present and future.