Latest posts by Martin Moodie (see all)
- Writing like an angel in Haikou and heading for the stars in Singapore - May 10, 2025
- From Hong Kong to South Canterbury – A Global Gift of Support - April 29, 2025
- Mama don’t take my Toblerone (Dark) away - April 22, 2025
Sometimes The Moodie Davitt Report reaches parts of the world we didn’t expect to…
More of that in a moment. Let me first take you back to International Women’s Day (8 March) when, as reported, The Moodie Davitt Report’s redoubtable 12-strong team of women set about underlining the occasion’s importance.
Each committed to participating in or supporting a women-related cause, for example by donating to charity organisations, supporting International Women’s Day events and participating in local community gatherings that champion gender equality.
Just as importantly, this determined dozen pushed each and every male member (a mere half dozen) of the team to do likewise. A glance at our home page (below) on International Women’s Day, awash with stories by women about women, reflected how brilliantly The Moodie Davitt women succeeded in the task and how assiduously they promoted similar fine efforts by travel retail stakeholders such as ARI.
For my part, I affirmed the importance of the day in two ways. The first was to donate to a women’s cause in my home country, New Zealand – Aotearoa (‘Land of the Long White Cloud’). The Aoraki Foundation Women’s Fund, based in South Canterbury (as the name indicates, the southern part of my home province Canterbury in the country’s South Island), strives tirelessly to accelerate opportunities for women and support their advancement in all aspects of life.
The second was to salute each and every woman member of The Moodie Davitt Report team. I noted that women are not only in the majority across our team but also head six of our departments. Their collective capability is off the scale. On International Women’s Day, The Moodie Davitt Report wāhine (Māori for woman/women) each deserved and got a shout-out from me, the company Founder.
And that was that, I thought. Except that the contribution to the Aoraki Foundation Women’s Fund sparked the attention of the charity’s Chief Executive Richard Spackman, who wrote to me, noting: “Your donation is the first international gift the fund has received and the volunteer committee was delighted when I told them about it.
“Your support means so much to us and will directly contribute to creating meaningful opportunities for women and girls across South Canterbury. This small group of women has collectively given and raised over NZ$75,000 in the last three years.”
Richard asked how we had discovered Aoraki Foundation Women’s Fund so I told him all about The Moodie Davitt Report women and their great initiative. Days later the Fund posted the story of our engagement on their Facebook page (below), a nice touch that both Richard and I hope will encourage further donations and visibility for this fine cause.
From Hong Kong to South Canterbury. Not only a global gift of support but a long journey rendered both short and fulfilling.✈
