Pay it Forward - Heat Pumps NOW in the Community

Heat Pumps NOW was honoured to be part of the official launch of Pay it Forward – A community store completely stocked by goods made in Christchurch by Cantabrians. The launch, which took place on Friday the 13th of March, actually turned out to be a lucky night for two local artisans thanks to Heat Pumps NOW.

Community is one of our core values, and one of the reasons we started Heat Pumps NOW. Because we advertise in ‘The Mairehau’ newsletter, in the middle of last year, Ginny Larsen of the Neighbourhood Trust approached Heat Pumps NOW for a quote on a project they were working on. After learning about their Pay it Forward initiative and what it would mean for the future of many small businesses, we could see the good it would do Christchurch and decided we had to be involved.

Check out our video of the Pay it Forward opening night.

Check out our Pay It Forward Opening Night Video

We installed a Fujitsu heat pump and ducting unit at-cost, saving The Neighbourhood Trust a fair bit of money. During the months of build-up to the opening on Friday night, we learned more about the people involved, and what a wonderful asset to Christchurch this store would be. Knowing how hard it can be to launch a new business, founder and Director Blair Ashdowne decided he wanted to help two deserving artists get a head-start.

“Community is at the heart of Heat Pumps NOW, and I believe that means putting your money where your mouth is to help those around you,” says Blair. “We asked Ginny Larsen at The Neighbourhood Trust to collect submissions from those involved in Pay it Forward, asking what they’d do with a small grant,” he says.

From Left to Right - The Neighbourhood Trust Community Development Manager Ginny Larsen, Heat Pumps NOW's Communications and Marketing Coordinator Cameron Taylor, Heat Pumps NOW Director Blair Ashdowne, and Christchurch Central MP Nicky Wagner.

“Heat Pumps NOW reviewed anonymous submissions from eleven artisans, and it was difficult to choose just two,” says Communications and Marketing Coordinator Cameron Taylor. “In the end, we made our decision based on how the artisans said their work would feed back into the community,” he says.

Nadine Driver from Gluten Free Cook wanted to ensure supply of her delicious goods to Pay it Forward and develop some new recipes to go in the store. She wants to use those recipes to teach nutritional classes.

“My aim is to produce quality, health orientated, gluten-free products. Also, to get involved in community education, helping people from all backgrounds deal with dietary restrictions,” says Nadine.

Heat Pumps NOW Director Blair Ashdowne with Nadine Driver from Gluten Free Cook.

Christchurch artist and designer Sarah Greig wrote a children’s book, but was struggling with the illustrations. “I set up the basic layout of the pictures on a draft piece of paper, and use the light box to draw the final work,” says Sarah. “Up until now I have been using a light box I made out of a piece of recycled glass, an old shoe box, some duct-tape and a torch. Although I like the idea of using a MacGyver-inspired piece of equipment, it doesn’t really cut the mustard and it is really a bit rubbish,” she says.

Heat Pumps NOW Managing Director Blair Ashdowne with Sarah Greig - Illustration and Design.

Sarah’s story is set in Canterbury, and encourages children to take care of our environment. It’s an important message if ever there was one. 

Sarah recently sent us this wonderful thank you photo, showing her new light box in action. Heat Pumps NOW is very happy to see it all up and running smoothly.

Thank You Note from Sarah Greig

A thank you note to Heat Pumps NOW from Sarah Greig, Illustration and Design

Heat Pumps NOW is proud to support these local artisans, and community initiatives like Pay it Forward. We look forward to seeing what they come up with in future. 

If you know of someone actively 'paying it forward' in the community, we'd like to know. Check out our Heat Pumps NOW Community Hero Award, to nominate those making Christchurch a better place.