When Thanuksha moved to New Zealand from Sri Lanka in 2023 to pursue herstudies, she brought with her not only academic ambition but also a deep desire to give back to her new community. Grateful for the opportunities she had received, she wanted to contribute to the country that had welcomed her - and it didn’t take long before she found her place with Civil Defence Waikato.
Back home in Sri Lanka, Thanuksha had been involved in disaster management, so joining Civil Defence felt like a natural step. She began volunteering at the Hamilton base, where her background and passion quickly became a real asset to the team.
In her role, Thanuksha supports the organisation behind the scenes through vital administration work - helping create training booklets and toolkits, contributing to communication and strategic plans, and ensuring systems are ready for when disaster strikes. Her efforts mean that when New Zealand faces emergencies such as floods, earthquakes, or fires, there are trained and capable volunteers ready to respond.
Each week, Thanuksha dedicates a few hours to Civil Defence, and she finds the experience incredibly rewarding. She shared how grateful she feels for the opportunity to engage with both the community and the dedicated Civil Defence team, describing it as “a real privilege.” Working alongside such passionate people has inspired her to work harder and to always look for ways to make the staff’s work easier.
Most of all, she finds meaning in helping build a disaster-resilient community. Over time, her motivation has only grown, as she’s realised her contribution extends beyond the Waikato - she’s helping serve all of Aotearoa, and in doing so, fulfilling her role as a global citizen.
Her advice to anyone considering volunteering with Civil Defence is simple:
“Make memories with your time. Don’t just be inward-focused , serve others. Make your time meaningful.”
