My Red Cross story – showing up, learning and still grateful

When I first came to Aotearoa New Zealand, I was still learning what it meant to belong. 

My family and I had left the Philippines and started a completely new chapter in Auckland. We were learning the roads, the four seasons in a day, the systems, the culture, and, most of all, learning how to build a life in a country that had welcomed the Garcias. 

I always had this feeling that one day, I wanted to give something back after working for corporations back home in Manila.  

I just didn't know what that would look like. 

Then, one ordinary fine day, while scrolling through Facebook, I saw a callout for New Zealand Red Cross Meals on Wheels volunteer drivers. 

New Zealand Red Cross Volunteer and Northern Area National Council Representative Jocel Garcia with Laurel

Something in me said, “Why not try, Jocel?” 

So I applied. 

That little “yes” turned into vetting, practice runs at Waitākere Hospital with my mentor Yvonne, and eventually my Monday routine of loading packed lunches and desserts into my car and delivering them to some of the most vulnerable people in our community. 

And suddenly, volunteering wasn't an abstract idea anymore. 

It had faces. 

It had names. 

It had conversations at their doorsteps. 

It had elderly people waiting for their meals — and sometimes, I realised, waiting just as much for that little bit of human connection. 

I would arrive carrying meals, but I often left carrying something too: a smile, a story, a thank-you, or simply the feeling that for a few minutes, two people who might otherwise never have crossed paths had connected. 

Volunteering no longer an abstract idea

That's what my Red Cross story has taught me since May 2026. 

Impact doesn't always have to be loud. 

Sometimes it looks like driving from Waitākere Hospital to one home, then another, and another. 

Sometimes it is a meal delivered with care. 

Sometimes it is stopping long enough to listen. 

Sometimes it is simply showing up. 

And somewhere along the way, something unexpected happened to me. 

I realised that I wasn't just giving back to the community that had welcomed me. 

I was becoming part of it. 

Becoming a National Council representative

My Red Cross journey continued to grow, and on September 04, 2026, I was honoured to be elected as a National Council representative for the Northern Area, with the result publicly announced on September 15. 

That still makes me smile because when I first arrived in Auckland, I was simply trying to find my place. 

I never imagined that a Facebook post would eventually lead me to a place where I could contribute on a much bigger stage. 

But perhaps that's the beautiful thing about service. 

You don't always know where one small act of kindness will take you. 

You just say yes to the opportunity in front of you. 

You show up. 

You give what you can. 

You learn. 

You listen. 

And along the way, you discover that the community you wanted to serve has quietly become part of your own story. 

For me, New Zealand Red Cross is no longer just an organisation I volunteer for. 

It has become part of my journey of belonging in Aotearoa. 

And if someone had told the Jocel who arrived in Auckland on that cold winter day of July 27, 2024, that one day she would be delivering meals to people in the community and then sitting around a table helping contribute to the future of New Zealand Red Cross, I probably would have laughed and said: 

“Really? Are you sure about that?” 

But here I am. 

Still saying yes. 

Still showing up. 

Still learning. 

Still grateful. 

And still discovering where this little Red Cross journey will take me next. 

By 
Jocel Garcia
New Zealand Red Cross Volunteer
Northern Area National Council Representative

For more information

Our area councils lead, coordinate and nurture our organisation and our humanitarian activities across areas of Aotearoa New Zealand. Area councils | New Zealand Red Cross

When you volunteer for Red Cross, you’re becoming a member of an internationally recognised movement for good. Find out about volunteering for New Zealand Red Cross, what you can do and why it’s good for you too. About volunteering | New Zealand Red Cross

Header image: Jocel Garcia with two of the recipients of Meals on Wheels who she visits weekly, Dorothy (left) and Mavis