Opening Hours: Monday to Friday 9.00 am to 4.00 pm; Saturdays 9am to 12 noon.

The Dovecote was opened in 2000 and offers good used clothing to the community at very reasonable prices. Alongside this there is a wide range of bric-a-brac/white elephant.

It is a real treasure trove for people who love to pick up interesting bargains. We welcome goods, preferably delivered when the shop is open.

The staff will welcome you and a cup of tea or coffee is usually on the go!

1060 Papamoa Beach Road, (07) 542 2320
Manager:  Cris

A History of the Dovecote

Development into the Papamoa area by the Anglican Church dates back from late 1998 when the Mount Maunganui Parish Vestry explored possible options with Bishop George Connor who called a meeting of Papamoa Anglicans and commissioned the Bickers report.

The Reverends Adrienne & Arthur Bruce were appointed Co-Vicars of the Mount Parish beginning in January 2000.

The initial brief was to expand mission into Papamoa East working alongside the Social Services Trust Board and with a focus on the needs of youth and the elderly.

The Dovecote was established beginning on 1 June 2000. Closely linked to this was the opening of the Beachaven Community House on 1 August 2001.

Rae King set up the Dovecote, gathering together volunteers, initially from the St Mary’s Drop-in and wider parish. Over the years the volunteer base became more local, drawing on folk from the surrounding community.

Rae was the Manager (volunteer) from its inception until June 2008 when she decided to retire.

In the very early days a pre-school music group ran on a Tuesday morning in the front of the shop. All the goods were pushed to the back, and the children and their mums enjoyed a 40 minute session of music and movement with Adrienne, followed by morning tea.

Ezee Meals were introduced to the Dovecote, as a service to the community providing cheap nourishing mains and desserts. This continued until early 2009.

The main philosophy of the Dovecote was to provide a relaxing and caring environment for people from the local community to come, enjoy a cup of tea and the company of the shop volunteers.

Sometimes this was just general chatting but often folk wanted to talk through problems and needed referrals to other agencies. Rae also offered a prayer ministry and would sometimes offer to pray with those with whom she sat. The Anglican ethos of being Christ to others flavours all the work we offer to the community.

The Dovecote (under the auspices of the Mount Vestry) developed a policy that 90% of the net profit would go to the funding of Beachaven. The other 10% went to another organisation dependent upon donated funding.

The rationale behind the support of Beachaven was that this was a community development project provided by the Anglican Church in partnership with the Waiapu Social Services Trust Board which benefited the people of Papamoa and in this way monies raised within Papamoa were returned to the community.

Supporting local Anglican community endeavours continues to be the pattern, however with the establishment of the Papamoa Mission House in Bree Court (first rented 1 April 2004) and the developing of further community-facing ministry, some of the Dovecote funds also support the work of this Mission Church. With the progressive success of the Dovecote, this has not diminished greatly the dollar value of the Beachaven funding, which has gradually developed a broader funding base.

The Dovecote continues to operate on the same lines as when it was first established. Since 1^st April 2005, it has become the responsibility of the Papamoa Mission Church Committee, rather than the Mount Maunganui Vestry.

After Rae King retired as Manager, several changes occurred, initially with (the late) Lee Roche becoming the Manager. Due to ill-health in her family, Lee resigned and after some reorganisation Pikihuia O’Brien of Second Chance (Papamoa Support Centre) agreed to assist. Cris McCrae and Pauline Simpson then came on board as Co-managers. This further evolved in April 2011 when Cris McCrea became the Manager.

During 2010-2011 developments have included the implementation of Shift Supervisors, and of three volunteers being on each shift as far as possible. Also increased security, upgraded shop procedures, appointment processes for new volunteers, police checks and regular volunteer meetings with high attendances have been further notable achievements.

The Papamoa Mission is grateful for all the care and dedication of the Manager and volunteers for what they offer in service to God and the local community.