Our vision, mission & aims
What we hope for, what we’re here to do, and what we promise every person who walks through our doors.
Our vision
To be a vibrant mutual-support organisation available to all in need throughout New Zealand — and a respected leader in the mental health community.
Our mission
To continue as a unique, holistic community mental health movement. Since 1957 Grow has been growing around the world, and our members keep striving for maturity through mutual help and self-activation.
Our aims
- A new perspective on life and your troubles
- Genuine empathy in trusting, caring relationships
- Being listened to and understood, not judged
- Clear and positive communication
In members’ words
What people find in Grow
SupportHelping each otherFriendlyRemoval of isolationOpen to allSocial contactBalance & maturityShared understandingA joining of mindsTrue friendshipPerspectiveCourage to step forwardThe Group MethodTruthReality & hopeAdult education to maturity
Truth · Friendship · Character
These three words sit at the centre of the Grow logo — values that strengthen the whole program.
Truth
In some ways I was successful, but in others an anxious mess, full of confusion and unhappiness. More than 30 years ago I joined a Grow group — started by people who’d often been far more broken than me — and there I learned the true meaning of good friends. My life is so different from where it was headed; I now understand the danger I’d been in.
— Peter
Grow holds that mental health grows from thinking, speaking and living truly — in tune with what is real. (Principle 14, The Grow Journey)
Friendship
After a relationship break-up I realised the friends I thought I had weren’t really there, and I was very much on my own, my thoughts going round and round. I went along to a Grow meeting, heard ideas other than my own, and discovered the truth of friendship and the huge value of different points of view.
— Freddy
Of all human relationships, friendship is the special key to mental health — and the measure of our maturity is our capacity to be a true friend. (Principle 5, The Grow Journey)
Character
I was depressed and desperately alone, and had started talking to myself. But when I found a Grow group, they didn’t just listen — they understood where I was, and accepted me. I began to feel all was not lost.
— Paula
Character shapes who we are and the choices we make — honesty, integrity, courage and loyalty among the virtues that build good habits. (Principle 15, The Grow Journey)
Be part of the vision
Every member helps make Grow what it is. Come and find your place in it.