Timaru resident who grew up in Isabela reflects on becoming a New Zealand citizen

Haidee Cadelina Woods, who grew up in San Mateo, Isabela, became a New Zealand citizen in February, and told the Otago Daily Times' "Who’s new in Timaru" series about her years living on visas in Thailand and her hope that people will "be kind, but be open and curious as well".

Haidee Cadelina Woods, who grew up in San Mateo, Isabela, in the Philippines, became a New Zealand citizen in February this year, the Otago Daily Times reported on 5 November. The Timaru resident is the subject of a "Who’s new in Timaru" profile, written by reporter Shelley Inon.

The paper says the series is set to spotlight one new citizen or migrant living in the area each month, and that the initiative was a collaboration between the Courier Newspaper, Timaru District Council and Multicultural Aoraki.

A moment at the ceremony

Cadelina Woods told the paper she was struck by a particular moment during her citizenship ceremony, when a video told new citizens, “New Zealand was your home and now New Zealand is your country too”. She said: “And it hit me.”

Years of visa runs in Thailand

She left for the city when she was 17 and moved to Thailand in her early 20s, where she worked in investment advisory services and met her Kiwi husband, Paul. The paper reported that their Thai visas only let them stay for one year at most before they had to leave the country and re-enter, even with an eligible work visa.

“I lived in Thailand for 11 years and I always had to look at my passport and think ‘How long am I allowed to stay?’.”

The couple moved from Thailand to Australia before moving to New Zealand seven years ago, according to the profile.

Adobo, degrees and life in Timaru

Her favourite meal growing up was adobo and rice, usually cooked with chicken or pork, she said. She told the paper that education was “big” in the Philippines, that children’s graduation certificates were among the most prized wall hangings in homes, and that most Filipinos in New Zealand would have a degree hanging on a wall in their parents’ house in the Philippines, even though they may no longer be working in that field.

She said she loved the simplicity of living in Timaru and had never felt like an outsider since moving there. Her hope for migrants in the community, she said, was for people to “be kind, but be open and curious as well”.

Multicultural Aoraki describes itself on its website as a not-for-profit organisation supporting migrants, former refugees and multicultural communities across South Canterbury. Formerly the Aoraki Migrant Centre and founded in 2004, it says it attends the citizenship ceremonies each month to welcome new citizens, and runs a free coffee group every Wednesday, excluding school holidays.

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