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As Dr Julia Charity blows out a single candle on her business’ birthday cake,there is a groundswell of pride. ‘One down, 49 to go,’ she jokes. There aren’t many who can boast a 50 year life plan but this Rotorua scientist-turned-entrepreneur, has taken a very futurist look at her life and speaks with clarity about the contributions she hopes to make to our community and beyond.

Nevaeh caught up with Julia just after she celebrated being in business one year, to find out how she is taking a simple on-line concept out through Rotorua to New Zealand and then potentially the world.

Click here to read the on-line version at Nevaeh Magazine or click below to read the article on this website

The future of NZ theatre is in talented hands.

I’m slowly coming back into reality here in Rotorua after being transported back 2012 years, to Nazareth. I’ve just had the most amazing experience – for a short few hours I’ve been completely caught up in the last few days of Jesus’ life.

I’ve been to the theatre where our local Boys and Girls High School staged Jesus Christ Superstar. The exuberant talent of these teenagers, some as young as 13 was extraordinary. Complimented by creative choreography, superb lighting, symphonic musical score and authentic costumes – it was provocatively entertaining.

We've christened 'The Lady in the Hammock'

Thank you to all our Look After Me hosts, guests and visitors to our site who entered our competition to help name our 'Hammock Girl'.

Many of you voted for our suggestions but we had some great contributions and suggestions. We can now announce that her name is:

Work Experience Paying off for Rotorua Job Seekers. Daily Post, Story Katie Holland.

For many job seekers, getting all-important work experience on their CV can prove frustrating.

Knowing that, Rotorua web-based business Look After Me recently gave 12 people from all walks of life the opportunity to take part in a work placement programme - gaining new skills while helping develop the fledgling accommodation business and relaunch its website.

We need to christen 'The Lady in the Hammock'.

But first she needs a name. Can you help please?

Enter our competition and you could win our Look After Me Holiday Package, including two nights accommodation anywhere in NZ.

We haven’t got the money, so we have to think. Like this Albert Einstein quotation, scientist-turned-entrepreneur, Dr Julia Charity is taking creative thinking to a new level to bootstrap her business into viability. Rotorua-based Julia launched a nationwide homestay network in July last year. Her Virtual Hotel, a ‘first’ for New Zealand, offers guest rooms all over the country, each as different as the hosts who look after them.

Hi I'm Layla and I am on Work Experience at Look After Me, as the team publicist. I have been working alongside some really amazing people, and this week I interviewed a fellow team member, Carmen Cartwright.

She is part of our work placement’s 9-member Data Entry Team who are collectively responsible for transferring all of the property data from the old website to the new website. So far Carmen has entered the names and emails of subscribers into the MailChimp database and entered property information into the Look After Me website database.

Today is Look After Me’s First Birthday and I’m like a kid in a lolly shop...

You’ll never guess what we got for our birthday?

A brand-spanking new, all-the-bells-and-whistles website!

I’m a firm believer in making something a bit special of your birthday, so for me, being in business one whole year was indeed a celebration and I had been looking forward to acknowledging the day. Like any kid on her birthday I leaped out of bed in excitement (really!), dashed to my laptop, and urged the wireless into life......

Look After Me established a Work Placement programme in July 2012 for 12 recruits to have an opportunity to work in a real-life sitation and to utilise their skill set and gain experience. My name is Layla and I am a Work Placement Recruit in the role of publicist. 

For the duration of this work placement, I’ve have been catching up with a few of my fellow team members to see how they feel about working for Look After Me.

Hi my name is Layla and this is my first blog for Look After Me. I am a sixteen year old high school student with dreams of becoming a journalist or TV reporter.

I am a recruit on the Look After Me Work Placement programme, etablished to provide real life work opportunities in a range of skills. I applied because I thought it would be great to meet new people and also to let my creative flare shine through, while getting a glimpse of what working with media is like in the real world.

Unlimited Magazine. Story Jenny Keown.  With an ageing population in many of our main tourism markets, travellers in the older age groups will become even more significant in the future....

.....Performance poet, scientist and entrepreneur Julia Charity cottoned on to both these markets and launched a travel website, Look After Me, in July last year.

I love opening my email. No really – I do.

You’re probably wondering why would I say such an outlandish thing?

It’s because many of my emails are from our new hosts who send through their photographs for uploading on to their property profile. So just like a box of chocolates...

Look After Me helps rebuild Christchurch

Breakfast TV's Holly Carran takes a look at homestays

Employers asked to give trainees a helping hand.

Daily Post, Rotorua. Story: Katie Holland.

Middle-earth mania pure gold for NZ Tourism.

Daily Post, Rotorua. Story: Julie Taylor

 Read more

If it was me, I’d look at those words and go ‘”What? Are you kidding? Of course 6 is too young for an after school job, what kind of crazy mother would send her kid to work at 6?”

But what if the kid wants to work? What if the young employee got a huge sense of accomplishment from completing tasks? What if the job comes with a whole lot of learning about the currency of money, savings and the benefits of working to achieve goals? And what if the kid’s boss was her Mum, and she could work from home only when she felt like it?

Search on for Short-term beds.

The Christchurch Press, Story: Liz McDonald.

Victorious Angler thanks ‘secret weapon’ for win.

Daily Post, Rotorua. Story: Cherie Taylor

Happy Waitangi Day. A significant day for New Zealanders everywhere. How kiwi is kiwi? Here's a little rhyme I wrote called 'Kiwiana' celebrating just a few of the things that unite us, no matter where we live in the world.

Cabbage Tree, L&P,

All Blacks, Footrot Flats

No 8 Wire, Katchafire

Too many sheep, Shortland Street....

Holidays for the Baby Boomers

Dominion Post. Story: Jenny Keown