Mountain runner Melissa Moon helping the homeless

As a two-time World Mountain Running champion Melissa Moon has reached the pinnacle of her sport but as spikesmag.com discovers, in the second of our four-part series on "athletes who make a difference", the New Zealand athlete has a very different role helping the homeless in downtown Wellington.

Athletes take many different forms and have wildly different interests away from the track, but few pursue a challenging vocation like mountain running legend Melissa Moon – helping the homeless in downtown Wellington.

Each day is spent looking out for 60 to 90 homeless people in the New Zealand capital of Wellington – giving them a hand to find shelter or a job and guiding them on the right path.

“I’ve been a volunteer at the soup kitchen for nine years and I’ve always felt strongly about giving something back to the community and doing my little bit for them," says Moon.

"I’ve always been pulled to that sort of area anyway and I’ve got to know the guys over the last 8 or 9 years. They are from all walks of life... some are homeless, some live in council houses, a lot have mental illnesses and all are on the fringes of society. I’ve got to know the regulars, established a relationship with the guys... that takes a bit of time. They have to know that I respect them.

"The Sisters of Compassion asked me last year to come on board with a more formal role as an outreach worker, so I’ll try and get them accommodation and work some avenue to get them back into some sort of employment. I’m here just to make sure they are fully clothed and someone is looking after them.

"I can’t explain what the feeling is like helping these guys. I suppose it is like running. I’ve got this guy called Stephen, I’ve been working with him a year and when I started working with him he never showered or didn’t communicate with people. He’s now started to communicate a bit more with people and, today, I finally got him to shave off his year-long beard off.

"You have to try and understand the homeless and treat them as human beings. I try not to judge people and I've never judged Stephen no matter how much he smells or what he looks like... I take him for his good qualities.

"I thought what an achievement it was to getting him to shave his beard off. It’s just like winning a race. It gives me the same sense of satisfaction, it really does.

"Another guy I work with called Blue was in and out of prison and when he first came into the soup kitchen. You would think he was a caveman... he was disorientated, he smelt... he was in a bad way. I find out he had been in the bush for six months sleeping rough. Since then he has gone from sleeping in the bush to holding a job, having his own apartment and looking after himself.

"Another thing which has become apparent since working with these guys is the way society has judged people. I’ve never really experienced that but working alongside these guys because they are different because the way they look, they way they speak, they aren't judged properly. It has taught me a lot about judgement and how we judge people so quickly.

"They are aware of my background as a runner, and they are always proud and follow me in the papers. When the 2005 World Mountain Running Championships were in Wellington I wouldn’t have been surprised if half of them were down there. Half of them live in the bush. It’s funny, when I’m out doing early morning runs I always see one or two of them and they give me a wave. A lot of them even joke about racing me up a hill.”