LOCAL LIFE NZ
Local Life
In Channel Magazine we love highlighting people in our community who make a difference. Two local Devonport Peninsula people, Kate and Lauren, have created ‘Local Life NZ’ a social media entity doing similar online. We love what they do, so we’re now collaborating with them to include their content in print – monthly in Channel Mag. These are recent pieces they’ve done on Terrie and Christine from Paradox Books, Flagstaff Gallery, Corelli's Cafe & Bar and Sasee from Danryu.
Paradox Books
“Although the book-selling giants like Amazon will always beat us on price, our little shop offers something that human beings crave - a cosy space, the smell of new books, good personal service, and other similar people who like being there. It’s a community place. We worked steadily through lockdown and delivered books and activities around the Devonport Peninsula, and up to Hauraki, with many people saying how thrilled they were to open the door to find a hand-delivered parcel of books on their doorstep.” — Terrie Gray & Christine Thomson, Paradox Books
Flagstaff Gallery
“Art is part of the fabric of our community here in Devonport,” says Cary, who’s owned and run the Flagstaff Gallery for the past five years. “Our aim is to create a vital link between artists and their audience and for the gallery to be a warm, inviting and expressive space. Everyone is welcome to visit and enjoy the art.” Cary has lived in six countries and 13 different houses over the past 24 years. She decided to buy the Flagstaff Gallery, which has been a fixture of Devonport for the past 27 years, over a bottle of wine. The decision, which Cary’s husband Doug described as a romantic one, saved the gallery from closing its doors for good. Even though they’d only been in Devonport just short of a year, they felt passionate that the gallery should stay firmly local. — Cary Cochrane, Flagstaff Gallery
Corelli’s Cafe & Bar
“The first lockdown was a shock to everyone -- staff and customers were confused and a little fearful. It was a rather eerie afternoon. “I visited the cafe every day, to check on things and just get out. Staff wandered by to keep in touch, and some of the customers came to sit on the seats outside in the afternoon sun. One customer watered the garden, another checked the front and back doors were secure every time he went by. “I was reassured daily by customers that they would return when we reopened. Devonport is a village within a big city, and there’s a real community spirit here. “The staff have all pulled together to support each other and make it work, I feel a lot of responsibility towards them. They’re part of the community that makes Corelli’s what it is, and some of them have worked for me in Devonport for many years - some of them over 10 years now. “Having been in the hospitality business for more than 40 years, this is the best group I think I’ve ever had.” — Anthony Sanderson, Corelli’s
Danryu
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Satoru Sawaki – or ‘Sasee’ to his friends - has an impish grin that was always going to take him places, from his birthplace in Tokyo where he cooked as a youngster, across our TV screens as the face of Asahi Beer, to The Food Truck where he taught Michael van de Elzen how to make sushi, before landing finally in Devonport as one of Auckland’s top Japanese chefs. Sasee cut his teeth at Kura, the award-winning Queen Street sake bar, and has recently gone solo with Kayoko, his wife of 20 years, at Danryu beside Devonport’s Old Post Office building. What Sasee masterfully crafts with his Musashi knives is a visual feast and a taste sensation – a veritable sculpture garden of vegetables, tofu, fish, lamb, venison and wagyu beef. His favourite fish to work with is the romantically-named Alfonsino, while his favourite dish is nigiri sushi which he prepares using seven different types of freshly-caught fish. And just as he used to please his mother by taking over the cooking duties at home, his desire to bring joy to his customers is paramount: “I want to see them smile,” he says.
If you have a story you would like to share or know of a local hero, contact Kate Dobbin & Lauren Lulu Taylor at hello@localifenz.com Follow Local Life NZ on Facebook and Instagram – @LocalLifeNZ OUR
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Late in 2020 we published a book “OUR PLACE” featuring 50 Local Life stories from our community. The interest saw us sell out of the first two print runs so we did a third run. We still have a few copies left that can be purchased. If you missed out and are interested in a copy then email us at hello@locallifenz.com. The book is available for purchase at Paradox Books, Devonport for $30.
OUR PL ACE – STO RIES
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