THE ROYAL NEW ZEALAND ARTILLERY BAND

SUNDAY 27 AUGUST 2PM

We are delighted to host a fine afternoon of music with The Band of The Royal Regiment of New Zealand Artillery. With a proud military history you’re in for a performance like no other, from traditional marches to showbiz classics – you’ll be up and dancing in no time! Delicious refreshments will follow the performance.

Find out more at rymanhealthcare.co.nz/events

RSVP is essential Call Scott or Dell on 09 445 0909

Lake views revealed by mum-led restoration

WILLIAM SANDERS RETIREMENT VILLAGE

7 Ngataringa Road, Devonport

Inspirational... Kelly Meikle says her voluntary work prompted a career change

The bank of Lake Pupuke next to Milford School has been restored by weeding and native plantings, thanks to a local mother, who has found a new career path as a result.

Kelly Meikle first discovered the overgrown bank in 2020, when she was volunteering for the school’s garden-to-table programme, in which students grow, cook and eat food at school.

Working on the garden by the bank, she eventually became frustrated at not being able to see the lake through a four-metre “wall of elaeagnus, woolly nightshade and moth plant” so decided to do something about it. “It wasn’t a planned thing, it just kind of started,” she says. “I think Lake Pupuke is such a special piece of water that we need to look after.”

After putting in a few hours of weeding and planting every week and with the help of students and other volunteers the bank is now mostly weed-free and full of native plants.

“Once you get a certain canopy or a certain growth the weeds don’t get light so they can’t grow,” Meikle says.

Pupuke Birdsong Project environmental coordinator Tabitha Becroft helped out with expertise on the best way to remove weeds and keep them from returning. “She’s been awesome, really supportive.”

After the weeds were removed, Meikle began planting, buying or sourcing many of the plants herself.

“I tried to make paths in the area down there so the kids can walk through and be part of it, not just look at it – to dig in the dirt, dig holes, to poke at things with sticks.”

The 45-year-old’s three children have all attended Milford School school, with the youngest still there.

Until a couple of months ago, Meikle did GIS mapping for Wildlands Consultants, but has recently changed jobs, taking a role with Restore Hibiscus and Bays, helping other environmental groups on the coast do conservation and restoration work.

Meikle says the switch was due to her love of ecological work that she discovered while volunteering at the school.

“I’m just a big believer that it’s really healthy for people mentally to get out into nature and connect with their space.

“People think volunteering is something you do when you retire, but I do believe that there’s plenty of time in people’s schedules if they make it.”

Although she has a postgraduate degree in environmental science, Meikle says her passion for hands-on conservation work didn’t begin until she started volunteering.

Milford School principal Lucy Naylor said: “A school should be the heart of the community, and we are lucky to have such committed volunteers, like Kelly, in the Milford Community who give their time, expertise and energy to improve outcomes for our tamariki.”