19 August 2022 Rangitoto Observer

Swimmers scramble jet ski for rescue in fog

An ocean swimmer who lost her bearings in thick fog off Takapuna Beach was saved by the quick actions of friends who rushed to launch a jet ski to rescue her. One of a group of swimmers who entered the water in clear conditions early on 5 August, Niki Friary attempted to turn back to shore after fog descended, but became disoriented and headed out to sea instead. During nearly two hours in the water, she talked to herself to keep focused, “all the time thinking I’m not ready to die yet”. Visibility was very low. “It was a horrible feeling because I couldn’t see.” The Glenfield resident tried to listen for the shore without success. “At one point I stopped and thought, ‘I’ve lost all sense of direction now.’” She knew that if she had been swimming in the right direction she should have already To page 3 Court win constrains council density push... p7 tune on Potters Park toilets...

Bronze age... Takapuna’s Selina Goddard shows off the two Commonwealth Games bronze medals she won on the bowls greens in Birmingham. Story, page 10. Shore athletes shine, pages 12-13

Board chair changes

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Interview: Local organiser Sarah Thorne...

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Bowled over: young star brings home the medals

Jackson, whose casting vote initially canned plans to install temporary toilets in the park, this week lodged a notice of motion to the Au gust board meeting to give board approval to council property arm Eke Panuku’s proposal. In making the u-turn, she cited the provision of a requested legal opinion about whether toilets could be put in the park.

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Chair’s reversal clears way for Potters Park toilets

Jackson said her team’s reversal was not due to the critical reaction. It had a duty to do its own due diligence before giving board approval to spend ratepayer money. The temporary toilets could cost around $300,000 and it was important to know if they had legal standing.“Ithink it’s utterly disgraceful that Eke Panuku did not provide the legal opinion in the first place.” This had now been obtained from the council’s legal services team, which Jackson said was “aghast” that Eke Panuku had not provided it proactively. “This didn’t need to be a drama,” she said. She still had concerns at what she said was Eke Panuku’s unwillingness to discuss alternative options for toilet sites.

Since then, a relative of Frederick Seymour Potter, who donated the land for the play ground in 1929 with a deed of gift specifying that only ladies restrooms could be built on it, has withdrawn her expression of concern.

“We’ve got a lot of stores [which] are in communication with each other. A lot of us are actually putting additional security in, which is an added expense you hadn’t budgeted on. But it’s necessary; we’ve got to keep our staff safe.”

Police had executed a search warrant for a Henderson address, and found a significant amount of jewellery that was believed to have been stolen from Michael Hill stores.

Jewellery raid continues Takapuna crime wave

“Members of the public are even commenting they’re a bit reluctant to shop, especially in the afternoons.”Hewasalso concerned that people would start taking matters into their own hands as frustration builds.

A stalemate over siting temporary toilets on Potters Park has been broken. After an outcry over the prospect of the popular park playground and Lake Rd bus stops being left without a nearby toilet for at least three years during town square redevel opment, the chair of the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board, Ruth Jackson, has reversed her stance on the matter.

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The decision was opposed by the board’s three other members, including George Wood, who said the Heart of the Shore members were acting as “bush lawyers”. The Takapuna Beach Business Association complained it would rob children, shoppers and marketgoers of facilities until public toi lets were included in future buildings nearby.

Having since been advised that Eke Panuku planned to include ground-floor toilets in a future block on the square, near the play ground, she wished to withdraw her objection, provided baby change facilities were included. Children and caregivers needed the toilets nearby, as did the elderly, pregnant women and special-needs people. “I am relieved that the Eke Panuku plans are appropriate for those situations,” she said. “I want people to have toilets,” she told theMaceObserver.saidshe would keep an eye on what happened there long-term to ensure Eke Pa nuku delivered adequate facilities.

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An Eke Panuku spokesperson said the ex isting toilets would be demolished early next month as scheduled. It would try to “minimise any delay between this and the siting of the temporary block” after it has been put on hold.

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“It’s a very concerning situation that’s going on around Auckland,” says Fifth Avenue owner Adrian Turner. “[It’s] not just financial loss, but stress and anxiety on the staff.

Deans had originally contacted Potter’s grand-niece, Devonport woman Joy Mace, and tabled an email from her saying the toilets were not a suitable use of the park.

Eke Panuku believed it had provided the board with all the information it had needed to make a decision, including around legal advice.

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But Mace has now written to board mem bers saying that when she sent the email she had been told she could not be certain tem porary toilets would not become permanent.

Simon

• A 17-year-old male was arrested and appeared in the North Shore Youth Court this month charged with aggravated robbery of the Fifth Avenue jewellers in Takapuna on 20 April, the aggravated robbery of Michael Hill Takapuna on the 16 June, and a burglary at Super Liquor Sunnybrae on 9 August.

Blocking the plan last month, Jackson and her team of Trish Deans and Jan O’Connor said Eke Panuku had not satisfied their con cerns about location, cost and legality.

Jackson acknowledged she should initially have deferred a decision on the toilets, pending the legal opinion.

Repeated robberies and a recent burglary in Takapuna have scared customers and affected trade, a Hurstmere Rd retailer says. Michael Hill Jewellers, at the corner of Lake and Hurstmere Rds, was again raided by thieves in the early hours of 4 August. One of the store’s large windows was smashed about 3.30am. Police said five offend ers broke into the store and took an unknown number of items before fleeing. The break-in followed a run of three robberies in three m onths in central Takapuna: the brazen daylight robbery of Michael Hill in June, two men with tyre braces attacking cabinets in jeweller Fifth Avenue in April and a raid on the ASB Bank in March.

Rescue route... GPS tracking shows the jet-ski path south from the north end of Takapuna Beach, with the pick-up spot marked (bottom right) in yellow, followed by the return loop to the boat ramp

beachgoers was limited to the cables being a tripping hazard. “The active cables have a considerable amount of protection around them, which is designed to protect them from fishing and anchoring damage.”

It’s always advised to swim with a buddy or a group and stay with them, and important to know how many are in a group.

swimmer’s wrong turn reached the shore. She thought about stopping at a buoy and waiting for help, but kept swimming to stay Aboutwarm.7.20, fellow swimmer Nicky Rhodes saw Friary heading the wrong way and shouted to get her attention, but went unheard in the fog. She alerted the others. “I said, ‘Hey, Niki’s gone the wrong way,’” Rhodes said. “We all started swimming and looking for her.”When their search was unsuccessful, Rhodes and another swimmer, Terry O’Con nell, dashed to Rhodes’ Castor Bay home to pick up a jet ski. When they returned, police were on the beach and a Coastguard vessel was in the waterRhodessearching.andForrest Hill resident O’Con nell launched the jet ski and headed off into the fog, searching hundreds of metres off“Andshore.all of a sudden, there she was,” Rhodes said.

It was the first time the Southern Cross cable, which was laid in July 2021, had been exposed. “It has now been buried into the clay base below the sand. This should prevent it becoming exposed again in the future.”

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A new trans-Pacific communications cable was among pipes and other cables left exposed by sand movement in bad weather on Takapuna Beach recently. Spark said the new Southern Cross Next cable was among older cables and concrete pipe covers left exposed due to recent weather.

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Swimmers can also take note of the di rection of any swell to use as a reference if visibility is lost.

“To have found her was such a delight we will never forget,” says O’Connell, who estimates Friary was found some 650-700 metres from the shore. She had been in the water for an hour and 50 minutes. The water was a chilly 13.9 degrees Celsius, but Friary fortunately had the benefit of a recently purchased thermal wetsuit.Thetrio, among a group who swim three mornings a week around dawn, wants to remind other swimmers to take care, recom mending they stay within sight of the shore in foggy conditions.

A Spark spokesperson said cables are occasionally exposed at low tide after storms or with natural sand movement, but said that the risk to

New underwater cable laid bare by sand movement

Residents have also commented on the many rocks exposed on the sand-depleted beach at low tide and the exposure of underlying clay.

“They saved my life, both of them,” Fri ary said of her friends. “I had so many hugs that day when I got out.”

Rescuers reunited... Nicky Rhodes and Terry O’Connell (above) teamed up in the fog to use a jet ski to find fellow swimmer Niki Friary. Right: Friary between her rescuers at Takapuna Beach on a much clearer day the following week

Workers have since removed old pipes and cables and buried others more deeply.

Friary had seen the jet ski and called out for help. The emotion of the reunion with her fellow swimmers was still evident when speaking to the Observer days later.

Jet-ski rescue follows

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Volunteer heroes in running for $20,000 grant

Giving back... Pennie Kennings, who volunteers for Harbour Hospice, coordinating its Life Stories group

A volunteer who has spent nearly two decades helping tell the stories of Harbour Hospice pa tients is hoping to win $20,000 for the charity. Westfield is running a Local Heroes cam paign, with a grant of $20,000 for the winning cause.The Harbour Hospice is represented by Milford’s Pennie Kennings, who coordinates and supports the North Shore Life Stories group, which has writers visit patients and record their stories to turn into books for them and their families.

RUTH TRISH DEANS JOHN MAIDMENT

Volunteering for Hospice was a good fit for Kennings’ counselling background. “I had flex ible hours and I decided that I wanted to give something back to the community,” she says.

Kennings has been involved with Hospice for about 17 years. She says volunteers enrich the lives of many New“WithoutZealanders.these organisations, there would be a lot of people struggling a lot more with theirKenningslives.” is married, with two adult daugh ters and five grandchildren. She spends a lot of time with her family, and also enjoys reading, walking and art classes. If Harbour Hospice wins the Westfield grant, the money will be used for three specialised beds and for its life story programme. People can vote for Kennings and Harbour Hospice at westfield.co.nz/albany. Voting closes on Monday 22 August.

JACKSON

“The volunteers who record the stories are wonderful people and they have established good rapport,” Kennings says. “Not all stories get finished, but it doesn’t matter if the patient enjoyedPatientsit.”get pleasure out of telling their sto ries, she says. “I believe everyone has a story to tell. Stories are important because there’s a social history as well. “I think people often don’t appreciate what they have done in their lives... It can bring some satisfaction to the surface.”

August 19, 2022 The RangiToTo obseRveR Page 5 Three tickets contesting local-board seats STANDI NG ST RO NG FOR OU R CO MMU NITY Authorised by TrishDeans,deans.trish@gmail.com, M021 0862 6675

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Public meetings with the candidates are being held in Devonport on 8 September, in Sunnynook on the 12th, Milford on the 26th and at a date to be set to in Takapuna.

Sunnynook when parts of the suburb are in a flood plain, says local resident Peter McNee. Nearly 40 people gathered in the commu nity centre recently for an overview and dis cussion of the planned zoning changes that make the area subject to more development.

Twenty hopefuls contest local-board seats

Others attending also had worries about the loss of trees and permeable surfaces leading to flooding, which the council had spent significant sums to rectify, including lowering the level of Sunnynook Park for it to act as an oveflow sink.

North Shore councillor Richard Hills explained the constraints the Planning Committee was working under, saying it had proposed qualifying matters on devel opment to ensure adequate infrastructure. It was unable to impose design controls on developments, but was doing what it could with rules around pathways, lighting and disability car-parking. Hills acknowl edged the uncertainty the changes were bringing. He urged residents to speak up before council’s revised AUP went to an in dependent hearings panel for recommenda tions, with the government having final say. Public consultation is open until Sep tember 27.

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NPS-UD zones – Sunnynook - Gene zones – Sunnynook

Twenty people are vying for election to the six seats on the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board. Four joint tickets are running, along with three candidates standing as independents. Election billboards for three groups were up before local body election nominations closed last week, with a fourth ticket confirming its interest to the Observer on deadline day.

The Observer will provide all local board candidates with the opportunity to briefly state their positions in an issue before the election.

The veteran politician, who lives in Forrest Hill, had a previous term on the council before being elected to the board. Before that he was Mayor of North Shore from 1998 to 2007.

Sunnynook residents share fears about zoning

Under government-directives, the Auckland Unitary Plan (AUP) has had to be revised to allow for this, including expanding the zone permitting six-storey development in an 800m walkable catchment around the town centre and bus station. Maps shown at the meeting displayed the increased scope of the Terrace Housing and Apartment (THAB) zone across parts of Sunnynook and neighbouring Forrest Hill and Totaravale. The area is already the meeting convenor and a Sunnynook Community Association member, has been tracking. He fears if this accelerates infra structure will not be able to cope.

Hear the candidates before you vote

The Fresh Approach grouping comprises van Tonder, Terence Harpur, Zane Catterall, Peter Allen and Mel Powell. In the previous term, van Tonder aligned with former board chair Aidan Bennett, who has chosen not to seek another term on the board. SOS is led by previous candidate Kevin Brett, to champion North Shore interests. He is joined by Cherie Keiller, Kurt Keiller and SamIndividualWelsh. candidates are Tony Bunting, Michele McGregor and Kent Tregonning. Billboards are also up for the seats on Auck land Council, with the prominent contenders for the North Shore ward being sitting councillors Chris Darby and Richard Hills, and the C&R duo of Wood and Danielle Grant, who is deputy chair of the Kaipatiki Local Board. Bunting has also put his name up for council, as have Raymond Tan and Adrian Tyler.

Local-body election voting opens on 16 September, by post or drop-off at ballot boxes in libraries and some other council facilities. Polls close at noon on 8 October, with results posted later that day.

Now and next... Council maps of Sunnynook show (in darker brown) the growing area zoned for high-rise

A ticket organised by another current board member, Toni van Tonder, under the Fresh Approach banner, was launched in July. The final group entry comes from the members of SOS – Save Our Shore – a Devon port-based group which stood in 2019. Jackson is standing again alongside current board deputy chair Jan O’Connor and Trish Deans. Two new candidates, John Maidment and Bridget Thrussell, both from Hauraki, join them on a platform that includes keeping board workshops open to the public and safeguarding community assets.

The meeting began with the Devon port-Takapuna Local Board chair, Ruth Jackson, outlining the process to date, including feedback the board had given to the council. This included wanting more spaces from buildings.

Sitting board chair Ruth Jackson is fielding a ticket of five candidates under the Heart of the Shore banner, while a centre-right ticket of three candidates has been put together by fellow board member George Wood.

“I wasn’t going to stand [for the board], but C&R are pretty keen to get a bit of a foothold on the North Shore,” Wood told the Observer.

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The status of covenants limiting develop ment in Becroft Dr was also raised.

Wood – who is also seeking election to Auckland Council – is standing for the board alongside businessmen Gavin Busch from Narrow Neck and Mike Single from Bayswater under the Communities and Residents banner.

The Promenade block reduces to Mixed Housing Urban zone levels, and the Lake Rd block (from Blomfield Spa south to Park Ave) back to Mixed Housing Urban in the residential streets, and to Business Mixed Use – with a 13-metre maximum – on Lake Rd. Following the judge’s ruling these zonings were confirmed operative by Auckland Coun cil at its Planning Committee on 4 August.

“I am only one person, but with the help of the media I felt it was my duty to fight for a more honest “Consultationssystem.have to be real, not fake… They (council or council panels) have to listen to submissions not just pretend to.”

“It should not be allowed to happen from Takapuna to the beach just because the Hurst mere Rd corridor is running through it nearby.”

Discussions are in progress over costs in the case. The Observer understands Belgior no-Nettis has amassed more than $1million in legal fees – not including the thousands of hours of his own time. But he has not finished yet. Several years ago he took council to court over the rezoning of the old Takapuna Fire Station, claiming it went against its own Regional Policy Statement, which should have made the land open space. Perhaps buoyed by his latest success, he says some “issues” in the case may be worth revisiting in court despite a resource consent for a retirement home at the site already being issued.

Belgiorno-Nettis wanted to have a full hear ing in the Court of Appeal to “expose all the wrongdoing”. But on legal advice, he accepted a settlement, which saw the judge order the Promenade Block and Lake Rd block – the two areas contested by Belgiorno-Nettis – be dropped back in height.

Franco Belgior no-Nettis is shocked that the area between the beach and Hurstmere Rd has not been protected by Auckland Council as a “qualify ing matter”, giving protection similar to that applying in heritage suburbs. However, as a result of his recent court vic tory, any resident who makes that case in a sub mission will surely be given full consideration.

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Belgiorno-Nettis, 67, a former Glenbrook steel engineer, was surprised the case had taken six years to resolve, as he felt his argu ments were never challenged by full evidence.

Franco Belgiorno-Nettis hopes a historic court victory over Auckland Council will in coming months have implications for the preservation of low-rise neighbourhoods near TakapunaCouncilBeach.willsoon consider submissions on its response to new government intensification policies, which would currently allow for six-storey apartments within 800 metres of major town centres. For Takapuna, this would include the streets leading to Takapuna Beach.

Presented with all the new evidence Justice Whata last month was forced to take the unusu al legal step of withdrawing his earlier ruling..

Belgiorno-Nettis lives in Sanders Ave and owns a townhouse on The Promenade in Takapuna. Both of his properties and those around them were given increased height limits in the Auckland Unitary Plan. With others, he submitted for lower height limits. Both areas were then subsequently given higher limits by a Unitary Plan hearing panel – lifting allowed heights in The Promenade to 22.5 metres or seven or eight storeys.

“The parties jointly submit that the newly released emails cast doubt on the assumption recorded in my judgement that the panel mem bers had considered the relevant evidence and submissions,” Justice Whata said. “The parties are agreed that there is now good case to doubt whether the panel did con sider all the relevant evidence and properly un derstood the competing evidential positions.”

A Takapuna man has won a six-year court battle against Auckland Council, forcing a judge to overturn his own High Court decision, and direct the local authority to reduce height limits in an embarrassing revelation of consultation flaws. Rob Drent reports.

Belgiorno-Nettis says he is not anti-de velopment, but believes it should happen in appropriate areas.

“I always felt it was my mission, my duty to hold the system to account.

Court victory adds weight to lower beachside density push

Big win... Franco Belgiorno-Nettis hopes his court triumph over Auckland Council will help preserve areas of low-rise housing

“High-scale development is fine near bus and train stations like Smale’s Farm.

Belgiorno-Nettis asked why, and felt he nev er got a full explanation. He took his case to the High Court, which ultimately lead to Justice Whata ruling against him in November 2020. That seemed the end of the matter. But further digging by Belgiorno-Nettis through the Crown Law Office revealed emails and reports between the panel that seemed to show his submissions (and those of others and their experts) may not have been given appropriate weight. Nor had the panel members come up with adequate reasons for their decisions.

Belgiorno-Nettis says the new zonings are vitally important in the next phase of the sub missions process, as they set the benchmark for any change, rather than the former heights set by the Unitary Plan panel.

Sometimes I feel like a broken record when talking about the Sacred Grove. We have constantly argued that a long-term maintenance plan is required otherwise we will see more failures and the number of trees making up the Sacred Grove diminish. Throughout, we have been assured by council that further failures are unlikely and by definition no urgent action is required. Well, the inevitable has happened. Early this week we were horrorified to observe the failure of another member of the Sacred Grove. By the grace of god this tree fell in an open space without injury or property damage.

A regular inspection in May showed the grove’s southernmost tree needed large sections of dead wood removed. Other trees in the grove are stropped and propped, with some considered to be a safety risk.

“The pōhutukawa trees located within Te Uru Tapu are scheduled as notable trees under the Unitary Plan and, as such, require a resource consent for any significant works to be undertaken. However, it is permitted for up-to-50mm diameter branches to be pruned, and under 10 per cent of overall canopy to be removed, per year.” Fifty millimetres is about the width of a box of matches.

Take a bough... Sands residents check out the fallen tree

Some are concerned about the ongoing risk from falling trees, says Sands chairperson Tascha Rosan. “A lot of them are quite nervous about the other ones now,” she said. “Trees need to be maintained.”Thetree,and others on the Sands site, are protected and considered part of the Sacred Grove, which limits what can be done to them.The grove in front of the apartments, also known as Te Uru Tapu, is seen as a sacred cultural site. It has been closed to the public since 2018, initially for maintenance of the boardwalk running through it. The trees have subsequently been declared unsafe. Last week, Auckland Council arborists manager David Stejskal said the fallen pōhutukawa was on private property. The grassed area where the tree fell also lies with in the boundaries of the Sands apartments, but the tree is classed as being part of Te Uru Tapu/Sacred Grove.

The pōhutukawa trees on council land are regularly inspected, with extra checks after storms, he said. “With the failure of the private tree occurring, we have engaged an independent arborist to carry out a thorough investigation of the trees and will carry out any recommended work under agreement with the local iwi.”

Council calls in arborist after tree’s crash landing

Nine months ago the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board called for restoring access to the grove once the trees were safe, but its longterm future is unclear.

Allan Morris, Takapuna Letters If a tree falls in a grove, will council take action?

All Events are: Time: 10am 11:30am Venue: Milford Bowling Club 20 Commodore Parry Road, Castor Bay Cost: $5 (cash or card payment on entry) Please RSVP to: rnawelson@gmail.com This is a fundraising event with proceeds after costs being a donation to the National Party Authorised by W Durning, 41 Pipitea St, Wel ngton Nor th Shore SuperBlues Simeon Brown: Friday 2 S eptember Hon Judith Collins: Friday 7 October Matt Doocey: Friday 4 November Simon Watts MP for Nor th Shore invites you to hear from

An arborist will investigate the trees in the Sacred Grove overlooking Takapuna Beach after a huge pōhutukawa crashed to the ground last week. Residents of the Sands Apartments on The Strand, just above the grove, got a major fright when the tree fell downhill into the complex’s garden.

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The council’s chief arborist, mana whenua and environmentalists favoured keeping the fragile area closed, but residents called for its reopening as a popular passage when high tide blocks the northern end of the beach.

But what about the next time? Will we be as Further,lucky? we are seeing changes in the con dition of other trees. Unless something is done we will experience more failures. The cost of failures is socially and econom ically not sustainable. There is no solace in saying I told you so. Let us get on and do something about the welfare of these trees and stop the politicking.

Personal touch... Aidan Lawrence, 10 months, got a hug after Bubs Club (below)

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Centre manager Jan Walker said the event was to encourage community connection.

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Often, adults want to recreate a photo of themselves with Cato from 20-odd years ago. “They’re just beautiful big kids themselves,” sheCatosays.enjoys the individual interactions with the mums and babies after the event. “Being on the television’s all very well and good, but it’s actually the connection when you’re off the screen and you get to see that hug taking place,” she says.

Cato is hosting the monthly event on the first Wednesday of each month from 10am to 11am, singing songs, reading a story and leading ac tivities for littlies. Caregivers are offered a free coffee afterwards.

North Shore parents took a trip down mem ory lane as they introduced their babies to beloved children’s entertainer Suzy Cato at Shore City’s new ‘Bubs Club’.

TV legend offers youngsters songs, stories – and hugs

“I absolutely love it,” Cato says. “The whole idea of doing it here is just to build friendships and build community.” She wanted to encourage reading, imagina tive play, and encourage parents to “slow down and smell the crayons”.

Kids who used to watch her on television now have kids of their own – with the songs clearly familiar to most of the adult attendees.

Hugs feature in her portfolio of action songs, and children often then run to their caregiver to pass it on. “You can just see the energy of that hug being shared.”

Takapuna Bowling Club double Commonwealth Games medallist Selina Goddard is looking forward to coming home and head ing to a quiet beach. The 27-year-old digital marketer is chuffed to have claimed two bronze med als in Birmingham, in the women’s fours and pairs. “I’m so proud of the girls,” she“Insays.the lead-up to the event we had some pretty rigorous training where we didn’t really know if we were doing the right thing “I know personally, especially in the pairs with Katelyn [Inch], we were playing the best bowls that I’ve ever seen us play.” Goddard says being part of the wider New Zealand team – the country’s most successful at any Commonwealth Games – was special. “The New Zealand team honestly do so well at bringing everyone together, celebrating everyone’s successes, if that is a medal or if that is a PB [personal best].” When Goddard arrives home this week, she’s looking forward to seeing friends and family – “they’re very excited to hear the stories” – but also to some quiet time, chilling out with a cup of tea at the beach.

“This is a first for us,” he said. “Selina is a lovely person, works really hard at her game and this result is so deserved.

Takapuna club thrilled at bowler’s medal haul

Returnevent. of the Bronze Age

“The club is very proud of her and it will be a catalyst for new members joining our club.” Next on Goddard’s agenda is the North vs South tournament in Dunedin next month. She’ll play against Games teammates.

Pair review... Selina Goddard (left) and Katelyn Inch Sport Selina Goddard’s two bronze medals in bowls topped the haul of the precious metal for Shore athletes, but she was not the first to ascend the podium to claim theAllprize.Black Sevens player Caleb Tangitau, a Westlake Boys High old boy, won bronze with his team early in the games, which wound up in Birmingham a fortnight ago. Tangitau, who was a 1st XV star, finished at Westlake in 2020. Takapuna Athletics Club had two Birmingham medal winners among its members in silver-winning shotputter Jacko Gill and pole-vaulter Imogen Ayris, who won bronze. (See stories, pageFormer12-13).Westlake Girls’ High School athlete Moira de Villiers took bronze in women’s judo in the under-78kg class. The 32-year-old, who now lives in Christchurch, won silver in Glasgow in 2014. Bowler Goddard was one of two Takapuna Bowling Club players at the Games, with veteran Graham Skellern missing out in his match for a bronze in the para pairs

“Whenever I have a spare weekend I’m often found in my car with my walking shoes going to one of our regional parks.” She’ll head back to work to work at EverEdge, an international asset compa ny based in Smales Farm, which is “hugely support ive” of her bowls, she says. Her medals will be tucked away, but “if I want to reflect on some memo ries or something like that, I can open the drawer and find them”. Goddard’s parents intro duced her to bowls. Mum Irene made the trip to Bir mingham. Dad Phil stayed home but “did all of the late nights watching”. She wanted to thank everyone who had contributed to her rise in the sport Her coach, and chairman of the Takapuna Bowling Club, Graham Dorreen, who went to Birmingham, said the club was “absolutely over the moon” with Goddard’s success.

The RangiToTo obseRveR Page 10 August 19, 2022

August 19, 2022 The RangiToTo obseRveR Page 11 4022 Sunday21, Monday22&Tuesday23August 10am-3pm OPEN DAYS “You’ve got facilities, you’ve gotactivities, and youdon’t stop living.” Lynette, Ryman resident WILLIAM SANDERS VILLAGE 7Ngataringa Road, Devonport, 445 0909 WE ARE ACOMMUNITY Ourvillageopen days areagreat opportunity to visit aRyman villagewhereyou can experiencethe easy lifestyle and the endless opportunitiesavailable. It’s alifestyle Lynette knows well. She starts her day practicingyoga and has joined her Ryman village walkinggroup.The friendships, camaraderie and supportthathaveblossomed from their regular outings mean thatLynette nowseesthe village community as family. MAKE AN APPOINTMENT TODAY There’ssomuch to see!Our open days arethe perfect opportunity to explorethe villageand find out moreabout what's on offer. This will be aCovid-safe eventand bookings areessential. To makeanappointmentata time thatsuits you, scan the QR code or call our teamonthe number above. rymanhealthcare.co.nz/open-days

“You’re always constantly chasing the perfect jump and it never really happens,” says Ayris, now“When21. it comes together it feels like you’re flying,” she says. Her results have mostly lagged behind those of fellow North Shore pole-vaulter Olivia McTaggart. But at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, she beat her training partner on countback at 4.45m to take the bronze medal.

By the time the talented all-rounder started high school at Takapuna Grammar (TGS), she was competitive in gymnastics and at athletics for her Takapuna club. She was also a North Harbour netball age-group representative. Through their shared success in athletics, Ayris already looked up to Devonport polevault star and senior student Eliza McCartney, a future Olympic bronze medallist.

After the Games, he headed immediately to Hungary for another event, with others ahead in Germany and Switzerland.

Walter says the aim has always been to beat Walsh. “Tom of course is one of the world’s greatest, but we came very close.”

Walter recalled that Jacko, 27, played soccer and cricket as a youngster, and was very good at both. “But he loved the shot put, because he felt he was in control and he didn’t rely on someone’s opinion [for selection].

McCartney – who has been plagued with health issues in the last few years – was quick to congratulate Ayris. “She sent me a nice message on the night of theAyriscompetition.”saysshealways had the self-belief she could establish herself internationally. “I’m one of those people, frustratingly, that trains better than they compete.” She is confident she can improve on her personal best of 4.50 m – 5cm higher than she jumped in Birmingham. “I’m determined to follow on and show what I can do.”

Gentle-giant Jacko an inspiration to young throwers

A familiar sight to regulars at the club, the shot-putter and his father and coach Walter are often to be seen at the club’s Onewa Domain grounds, either training or supporting young athletes.“Jacko comes down and helps measure the kids’ [throws],” says club president Dan Brady. “The kids look up to him and he’s one of the most quiet, softly-spoken guys.” Brady says he is in awe of Gill, who trains hard but still finds time to lend a hand. Gill was “walking on water” after claiming a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games, says Walter.

“He said, ‘I know if I throw that, I’m in’.” Medal magic... Jacko Gill (left, with gold-winner Tom Walsh) and Imogen Ayris celebrating their success

Jacko Gill already has plenty of young fans at the Takapuna Athletics Club, but after winning a silver medal at the Common wealth Games, the gentle giant can expect even more attention from junior clubmates.

The couple, both field athletes themselves, have resumed coaching Jacko, a high-achieving teenager whose adult career was in recent years hampered by heart-condition myocarditis and injuries.Hisdetermined battle back into contention at the top of his event took him to a personal best of 21.90 metres in the Birmingham final, second to Kiwi teammate Tom Walsh, who threw 22.26 metres. “It’s probably one of best moments of my career,” he said later. “To come back from the heart issues has been huge.”

Introduced to McCartney’s coach Jeremy McColl at the Millennium track just a few months later, 13-year-old Takapuna Athletics Club hurdler and high-jumper Ayris got her first taste of pole-vault. “It was always something I wanted to try,” she said. “I never looked back.” Her background in gymnastics and jump ing proved handy for the exacting discipline.

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Even as a a child watching sport on televi sion, Imogen Ayris knew she wanted to go to the Commonwealth Games or the Olympics.

Early ambition set Shore athlete on path to pole-vault

He paid tribute to the support of his parents, and that of mentor Dale Stevenson.

With her mother Bridget and brother Harry, 20, in the stands at the games, Ayris had plenty of support. Her biggest fan, her English-born father Barny, died of cancer two years ago, but his brother, sister and aunt, who all live in Sport

“It was wonderful to see him like that, so happy,” said Walter, who watched from home in Devonport, while Jacko’s mother, Nerida, was in Birmingham to witness their son’s success in person.

The two shot-putters get on well, despite their rivalry, Walter said. “They’ve become a duo. They’re two great New Zealand throwers and the standard’s really high.” The Kiwi pair were well ahead of the rest of the Games field.

“It was always an aim,” she said. “I just never knew what sport it would be.”

“It’s just been a magic time,” Walter said. “And we’re looking forward to more.”

“I did an open day at TGS. Eliza was in the sports room and I knew it was the place I wanted to go,” she recalled to the Flagstaff.

• A club open day with special guests is planned on Saturday September 24, before the athletics season starts in late October.

True colours... Imogen Ayris competing in blue and yellow, with a youth medal

Riding the wave... Takapuna Athletic Club president Dan Brady is keen to rebuild junior membership in the wake of Covid Takapuna Athletics Club is looking forward to the summer season with hopes the Com monweath Games – and the medal-winning performances of two of its athletes – will fur ther boost interest in “the sport for everyone”.

At Wednesday competition nights in sum mer, parents can sit on the grassy banks and watch, or volunteer to help as their youngsters compete. Brady and the committee have plans to spruce-up the clubrooms, but first the ground itself is in for an overhaul by Auckland Council.

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“Jacko and Imogen are two very different athletes, said proud president Dan Brady. “Everyone can find something in athletics.”

The club has some promising juniors coming through, but Brady says it is also keen to rein force its reputation as a family-friendly place where children can just give it a go.

Birmingham, were there.

The University of Auckland exercise sci ence student, who returned to New Zealand last week, aims to compete domestically over summer.Shewants to be back in action internation ally for the next world championships, with an eye to the Paris Olympics in 2024. She appreciates having people at her club and her old school following her progress. She keeps in touch with some TGS staff. “It’s cool to have an affiliation.”

It catered for a range of body types and skills, he said. All children could compete and learn and be able to track their own improvements. “You get all these different kids involved and being successful on their own terms.”

It draws membership from across the lower North Shore, with Gill coming from Devonport and Ayris living in Northcote Point. Junior membership stands at 280 and Brady is keen to build this back to pre-Covid figures of around 350. Adults wishing to get back into athletics are also welcome at a separate Tuesday evening competition. Over winter the club has a harriers section, catering for distance runners. Brady is looking to start a junior harriers sec tion, mindful that some strong young runners would benefit from the year-round opportunity.

“It’s become more of a rugby field than an athletics field,” notes Brady. To allow for a project to improve track and field drainage, athletes will this summer move onto the main rugby grounds. An upside is the added visibil ity of the temporary location may draw extra interest. By the 2023-24 season they will be back at home off Akoranga Dr. Future-proofing the club is dear to Brady’s heart. He started there as a child and now his own son and daughter are members. A career firefighter who lives in Bayswater, Brady was a 400m runner and hurdler, who won national junior titles before playing premier rugby for North Shore. He also helped build the clu brooms in 1994, which he now wants to revi talise with new kitchen and bathroom facilities.

“One of the best things about Takapuna is it’s a multi-generational club,” he says.

The long-established club prides itself on its coaches, who include Gill’s parents Walter and Nerida, who as former athletes now enjoy encouraging the next generation. “The Gills are a rarity, they’re constant givers,” says Brady. They coach Jacko as well as hundreds of juniors on club nights at Onewa Domain. Ayris trains at AUT Millennium, which has specialist pole-vaulting facilities, but like Gill she proudly competes in club colours domestically. Both won age-group medals, with Gill also a discuss thrower in his younger years. All-rounder Ayris was keen on high jump and hurdles before picking up a pole when she was 13. Now the two former Takapuna Grammar School students have truly justified their standing as New Zealand representatives.

Shotputter Jacko Gill and pole-vaulter Imo gen Ayris both joined the club in their primary school days. This month in Birmingham, their years of training paid off when the 27-yearold shot-putter won silver and the 21-year-old vaulter took bronze.

To current students dreaming of success, Ayris said: “Just stick with it – it’s so worth it. There’s no miracles along the way. You just keep working at it and suddenly you’re at the Commonwealth Games.”

“He was my taxi driver growing up, and even when I was driving he would come along,” recalled Ayris. The family celebrated together at her grand mother’sDuringhome.themedal ceremony, Ayris says she felt more nervous than when competing, but on a victory lap with the other medallists she enjoyed seeing New Zealand flags and famil iar faces among the warm-hearted Brummie crowd.Plans to go on from the Games to competi tion in Europe were stymied when a scan on a “niggly” foot revealed a fracture. “It was a shock. We knew something was wrong, but did not expect it to be fractured,” she said. She got to a Silver Ferns netball game in a wheelchair, but now faces a month in a moon boot and a lengthy rehab.

Takapuna Athletics Club duo Jacko Gill and Imogen Ayris delivered a double dose of Games glory, Gill winning silver in the shot-put and Ayris bronze in the pole-vault for bronze medal in Birmingham

Takapuna club basks in Birmingham medal glow Sport

Local powerhouse steps up to Shore-wide role Community organiser Sarah Thorne believes the changing face of the Shore brings a need for new connections and networks. She tells Helen Vause about the collaboration she hopes to be part of. Every stranger is just a connection and maybe a new friend Sarah Thorne hasn’t made“I’myet.the sort who wants to speak to everyone,’’ chuckles the very outgoing Thorne, who has based her career on mak ing connections – and knowing there’s so much strength in numbers. Making things happen for many is the Bayswater resident’s passion. Thorne, who has overseen numerous com munity events, is stepping down as manager of the Takapuna North Community Trust. Her mission there has been to help ensure everyone residing between Hauraki Corner and Sunnynook loves where they live. She’s led the team behind community events and programmes ranging from pre school play to pest eradication, specialised markets, ‘intergenerational dialogues’, lunchtime boogie sessions for older women, and much more. In her five years in the job, despite the major interruptions of Covid and lockdowns, she’s lost count of the new relationships she’s seen blossom, the new connections made, and the activities she’s supported.Thornesays she knows how much people of all ages in all communities like to feel they belong, with local places to go to and things to do.

“In Kenya during an Aids outbreak, there were apparently fears about blood supplies. I was amazed to find my father had bought and stored plasma in his office building just in case any of his many staff might need a transfusion. That’s the sort of thing he’d think about and see what might be needed.” Now he’s retired in Queensland – and helping out in his community there.

Team talk… Sarah Thorne says her new role with ANCAD will be all about

“For me, it’s always been about people, people,Thornepeople.”grewup in a family immersed in understanding local economies and com munities they were part of. Her father, Bob Bird, worked in inter national banking. His job took the family to a series of different countries, moving on every couple of years. Thorne grew up in Botswana, Kenya and Cameroon, then Vanuatu and Hong Kong, interspersed with attending British boarding schools. She recalls her father’s initiatives in Kenya. “I remember him helping a woman set up a programme for street kids.

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“I remember how it felt when I came to the North Shore as an immigrant with a young baby and I knew no one,” she says. Thorne, who’d lived in many countries and grown up moving around Africa, was starting all over again, getting out there and meeting people.

One of the first events she helped bring together at the trust was the popular Char lie’s playdate, at Takapuna Beach play ground. It was held in support of a little boy with health and access issues and is set to become a regular event for interested families.Access remains a concern in our commu nities, Thorne says, with a lot of room for making many amenities and places more inclusive.Arecent trip to Queensland showed her the type of work that had been done there through the provision of equipment such as floating wheelchairs, making water access possible for those who otherwise couldn’t participate.“Andchange facilities for everyone were so much better. Here, carers and families are

“You really can’t know what it will be until you are in that process of listening andOpportunitiesthinking.” always present themselves, and in these communities a wealth of skill and experience can be tapped into if you can make those connections, says Thorne.

“It’s absolutely all about collaboration, and I’m all about that and I can’t wait to get started.”

George WO OD

Thorne says her new job will have the same elements of connecting, initiating and enabling, but on a bigger scale than she has been working on at the community trust. She says the communities of the North Shore are part of a markedly different land scape from even a decade ago.

Thorne first discovered New Zealand as a backpacking teen, and once she’d finished her degree in social anthropology she returned with a working visa, ready for a new adventure. With a bunch of young flatmates, she gatecrashed a party where she met her fu ture husband, Richard Thorne, who is the publisher of NZ Musician. The couple have raised their two daugh ters, Maddy and Eloise, in Bayswater. When her children were both in school, Thorne found a full-on job running a farm ers’ market in Parnell. After four years of overseeing the vibrant event every weekend – and being on-site by six in the morning, she’d had Locally,enough.she’dspent plenty of time with her own kids at the Devonport Community House and, in 2009, she set up and ran the craft market there, while also making and selling her own colourful fabric crafts. Managing the community trust and grow ing the events it can offer all sections of the community has been a great fit for her. “I’ve loved every minute of it. I can’t tell you how much joy I get out of seeing people at events and seeing what they’re getting out of what we have created,” Thorne says. “The job has been about facilitating good ideas or giving others the opportunity to do that. But to work well, it has to respond to what the communities actually want and“Someneed. things that seem to be great ideas never take off, for many reasons.” Often, fledgling events and plans can fail because there is no one available with the skills or time to lead them, she says. Volunteering is a big part of making things happen, but people’s priorities have changed.“People are much busier these days. They just want to pay and rock up and have a good time. Back in the day, many retired people would be putting a lot of time and commitment into volunteering, but the way those people are living now has changed.”

The agency arose from the North Shore Community and Social Service Council that works with multiple agencies to build community networks and initiatives.

With the changing face of local commu nities, there will be a need for a lot of dia logue about what community developments would be appropriate and feasible.

The rapid increase in apartment develop ment will boost the overall population and also the number of older people and single people living on their own.

ANT

Danielle GR

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“I can’t tell you how much joy I get out of seeing people at events and seeing what they’re getting out of what we have created.”

trying to change young adults on the back seats of Thornecars.”ismoving on to the newly created position of community-development lead for the Auckland North Community and Development agency (ANCAD).

His daughter was never one to wait for things to “Growinghappen.up,I was always out and about in the markets in Kenya, chatting to people, learning traditional games. There was lots of great craft and jewellery. As a side hustle, I used to take stuff back to London to sell when I was a student.”

Redeveloped social housing is bringing more families to the area, and with them come different cultures and needs.

“Those people will be looking for places to go and things to do and they will be look ing for new connections. People will find a way to connect and get together. But with all the planned apartments on the drawing board it’s easy to see that the new [Takapu na] town square will be an important place for the people who are living around here.”

Auckland AFL president Andriu Sucu, who is also a coach with the Tigers women’s team, says the club is looking to set the park up as “a bit of a hub” for the sport. They have come to an arrangment with the Glenfield Greyhounds rugby league club to use its clubrooms, which overlook the main field.

Registration is open for the Sunnynook September Marathon, in which people can clock up 42km at their own pace across the whole month. The free community building event was held for the first time during lockdown last year and proved a socially distanced success story, getting people into Sunnynook Park to exercise. Two laps of the park over 21 days makes up the distance. Entrants can choose when to walk, run, bike and scoot.

The Tigers are the only North Shore team in the Auckland competition of six clubs, which runs from September to December, with the women’s team starting about a month later than the men’s. Previously, the Tigers used Onepoto Do main in Northcote.

Bad weather kept North Shore swimmer Caitlin O’Reilly from ticking off another of the world marathon swim series.

Marathon swimmer denied by conditions Sport

Replacing “manky” toilets at Becroft Park in Forrest Hill would cost up to $2.3 million more than the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board has budget for. The existing block of toilets and changing rooms at the park which has playing fields have long been in a state of disrepair, the local board was told at a workshop last week. Built in 1991, it has peeling paint, rust issues, a urinal leak and a switch board that is not fire protected. Board chair Ruth Jackson labelled it “pretty manky”.

Crikey... North Shore Tigers players practising at their new Sunnynook Park home ground

Toilet upgrade has hefty price tag

“We didn’t play last year because of Covid, but we were the defending premiers in 2020,” Sucu says. “A lot of us use it as off-season for winter codes, because it’s a good way to keep fit overThesummer.”teamincludes around half a dozen Australian expatriates. Sucu has been involved in the sport in Auckland for 18 years, and says interest in the code has remained steady during that time. “There’s probably more games being shown now [on television] which I suppose increases the exposure.” It has transferable skills for other sports, he says.

“The weather wasn’t on my side for this swim but I will hopefully get another opportunity at another date,” she said. “I would like to complete the Oceans Seven in the next couple of years, but I am not in any rush as I’m currently studying at AUT.” She is studying for a BSc in para-medicine.

Aussie footy code makes new home in Sunnynook Australian rules has come to Sunnynook Park, as the North Shore Tigers set up for their first season at their new home. The club’s open day at the park earlier this month was a wet one, but that didn’t stop the players having a good session.

Tigers field a senior men’s side and a reserve side, as well as a women’s team. Players train once a week. “[For] A lot of the players, it won’t be their main sport – it’s a lot more social in thatTherespect.”sport has similarities with Gaelic football.Matches are played over four 20-minute quarters, with the ball able to be propelled in any direction by foot, clenched fist or open-hand tap, but not thrown. Knock-ons and forward passes are allowed, with points scored by getting the ball through the goal posts at any height. The Tigers club plans a women’s open day in early September, with the date yet to be set.

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The options for an upgrade on the park are a bespoke building at an estimated cost of $2.35 million, a prefabricated build at $1.85m, and refurbishing the existing facility at $1.43m. The recommended prefab option by is $722,016 more than what is available. “Even $1.4m is eye-watering,” Jackson said of the cheapest. Auckland Council staff wanted a preferred option to be considered in more detail. But it was not a “premier” location, operations man ager Sarah Jones said. “We would be inclined to do the minimum possible because it’s going to be Theexpensive.”boardwants both the prefab and refur bishment options considered, which will cost more money upfront. Local board advisor Eric Perry asked council staff to consider where the extra money could be found. Jones said she would return to the new board with information early next year.

Organiser, the Sunnynook Community Association, is taking registrations online at sunnynookcommunity.org.nz

Takapuna skip slide

MarathonBriefsreturns

Takapuna AFC’s top football side has moved out of the Northern premier league’s relegation zone with three games to play. Beating Bay Olympic 2-1 two weekends ago put Takapuna out of reach of North Shore and Waiheke which will drop to first division. Takapuna lost 4-2 to Birkenhead last weekend.

O’Reilly, who graduated from Carmel College at the end of 2021, completed the Tsugaru Strait swim in Japan, which is part of the Oceans Seven series – a marathon of open-water swims. She then went on to Los Angeles to attempt the Catalina Channel, but was not able to complete it.

“Well, I’mnot smartenoughtobea doctor so Idecidedtogo into thefood business,”he says with asmile Dill-Russell waseventually taken under the wing of theNew WorldStonefieldsstore owner,where he became agrocer ymanager,going throughanapprenticeshipineachdepartment of thestore andtraining in all back of ficeand finance functions. Beingatop “approved training operator” enabled him to buyhis first store in PalmerstonNorth Over twoyears,Dill-Russellturned thesupermarket into atop performerby Foodstuffs’three keyperformance met rics: customerser vice,staffengagement andrevenue Dill-Russell is proudofhis achieve mentswiththe store:bythe time he sold it buyers were liningupfor theopportu nity to takeitover. Hisattention is nowonlayingthe foundations for similarsuccess with the Milford store he took over in July It’s all about thepeople, he believes, andhe’sdetermined to create opportu nities forotherstodevelop their careers.

Dream comes true for MilfordNewWorld’snewowner

After turningaNew WorldinPalmerston Northintoone of NZ’s topperforming supermarkets, former WestlakeB oys High School studentDavid Dill-Russell is back on theNorth Shore,asowner-operator ofNew WorldMilford “It’sbeenadream come true to be able to ownand operate aNew Worldinthe area whereI grew up,” Dill-Russell says. Dill-Russell,a passionate community grocer,has biggoals forthe store.Hesays histhree priorities aretoofferbestpos siblecustomerser vice,abetterrange of productsand absolute freshness.

Anotheryoung manwho has worked with Dill-Russell startedout part-time, filling gro cer yshelveswhilestudying. Having worked in thePalmerstonNorth store, he is nowthe store manageratNew WorldMilford andlooking to ownhis ownFourS quareinthe near future Dill-Russell livesonthe Shorewithhis wife, Emma, whoisanexperiencedspeechthera pist,and nine-year-oldson,JT, whomay well followinhis dad’sfootsteps as ajudo black belt,and perhaps even oneday as agrocer servinghis localcommunity 100% locally owned and operated.

“Myfatherwas in thegrocery businessback in SouthAfricaand hadalsojoinedFoodstuffs as aretailoperation manager, so we wouldalways be having passionate discussions about supermarkets at thedinnertable.Hewould say things like,‘ The worldwillalwaysneed food anddoctors’, Dill-Russell recalls.

“I’m all about giving back as much as Ican by providingopportunities to my staff to succeed inside thestore,the wider group or off on their owninthe community.”

Also based on interactionswithcustomers, he will be tweakingthe store layout andadding furtherspecialty productsand agreater selection ofcraftbeerand high-end wines.

141Kitchener Road, Milford. Phone 09 4895543. OPEN 7DAYS7am-10pm.

In just twomonths, theMilford store has added 60 newproductstothe shelves –mostlybased on customerfeedback. “Milford customersare wonderful,” Dill-Russell says. “They seem well-edu catedand very understandingabout some of theissues we face on thesupplyside of things, whichisreally unique in this business.”

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Dill-Russell initially worked fora couple of large distributors,but hispassionfor customer contactfinallydrewhim to Foodstuffs andthe grocer ybusiness.

He givesthe example of abutchery managerinPalmerston Northwho he providedwithadditional trainingonall aspectsofthe business. The butcher left hisstore to start his ownbutcher y, very grateful forwhat he’d learned. “I knew from thebeginningthathe hada dreamofowninghis ownshop, so Ihelpedhim gain thebusinesstools needed to do so.Inreturnheworkedhardfor me,was very loyaland broughtour butcher y up to alevel that it wouldnot have been possiblewithout him.”

He is workingtirelesslytoachieve his biggestgoal of being“themostcustomer-drivenstore”inthe Foodstuffs’group. He arrivesatthe supermarketby5am andworks sixdaysaweek, determined to lift thestore to thelevel he wantsitto maintain. “I like to walk thefloorand talktocus tomers to understandtheir needsand product requirements,”hesays. “Wehave asysteminplace to record customerexperience andproduct requests.”

After graduating from Westlake Boys High School in 1999, Dill-Russell wona PrimeMin ister’sscholarship to theWaikato Instituteof Technolog y, wherehefocusedonhigh-per formance sports training–and acompetitive judo career After spendingafew years in Europe,with some short staysinJapan pursuinghis judo goals, he returned to NewZ ealand, decidingto follow in hisfather’sfootsteps by entering the food business on thesupplyside.

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The Westlake Boys High School first XV rugby side has reason to feel confident going into the final of the North Harbour secondary school’s rugby competition.

An ability to cultivate contacts and sniff out exclusive stories is needed, along with taking simple pictures.

Our two fortnightly newspapers alternate publishing –the Flagstaff focusing on the Devonport peninsula and the Rangitoto Observer on the wider Takapuna-Milford area. The area’scombined population of around 75,000, offers ample scope to report on everything from council to crime, arts and the environment and local sport and schools. Mostly day work, with occasional night and weekend jobs. We offer some flexibility of working hours. Over Christmas/New Year we shut down for agood summer break.

“We feel confident going in,” Mildenhall said. “They’re one of the most talented teams I’ve ever coached. They’ve worked really, really hard.”

northshoreyoga.co.nz

The Black Ferns and their coaches, including Wayne Smith (above right), held a training camp at Westlake Boys High School this month, where Tyla Nathan-Wong (above) put fullback Isaac Murray-Macgregor (16) of the 1st XV through his paces.

Code black...

Westlake unbeaten ahead of rugby final

Be part of an award-winning team that prides itself on breaking stories while also covering community activities and identities. Daily news-gathering experience and good knowledge of the lower North Shore area would be abonus for applicants. This is also an opportunity for akeen newcomer or someone returning to the workforce in the area to make a mark handlingvaried assignments in a small friendly newsroom.

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August 19, 2022 The RangiToTo obseRveR Page 19

The team went unbeaten through its 12 regular-season games, which it has only been done a handful of times before, said forwards coach Rob Mildenhall.

Westlake played Whangarei Boys High School in its semifinal at home, winning 37-10 and will play Manurewa in the final.

The effects of Covid meant that even for players who had played first XV for three years, this was their first go at the finals., said Mildenhall. “One of the effects that it’s had is it’s denied boys the opportunity to play in semifinals or finals. “We are confident, but we do know that the other teams in the Harbour comp are good and they’re well-coached,” he said. “The team really wants to do their school proud.”

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The RangiToTo obseRveR Page 20 August 19, 2022

BEHiND GLASS LIVE ACTION MYSTERY AT THE NAVY MUSEUM September 7th -10th Show begins at 7p.m. (6:30 p.m. on Saturday) Tickets $20 /$15 unwaged presents Bookings info@navymuseum.co.nz or 09 445 5186 Something isn’t right at the Navy Museum. We need your help.

August 19, 2022 The RangiToTo obseRveR Page 21

History on display... Ruth Ell with restored old photographs of the PumpHouse and (below) Lynette Jolicoeur’s painting of the building

Two long-term supporters of the PumpHouse have donated artworks now on display in the Takapuna theatre. Ruth Ell was helping for a second time, having decades ago sourced the old pho tographs she recently helped pay to have repaired and preserved as new prints. These are now back smartly on show in the theatre’s foyer. They document the early days of the PumpHouse, which was built in 1905 to be the pumping station for North Shore water drawn from Lake Pupuke. After this practice ended in the 1950s, the building fell into disrepair. From the late 1960s, determined locals fundraised to save it from demolition and repurpose it. They formed the North Shore Theatre and Arts Trust which still runs the theatre. Ell was serving on the trust’s publicity committee when she began gathering the oldAphotographs.paintingofthe heritage-listed building by another woman with a long involvement in it has also been added to the theatre’s walls.Lynette Jolicoeur, a founding member of the PumpHouse Art Gallery, which once used the space that is now the Coal Bunker Studio, donated her 23-year-old painting after finding it when she was moving house recently. It is now on an office wall that theatre manager James Bell says is decorated with a selection of PumpHouse “selfies”.

Pictures reflect theatre’s heritage

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Slipping on a platinum-blonde wig and a silk pet ticoat helps actor Meg Andrews (right) transform herself into a 1950s femme fatale, notorious for being the last woman to be hanged in England.

But Andrews says the play’s writing and ensem ble cast makes this easy. And her own research into the story of a glammed-up working-class night club hostess who shot her abusive upper-class boyfriend also underlined that Ellis was as much a victim as a villain.

There was no doubt she shot Blakely. Despite pleading not guilty, she told the court under questioning: “It is obvious that when I shot him, I intended to kill him.”

Milford / Takapuna Tides ©Copyright OceanFun Publishing Ltd www.ofu.co.nz

The jury took just 15 minutes to convict her, but there was no de fence mounted citing domestic violence and no stay of execution for diminished responsibility.

“She was one of the women in history who stood up to her partner and killed him.” That incident, when she tracked down and executed the racing-car driver and drunk bully outside a London pub, captivated the English press. Her subsequent trial and hanging in July 1955 made even bigger headlines.Thebrittle character of Roxy in the musical Chicago is said to owe more than a little to Ruth Ellis.

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“As an actor you know in your mind you’re not going through that, but it can be quite hard to shake it in your body,” she says.

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The murder case led many to question the death penalty. But Ellis shied away from endorsing a petition circulating for her reprieve.

“The control of women and their bodies is still happening now,” she says. 36 9noon Aug 23 am 9noon Aug 22Aug 21 am Aug 2043210m 4:49am 5:34pm 11:02am 11:32pm 5:52am 6:29pm 12:01pm LH 6:50am 7:21pm 12:28am 12:54pm LH 7:43am 8:10pm 1:21am 1:43pm LH 8:32am 8:56pm 2:10am 2:29pm LH 9:18am 9:40pm 2:57am 3:13pm 10:01am 10:23pm 3:41am 3:55pm 11:47pm 5:04am 5:19pm 12:04pm5:45am 6:04pm 12:30am 12:48pm 6:28am 6:53pm 1:15am 1:39pm 7:15am 7:48pm LH 2:03am 2:36pm 8:08am 8:46pm 2:57am 3:37pm 9:06am 9:44pm

She hopes, however, that the audience will still empathise with Ellis’s plight. Andrews also finds it relevant that some of the play’s themes about the lot of women are disturbingly real today, pointing to the recent Supreme Court ruling on abortion in America.

The 34-year-old, who is the marketing and box office coordinator at the PumpHouse Theatre in Takapuna, has plenty of experience in produc tions – both at professional and community level – to draw on. Having started acting at school in Palmerston North, she splits her time these days between her part-time theatre job and acting and directing, most recently staging a Matariki production.ForThrill she makes nine costume changes, including into cocktail dresses and lingerie. “I always wanted to be Marilyn Monroe, but now I’ve put on that wig it doesn’t suit me at all,” she says ruefully of the pin-up movie-star persona EllisTheadopted.character transformation and her research revealed some uncanny coincidences between herself and Ellis. They are the exact same height and Ellis’s favourite song, La Vie en Rose, is the alarm tune that wakes Andrews each morning. Clothes-wise, however, Andrews prefers today’s more relaxed dressing.

The RangiToTo obseRveR Page 22 August 19, 2022Arts / Entertainment Pages

The challenge of playing Ruth Ellis, in Compa ny Theatre’s production of The Thrill of Love, is to elicit audience empathy for a murderess.

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“I’ve always had a fascination with females who are deranged,” says Andrews, who has played Lady Macbeth in Summer Shakespeare. Finding the humanity in such roles is the key, she says. Ellis was abused her entire life, starting with sexual assault by her father and including being punched in the stomach when pregnant by her on-again, off-again lover David Blakely.

Ellis seems to have accepted her “eye-for-an-eye” sentence, says Andrews. “She was really cool, calm and collected.”

Andrews puts this down to Ellis being someone who always wanted to control her own image and improve her social standing. “She was a lot like all of us. We all want to be better,” says Andrews.

Killer role suits Shore actor’s taste for playing

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A 1985 movie about the case, Dance with a Stranger, helped propel the careers of lead actors Miranda Richardson and Rupert Everett. And a 2018 television true-crime series questioned the conduct of the inquiry. The Thrill of Love shows Ellis descending from being a sparkly personality, who was very popular with men, to becoming more broken as time goes on. Andrews says rehearsing the play, which opens at the Rose Centre this weekend, has proved emotionally draining.

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People were fascinated that Ellis would appear in court immaculately groomed and emotionally controlled, she says. “She wouldn’t go without touching up the roots of her hair.”

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Penned by Englishwoman Amanda Whittington in 2013, it is fe male-led, with Ellis and three friends at its core, though narration is by a male character who plays the investigating police inspector. Abuse is seen through Ellis’s flashbacks, which Andrews says is a powerful approach. Making these authentic was her aim over several months of rehearsing.

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Wigging out... (above, from left) Meg Andrews in the role of Ruth Ellis; Andrews rehearsing with Natasha Ross, who plays a charlady and friend; and Catherine Maunsell who plays club manageress Sylvia

The Thrill of Love produced by Company Theatre is at the Rose Centre, Belmont, until 27 August. Adult tickets $27, with some concessions available. Book at eventfinda.co.nz www.thevic.co.nz

deranged women 48 Victoria Road | (09)446 0100 |

August 19, 2022 The RangiToTo obseRveR Page 23Arts / Entertainment Pages

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Although Thrill has been performed many times in the UK, this is only its third New Zealand outing and the first in Auckland. “I couldn’t put it down,” Gent said. It explored the complexities of female friendship and the social mores of 1950s Britain. “The play is terrific, on the warmth, bitchiness and com plexities of female friendship at a time when, even if women knew the rules of the game, they often still ended up the losers in a man’s world.”

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Thrill of Love director Kathy Gent says she was attracted to the play having directed another by Amanda Whittington and appreciated the playwright’s lightness of touch with often disturbing subject matter.

Dark material written ‘with a light touch’

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