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20 Hall Street, Pukekohe tel: 09 238 3796 free phone : 0800-SEEING Formerly John Kelsey Optometrists
Weekdays 9am - 5:30pm Saturday 9am - 1pm 37 Queen Street, Waiuku Phone 235 5180
Tuesday • SEPTEMBER 9 • 2014
• PHONE: 09 235 78 35
End of an era; Hunua says goodbye to MP Dr Paul
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• FAX: 09 235 78 34
VOL 26 • NO.35
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SOLO POLE to the
A year after his life was thrown into turmoil when depression left him unable to function normally, Waiuku’s John Dennis is taking on a massive challenge. In just over 12 months, he plans to be the first New Zealander to ski solo to the South Pole.
John Dennis is a passionate man. He’s a champion for his old hometown Waiuku, his family and friends. And depression. One year ago, John’s life changed in an instant when he was struck down by a major depressive episode out of the blue. He became unable to leave the house, sleep or function normally. The journey that became his recovery led to John deciding to undertake the biggest expedition of his life – all in the name of raising awareness of the beast that depression is. In just over 12 months, John’s journey will see him aiming to make history by traversing the South Pole from Hercules Inlet, a staggering distance of 1170km. Aiming to join only two people in history to reach the pole in under 30 days, John will ski alone, with no support or assistance and make history as one of the few people in the world to ski solo to the South Pole. No New Zealander has ever
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skied a solo traverse to the South Pole before and John not only wants to complete but put New Zealand in the record books for all time. “I’ve thought about doing this since I was a young fella and my
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Waiuku, and still has many friends and immediate family within the town. He’s hoping locals will get in behind him and support his mission – it’s a cause with a cost; the price tag is just over $70,000 to get him completing the journey.
Councillor backs Tuakau clean-up Councillor Jacqui Church, (pictured), is building on the success of last year’s Keep New Zealand Beautiful week, and already has 18 community groups and schools signed up to be a part of this year’s Tuakau clean-up on Sunday 14 September. Over 120 volunteers from local schools, Lions and Rotary clubs and Tuakau Museum participated last year in a massive clean-up of the town. The Tuakau Community Clean-Up and Planting starts at 10am and runs until 12.30pm. Volunteers must register and collect their rubbish bags and gloves between 8.30am and 10am at the Tuakau Hotel. Waikato District
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illness has spurred me on to make it happen,” says John. He knows his share of heartache – as a teenager his father committed suicide, which he attributes as some of the cause of his own troubles. John’s a well-known figure in
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Council is providing 1200 native plants and some fruit trees for the planting of a Food Trail. The hard work will be rewarded with a sausage sizzle back at the Tuakau Hotel. If you are interested in joining in, email Jacqui on jacqui.church@xtra.co.nz This year’s Keep New Zealand Beautiful Week runs from the 14th to the 20th of September. It is easy to organize a clean-up event in your area, just register your event on the www.knzbcleanupweek.co.nz website. Keep New Zealand Beautiful will send you the gloves, rubbish and recycling bags, some certificates and badges for the kids.
What a deal!!!
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It’s a cost well worth it for John, who sees it as a chance to chance to raise awareness for depression that affects one in five New Zealanders and more within the Maori community. This is something John wants to highlight during one of the most extreme endurance events known to man. “Depression is still a taboo subject, especially for men – and I really want to change that,” says John. “People think you are just being weak or soft, that you should be able to ‘snap out of it’ – but it’s not like that at all.” John encourages people to follow his journey by liking his Facebook page ‘Expedition d2e’. His journey will raise not only awareness but funds, which Dennis has committed to national charity Live More Awesome. The expedition’s website is www. expedition-d2e.org. People interested in sponsoring John can email Carla Parry at carla@expeditiond2e.org.
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24” T.V $299
43 QUEEN ST, WAIUKU • PH 235 9711 • SAT: 9 - 4 • SUN: 10 - 3
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