The Weekend Sun - 9 June 2023

Just studying those intricately handcrafted animals – from tiny ies and spiders through to large elephants and camels – is something to marvel at. e rare toy – likely to be near 200 years old –

is a 165-piece Noah’s Ark set that has been gifted to e Elms in Tauranga.

is is thanks to Tauranga resident Alison Underwood, pictured, who has gifted her family’s hand-crafted heriloom to e

Elms – where she is a tour guide – after having it sit on top of a china cabinet in her hallway for more than 20 years.

Alison, who is a descendant of early missionary William Williams, believes e

Elms is the right setting for such a rare and magni cent piece of history – where the public can view it in all its glory and learn its origins. Learn more on pages 6-7.

Photo: Brydie ompson.

Phone 07 578 0030 www.theweekendsun.co.nz

1 The Strand, PO Box 240, Tauranga ads@thesun.co.nz newsroom@thesun.co.nz

The Weekend Sun is published every Friday and distributed throughout the Western Bay of Plenty from Waihi Beach, through Katikati, Tauranga, Mount Maunganui, Papamoa and Te Puke and available to collect at many stand locations throughout the area. For a full list of stand locations see https://theweekendsun.co.nz/stand-locations.html

Produced by Sun Media Ltd, an independent and locally owned company based at 1 The Strand, Tauranga.

Sun Media Ltd Directors: Claire & Brian Rogers Editor: Merle Cave Editorial: Letitia Atkinson, Alisha Evans, Rosalie Liddle Crawford, Taylor Rice, Georgia Minkhorst, Hunter Wells

Photography: John Borren. Publications Manager: Kathy Sellars. Advertising: Jo Delicata, Karlene Sherris, Suzy King, Lois Natta, Sharon Eyres, Sophie Main, Felicity Alquist. Design Studio: Kym Johnson, Kerri Wheeler, Amy Bennie, Caitlin Burns O ce: Angela Speer, Kristina Clayton

It’s awfully warm in the kitchen

It was like a red rag to a bull... well, a rabbit in this case.

Except we rabbits aren’t sensitive to red – we are dichromatic, two colour vision, mainly green and blue, but excluding other hues like red. I think that’s how we work. We don’t see red.

But it didn’t stop Jim B seeing red and getting all bloody minded when a reader laid down the gauntlet.

It got my bobtail all twitchy and me all angsty and defensive. Horrible!

“You won’t be publishing this, so good day to you sir.”

at was the writer’s parting shot. “You won’t be publishing this…”

Why not? I once read ‘every man should periodically be compelled to listen to opinions which are infuriating to him’. So let’s get it out there.

at excerpt was part of a letter, sealed and cellotaped, and dropped down the rabbit hole by rural delivery onto the nicely-compacted earthen oor last week.

Bad feeling

Sometimes mail comes down the hole, other times I get it in the neck. “But neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night stays the postman from swift completion of their appointed rounds – even to rabbits down rabbit holes.” e ever so slightly amended postman’s oath.

e intuitive Doe had a bad feeling about this letter. “Don’t open it,” she pleaded.

Why not? “It might be contaminated with garlic, vinegar or chilli – stu we hate. Or, heaven forbid, myxomatosis.”

Don’t be silly – Tauranga’s not like that. We’re passionate and opinionated but not downright evil, or animal abusers.

Anyhow, I sco ed and opened the letter.

e heat in the kitchen soared.

I momentarily considered getting out.

“Dear Bunny…” – a pleasant enough, respectful, opening gambit. But then…

“Your ‘spray’ re the conservative unwashed did you no favours,” our correspondent wrote. “You were clearly interviewing your keyboard.”

e letter was obviously prompted by e Weekend Sun page 2 opinion piece –‘Naysayer central – kao!’ – which suggested that negativity and self-interest may be doing Tauranga a disservice, blocking infrastructure like a new stadium.

But the letter doesn’t address the stadium issue, or the substance of the opinion piece. It was more a vitriolic attack on the writer.

Mind you, this correspondent wasn’t alone.

In the column a former ‘farmer’ railed against a stadium. Our correspondent continues – “ e farmer is a group you have been brainwashed to dislike.”

“You didn’t say what sort (of farmer). He could have been growing organic. Vegies for ‘greens’ like you.”

dog, cats, lambs, mice, pet hedgehog and an aviary. And we would go shooting and shing and harvesting mushrooms. We didn’t live on the land but we lived o it. And I can think of 10.6 billion reasons why I appreciate farmers’ contribution to our GDP.

About boats

e correspondent also climbed into me about boats. “ e bit about the boat was pure fantasy. If it (the ex-farmer’s boat) weren’t worth a million, he wouldn’t tell you.” Fair enough. I prefer cricket bats, and don’t pretend to understand how personal boaties feel about their boats. ere’s a nal salvo. “Your (sic) thank God for commisars (sic) tells me you buy into big govt. And state run everything. Which third world country do you think we should copy?”

Commissars were Soviet communist party o cials charged with indoctrinating the public with communist ideology. And do we really have to revisit why the city is in the hands of a quiet, capable, un appable few at the moment? “And those oldies playing croquet you nd amusing. Socialist countries have few of those facilities.”

Yep – I suspect there is a green streak. But it’s not front and foremost. He goes on …

“Your attitude to farmers dates you at 35, plus or minus ve years. You were subject to the anti-farming crap in our schools in that period and you bought into it.”

Bless you

Bless you on that one. Because, while a rabbit in the wild lives about eight years, this ropey, crotchety old buck has clocked up nine times that, plus one or two. So coming up 73. I spent my school holidays working on a farm, learned to drive on a Massey Ferguson, had a role model brother in Young Farmers and worked for a stock and station agency. Our home, albeit a suburban one, was a veritable farmyard – chooks, rabbits,

Civil discussion

Croquet – a noble game. Part of the great Wimbledon sporting institution – the All England lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. e question is not whether we should have croquet facilities, but whether it should be played at the domain? It’s for discussion. And then that parting shot, the complimentary close. “You won’t be publishing this, so good day to you sir.” e Sun has withheld the correspondent’s name. Little was to be gained by publishing it. However publishing the substance of the letter demonstrates the role of a community newspaper, to encourage a platform for civil public discourse on matters a ecting them. Civil as in any meaning of the word –relating to citizens and their concerns. And courteous and polite. Email:hunter@thesun.co.nz

these rabbits

a

DOC.

Beating around the beard Beating around the beard

Questions about Wills or Enduring Powers of Attorney?

A student has been suspended from Pāpāmoa College for having a beard despite it “representing his family’s culture”.

e college’s principal Iva Ropati, who started in October 2022, introduced new rules at the start of the year including a facial hair ban, with cultural exemptions applying.

A student and his father have contacted e Weekend Sun on the basis of anonymity after the son was suspended.

“I’ve had facial hair for the past three or four years I’ve been at this school,” says the student.

“It represents my family’s culture.

“All the men in my family have facial hair, and it reminds me of them and our strength.”

Two options

With the new rule, the student claims his school is giving him two options “either shave or leave school” and he was recently suspended for a week-and-a-half due to his beard.

His father says: “I had to pretty much beg them to accept him back but they put conditions on”.

e student says: “I’m not actually allowed in class. “I have to sit in an o ce and do all my work in that o ce. I’m not allowed out at breaks or lunchtime”.

e Sun asked Pāpāmoa College’s principal Iva why the facial hair rule was created. “At the end of last year our board went out to our parent community and asked them some key questions about what they’d like to see changed; and overwhelmingly the parent community said that we needed to lift standards and raise achievement,” says Iva.

Asked whether the parent community speci cally asked to ban facial hair as part of lifting school standards, Iva stated: “ ey didn’t speci cally state facial hair – no, but any part of lifting standards around uniform, how they present themselves, how they feel and look – a big part of that is increasing the level of pride and that did come through from parents”.

e parent says they’ve had a couple of meetings with the school about their son’s facial hair. “I’ve complained to the board explaining my reasoning but the school replies: ‘I don’t know your culture. We’ve never heard about that’...‘we need a formal letter from a cultural leader’.” Iva says: “We have an application process for any students who feel as though they have some grounds for exemption, and so they go through that process of making an application and we’ll look at each case on an individual”.

Shouldn’t have to

e parent says they’re getting an o cial letter from a representative from their country, yet they feel they or others shouldn’t have to go to these lengths. “It’s not fair to the others to deserve this …like all the other schools like Te Puke College, or Mount Maunganui College are doing the opposite, and scrapped that rule from the beginning because they say these rules are segregating the students.

“It’s not just about facial hair. It’s what he believes, it’s deeper and his roots, and I don’t think he needs to explain himself.”

**Read this story in full at: www. sunlive.co.nz

Georgia Minkhorst

tauranga@baywidecls.org.nz www.baywidecls.org.nz

e student and father have beards as part of their family’s culture.

Photo: John Borren.

New face for Downtown Tauranga

Bustling boutique stores, festival fun, and people ooding the streets to dine and kick back for happy hour. e place to be.

is is how new Downtown Tauranga chair Ashleigh Gee pictures the future of Tauranga CBD – and she’s ready to hear

I

the community’s ideas too.

Taking up the role as chair back in April, Ashleigh says she’s passionate about the city going through its transformation process.

“Seeing what has gone on over the past few years in the city centre with people moving out, Covid-19 and things like

that – [becoming chair] was an opportunity for me to basically help revitalise the city centre and bring a bit of community feel to our city and bring the businesses closer together.

“ e role of Downtown Tauranga is to support, promote and advocate for the city centre businesses.”

Miss Gee’s Ashleigh has had her own business in the CBD – Miss Gee’s Bar & Eatery – since 2019. After developing a social network group called Initiate with a friend, connecting people for drinks and fun – this snowballed into Miss Gee’s.

“I was quite enjoying hosting people, putting events on and things like that so an opportunity came up for me to launch my own hospitality venue, and that’s how Miss Gee’s came about with my love of electronic music as well.”

Since starting her business, Ashleigh says she’s seen a lot of change in Tauranga City. “ ere’s been a massive shift obviously with people working from home.

“We’re missing a lot of our o ce workers and with the access… there’s been a shift in the way people are

visiting the city centre.” Yet she believes there’s huge opportunities awaiting in Downtown Tauranga. “We’re seeing more and more people starting to take up businesses and vacant spaces in the city centre and launch their own little businesses.

“ ere’s a little bit of a start-up wave starting to happen, which is really exciting.

Plenty of potential

“For me, the potential the CBD has got with the investment the council’s putting into the city centre at the moment – we’re going to go from what we’ve got now, to a really cool place to be.

“I picture heaps of people working in the o ces and coming out for lunches, happy hours and dinners, with the boutique retail...and festivals in downtown.”

She sees this happening with working alongside Tauranga City Council “to give them feedback of how we can better structure the city and how it operates and making sure that the way all the bylaws that we’ve got to adhere to are actually trying to invigorate the city centre and not make it harder”.

Read this story in full at: www.sunlive.co.nz

We want to help our community get access to affordable housing for years to come

We’re proposing to invest in a Housing Equity Fund with the funds acquired from selling elder housing villages. Seven elder housing villages were sold to Kāinga Ora in 2022, and two remaining villages previously used for elder housing, Pitau Road village and Hinau Street village in Mount Maunganui, are being sold for private redevelopment.

Housing supply is a priority to us, and we want to know what you think about our proposal to invest the sale proceeds into a Housing Equity Fund to deliver affordable housing in Tauranga.

For more information and to share your thoughts visit: letstalk.tauranga.govt.nz/housing-proceeds Consultation closes 5pm, Wednesday 21 June

Sam Uffindell MP for Tauranga

Owner of Miss Gee’s Bar & Eatery, Ashleigh Gee, is the new chair of Downtown Tauranga. Photo: John Borren.

Georgia Minkhorst

It will be the rst of its kind on a Bay of Plenty river and will open a raft of opportunity for water-based recreation in the coming year.

Bay of Plenty Coast Rowing Club is on a mission to create a pontoon for rowing boats, canoes and the community on the Wairoa River.

e pontoon project has been in the pipeline since 2016, says master rower and project manager, Charlie Burns and was raised due to safety concerns.

“At the moment we’ve got kind of a slippery muddy bank that we go down and launch the boats from a little beach,” says Charlie.

“I’ve fallen over on the [bank] carrying a boat – so originally the idea was because we need a safer way to get down to the water so people don’t hurt themselves.”

For everyone

e whole project will include a concrete slipway for coach boats, a ramp and pontoon for rowing boats, and retaining to secure the riverbank.

“ e pontoon is to make the river accessible to recreational water users, so it’s not just for us.

“We’ve got a canoe crew up there, people like to swim there in the summer so anybody will be able to use it.”

e pontoon itself will be about four metres wide and 20 metres long, says Charlie. “ e whole thing costs just under $525,000. It’s unbelievable.”

A new way to launch

When the project was rst planned seven years ago the estimated cost was about $140,000, says Charlie. “ e project timing was unfortunate. “ e global pandemic held us up quite a bit and had a dramatic impact on cost.”

Home-grown hopes

Charlie says typical rowing pontoons are manufactured overseas. “We’ve just had an engineer join the club and he’s quite keen to see if he can construct the pontoon domestically.”

Charlie says the club is still fundraising and currently has $385,000 raised from di erent grants. “If we get enough funds we’ll be able to import something from overseas.

“If we don’t then we’re going to have to gure out how to do something more home-grown.”

Charlie says rowing pontoons are all over New Zealand but there isn’t enough to manufacture them in our country. “ e nearest [river pontoon] that we went to look at was out in Hauraki... they’ve made that themselves.”

Whether imported or home-grown, the club is aiming to kick o construction between August and February, after whitebait spawning season has nished. “We can’t disturb the riverbed during the whitebait spawning season so that ends in August and we’re trying to get all of our ducks in a row so we can do it later this year.

“Everyone’s pretty excited of the prospect of us pulling it o before Christmas – so ngers crossed!”

Georgia Minkhorst

Project manager and master rower Charlie Burns and head coach Ted Phelps at the muddy bit of beach where the rowing boats are currently launched.

Photo: John Borren.

Love Master Lupin

Introducing Master Lupin, the very handsome and athletic ve-year-old Huntaway. While we’re unaware of Lupin’s history, we do know while being in shelter care, he is very smart and very eager to please. He will thrive on a larger section and even agility courses.

He loves to be active so he’d make an amazing exercise companion. Being ve, he is still young enough to learn new tricks and adapt to a new family life but also over the silly puppy stage. With a bit of help, he would settle quickly and lovingly into a new home. Enquire today to meet Lupin. Call the Tauranga centre on: 07 5780245. Ref: 575009.

The rules have changed

Adopting a puppy has opened the entrepreneurial door for a resourceful and enterprising 11-year-old Mount Maunganui student.

Flo Scrivener has not only raised $300 for the RRR animal rescue charity through her crafty design ideas, but she and younger sister Mabel, 8, now have a new furry family member.

eir father Marcel Scrivener says the family recently fostered two puppies from a litter of 10 that was dropped at RRR. Named ‘Ebony’ and ‘Al e’, they were two weeks old when they arrived last September. “ e plan was to just keep them for a few weeks over the school holidays.”

Flo and Mabel bottle-fed the two puppies, including getting up to feed them in the night.

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“ en we decided to keep ‘Ebony’. We wanted to keep both for a while but decided that one was the right choice.”

Now eight months, the puppy has given the family a huge lot of joy.

“We found a really good home for ‘Al e’ in Pyes Pa with four girls. We have met up with them on a play date and ‘Al e’ is doing really well.”

During the last eight months, Flo has raised money for RRR by selling crafts and jams at local markets. Recently surpassing her goal of raising $250, she’s planning to hand the money over in person soon.

“I realised RRR didn’t have as much money as other rescue centres and they get other animals dropped in all the time,” says Flo.

She was already making epoxy resin jewellery and items out of polymer clay. From there she had the idea to sell them at a market.

For about six weekends, Flo has been at the Freedom Market at Faith Bible College Welcome Bay. She’s also had a stall at the Tauranga Farmer’s Market Kids’ Market, which is generally held the rst Saturday of each month.

Flo says the highlights of the last few months are “de nitely getting ‘Ebony’ and also getting my goal”. “And also when people say ‘Well done’. I’m happy with that.”

She has further ideas, expanding on her original range. “I was thinking of making things like macramé, improve my jewellery skills and be able to invest back into supplies.

“We want ‘Ebony’ to do agility classes in the future. She goes down to the beach twice-a-day and meets other dogs. It’s a great way to meet the community with dogs, and it encourages us to exercise.”

Rosalie Liddle Crawford

Above: Flo Scrivener, 11, with her market stall.

Photo: Marcel Scrivener.

Right: Flo Scrivener with ‘Ebony’. Photo: John Borren.

More hands needed to lift astro dream

Do you have a love of the stars? Are you keen on learning more about astronomy?

e local astronomical society is needing passionate and dedicated people to help run a range of interesting events at Tauranga’s observatory.

Due to its unobtrusive design with a at sliding roof, instead of a familiar dome, many don’t realise the observatory is tucked away inside the Otūmoetai Sports and Recreation Club building at Fergusson Park.

Tauranga Astronomical Society president David Greig says they previously had a large pool of available and able-bodied volunteers to help with the many activities run by the society.

“Unfortunately, over the past three years, mainly due to age, health and people moving away, our valuable team has been seriously depleted.

“We have a fantastic core team of very dedicated people but most of us have various physical and health challenges that make our e orts increasingly di cult.

Desperate for help

“We desperately need more volunteers to help us spread the load so that our remaining good keen volunteers don’t burn out – myself included.”

David is now the only person who feels capable to present programmes, including the ‘Astronomy 101’ programme for visiting children. “ e busiest time of the year for us is between June to the end of September when we have numerous bookings from schools,

home-school groups, Scouts, Cubs, Keas, Sea Scouts, various social clubs, kindergartens and also the occasional retirement village.

Vitally important

“ ese bookings are vitally important to us as they provide much-needed income to help us cover our operating costs and to help with making improvements to the observatory and equipment.”

David has a long-term health condition – ME/CFS –Chronic Fatigue Syndrome – which takes its toll on him quite severely after each meeting and booking session. As such he’s reluctant to con rm too many bookings until he has enough helpers.

“ ere are a number of tasks and roles that we need help with. Everything from putting out chairs through to setting up and operating telescopes.

e audio-visual equipment needs to be set up for each meeting. We can use some more help in the kitchen... ere are many other tasks in between that all need people to do them.”

He says people don’t need formal teacher training, just an enthusiasm for sharing astronomy with others.

e next TAS meeting, at 7.30pm Tuesday, June 13, at the club building is also the AGM, and will have a live presentation of the society’s history. Annual membership is $40 per adult, $50 per family, $20 for tertiary students. Under-16s are free. To learn more, see: tas.org.nz or the TAS Facebook page.

Rosalie Liddle Crawford

Tauranga Astronomical Society president David Greig needs more volunteers to help run the observatory.

Photo: John Borren.

New name to help men thrive

Male Survivors Bay of Plenty is having a relaunch next week on June 16, and will change the organisation’s name to Tautoko Tāne - Male Support Services Bay of Plenty.

As a charitable trust, Male Support Services Bay of Plenty was established to o er support for men who have experienced any form of sexual abuse.

Lead counsellor and manager Bruce Montgomery says the charity has been aware of the impact the word ‘survivor’ can have on some clients. “We wanted to take the

word ‘survivor’ out of the name.

“ at can be triggering for some of the guys. I would like to get away from the word ‘survivor’ and replace it with ‘thriver’ you know.

“ riving instead of surviving.

“It’s turned into a bit of a rebranding with Male Survivors Aotearoa. e whole government body is rebranding to Tautoko

Tāne.” To talk to Tautoko Tāne - Male Support Services Bay of Plenty, call: 027 27 18898 or email: support@msbop.nz

Georgia Minkhorst

Noah’s Ark toy anchors

e Elms Te Papa Tauranga now displays a rare, historic wooden toy with a unique link to the mission station, with the lady donating it being a descendant of early missionary William Williams.

Tauranga woman Alison Underwood – who is a tour guide at e Elms – has gifted her family’s handcrafted Noah’s Ark after having it sit on top of a china cabinet in her hallway for more than 20 years.

e toy is thought to have been brought to New Zealand by William Williams, a member of the Church Missionary Society and close friend of Alfred Brown.

Alfred also served as a CMS missionary in New Zealand from 1829 to 1884. e Brown family took up residence at Te Papa (Tauranga) in January 1838 – and it was on part of this land where the mission house stood and was purchased in 1873 by Alfred, to be named e Elms.

Alison, who wants the treasure to be enjoyed by the public, says: “It seems appropriate for the Ark to be displayed in a house that was the Te Papa Mission Station”.

“I’ve had it about 23 years, and it was sitting in my mother’s house for 20 years before that,” says Alison.

Good friends

She started guiding at e Elms in 2019 after being encouraged by a historian friend.

“For the past 15 years I’ve wanted to give the Ark to a museum – it was just a question of which one.

“When I started guiding at e Elms, I thought: ‘ is is ideal’. e reason that cemented my choice is that William Williams was such a good friend of Alfred Brown. It is the right setting.”

Alison believes the toy is close to 200 years old.

“ e reason I say this is because William Williams came out to New Zealand just under 200 years ago.

“Also, later versions of such a toy seem to be painted – this one has no paint.”

Alison Underwood with the hand-crafted family heirloom she has donated to e Elms.

Photos: Brydie ompson.

at The Elms

As such, Alison believes people who visit e Elms will appreciate the heirloom and the history behind it. “It’s so beautifully carved – it was probably carved by candlelight by German farmers – it’s just absolutely amazing.”

Alison says the toy originally had 200 creatures –today there are 165 pieces. “I’ve also gifted a list that comes with it, which identi es all of the creatures and the people.”

Grateful

e Elms Foundation Trust is extremely grateful for the donation. General manager Andrew Gregg says: “We are humbled that Alison has entrusted this precious family heirloom to e Elms Foundation”.

“ e Ark and collection of animals have been positioned on top of the piano inside the Drawing Room, where it can be seen and admired from behind the barrier rope.

“It seemed the appropriate place given there are other educational toys close by.”

Andrew says Noah’s Arks were among the most popular wooden toys of the 19th Century and have been manufactured since the 1700s. “It’s virtually impossible to identify who made the Williams’ family Ark, as it was largely a cottage industry centred mostly in Sei en, Germany.”

Andrew says William Williams visited the Te Papa Mission Station and regularly corresponded

with Alfred Brown. “ e Ark is a good example of a toy in the 19th Century and was also known to be used by early missionaries to explain the biblical tale to Māori.”

e Williams family

William Williams came to New Zealand in 1826 and with wife Jane joined Henry Williams at the CMS mission station in Paihia where he was initially responsible for the Boys’ school. In the 1830s, William journeyed extensively throughout the Waikato, but by 1840 he had settled at the mission station at Tūranga (present-day Gisborne) and in 1859 was installed as the rst Anglican Bishop of Waiapu.

Alison says the Ark may have come with him on his rst journey to New Zealand, or sent out later.

She believes William Williams would have passed the toy down to his son William Leonard Williams, then to his daughter Margaret Ellen Williams, who married into the MacLean family.

Alison is the great grand-daughter of Margaret Ellen Williams – who married Christopher MacLean – and so the sixth generation to own the family heirloom.

To view the historical treasure, you can visit e Elms at 15 Mission St, Tauranga. e Elms is open 11am-3pm daily, via an entry charge.

We all know what we need to do to boost our health and wellbeing. It starts with looking after ourselves as well as we caneating and sleeping well, and being active, all help.

e Noah’s Ark toy has 165 magni cent pieces on display.

Merle Cave

Western Bay of Plenty District Council is considering delaying the adoption of its Annual Plan for 2023/2024.

e council’s Annual Plan Committee will meet next Wednesday, June 14, and consider moving the adoption until Wednesday, August 30.

While councils across New Zealand traditionally adopt an Annual Plan by June 30 each year, the council can

delay this process and still comply with the statutory timeframes, according to WBOPDC chief executive o cer John Holyoake.

John says the delay will allow time for further consultation on its nancial contributions and for the property revaluation process to be completed.

“It is important the time is taken now on these two matters to ensure a true and accurate Annual Plan,” says John.

Council may delay Annual Plan Get tickets to gala event for MS

Fine dining, a night of entertainment, and support for a good cause. Bay of Plenty’s Multiple Sclerosis Society is holding a gala in order to raise funds to continue their work.

BOPMS events coordinator Joni Bentham says the charity gala evening at Baypark arena on June 17, will be an evening of great fun.

“We’ve got some amazing prizes, we just need people to be aware of it and put up their hand and say: ‘Yup we’ll pay $100 and come.”

Masquerade-themed e masquerade-themed event will raise funds to support individuals with multiple sclerosis. Joni says the society

provides support in the form of a eld worker. “She will periodically go and visit everyone, and just nd out what they need. Do they need help with lling out forms for disability services? Or do they need other support to help them live their daily lives?”

e society also hosts exercise classes. “We also do a little social group and we meet once a month and just go for a drink.”

Joni has MS. She herself found support and community in BOPMS, and recognises the impact of the society. “It’s really important because I remember when I was diagnosed I just felt so lonely, I just wanted to talk to people that were in my shoes.”

Joni says this event is a community e ort. “Maybe that re ects that it is such a good cause, you know most people you talk to will know someone

with MS, or has been in contact with someone with MS and can kind of slightly understand it, or even if they don’t, are curious about it.”

Amazing prizes

Joni says the June 17 gala is not to be missed! ere’s guest speakers, including Sir Gordon Tietjens, scrumptious food and a live auction. “ e prizes up for grabs are incredible – glamping, dinner vouchers, Bed Bath & Beyond merchandise, a hot pools experience and more. We’ve got some amazing prizes – we just need people to be aware of it and put up their hand and come.”

e BOP MS Masquerade Gala is at Baypark on June 17. Tickets are $100 on: eventbooking.com Or call: 027 362 7952 or email: admin@bopms.co.nz

Tauranga athletes showcase artistic swimming!

is Saturday, June 10, Tauranga Synchro club athletes will take to the pool at Baywave to showcase their artistic swimming routines they’ve prepared for the upcoming North Islands artistic swimming championships.

e display will feature athlete Evander Claydon, who is re ning a solo routine to Abba’s ‘Chiquitita’, a piece they will take to the International Gay and Lesbian Aquatics LGBTQ+ aquatics championships in London later this month. e routine is an upbeat expression of living life to the full.

Evander, who has been at swimming for nine years, also gives back to the community by coaching the Adaptive Synchro athlete at the club.

eir swimmer Maddy Uden will perform a solo as the youngest member in Saturday’s display. Tauranga Synchro prides itself on being one of the only synchro clubs in the country to o er one-on-one training to neurodivergent athletes within an Adaptive synchro programme.

e display will comprise solo, duet, and group routines from athletes of all ages, and promises to be a spectacle of creativity, acrobatics, and athleticism. e NZ Aquaferns, the NZ Artistic Swimming team, are also due to perform routines.

e display is 10.30am-midday June 10 at Baywave. Spectators welcome – Baywave’s spectator fee may apply.

Chloe Davison

Invite Vixen into your heart

Hi there. My name is Vixen. I’m a teen pup trying to nd a special family to call my own. My siblings and I were born on Christmas, then surrendered to the rescue. Many of my siblings have found families. I’m still looking. My foster family say I’m a sweet, adventurous and a ectionate pup, and that I love playing with toys and chilling with my favourite people.

Do you have a voice for radio?

I’ve been introduced and get along nicely with kids, cats, dogs, stock animals. My ideal family would be those who can give me the lifelong love and care I need to thrive.

I have mastered toilet training, crate training, commands, and on-lead walking.

To nd out more, message the RRR Facebook page: www.facebook.com/ RRRCanine/

ey are the voice of comfort, reassurance and hope in a crisis. ey are the Coastguard Communications East radio operators – the crucial link between boaties and the brave Coastguard rescue crews, which go to sea in all weathers and circumstances to save those in peril. Without the radio operators rescues wouldn’t happen, lives could be lost. But it’s not always life and death. e radio operators are also the rst and main point of call for boaties just having di culties – whether it be a at battery or they’ve run out of gas.

ey are Coastguard Communications East voices like Jill ‘Mindy’ Sweeney. “I joined Coastguard because I wanted to save lives,” says Mindy. She was manning the centre on a cold, blustery, wet morning this week. Only 13 boaties had reported in. But it could be hundreds during summer, because the centre covers the coastline from the top of the Coromandel, round East Cape to Hawke’s Bay, from Kaikoura to Dunedin as well as the southern lakes. A big area, a lot of boats.

Want to help

For few hours a day some Bay of Plenty coastguard units run their own service for their communities. “I want to help others avoid losing a family member.

“And I am proud to be part of a national team saving lives at sea.”

Mindy’s voice is just one of 20 manning the radio at the communication centre in Nikau Crescent at the Mount. Not everyone is going to call in with an emergency or a problem. “Most will call to give a trip report, say where they’re headed and how long they might be; and, then later, advise they are safely home.

“All happy days.”

Now they’re holding a recruitment drive – they need many more voices in readiness for summer – people with communication skills, common sense and a desire to help others. “Everything else can be learnt,” says Mindy. So they’re holding an open day on Saturday, June 17, from 10am-2pm.

If you have a voice for radio and want to be part of a team saving lives, meet the Coastguard Communications East team, look around the unit base, and hear from volunteers of their experience and what it entails. As a volunteer radio operator you’ll be part of the national communications team, the main point of contact for boaties and rescue crews.

All training is provided free and Coastguard NZ quali cations – VHF radio operator and day skipper can be obtained free. No experience is needed. Call Jill (Mindy) on: 021 743 815 to book a time to visit.

Bars

When e Sun is talking to Jill she’s monitoring TV images of the Bowentown and Whakatane bars.

“I don’t know a bar around New Zealand that hasn’t claimed a life. ey are very unpredictable and change, so that’s a lot of our work.”

en sometimes, not often, it’s the big emergency. “It depends on how they cope with stress. Sometimes we might get the awful: ‘Help, help! We’re sinking and then nothing else.” at’s when the calm, collected, trained-up volunteer kicks into gear.

“We need to determine exactly where they are, how many on board and their problem. at would get a rescue underway.”

Jill ‘Mindy’ Sweeny at her post in the Coastguard radio room. Photo: supplied.

There are very positive times ahead of us...

ere are very positive times ahead for New Zealand. I can feel it! Last week’s poll told us what we all knew already; the National Party is ready to take back government.

And what great news this is for all New Zealanders.

We have a very bright future ahead of us.

I’m looking forward to a future where our children go to school and are once again

some of the top students in the world, where they excel and are ready with the skills they need to thrive in the twenty- rst century.

ere will be high skill, high wage jobs for them to go into, because we will unlock our innovation and technology sectors and we

will export products and services that lead the world. Investment and wealth will ow into New Zealand, allowing us to build the world leading healthcare system we used to enjoy and to take care of our sick and elderly. People will be able to get around the country easily, because National will have delivered life-transforming infrastructure to enable easy movement of people and freight across our land.

Businesses and regional communities will thrive as a result. Our emissions will be down signi cantly, mainly due to us unlocking

Supporting access to affordable, healthy food

During two years – from 2022/2023 to 2024/2025

– $24.8 million will continue supporting access to a ordable, healthy, and culturally appropriate food.

Helping maintain community food distribution infrastructure, supporting food security initiatives and continuing elements of the existing Food Secure Communities programme.

Since the pandemic started, the Ministry of Social Development has supported access to food through the Food Secure Communities programme, helping deliver more than 671,000 food parcels to people in need during the Covid-19 response.

Also, $7.5 million a year for two years will maintain the community food distribution infrastructure to collect and deliver high volumes of surplus and

wholesale food. And $4 million in 2023/2024 and $3.5 million in 2024/2025 will continue seed funding for food security initiatives on a pathway to self-sustainability, allowing communities to take the lead in resilience. And $2.3 million in 2023/2024 continues targeted support to meet increased demand for community food services.

All children should live in a home where they’re fed and feel safe. I came to Parliament because of the chronic underfunding in specialist family violence services. I’m delighted that once again our government has funded Te Aorerekura New Zealand’s rst ever plan to eliminate family violence and sexual violence. e investment enables a kaupapa Māori approach to specialist sexual violence services, further funding for the Family Violence Help Portal and new funding for advocates to support children in Women’s Refuge sites. Other Budget 2023 personal favourites are nearly

Chaser to visit cleverTauranga resthome resident

Betty Wakelin of Arvida Copper Crest retirement village is expecting a very special guest today, June 9, from the popular British game show, ‘ e Chase’.

e 84-year-old was one of many retirement villagers across the country to submit questions to Shaun ‘ e Dark Destroyer’ Wallace, who picked her question

as the best at a charity competition.

He’s expected to head to the village today where he’ll meet Betty and fellow Arvida Copper Crest villagers who entered the competition for some sh and chips. Betty says to win the competition, she did some research.

“I searched him on Google and saw his mum su ers from dementia

and he is right into physical tness. I decided to ask him: ‘Do you believe physical exercise is essential to keeping your mind and memory sharp to be able to be a successful Chaser?’” She’s looking forward to meeting Shaun, and expects the villagers to pick his brain about being on one of NZ’s mostwatched game shows.

doubling our Warmer Kiwi Homes programme, and $863.8 million for increased access to – and transformation of –disability support services.

extensive renewable energy capacity and having electri ed our economy.

Our communities will be safe again as police and justice systems get the backing required to deal with issues and assist those needing rehabilitation. Exciting times ahead and National will deliver this for you!

Feedback wanted on housing investment proposal

Tauranga City Council is looking for feedback on their proposal to reinvest funds raised from a recent elder housing portfolio to support local housing needs.

e sale, which is now nearing completion, will see proceeds reinvested into the city for social and a ordable housing.

Commission Chair Anne Tolley says the intention when council rst decided to sell its elder housing portfolio was to use the funds generated to help address local housing needs, and that hasn’t changed.

“We know that access to a ordable homes is an issue for many people and we believe the best use of the elder village sale

proceeds is to support better housing outcomes for all.”

e council sold seven of its nine elder housing villages to Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities in 2022. e other two are currently in the process of being sold for private development. While some of the sale proceeds have already been committed to support local community housing providers and Papakāinga housing, the council wants to check in with the community on its proposed plans for the rest.

e rst part of the proposal involves investing $10 million in a Housing Equity Fund,

alongside Bay Trust and TECT, which are also intending to invest in the fund.

e second part of the proposal would see the remaining sale proceeds from the elder housing portfolio also being invested in the Housing Equity Fund and/ or other a ordable housing initiatives. “Housing supply is a priority for council, as is ensuring that a range of options is available to meet community needs for years to come.” Community consultation closes Wednesday, June 21. Visit the Tauranga City Council website to provide feedback, or visit the Housing Equity Fund website for more information.

Who said winter had to be dull?

With dreary days ahead, how lucky are we that we can have colour in our garden?

ink camellias, ericas, grevilleas, hebes, proteas, viburnums. vireyas and daphne. All of these varieties will ower through the greyest of days.

And at ground level, cyclamen, pansies, polyanthus, poppies, primulas, alyssum, lobelia and, of course, the spears of bulbs to get us excited as we wait for buds to

appear. Who said winter had to be dull and dreary!

FROM THE

GARDEN

With Margaret Wilson from Pacifica Garden Centre

Autumn has provided its usual bounty of colourful fallen leaves. While we may mutter deprecations about the mess, if we have the space and inclination to heap it all up in a corner – weather permitting, by summer it will have broken down enough to use as mulch. is will keep the weeds down and the moisture in.

In a garden centre, I noticed new season roses are in, just waiting for a forever home.

Before you fall for the lovely colourful

picture on the label, make sure you have a suitable home ready for it. Dig a hole about 60cm across, save the topsoil and remove about 20cm of subsoil. Mix the topsoil with compost and a few good handfuls of sheep pellets.

en put enough of that mixture back in the hole so your rose bush will sit with the lowest branches at about garden level when the hole is lled.

Firm the earth down and water well. Now prune, taking out thin or damaged branches and the remainder to an outside-facing bud. And wait until spring for a miracle to occur!

Home &

Iconic Clubhouse at The Vines officially open!

It’s been open to residents for some time – but this month a celebration o cially opened the modern Clubhouse at e Vines at Bethlehem.

Previously the iconic Mills Reef winery building, the village’s vibrant and modern Clubhouse –completed February 2022 – was o cially opened on June 2 by residents and those involved in the project from its earliest beginnings. Open since 2017, e Vines at Bethlehem is now home to 230 residents who happily populate this Classic Life retirement village.

Landmark project

e Clubhouse is a landmark project – nominated in the Property Council’s Industry Property Awards – that retains much of its original Art Deco look and feel and includes an in-house co ee lounge, a movie theatre, bar, hairdresser, beautician, meeting room, library, arts and crafts rooms, cards room, pool and snooker rooms, indoor bowls, a function room, indoor swimming pool, gym, plus an outdoor space for bowls, and pétanque. Classic Life general manager Stuart Cheeseman is thrilled with the Clubhouse.

“ e design and execution of the project has been conducted with precise attention to detail, ensuring

Learn sustainability from home

An online Zero Waste movement is giving busy Tauranga people the tools to reduce their environmental impact and live more sustainably.

Tauranga City Council is giving 100 Tauranga residents free access to the next round of ‘Zero Waste Living for Everyday People’ online training, starting Monday, June 19, thanks to funding from their Resource Wise Community Fund.

TCC manager: sustainability and waste, Dan Smith, encourages residents to sign up soon to avoid disappointment. “After nearly 100 households took part in the online training in February, we knew we needed to o er it again fairly quickly,

that it meets the speci c needs of all our residents and is t for purpose.”

e Vines sales manager Tony Stack adds the Clubhouse has proven to be a compelling selling point for the retirement village development.

“Its unique and attractive character has drawn the interest of many prospective residents, helping to set our development apart from competitors in the marketplace.”

Social connection

Drawing from Classic Group’s land development, commercial construction, residential building and retirement village businesses, the project showcases what can be achieved with the consolidation of expertise and experience from across the group.

Classic Group director Peter Cooney says central to the vision for the Clubhouse was social connection and creating spaces that accommodate “but also inspire and satisfy the needs of our residents”.

“ is was considered in every step of our planning and development, and we are delighted with the outcome.”

Peter says with one in every six people in New Zealand aged 65-plus there’s an obvious need for more lifestyle villages like this. “It is vital to create an environment that residents can transition into yet still live independently with the safety and security o ered by a village like this one.”

to keep up with the demand from our community,” says Dan. Course founder Nicola Turner from Mainstream Green says the free online course starts by looking at the big picture of waste and the impact it’s having on our lives. “We then dive into a simple framework to help you navigate your own personal approach to waste reduction.” e course runs for six weeks. Modules will be released weekly, and you can work through them at your own pace, from the comfort of your own home. Applications for this year’s RWC Fund are open until 4pm today, June 9. See: www.tauranga. govt.nz/rwcommunityfund

e ribbon cutting ceremony for the Clubhouse. Photo: Salina Galvan Photography.

e Clubhouse’s café and lounge.

e modern Clubhouse at e Vines at Bethlehem on sunset. Photo: supplied.

Japan diaries – Tokyo suburbs

It was the trip of a lifetime – one month in Japan over the cherry blossom season. From the blooming pink sakura trees and delicious food to the cute stationery and fascinating culture, a holiday to Japan was a must for me and my husband.

Our ight departed from Auckland, had a brief stop in Sydney, then carried on to Haneda Airport in Tokyo. Including our nearly two-hour layover in Sydney, it took us a bit longer than 14 hours to get from the Land of the Long White Cloud to the Land of the Rising Sun.

We arrived at 5.50am to a busy, bustling airport. We were guided through passport control and customs, and nally made it outside. Our rst day was admin – dropping o suitcases, learning the ropes when it comes to train travel, and getting used to the language.

A few trains, a bit of confusion, and maybe an overtired tear or two later, we nally checked into our rst hotel and – more importantly – a hot shower. By that time, we showered, found the closest convenience store for dinner (190m, if anyone was curious, with the next closest was 350m in case you needed some variety), and collapsed into our beds.

By rail

e next day was dedicated to exploring the wider Tokyo area, and even then we only reached two or three places. A quick walk to the underground train station, a bit of Google Translate, and a train or two later, we were in Shibuya. If I’m honest, we got a bit overwhelmed with the sheer amount of people; Tokyo is home to nearly 14 million people and Shibuya Station sees more than three million passengers daily.

We picked up our pre-arranged Japan Rail Passes and got ourselves a Pasmo card for catching trains, then headed out of the station and into the light. We got our bearings and found ourselves inside a

typical Japanese arcade, complete with ashing lights, ve di erent music tracks playing simultaneously, and more toys and trinkets than I could count.

A few hundred yen down the tubes and we walked out empty-handed.

Wallets lighter and stomachs growling, it was time for lunch. Google Maps directed us to a well-rated a ordable sushi restaurant where we sat at a round bench with our sushi chefs in the middle. Once they’d masterfully crafted the sushi, they popped it on a plate and threw it down on a conveyor belt, which slowly trundled its way past each patron until it found a willing mouth. Conveyor belt sushi was a novel experience, and a great way to try a bunch of di erent avours for a fraction of the price.

Shibuya Crossing

e world-famous, ‘busiest pedestrian intersection in the world’, Shibuya Crossing was just down the hill from the sushi restaurant, so we decided it was time to take part in the pandemonium. What a rush!

Everybody crowds the sidewalks on every side of the road, eyes trans xed on the lights, waiting for that little green man to appear, and once he does… BAM! Everyone surges forward, bodies sliding past each other seamlessly in every direction – unless you’re a gawky tourist. e trick, it seemed, was to constantly be in motion; stopping seemed to cause more chaos and almost confuse locals. I went into the Crossing expecting it to be something like Queen St in Auckland but it was much busier and, being Japan, much more exciting of course.

e rest of the day was spent ducking into shops, peeking into restaurants, and getting a general lay of the land. We stopped brie y in Shinjuku to have a peek, got ourselves lost, and then made our way back to our hotel suburb.

Feeling a bit overwhelmed and still a bit jetlagged, we visited the convenience store to pick up dinner and got ourselves some shut-eye for another exciting day tomorrow.

Cayla-Fay Euinton

Dan Euinton standing in a typical Japan suburb street.

Train tickets can be confusing at rst.

Dan and Cayla-Fay Euinton before catching their rst ight.

The one where AI takes over

Volunteer Expo in Katikati

Have you ever thought about lending a hand to one of your community groups? Have you got a few free hours each week? Or month?

Katikati Volunteer Expo is on Tuesday, June 13, from 5.30pm-7.30pm at e Arts Junction, 36 Main Rd, Katikati. Here you can nd out how you can contribute to your community by meeting local organisations that need more hands, faces and hard graft. All are welcome! e event is free.

Everyone seems to be talking about AI these days. Should we be afraid – very afraid – or is it just the focus du jour for the latest round of media hysteria?

As I write this I have just read a piece from investigative journalist David Farrier, responsible for the documentaries ‘Tickled’ and ‘Mister Organ’.

It is entitled ‘Why AI is Arguably Less Conscious an a Fruit Fly’.

I’m going to dive right in, though I should mention we are eventually heading in the direction of music videos.

Much of the piece is an article by Joshua Drummond who talks to Lee Reid (PhD), an expert in brain imaging and complex statistical models, including some of the language models that we think of (incorrectly, as it turns out) as AI.

As Joshua highlights, one of the things everyone needs to know is that AI might be arti cial, but it’s not intelligent. It’s less smart than a pig, or a y, or even a TERF. e problem with allegations of AI sentience, Dr Reid reckons, is that they’re based on a false premise.

“Mainstream computer science has, for many decades, considered intelligence to be displaying behaviour that seems human-like,” says Dr Reid. “So many people assume if behaviour appears human, consciousness must be underneath.”

But that isn’t the case. Chat GPT, even though it can answer your exam questions, is arguably less conscious than a fruit y.

“Language models like Chat GPT don’t have a real understanding of anything, and they certainly don’t have intent. If they had belief (which they don’t) it would be that they are trying to replicate a conversation that has already happened. ey just are trained to guess the next (or a missing) word in a sentence, based on millions of other sentences.”

Terminator

Which sounds a lot less scary than the real-life rerun of ‘Terminator 2’ that many have been predicting. And on to music videos, because Tauranga bands have been happily using AI without a lot of controversy or problem. e main band

I’m thinking of is Stunt Clown, a bunch of veteran punks who have produced at least two videos using AI technology. You may want to open YouTube while reading this as I have several referrals: all the videos I’m about to mention are there.

Stunt Clown’s rst fully AI video was ‘Home Is Where e Hate Is’, which isn’t in the greatest quality, but things get noticeably better for their second AI outing, ‘ is Statistician’, which is really very impressive.

Both use an AI method that is common on music videos which is sort of a ‘Fractal Cam’, with the POV camera continually closing in on an image and revealing more and more hidden images as you see more detail. It’s hard to describe here but only takes a couple of seconds to understand if you see it.

e wild threatening imagery suits the no-holdsbarred attack of the music.

e message under the video says: “Once again made in AI cos its way easier then actually lming stu (sic)”.

Rehaab

Which is true. And why it is so good to see a video like the one I mentioned a couple of weeks ago by Rehaab for their song ‘Fat Boy (State Highway Queen)’, which was made by Ricardo Borgo from 81 Productions and looks very ash. Despite the novelty of AI it’s great to see a band actually doing their thing.

e local band that impress me most with its videos is actually reat.Meet.Protocol. eir video a couple of years ago for ‘ e Witch Trials’, directed by Edward Gains, is a masterpiece of ‘Living Dead’style shenanigans. But best of all is the ‘live’ video they shot in the little chapel at the Historic Village – a popular spot for music videos: see Grant Haua, Spork, etc – for the song ‘Why’, advertising an All Hallows Eve gig. It is two minutes of the wildest musical insanity you’re likely to witness this year.

Damn ne!

Of course, AI can be used in all sorts of ways. Currently on YouTube is ‘Like A Rolling Stone’, altered to sound like John Lennon is singing. Whoopee. Dumber than a fruit y but it can still comprehensively waste your time.

AI detail from ‘ is Statistician’.

Wear shorts to work in winter for a worthy cause!

Hairy legs, pale legs, knobbly knees, dry skin, extra padding on the calf muscles –maybe even some untrimmed toenails or smelly feet. It will be all on show at o ces and workplaces around the Western Bay of Plenty during June.

And what about the actual shorts? Khaki, pink frilly ensembles, boardshorts of various designs, Hawaiian and maybe even a few cheeky daisy dukes?

Yes, the Shorts 4 Hospice campaign ‘Dare to Bare’ is back this month to raise funds for Western Bay of Plenty’s Waipuna Hospice, which supports more than 4000 people every year by helping them face an often heart-wrenching end-of-life journey – both for patients and their families – at no cost.

So once again the hospice is challenging the bravest of the brave to dig out their brightest, boldest, and craziest shorts and support them. Participants of Shorts 4 Hospice simply sign up online, set a fundraising goal, then start their fundraising journey, asking friends, families and colleagues to support them by donating to their cause.

Everybody

Craigs Investment Partners area manager Hayley Nelson is encouraging their 260 Tauranga-based head o ce and advisory sta to start digging in their wardrobes to have a pair ready for June 22 – the shortest day of the year. Hayley says Craigs have been long-time supporters of Waipuna Hospice and take part in the shorts challenge every year. Who is she inviting to participate?

“Everybody,” says Hayley. “We’ve invited the entire Craigs Investment Partners Tauranga team to get involved in the fundraiser by wearing shorts to work.” Why does Craigs get behind this

fundraiser? “I think most of our people would have had some contact with hospice, or gone through that end-of-life experience with people and really value the work the hospice does in our community of helping people when they really, really need it.”

Dare board

To up the fundraiser’s ante, Waipuna Hospice is challenging participants to take on their Dare Board – a series of 12 challenges encouraging participants to wear their shorts while daring to climb the Mount, take a dip in the ocean, discover Hairy Maclary and his friends, or grab a pic with their own favourite furry friend. Every dare comes with its own donation goal – the riskier the dare, the more participants are encouraged to raise.

Waipuna Hospice fundraising executive Wayne Bloxham wants people get really get creative with their fundraising. “We want to see people out on the streets of

Tauranga in their shorts, snapping pictures of themselves completing our dares at iconic locations and then passing on the challenge to others.”

Life is short!

e shortest day of 2023 falls on June 22, and Shorts 4 Hospice participants and the wider community are encouraged to celebrate by wearing shorts – because while life is short, Waipuna Hospice is all about celebrating life, right until the end.

“As a charity, all Waipuna Hospice services are provided at no cost to patients and their families, but to be able to do this and support our local community, we need to raise $7.5 million this year,” says Wayne.

“By daring to bare and signing up to participate in Shorts 4 Hospice, you’ll be helping Waipuna Hospice, and your community.”

To sign up, visit: https://shorts-4hospice-2023.raisely.com or call: 07 552 4380 ext. 211.

FIFA Women’s World Cup trophy on way to Tauranga

e FIFA Women’s World Cup original trophy will make a stop in Tauranga on Sunday, June 18, as part of its tour around the Waikato and Bay of Plenty.

Since starting its worldwide journey in February, the trophy’s journey includes all 32 participating nations.

New Zealand football great and ‘Beyond Greatness Champion’, Maia Jackman, will be present on the day to reveal the original trophy. e showcase will take place at ‘ e Battle of the Kaimais’ football tournament, at Fergusson Park on June 18, between 11am-1pm. Jackman will also present the tournament winners with their trophy.

Tauranga City Council manager venues and events Nelita

Byrne is excited to have the FIFA Women’s World Cup Trophy here in Tauranga Moana to inspire our next generation of wāhine football stars. “It’s truly spine-tingling to think of

all the great players who have lifted the trophy in the past and this is a brilliant opportunity for our football community to experience the magic of the FIFA Women’s World Cup ahead of the tournament.”

e day will o er un FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 themed activities for all ages, ‘Tazuni’ the o cial tournament mascot and food trucks, making this a great family day out.

e Trophy Tour is ‘Going Beyond’ to inspire people of all ages, build excitement and support ahead of the ve FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 matches taking place in Hamilton, the rst of which Zambia versus Japan is on Saturday, July 22.

e trophy’s journey started in Hamilton and will make its way to Tauranga, Rotorua, Taupō, Cambridge and back to Hamilton. For more information on the Trophy Tour, visit: hamiltonhostcity.co.nz

Director: Jason Te Mete Choreographer: Taiaroa Royal Musical Director: Daniel Ieremia

Sta from Craigs Investment Partners in Tauranga caught in their shorts last June 21.

Photo: supplied.

Merle Cave

Baby gear sale to boost toy library

The Western Bay of Plenty community has a great chance to grab a bargain this Saturday, June 10, with Katikati Toy Library holding at Pre-loved Sale of baby and children’s clothes, toys and equipment at its Henry Road base.

The preloved sale – which is a fundraiser for the toy library –will run from 8am to 11am on Saturday, June 10, at its base behind the Katikati Christian Centre, 13 Henry Road, next to the RSA.

Katikati Toy Library president Merle Cave says there will be a range of bargains on offer –with baby and children’s clothes, toys, infant equipment, and maternity items for sale.

“Our committee has been collecting items for this preloved sale for quite some time – so there will be a big range of good quality, good value items on offer.

“And we thank those in our community who have generously

donated items to the sale.” All items sold on the day will raise proceeds to keep the toy library operating, and also contribute to a new activity for pre-schoolers that the library hopes to set up in Katikati in the near future.

“In time the toy library committee is hoping to offer the community a weekly activity for youngsters aged under five to play –sort of like a Tumble Time but with a twist,” says Merle.

“However, in order to fund the appropriate play items and equipment and to set up the activity, fundraising is required.”

Merle hopes the community will come along on Saturday and support the library by grabbing a bargain. There will be a raffle as well.

“We’d also like toy library members and families to know that the toy library itself will not be open this Saturday for borrowing toys while this sale is on.”

For more information on the toy library hours and memberships and the preloved sale, visit: katikatitoylibrary.org.nz

Don’t miss ‘Brockes Passion’ by Handel

Tauranga-based chamber choir, The Scholars Baroque Aotearoa is partnering with Opus Orchestra this month for two performances of ‘Brockes Passion’ by Handel.

Musical director Chalium Poppy says the concerts – on June 24 in Tauranga, and June 25 in Hamilton – will offer audiences this fabulous composition depicting the dramatic last days of Christ told through beautiful music and Handel’s familiar baroque sound, while also evoking classic German hymns.

“People with a background in choral music will be largely familiar with the two ‘Great Passions’ of Bach – who was Handel’s contemporary.

Bach’s prototype

“I’d like really like people to know that Handel wrote this particular piece before Bach wrote his. Handel’s score was Bach’s prototype – when he wrote his two great choral ‘Passions’ he had a copy of Handel’s score in front of him. And Bach leans into what Handel did first,” says Chalium. “This work greatly influenced the more famous passions by Bach. So it’s an important piece of music –and the last piece that Handel wrote in German.” Chalium says those who know of Scholar’s Baroque

Green co-leader coming to town

The Western Bay of Plenty community have the chance to meet one of the Green Party’s co-leaders and talk climate change –or whatever topic they want – next week in Tauranga.

Green Party co-leader James Shaw will be at a public meeting on Tuesday, June 13, from 3pm at Saint Andrews Church in Mount Maunganui to talk climate change.

He will also field questions from the general public on topics they want to voice, says party liaison Hillary Burrows.

“Climate change is the world’s most important topic right now – so it’s a good chance for our community to hear James –and also to ask him about topics they want to share.” The public meeting is 3pm Tuesday, June 13, at Saint Andrews Church, corner of Macville Rd and Dee St, Mount Maunganui. For more information on the meeting, phone Hillary on: 07 542 0812.

AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD NOW!

Aotearoa’s annual Christmas performance of Handel’s ‘Messiah’ can expect very similar high-quality music.

“They can look forward to the same polish and drama as that of ‘Messiah’ and really, enjoy Handel’s glorious Baroque sound – which people have come to expect from this choir.

Moving and beautiful...

“For those interested in coming, and have never come before, they can expect to hear very moving and beautiful choruses and at times virtuosic orchestral playing from Opus Orchestra.”

Chalium says the concerts will see 24 Scholar’s Baroque singers join with Opus Orchestra – plus a line-up of soloists from around the country “who are all at the top of their fields here in NZ” perform. The concerts are Saturday, June 24, from 7.30pm at the Graham Young Youth Theatre, Tauranga Boys’ College; and 2.30pm Sunday, June 25, at Gallagher Academy of Performing Arts, University of Waikato, Hamilton.

To purchase tickets to the Tauranga concert, see: www.iticket.co.nz/events/2023/jun/brockes-passion-

For tickets to the Hamilton concert, see: premier.ticketek.co.nz

JACK DUSTY’S (Bureta)

Sat 10th Self Righteous Brothers 2-5pm

Abbey Road – Beatles Tribute 7.30-10.30pm

Sun 11th Gunshy 3-6pm

Mon 12th Jack Dusty’s Ukelele Players 6-7.30pm

Wed 14th Open Mic Night 7pm

LATITUDE 37

Fri 9th Josh Pow 8.30pm

Sat 10th Marc 8.30pm

Sun 11th Jason 4-7pm

MT MAUNGANUI RSA

Fri 9th Mark Huckstep 7-10.30pm

Sat 10th F.L.B Band 7-10.30pm

Sun 11th Helen Riley 4.30-7.30pm

THE BARREL ROOM

Sat 10th Jazz Night with Jeff Baker & Friends

VOODOO LOUNGE

Fri 9th Beats & Bubbles Funk Drop edition with Omega B 5pm Latin Party with DJ Hectic

Sat 10th DJ Raw 11pm

Mon 12th Backpacker Night with Audio Hybrid

Wed 14th Voodoo Jam night 9pm

Musical director Chalium Poppy. Photo: supplied.

Merle Cave

We desperately

change Economy in disarray

Trust the trustworthy

In last week’s editorial Stephen Whitwell encouraged us to think about our relationships. One part of what he wrote that struck me was about trusting someone because they were ‘trustworthy’. You may well have experiences in your life of trusting others only to nd that trust was misplaced. You may well have been trusted by someone only to let them down and sadly found yourself to have been unworthy of that trust. Where does this leave you for the future? It can be hard to trust again. When trust has been broken can it be restored? What are you to do?

If you have been the one that has betrayed the trust of another you need to be one to take the initiative to apologise and seek forgiveness.

If you have been the one betrayed, you need to be open to both forgiving and receiving a genuine apology when it is o ered.

To regain trust and have a restored relationship is a wonderful thing when it can be achieved.

It takes courage to exercise trust again – and it’s not something you should do casually. ere will always be those who are not worthy of your trust – so you need to ‘trust the trustworthy’. To know who to trust requires discernment.

Proverbs 12v22 NIV says: “ e Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in people who are trustworthy”.

And Psalm 62v8 NIV reminds you to: “Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge”.

I pray that God, who

is trustworthy, will bless you and enable you to trust, and be trustworthy.

About 150 people attended a public meeting at the Kaimai Community school hall on May 23 because of their concern for safety on State Highway 29. e women and men spoke of the horrifyingly scary manoeuvres they have to undertake to get on and o the highway with trucks and vehicles bearing down on them.

National's Spokesperson for Transport Simeon Brown, and Road Transport Forum CEO Ken Shirley were guest speakers. Both men heard the harrowing accounts and agreed SH29 should be a road of national signi cance.

Everyone appreciated that Simeon was there to hear rst-hand the problems residents face on a daily basis, and not all intersections would be costly to x. Debbie Marshall said give her a pot of paint and she could x it at Old Kaimai Rd.

As co-chairman of the regional council transport and former chief exececutive of the heavy transport industry, Ken highlighted how the funding of roads was paid for by the trucks and cars on the roads and the fuel they consume, but under this present government it is not going into roading and roading maintenance as it should be. Now years of underinvestment and congestion in this growing area is destroying this sub-region.

One Friday afternoon a local turning into Poripori Rd had three cars behind waiting to make the turn too. She had moved way past the broken entry line to avoid the trucks hurtling from hitting any of them. She truly hoped that anyone with some power for change gets on to this very soon. She is a mum of seven and feeling very stressed. We need answers fast.

Margaret Murray-Benge, Bethlehem.

e recent Budget issued by the Government con rms that nothing has changed since Jacinda Ardern was either pushed or jumped ship (it doesn’t matter which). It was a vote-catching Budget with an extraordinary feature in that the Government was borrowing further, which is further exacerbating in ation. Ironically, within a week the Reserve Bank had to increase the O cial Cash Rate in an e ort to compensate.

No relief for low to middle income earners who have been facing the consequence of income tax brackets remaining unchanged for some 10 years. Now Prime Minister Chris Hipkins says he will look at it eventually – but note that such a move will be in ationary.

Yet it is the Government itself that had the choice of compensating for such in ation by reducing its own in ationary expenditure.

e consequences of excessive and wasteful expenditure by the Government during the past ve years can be seen in almost every part of our society.

Bill Capamagian, Tauranga City.

e chaos with tra c build-up on the Omokoroa to Bethlehem State Highway 2 road has been created by the cancellation of progress of the Takitumu North Link Stage 1 Project after the 2017 General Election.

Had it been allowed to proceed it would be completed by now ready for the expected growth coming out of Ōmokoroa.

In my opinion there should be a Royal Commission of Enquiry into who was at fault for delaying progress of the TNL. is action has caused a public nuisance with more than 6000 hours of lost time on any one day, which is surely criminal at the very least.

Doug Morris, Te Puna.

On April 26, the lawnmower had a discussion with two of my ngers – it was not pretty!

I’d like to thank all those who interacted with me after the incident.

Some I will mention by name – others, who I don’t know their names, please accept my heartfelt thanks for your help and empathy.

Kelly [as rst to see] at Papamoa Pines, e Boulevard, and the crew there.

ose in A&E department at Tauranga Hospital.

e sta in ward SAU, the sta in Orthopaedic transit lounge, the sta in Orthopaedic Outpatients.

e Papamoa District Health nurses.

And a huge thank you to Kyla, the surgeon who thought outside the square and used a local anaesthetic Ring Block instead of general anaesthetic and managed to keep my ngertips –even though I am long-time smoker who declines the o ers of cessation help.

If I have missed anyone, please accept my thanks for the great service given.

Lyn Allison, Pāpāmoa.

Yep, it’s so easy to nd fault with events all around our city and elsewhere – for example, ree Waters, the new stadium, roadworks etc.

But, just for those who are feeling blessed to live in Tauranga, myself included, I want to give a big – well done to you – to the council for the superb new Marine Parade walkway extension, which is currently undergoing construction. It appears that a lot of thought has gone into its design and landscaping including a children’s mini playground, seating, barbecues.

Looking at the display board, I was amazed how far it is to be extended. Me thinks Pilot Bay walkway has now got some serious competition for a sunny day’s walk for my wife and I.

Mike Loakman, Ohauiti.

Reverend Ian Pittendreigh, Omokoroa

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AND HOPE DOES not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. Romans 5:5

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