Articles in ‘Community’

Further reductions to the speed limits on rural roads around Franklin will only serve to frustrate the vast majority of road users. But will Auckland Transport listen? In 2019, Auckland Transport (AT) introduced a new speed limit bylaw and called for public submissions on the proposed changes. When I posted this news on my Facebook page, more than 53,000 people viewed the post.…

Scott Bright has always been involved with farming. He grew up on a farm, worked on a farm and has always been involved in the farming industry and its people, one way or another. These days he only has small holding but is actively involved in raising the profile of groups that have sprung up recently to counteract what is being seen as fervent erosion of both common sense when…

I’m anxious waiting to board the ship. I feel my heart beating, trying to explode through my chest. Have I made the right decision? Should I turn back? As I’m waiting, Mum is taking sooooo many photos of me for all her Facebook friends, you know how that goes. Another girl was having photos taken by her dad, so I introduce myself to her. Her name was Georgia from Christchurch,…

Symbolising new beginnings and transition, Christchurch’s ‘Cardboard’ Cathedral has stood as a unique and stunning structure since its creation in 2013 following Christchurch’s devastating earthquake in 2011. Christchurch’s original cathedral was a slow process that was on and off for years due to funding until its completion in 1905. It was built by Jamieson and Sons, renowned…

Students, Staff, parents, caregivers, whānau and Papakura Community, Kia ora whānau, Talofa lava, Mālō e lelei, Kia Orana, Fakaalofa lahi atu, Bula Vinaka, Namaste, You may be aware that Papakura High School has been under Limited Statutory Management since January 2014 and other forms of intervention since 2009, this means there has been a Ministry of Education appointed…

Fire and Emergency New Zealand urges households, lifestyle block owners and landowners not to burn outdoor fires during lockdown, to save firefighters having to respond to calls from anxious neighbours and break their COVID-19 bubbles. Fire and Emergency has responded to more than 98 calls involving fires in Auckland since lockdown kicked in last Wednesday. Eight were vegetation…

Please look after yourself and your family and keep an eye out for your neighbours. You can contact me at andrew@baylymp.co.nz if you need a hand.

Most of us will have gone to a beach, found a treasured shell chosen for its vivid colours, amazing markings or uniformity of natural design and kept it in a special hiding place, but not many of us will have gone on to collect in excess of 17,000 of them, from around the world. Local man Doug Snook has done just that, and his house is now a veritable museum of all things…

Members of three volunteer fire brigades – Tuakau, Pokeno, and Onewhero attended a benefit social night last Saturday (3 July 2021), in time for Matariki when we honour and remember loved ones who are no longer with us. The event was organised for the crews and whānau to acknowledge the impacts associated with the loss of loved ones and colleagues and to raise mental health…

When 3 year old Cruz told his Mum in 2016 that he wanted to grow his hair until it touched the ground and then shave it all off and give it to the $2 shop, so they could make wigs for people with cancer, she could have been forgiven for thinking it was all just a pipe dream. Fast forward to June 2021 and the now 7 year old Cruz has done just that and fundraised over $2,000 in the…

Liana Smith is a local Glenbrook girl in the middle of a truly once in a life time type of adventure, aiming to complete an Ultra Marathon swimming challenge known as the Triple Crown, and joining an elite group of only seven others who have completed the challenge to date. The Triple Crown is made up of three of NZ’s most iconic and historically important Ultra Marathon swims -…

It was Nelson Mandela that said, ‘Since the dawn of history, mankind has honoured and respected brave and honest people’. Certainly the announcement of the New Zealand Royal honours is highly anticipated. Announced twice a year – on the official Queen’s Birthday in early June and New Year’s Eve – the awards recognise New Zealanders who have served their country or who have made…

When the current and returning members of the Waiuku Golf club gather to play at the Club’s 100th Year centennial celebration weekend in June, they will be thankful that the hazards they encounter are not hoof marks from cattle and sheep and fences around all the greens and gullies full of tea-tree and prickly blackberries as was the case in the early years of the course.…

For over a decade Franklin’s local historical societies have campaigned to save the station building but finally they have admitted defeat. The building will be lost to the district it has served for more than one hundred years. It was the oldest publicly accessible building in the town. It became impossible to progress the plan for restoration and repurposing of the building…

Hang on Puke! We’re teetering at the top of a roll coaster ride called ‘progress’. On the downhill slope we’ll see our town irrevocably changed and our lifestyle changing too. In some areas, back yards and tree lined streets become a thing of the past with increasing density of housing permitted. Pukekohe has been packaged and sold as an attractive little country town, complete…

Have you ever wanted to sand that table, build a sandpit for the kids, or cut the hedge in half the usual time but find yourself lacking the right tools or the money to buy them? Well, the clever folks at Waiuku Zero Waste have come up with the solution with the establishment of the Waiuku Tool Library. The idea is much the same as a book library but instead of a book, you can…

The recent Powhiri held at Papakura High School to welcome its new principal Simon Craggs was both moving and a reflection on the proud and passionate nature of every pupil, staff member and school community member associated with Papakura High. Something that Simon felt keenly when he accepted the challenge of becoming the new leader. He brings with him a wealth of education…

Change has come to Pukekohe. Less frequently are tractors seen on our streets, instead rows of houses march their way across the fertile growing soils which for many hundreds of years have sustained mankind in this district. Planned highways and high-rise buildings will further alter the character of this rural township, maybe beyond recognition. Historic buildings may fall…

You may have heard about ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) and relate it to children that are hyperactive, disruptive and climbing the walls – but do you actually know what ADHD is and what it is like to have it? ADHD or ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) as it is also known provides advantages and challenges to on average one in 20 New Zealanders. It is often most…

Played with a simple pack of cards, Bridge is a mind sport, comparable to chess or 500 on steroids and millions of people are involved in playing it around the world. Famous players include Bill Gates, Omar Sharif, and Martina Navratilova, who is quoted as saying, “No matter where I go, I can always make new friends at the bridge table.” Franklin Bridge Club was founded in…