All articles in ‘Community’

In winter of 1864 the three masted clipper ship the ‘Ganges’ set sail from Cobh, Ireland for a 12,000 mile journey to Auckland. Amongst almost five hundred passengers and crew onboard the 192 foot (59m) ship were newly married couple, John and Sarah Faus…

James Sydney Heard was a 2nd Lieutenant in the Royal New Zealand Artillery (RNZA) when he first served with 161 Battery in Vietnam. During a second Tour of Duty, he served with the 1st New Zealand Army Training Team Vietnam (1-NZATTV). He retired from th…

The Rotary Club of Pukekohe Inc. was established in August 1945 and marks its 75th birthday on 22 August this year. The club today bears little resemblance to the one chartered the year World War 2 ended. In those days Rotary was a male-only affair with…

Let’s not put too fine a point on it: for the past five weeks we’ve been living in the middle of a crisis of unknown magnitude. It’s been a time of unprecedented change and for many it will have been an intense period of worry and anxiety. But however mu…

ANZAC day 2020 will be a vastly different day to years previous, but still bears little resemblance to the horrors that young Sargeant James Stanton experienced during the First World War. Thanks to a canny series of events, we know a little about wh…

While public ANZAC Day services will not be able to go ahead this year, we can still take time to reflect on the sacrifice made by our ANZACs and show our appreciation to all of our veterans and service personnel. Defence Minister Ron Mark joined Defenc…

To all Dutch New Zealanders, While we work from home, walk in empty streets, wait in lines to do our shopping in supermarkets in compliance with the 2 m social distancing, life in New Zealand and the rest of the world seems to be on hold. No plans ar…

New Zealand has grown to be a multi-cultural nation and encompasses a wide range of groups and beliefs. But as of the 2018 census, statistics show almost half of our population doesn’t identify with any religion. As churches all over the country celebrat…

Project Face Shield NZ is an online community of over 200 NZ based 3D Printer owners who through the Covid19 Lockdown, started to see unprecedented demand from front line agencies for Personal Protection Equipment, (PPE equipment) including Face Shields.

I jumped on those scales and cried. And now this is the start of the rest of my life. Stephanie Hooper had always been big. As a child and throughout her teenage years she sought comfort in food as a way of dealing with life, until a series of events lea…

For the third successive year the annual North Island Donkey & Mule Society Show was held at the Counties Dog Training club grounds at Kidd Elliot Park in Te Hi Hi. This year the show also incorporated the National Miniature Donkey Show. Fortunately the …

Adam Mainey has always enjoyed keeping fit. From his younger years playing sport, to his previous jobs as a Bricklayer and running his own Masonry business, he was always challenged, or so he thought, until the day he changed careers and tried Crossfit f…

It’s that time of year again when, for all things, Jolly, Joyful and generally Christmassy, Papakura is your one stop Christmas stop! Having always had always had a strong community spirit, a varied retail base with 36 new shops opened this year alone, a…

Cosplay. To some people it’s a foreign word and they have no clue what it is. To others, they might have heard of it, but know little else, and Cosplayers themselves? Well, to them it can be a pretty big deal. Cosplay is short for costume play, an anglic…

If you are looking for something to do as the weather gets warmer that gets you and the family out and about then you can’t go past the new Five Summits Walk and Bike Trail and accompanying map that has recently been developed in Pukekohe. A gift to the …

The Christmas season is a time to celebrate being with family and friends. It can however sometimes isolate members of our community, especially our senior members, who are without a strong network around them or who’s usual network of friends return to …

It’s hard to imagine that behind the wide smile, bright eyes and amazing mop of dark brown curls sitting across from me, is a young man who in recent years has struggled with his own mental health. For Caleb Ihaia though it is a reality. Despite chatting…

By Estelle Belle, Jack Daniels Miss Pinup NZ 2019 Runner Up For anyone who has dabbled in the vintage or pinup community and culture there is one event that is set into their calendars each year and that is the Very Vintage Day Out. This year, the home o…

From serving their communities to preventing crime while developing leadership skills, being part of the Police force can be one of the most rewarding careers a person can have, and now, thanks to a growing course initiative between Police, schools and t…

Our Port Waikato community is on the edge, literally! Years of erosion have taken their toll on Sunset Beach, Port Waikato and the problem is now more serious than ever. Over half the car park has been lost, the community hall has been condemned, and…