News in brief

9 Apr 2025 • By Supplied

Tools aplenty on offer

Sheddies at work, from left, Malcolm Perano, Hayden Macdonald, Brian Clements, Murray Thomas, Bevian Boddie and Gary Steel.

Tools by the dozen, gardening gear, wooden toys, and a wide range of general household items will be up for grabs at a garage sale at the MenzShed in Te Awamutu this weekend. The sale, which shed members have been organising for several months, will run on Saturday morning at the MenzShed home in Raeburne Street.

Items available include woodworking and metal-engineering tools, along with an array of antique and collectable tools, as well as tradesman’s equipment, hand-crafted items, children’s hand-made toys, and some electrical household items. All electrical items have been safety-checked, while the hand-tools have been cleaned and, where possible, put in good working order.

Many of the items on sale have been donated to the shed, and they would otherwise have probably been dumped. The restored and recycled tools and other equipment ensures that such gear is given a new life. Its sale also provides needed funding for continuing work at the shed. The sale also gives shed members worthwhile enjoyment and builds camaraderie as the men gather the equipment, check it, and, where possible, get it back into good working order.

Website stats up

The Te Awamutu News website story about profits drying up as drought hits was the best read story last month followed by a piece on the Kihikihi Cycleway and Zac van Dorsten, now farming in Ōtorohanga but originally from Te Awamutu, picking up the dairy manager of the year. Our ever popular News in Brief was fourth with firefighters dealing to a Ōhaupō blaze rounding out the top five posts.

The total visits are up nearly 300 per cent on the same month last year continuing The News’ claim of being the number one news source in Te Awamutu.

Wahine memories

Tomorrow (April 10) will trigger memories for Cambridge’s Florence Shearman QSM. Long before she became Cambridge’s volunteer community co-ordinator for the Office for Senior Citizens, Shearman was a young nurse who helped survivors of the Wahine ferry disaster in Wellington. The disaster occurred on April 10, 1968, when the Lyttelton-Wellington ferry Wahine sank near the mouth of Wellington Harbour during a storm. The event helped shape the choices Shearman went on to make. Trained as a nurse, she became a hospital chaplain, an industrial chaplain and pastoral counsellor, and was later presented with a police medal for the work she did with the police force.

Skin funder

Waikato funder DV Bryant Trust is funding $25,000 a year to Braemar Charitable Trust for free skin checks and surgeries as part of a range of community outreach programmes to improve health outcomes across the region. Braemar’s other initiatives include dental assistance for refugees and the upskilling of Te Kohao Health GPS.

Lake name

The renaming of Waipā lake Ngā Roto to Wairoto is not cut and dried, as we suggested last week. The name change is part of the Reserve Management Plan which is in a consultation process running to April 18. Waipā District Council is expected to make final decisions on the plan in July.

Brown to chair

Margaret Main and Te Awamutu RSA’s Lou Brown, at left, listen to The Last Post, played by Peter Leslie of the Patriots Defence Force Motorcycle Club (Hauraki). Standing to the side is piper Craig Wards of the Te Kuiti and Districts Pipe Band. Photo: Viv Posselt

Veteran Waipā councillor Lou Brown has been appointed Waikato Civil Defence Emergency Management Group joint committee chair. Brown has represented Waipā on the committee for the past two terms and was the deputy chair until Taupō councillor Anna Park resigned. The committee provides leadership in delivering co-ordinated and collaborative Civil Defence Emergency Management arrangements within the Waikato Civil Defence and Emergency Management Group area.

Online coverage

Good Local Media’s websites and apps in Cambridge, Te Awamutu, King Country and Waikato often publish more copy and photos from events we cover than appear in the printed version. To ensure you don’t miss out go to www.wbn.co.nz

Buses go

The Te Awamutu 24 bus heading through the Waipa countryside to Hamilton. Photo: Mary Anne Gill.

Lack of patronage has forced the cancellation of late night inbound and outbound regional bus trips to and from Hamilton to Cambridge and Te Awamutu. The Te Awamutu service will no longer go via Rukuhia School in the afternoons while morning and afternoon trips from Leamington and Hamilton have been added going via Cambridge High School.

College takes primary test

The cream of rural New Zealand’s future crop was set to rise to the top as this issue of The News went to print.

For the first time, teams from Te Awamutu College were set to compete in the annual Clash of the Colleges.

The Clash of the Colleges is an ‘Amazing Race’ styled competition directed by primary industry experts and Young Farmer club members. Students’ abilities across a range of primary sector challenges are tested.

“I heard about it last year but we couldn’t organise in time, so when I saw that it was advertised again we were definitely keen to give it a go,” said Te Awamutu agriculture and horticulture teacher Tracey Gawn.

From fencing, tree identification and drenching to sulky races and gumboot throwing, the clash features 16 modules.

Four teams of four are representing Te Awamutu College including a mixed team of juniors as well as two all-girl and one all-boy senior teams.

While Gawn is confident the clash will help her students grow their growing knowledge, she is unsure how well they will fare against more seasoned opposition.

“It’s hard to say because we’ve never competed in this before but I’d like to think there will be some areas where we could be superior, such as fencing – my kids are quite good fencers,” she said. “I hope we do well, but as long as they have fun, that’s what really matters.”

Other schools competing included Auckland’s Mt Albert Grammar School, St Cuthberts College and Pukekohe High School, as well as Onewhero Area School and Morrinsville College. Some year 13 primary sector Industry Training Organisation students will take part.

Donald’s Farm in Whitford is hosting the clash. Owned by NZ Young Farmers, the rural south-eastern Auckland property provides an outdoor classroom to inspire younger generations towards careers in the primary industries.

“We run many programmes for secondary school students so they can experience dairy farming first hand,” farm manager, Sam Waugh said.

Resealing going ahead

Crews returned to reseal the Cambridge section of the Waikato Expressway today (Wednesday 9 April). This work was originally scheduled for the week of Monday 31 March but was disrupted by poor weather after completing one of four sites. Crews will focus on an 8km north bound section of pavement repair between the Tamahere Interchange and the Victoria Road Interchange, requiring 24-hour closure of the left lane. The lane will remain closed until Friday when it will reopen under temporary traffic management with a reduced speed limit.

Festival a success

Autumn Festival Main Street Carnival and Art Market in Victoria Square. Photo: Mary Anne Gill

The Cambridge Autumn Festival Trust is thrilled with the success of the recent festival and consider it the best yet. With four concerts and two workshops sold out, and more than 5000 people attending the Te Awa Lifecare Main Street Carnival and Autumn Art Market it was great to see so many people embracing and enjoying this annual arts and community event. Highlights included performances by new trio “La Voce o Rotorua”, pianist Michael Houstoun, and the three great artists from “Country to Cambridge” – Rowdy’s Rose, James Ray, and The DCP. Organisers were also extremely pleased to be able to include a large number of musicians and performers from local high schools, dance schools and arts academies. Now work begins on next year, said chair Alana Mackay.

Police sting

A police sting outside Cambridge Raceway which started towards the end of the Night of Champions nabbed one person who was processed for excess breath alcohol levels out of the 1300 drivers stopped. A full house of more than 3400 people attended the race meeting and the concert by well-known country singer Kylee Bell which ended before the 11pm curfew. Two people were ejected by security for inappropriate behaviour.

Leading the way

Nathalie Sperling with her white Swiss shepherd

There were dogs aplenty at the Karāpiro Domain over the weekend competing in a championship dog show held in conjunction with the Dominion Collie, Leonberger and Waikato and District Collie clubs and hosted by Cambridge Kennel Association. And while the dogs paraded in the upper part of the Domain, down on the water the New Zealand Dragon Board nationals took place with racing over two days culminating with an end of day victory in the open standard boat event to the New South Wales premier state team with Jessica Sharpe in the sweep position.