CHB students join Happy Bay News

Students Chris Proctor and Hannah Webster with Central Hawke’s Bay Mayor Alex Walker and copies of Happy Bay News.

When do you ever open the news and see smiling faces, awesome initiatives and positive changemakers?

The sad reality is, hardly ever. Happy Bay News is the ultimate antidote to bad news and we are a force to be reckoned with.

We’re a group of like-minded individuals who fundamentally believe in the power of spreading good news across the community, shining a light on those unsung heroes that walk among us.

We believe that real change starts from the community level and were determined to power up and cheer on those who are leading that change.

Founded in 2021, our team, follower base and number of publications have grown steadily from a few cafes in Hastings to now having followership all across the bay and into Central Hawke’s Bay.

We’re really excited to extend into the CHB area, it provides a unique opportunity to highlight the different faces of this beautiful part of the world. From sportspeople punching above their weight on the international stage to greyhound rescue centres and community couples, there is no shortage of good news across CHB.

As a team, are lucky to have the opportunity to practise skills and extend talents in creativity, using and working with all sorts of different media to create our publication.

From interviewing individuals, taking photos, and videos, and writing stories and opinion pieces, we’re exposed to variety and that makes sharing happy stories that much more exciting.

Happy Bay News’ mission is two-pronged - firstly, spreading the good news and second, exposing rangatahi (young people) to skills and opportunities, which may lead to careers in creative industries.

Next time, you see a copy of a yellow magazine with positive stuff written all over it, give it a minute and have a read - it might just make you smile.

Happy Bay News is a part of Foto iwi Charitable Trust which has been contributing to youth creativity since 2016 across Hawke’s Bay. Find out more about how to get involved or contribute a story at www.happybaynews.co.nz.