Te Radar told stories of his time on television shows such as Intrepid Journeys. Photo / Leanne Warr
Te Radar told stories of his time on television shows such as Intrepid Journeys. Photo / Leanne Warr
Comedian Te Radar reckons he won’t be signing up as a bingo caller any time soon.
But there were still laughs aplenty at the Back on Track bingo night at Pongaroa where Te Radar entertained the crowd with stories from his days on Intrepid Journeys and Off the Radar.
About 130 tickets had been given out for the night, which had been organised by the Tararua District Recovery Programme and Rural Support Trust.
The night was part of an effort to provide time away from the stresses of the past few months.
It’s been more than six months since Cyclone Gabrielle hit the district with communities on the east coast, including Akitio, Herbertville and Pongaroa, impacted with damage to many properties and some residents left with a massive clean-up.
Tararua District Council Mayor Tracey Collis kicked things off telling the crowd t the Mayoral Relief Fund currently had about $208,000, and more than $100,000 had been given out.
She said the night was a chance for people in the community to join together and connect with each other.
More than 100 people turned up on the night. Photo / Leanne Warr
She acknowledged the Pongaroa The Way To Go committee for its efforts in making the night happen and the cyclone recovery team who were also working hard on recovery efforts.
Pongaroa The Way To Go chairwoman Heather Monk said the year had been “one of the crappiest years I’ve known”.
She spoke of the difficulties people were having and encouraged them to reach out if they needed help.
She said she’d like to think the Pongaroa community was amazing.
“By God, we’re good. Every one of us. Remember that.”
Heather said the community last hosted Te Radar about 20 years ago for a Scout fundraiser.
“It was a great night.”
She concluded her speech by adding her thanks to those who had checked up on her and others in the community and to those who had been supporting the community in the last few months.
“And also those who made this happen tonight.”
The Pongaroa hall was filled with people eager for a great night out. Photo / Leanne Warr
Te Radar said he had been asked to do it and as he happened to have some time off, he decided to come down.
“I’m not very good at fencing and I’m not very good at doing anything else, [but] I can talk.”
He said there was a fallacy that society would fall apart in a time of crisis, but that was not the case following the cyclone.
He’d worked with some clean-up crews in Auckland who just turned up in the neighbourhoods.
“They didn’t know a single person, but they turned up.”
There were others who came from the South Island, and people from Australia who turned up to provide help with the clean up, so coming to help entertain people in the community was “the least I can do”.
“I’ve got really fond memories of Pongaroa and places around.”
Some of the damage in Pongaroa. It was hard for people outside the district to understand the sheer scale of the cyclone's impact. Photo / Tararua District Council
Te Radar also spent time with roading teams from Tararua Alliance and in Herbertville, saying he wanted to come down and see how things were getting on.
