Northland news in brief: Paparoa Pride parade returns; Sunday jazz hits right notes

The Paparoa Pride parade, last held in 2021, above, is on again in April.

Paparoa Pride 2023 is on in April after a year’s hiatus due to the complications of hosting the inclusive event in 2022. The event will showcase the rainbow community and their allies in what will become an annual event. The inaugural Paparoa Pride parade and picnic in February 2021 saw crowds from across Kaipara and beyond, with about 200 people from all walks of life attending. It was well supported by local businesses, the Kaipara District Council and local schools. This year’s event will be held in the Paparoa Hall on April 1 from 3pm and will be a chance to catch up with friends, meet new people and enjoy the food and entertainment.

Sunday Jazz

This weekend’s Northern Jazz Society’s Sunday Jazz will be outside at the Lava Bar at Flames Hotel in Onerahi. Performing on Sunday will be the June Hayes Quintet, Joe Kaptein, Will Goodison, George Braikovich and Andrew Isdale, from 2pm - 4.30pm. If it is raining, they will play inside the hotel.

Think and Be Me

The Whangārei Rotary-initiated Te Tai Tokerau Tamariki mental health wellbeing project Think and Be Me is being launched in Whangārei this week. The project will provide free mental health education, resources and teacher training for children, their whānau and the wider community. It will be launched at Manaia View School on Friday, March 3, from 9.30am to 12.30pm. Think and Be Me will be provided to 60 schools across Te Tai Tokerau Northland during 2023-2024. For more information go to www.thinkandbe.me.

Mayoral Relief Fund

Kaipara Mayor Craig Jepson has established a Mayoral Relief Fund to help support those affected by Cyclone Gabrielle. Jepson, who has been out and about every day since the cyclone hit, said the breadth of those impacted across the district is huge. The fund may be used to allocate one-off payments to Kaipara individuals, families, community organisations, marae and small businesses. More details on the criteria and how to apply will be available this week.

Special Lotto for cyclone relief

A special Lotto draw to support the people and communities impacted by Cyclone Gabrielle, called by the Minister of Internal Affairs, will be held on Saturday, March 18. Lotto NZ will double its usual community contribution from the draw so that half of all ticket sales - or 50 cents in every dollar spent by players on Lotto, Powerball or Strike - will go to support those impacted by the cyclone. Similar special draws were held following the Christchurch Earthquake in 2011 and the Kaikōura/Hurunui earthquake in 2016.