Community Hero: Open door to help kids grow

Rob Reed teaches local children bone and wood carving skills. Photo / Malcolm Pullman

Every weekday in a tiny coastal town, after the school bell rings, pensioner Rob Reed opens the door to his humble workshop. Up to a dozen children pile in and together they get to work carving things out of wood and bone.

For 20 years, Reed has been inviting primary and secondary school pupils to a carving group at his Opua workshop in the Bay of Islands.

That community spirit has earned Reed a Cathay Pacific Community Hero award, which will send him and his wife, Moira, on a free trip to Hong Kong.

Opua mother-of-two Megan Batterton, whose children attend the carving group, nominated Reed. However, Moira Reed was equally deserving of praise, as she provided afternoon tea to the children each day, Batterton said. "We're really lucky to have them in the community. I don't know how they put up with the kids sometimes ... Rob and Moira keep us [parents] sane."

As well as the baking and drinks for the children and rides home, Batterton suspected Rob Reed put more money into buying building supplies for the group than he should.

The group relied on donations, which had lessened under the economic downturn.

"They are so selfless. They just give - no expectations, no agenda," she said.

Rob Reed started the group after becoming unemployed and his growing interest in bone and wood carving caught the attention of children.

The former commercial pilot invited them to have a go and the group grew from there.

As well as traditional carvings, many children had made their own skateboards, which he particularly liked because they could then paint their own decorations underneath, Reed said.

Watching children gain confidence as they made their own carvings was all the reward he needed, he said. "[The most rewarding part is] when they think, 'Hell's teeth, I can do it."'

Reed is a passionate advocate for children - he has lobbied local government, community groups and charities over a skate park and more play areas for them in Opua.

"There's too much talk in New Zealand of, 'Oh, bloody teenagers,"' Reed said.

"But you find if you talk with teenagers, they're not dumb, they're not brainless. We should get behind them and help them with their ideas."

The Reeds will fly to Hong Kong courtesy of Cathay Pacific and stay at the Courtyard by Marriott, with $500 spending money from the Herald on Sunday.

Rob Reed is a Cathay Pacific Community Hero winner. Other Cathay Pacific Community Heroes are Rupert Scobie of Christchurch, and Kohan McNab, co-ordinator of the Student Union Army, which helped mop up after the Christchurch quakes.