Abbeyfield WBOP volunteers Lee Parker and Isabel Ford at the Abbeyfield Garden Party.
Edible safari
Grow On Katikati hosted its first-ever Edible Backyard Safari two weeks ago.
About 31 people showed up for the inaugural Edible Backyard Safari in the pouring rain.
The group visited five locations to inspire others to create food resilience in their own backyard.
The day began at the Grow On shed, where the group sowed seeds to take home. The group then walked to Kati KaiWay, where Biddy Hudson and Elizabeth Rae guided the community fruit tree walkway.
Jenny Ager-Prat spoke of healing herbs and edible weeds and served herbal teas and weed pesto. Nisha Duncan explained the principles of low-cost Hugelkultur gardens. Jizzy Green shared a quick composting workshop, with hints and tips to create your own ‘’black gold’'.
The group also tried Dr Bucha’s kombucha.
Centre offering second chances
Furniture, appliances, lawnmowers, old fridges, screws and bolts, and e-waste are just some of the items that will soon be accepted at the Katikati Recycling Centre as part of a resource recovery trial.
The trial is a collaboration between the Western Bay of Plenty District Council and Katikati-based Chrome Collective Charitable Trust, that offers training, employment and advocacy to people with disabilities to integrate them into the wider community.
“It’s a win-win for the community, providing valuable integration and employment opportunities for the Chrome Collective, while actively diverting resources destined for landfill,” says resource recovery and waste team leader Ilze Kruis.
The Katikati Resource Recovery Centre trial will run onsite at the Katikati Recycle Centre from March 7 until the end of August 2024, on Thursdays and Saturdays from 9am-4pm.
Ōmokoroa’s dog exercise area
Paws up for your choice of location for Ōmokoroa’s newest pooch exercise area.
Western Bay of Plenty District Council is asking the community to help decide which location to build the district’s next dog exercise area in Ōmokoroa. The council received nearly 500 pieces of feedback on the proposed dog exercise area locations and features and is creating four new dog exercise areas in Te Puke, Ōmokoroa, Katikati and Waihī Beach.
Te Puke’s dog exercise area opened last year at Lawrence Oliver Park, construction of Katikati’s dog exercise area at Donegal Reserve will start this year, Waihī Beach is still to be looked at, and Ōmokoroa’s is now live for community feedback on park location.
Feedback closes after Doggy Day Out on March 16.
College achievers
Three Katikati College students showcased ‘’remarkable’' achievements in their NCEA Scholarship exams last year.
Isla Willacy secured a scholarship pass in both English and history, a feat that places her among the top 3 per cent nationwide.
Mikai Somerville also achieved an outstanding scholarship in biology and a scholarship in physics, demonstrating a commendable mastery of the sciences and placing him also in the top 3 per cent. Grace Rayner’s artistic prowess earned her a scholarship in painting, adding a creative dimension to the trio’s accomplishments.
Game-changing donation
The Acorn Foundation has announced the Katikati Acorn Fund will begin distributions to the community later this year.
The initiative, which began with a $22,000 donation from local community group Project Generate in 2022, has taken a significant leap forward thanks to a recent extraordinary donation.
Over recent months, the Acorn Foundation has sought the community’s backing to help the Katikati Acorn Fund reach $50,000 – a threshold that activates the fund’s granting mechanism. An anonymous local couple contributed $50,000 and catapulted the fund total to $75,000.
Abbeyfield Garden Party
A garden party raised $7400 for the Abbeyfield WBOP charity.
Abbeyfield builds shared, supported housing for older people with limited means.
The event was held at a rural Hot Springs Rd garden in Katikati.
Around 100 guests enjoyed cocktails and canapes while exploring the setting with live music by Sue Towler and The Old Notes. Plants and craft wares could be purchased and there was an entertaining auction.
Abbeyfield chairwoman Carole Parker said that the afternoon was a great success. “We are well on our way to raising the funds we need to build our Abbeyfield House, but we are still looking for some substantial funding”, she said.
Birds flock back to Aongatete
Aongatete is ‘’bursting with life’' thanks to the hardworking Aongatete Forest Project volunteers.
A recent study commissioned by Western Bay of Plenty District Council found significantly higher counts of seven bird species including kererū, tui and titipounamu (rifleman).
Aongatete Forest Project is one of many regional council-registered care groups.
Year wraps for event funding
Twelve months of community event funding wrapped up in February after the Tauranga Western Bay Community Event Fund (TWBCEF) panel met to allocate funding to events in the final round of 2023/2024.
Thirteen applications were approved at a total of $88,000 for events throughout Tauranga and Western Bay of Plenty. The 2023/2024 funding year is now complete, and the panel are excited to see the final events from their second year of this collaborative fund take place from March until June. Among the recipients is the Echo Walking Festival in April 2024 at multiple venues.
Shaping the Bay’s transport future
The draft regional land transport plan 2024-2034 is now open for consultation, outlining the future direction of the Bay’s transport system.
The draft plan is prepared by the Bay of Plenty Regional Transport Committee and prioritises traffic congestion, public transport connections to affordable housing, addressing transport access for smaller and isolated communities, enhancing road safety and improving the resilience of the transport network against climate change.
One of the proposed activities in the Western Bay of Plenty is the Takitimu North Link Stage 1 - $695.98 million amd Takitimu North Link Stage 2, Ōmokoroa transport improvements $26 million. The draft regional land transport plan 2024-2034 is open for consultation until March 24. participate.boprc.govt.nz/rltp
Child Cancer Foundation
On March 8-9, Child Cancer Foundation’s volunteers will be taking to the streets across New Zealand to raise vital funds to support children with cancer and their families.
To ensure each family living through childhood cancer in New Zealand receives the support they need, the Child Cancer Foundation needs to raise at least $6 million each year.
It receives no funding from the government, so it relies on New Zealanders’ generosity to help families through the toughest time of their lives.
'The contribution they’ve made to ballet in this country ... has been immense.'