Stratford District Citizen Award: Patsy and Baz are a couple with a can-do attitude

Patsy Commerford and Tony (Baz) Gordon are a real asset to the community, says Mayor Neil Volzke.

From legendary after-match burgers to perfectly maintained cricket pitches, not to mention incredible costumes and stage sets, Patsy Commerford and Tony (Baz) Gordon have spent many years sharing their talents and hard work with the Stratford community.

The couple are known in the community for their attitude of rolling up their sleeves and getting on with the job at hand, and over the years, there have been many such jobs to have benefitted from their no-nonsense and practical approach.

The Stratford Cricket Club is one of the local organisations the pair have spent many years supporting, starting on the sidelines when their sons were playing, but quickly taking on more than just cheering duties. Over the past two decades, Patsy's burgers have become world-famous in Taranaki feature of the catering at after-match functions and any special events at the cricket club, while the pristine state of the grounds themselves are thanks to the tireless and continual efforts of Baz. Their support of the cricket club over the years has also meant opening their home to visiting international players while they play for the club, something Patsy describes as "a pleasure" adding it's always interesting to get to know new people.

The pair have also been members of Stratford on Stage for many years, and if you have ever seen a production by that local theatre group, you will have seen both Baz and Patsy's handiwork both on and off the stage.

Patsy runs the Stratford on Stage wardrobe department, which doesn't just make sure the actors are always well dressed in every play, but also provides a costume hire service to the wider community. With an extensive collection of costumes, people can normally find what they are looking for, but if they can't Patsy is known to come to the rescue and whip up a solution on her sewing machine.

She enjoys the challenge of coming up with costumes for the wide variety of plays Stratford on Stage puts on she says, with one of the more memorable costume challenges being that of Dolores the Pig for Footrot Flats in 2016. With the costume department ever-growing thanks to Patsy's sewing and creative skills, Baz is also kept busy, regularly called upon to build more clothing racks to hang the collection. Baz is also the driving force behind building sets for the theatre group's productions, coming up with ingenious solutions to the creative demands of many directors over the years.

Patsy and Baz have been the driving force in renovating and maintaining the Stratford on Stage's home theatre, The Castle, improving the facilities greatly over the years, making sure the small theatre on Regan St will be able to continue to welcome audiences and actors for many years to come.

The Castle isn't the only theatre in town to benefit from Patsy and Baz's can-do attitude. The couple are active members of the King's Theatre Trust, doing everything they can to make sure the theatre remains the community asset it has been for over a century.

Patsy is a familiar face to anyone who goes to the movies there, as a key member of the volunteer usher team she is one of the friendly faces welcoming movie-goers and directing them to grab a cosy blanket before they enter the recently renovated movie theatre. The recent renovations included a new paint job, and Baz spent many hours wielding a paintbrush or roller and getting the job done.

Between them, Patsy and Baz volunteer somewhere between 80 and 100 hours at the theatre, doing everything from bagging up the lollies to be sold and washing the blankets to grabbing a hammer or screwdriver and fixing or adjusting something here or there.

"The place is unique, and the volunteers here are all wonderful, we just do our part to keep it all going," says Patsy. It was a "real surprise" to receive a letter telling them they were recipients of a Citizen Award she says because "we don't think we do anything spectacular".

Stratford District mayor Neil Volzke says while Patsy and Baz might think they do nothing special, the community would disagree.

"Patsy and Tony's skills and attributes complement each other's so well, they both roll up their sleeves and get on with it so it's easy to see they are both an asset to our community."