The Te Awamutu Christmas Float Parade is on thin ice if nobody offers to help organise it this year.
The Te Awamutu Christmas Float Parade is on thin ice if nobody offers to help organise it this year.
About this time most years the Te Awamutu Courier puts the call out for volunteers to step up and help the Te Awamutu Christmas Float Parade committee put on the great annual event.
And about a month later after a handful of offers, the core committee members continue to do all the work.
This year is different — the core committee is now down to just three — Linnie Jones, Colin Pinkerton and Bernard Westerbaan — and they are retiring.
The Te Awamutu Christmas Float Parade is bigger and better each year.
Last year Lynne Fenwick had to resign from the committee when she won a new job and shifted to Coromandel.
She and Colin had been involved for about a decade and Linnie and Bernard for about eight years.
Linnie says it takes months of work to organise such a big event and no-one new is coming on board to learn the ropes, help out and eventually take over.
She believes it would be best if an existing group, with a stable membership, took over the event.
Te Awamutu Christmas Float Parade 2017.
"We have great support and sponsorship from Gisler Architects and Pak'nSave do a great job with the Family Picnic following the parade," says Linnie.
"Without Tim Gisler and Mike Goble it wouldn't have happened."
She says Tania Disher, Vern and Colleen Wilson step in each year to help in a variety of ways, Te Awamutu Community Cadets and their leaders donate manpower and the team from Central Cafe has got behind running other events that complement the day.
And the committee has help and support from Te Awamutu Community Public Relations Organisation.
But she says promises from other businesses last year never came to fruition, or didn't deliver what was expected, and there were other frustrations, such as securing ongoing funding and meeting all the needs of Council.
"We think we have achieved a great parade outcome over the years," says Linnie.
"Each year has been bigger and better than the previous.
"Now it is someone else's turn."
She also says there is too much responsibility for one person, or a small committee, which is why a larger group would be a good option.
Linnie has a background in event management and would be happy to work with a new group to bring them up to speed.
"But if no-one comes forward, the 2017 parade might be the last for a while."
