A Wānaka teenager who was gifted a set of golf clubs worth $5,000 is already using them “nearly every day”.Monty Brown (16) missed out on a major prize by millimetres during this year’s New Zealand Open but his sportsmanship was rewarded a month later.His attempt in the ‘Closest to the Pin’ fundraiser initiative at the New Zealand Open was just 830mm from the pin until he was beaten to the prize in the last ten minutes of the day.His grace in missing out on the $5,000 prize was noticed by Craigs Investment Partners, who teamed up with golf club supplier Ping and the Wānaka Golf Club Pro Shop and last week they presented Monty with a brand new set of Ping clubs.Monty told the Wānaka App the new clubs are “definitely” a big improvement on his old clubs.The keen golfer picked up the sport around two years ago.He now plays at Wānaka Golf Club two or three times a week and he is currently aiming to get his handicap of 15.1 down to “single digits” by the end of summer.Monty told the Wānaka App he was attending the New Zealand Open for the first time when he came across ‘Closest to the Pin’ and thought to himself “let’s give this a crack”.Even though he didn’t win, Monty said he was stoked with his result, and he was “blown away” when he was given the new clubs a couple of months later.Monty said it would be “pretty cool” to go pro one day, but for now golf is “just for fun”.Craigs Investment Partners adviser Paul Gardner said through the company’s support for the Closest to the Pin and a second New Zealand Open Initiative, Birdies for Charity, $25,000 was raised for Cure Kids and the Wakatipu Community Foundation.“Craigs also wants to recognise up-and-coming young Kiwi golfers in their journey to the top, and supporting Monty is one way we can do this given his achievement and attitude on the day.”PHOTO: Supplied

Wānaka snow sports stalwart Mary Lee has been appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to snow sports and tourism in this year’s King’s Honours List.Mary and her husband John Lee developed Cardrona Ski Field, Snow Park, the beginnings of the Southern Hemisphere Proving Ground, and the Snow Farm - New Zealand’s only dedicatedNordic/cross-country ski area.Mary told the Wānaka App she was proud to be involved in the foundation of the ski areas and Nordic sports in New Zealand and was honoured to be recognised.“It has been and still is a very rewarding journey,” she said.The honour had “rekindled a truck load of wonderful memories” from the partners who helped Mary and John realise their dreams to “all the wonderful people we have met”. There had been plenty of challenges along the way too, but Mary said those were “a distant memory”.Mary Lee in action during the Snow Farm’s annual Merino Muster. PHOTO: Garrick CameronWhile Mary credits the support of family, friends, and the Nordic skiing community in the success of the Snow Farm, she (who embodies ‘perpetual motion’) may have been the perfect person to help develop and introduce the sport of Nordic skiing to New Zealand. A keen alpine skier from a young age, she was inspired to become a physiotherapist as a teenager by her volunteer work with disabled children. She told the Wānaka App she had never tried Nordic skiing until John began developing the Pisa area.“It’s a special sport,” Mary said, recalling an afternoon in those early days on what is now The Snow Farm. She stopped skiing and looked at the view, and thought: “This is such a mind-blowing, relaxing mental health day.”It was a learning experience developing the Snow Farm, Mary said, and while the international Nordic instructors were expert skiers, their approach of taking beginner skiers to the top of the Pisa on the first day often meant it was also their last day of Nordic skiing.“This is where my physio training kicked in and with John, we tackled the challenge of getting return visits,” Mary said.Nordic skiing took “a lot longer” to be accepted as a sport than the couple had anticipated. A youth trip Mary organised to Australia’s World Loppet ski race helped grow awareness and was the foundation for the Waiorau Nordic Sports club and subsequently the Nordic Youth Development group. The Lees also founded Biathlon NZ and the Wānaka Biathlon club. Building the lodge at the Snow Farm was a huge achievement, Mary said, and it attracted international athletes (who still come to the Snow Farm to train each winter). Mary also worked hard to have the Snow Farm’s Merino Muster race (established in 1995) accepted by the traditional Nordic countries, and it is now one of 20 Worldloppet races in the world.From 1987 to 2008, Mary managed and developed Snow Farm, and she continues to take on voluntary roles. Her efforts have provided employment opportunities and attracted national and international ski tourists, with trails providing off season business. Mary said she always saw her role as “behind the scenes”, but she developed something of John’s visionary perspective over the years working beside him.The Lees sold Snow Farm in 2008 and formed the Pisa Alpine Charitable Trust to ensure it remained a recreational area in perpetuity. Mary remains New Zealand representative for the Worldloppet Ski Federation, and director and secretary of the Merino Muster. She founded Snow Girls, a cross country skiing and social network for women of all ages. When the Covid-19 pandemic hit in 2020 the Snow Farm was left without international ski instructors and Mary was asked to mentor members of the Snow Girls as instructors, which enabled her to implement her own ideas to promote skiing with the local women. In 2022 Mary was the first person to receive the NZQA Snowsports Instructor Award – Cross Country Skiing Level 4. Mary continues to be motivated by the young skiers in the Snow Farm youth programme. She said a big challenge is promoting the sport (which has a low injury rate compared to other winter activities) for the younger generation. “Nordic sports are not just for retired alpine skiers,” she said. Mary also volunteers with SeniorNet and the Cardrona Heritage Trust, and recently completed a marathon (throughout May) with her two-year-old grandson Archie, to raise funds for the Heart Foundation.John Lee was appointed a Companion to the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to business and Tourism, in 2016. In 2021 Mary received the John Fitzharris Award for Service to Sports. Mary said the honours complete the circle for their family legacy, giving the couple’s grandchildren “a greater understanding of the partnership John and I had to establish the ski areas and other projects”.

Well-known Wānaka resident Ralph Feagan has been appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the community in the King’s Birthday Honours List.Ralph Feagan, ONZM, JP, has volunteered in the Wānaka and West Coast communities since 1973 in a range of capacities, including 40 years with the fire service.He told the Wānaka App he thought hard about accepting the honour before agreeing. “I carry it for all the people I’ve been involved with all these years,” he said.Ralph’s motivation for community service is “the old story”, he said. “It’s the people, the people, the people.”Ralph said while he was a rebel who didn’t listen much to his parents, his father’s message (and role modelling) that “you’ll get more pleasure from giving than taking” stuck with him.Ralph modelling the fire brigade’s mini tractor.Ralph volunteered with Franz Josef Volunteer Fire Brigade for 22 years, becoming chief fire officer from 1977 to 1996, and initiating the formation of a Rural Fire Party. He “saw the need” in the small but growing town, where the nearest fire station was “663 bends in the road” away in Fox Glacier. He and wife Lyn also ran the local supermarket where their staff would expand from about eight in the off-season to almost 50 during peak season.While Ralph always planned to retire to Wānaka (he grew up in Milton and spent his summers here since he was six-years-old), Lyn wasn’t so keen. Ralph moved here first while Lyn kept running the supermarket, and - not one to sit around - Ralph took over ferrying people between Wānaka and Queenstown in a Toyota Hiace van. The service took off (becoming Wānaka Connections) and Ralph was kept busy for the next few years before the Franz Josef store sold and Lyn joined him in Wānaka.His contribution to the tourism industry dates back to the 1970s: he was on the Westland Promotion Board for three years, and four years each with West Coast Tourism Development and West Coast Tourism Council. He was also director of the South Island Promotion Association from 1987 to 1994. He has also been chair of Lake Wānaka Tourism, and has served for 17 years with the Wānaka Fire Brigade. After 22 years with the Franz brigade he took a “nine year break” doing victim support before joining the Wānaka brigade.He’s been brigade secretary since 2013, and has been involved with the United Fire Brigade Association as president of the Central Otago Fire Brigade’s sub-association from 2021 to 2023 and became senior vice president of the Otago/Southland Gold Star Association in 2023. Ralph has volunteered with a range of other organisations including the New Zealand Fighter Pilots’ Foundation Trust, Wānaka Airport, Upper Clutha RSA, the Wānaka A&P Show, and Food for Love.  He was a Westland District Councillor from 1989 to 1995 and a civil defence controller for Franz Josef from 1979 to 1995. When the Wānaka App met Ralph this weekend he was weeding the garden at the fire station, saying “If I don’t do it no other bugger will”.“I’ll do it as long as I can. I’ll get booted out eventually,” he said.Ralph spoke about the “absolutely bloody amazing” job done by local emergency services, who all work well together - with families as a very important part of the team.“We have a wonderful mix with female and male members in the brigade in which all are very highly skilled in protecting our community,” he said.The highlight of his time in Wānaka, he said, has been helping bring NASA to the airport.“I bent a lot of number 8 wire doing it,” he said. Ralph’s role at Wānaka Airport began when he was employed to do 10-15 hours of maintenance a week, and ended up becoming the airport operations manager for 12 years. Around 10 years ago NASA contacted then-Queenstown Lakes District councillor Jude Battson. Jude phoned Ralph, saying: “I’ve had a weird phone call from space.” She gave NASA Ralph's contact details, which sparked a long process to bring the space agency to Wānaka as part of its balloon programme (which provides high-altitude scientific balloon platforms for scientific and technological investigations, including fundamental scientific discoveries that contribute to our understanding of the universe).Wānaka is now one of just seven NASA balloon launch sites in the world.Ralph recalled an early clandestine visit from three NASA engineers who he showed around then remained in touch with. He and Lyn were also hosted by NASA on a memorable USA trip in 2019 where they were treated as VIPs. Ralph also acknowledged the late Sir Tim Wallis was a “great mentor” whom he always enjoyed spending time with.“It’s been a great ride,” he said.Ralph acknowledged the “pivotal” support from his family, saying they “always understood” his community service, despite him missing school events, meals, and more.“Without that family support you can’t do it.”Ralph received the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal and was awarded Westland District Council Person of the Year in 1996.This is the first time appointments have been made to the “King’s Service Order” (formerly the Queen’s Service Order), acknowledging the new sovereign.PHOTOS: Wānaka App

James (Jim) Boult (CNZM) has been appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to local government, tourism and the community in this year’s King’s Birthday Honours list.The former Queenstown Lakes District mayor has led and advocated across a range of roles and organisations over a 40-year period.He was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2015.Jim was elected as mayor in 2016 and re-elected in 2019. In April 2022 he confirmed he would not stand for re-election later that year. During his five-and-a-half years in the role of mayor he led a series of projects to bolster the district.They included an initiative to provide affordable homes; a $2 bus transport scheme; a government working party for freedom camping; a bed tax proposal as a solution for funding the infrastructure needs of 3M+ visitors per year; and other infrastructure and transport changes. During the Covid-19 pandemic he led the implementation of funding and support for migrants without homes or work; establishment of the Queenstown Greater Needs fund for the medical needs of migrants; and the the Economic Recovery and District Diversification taskforces.Jim also worked with central government on initiating shovel-ready projects and establishing the Major Events fund, and chaired the Otago Lifelines Programme for natural disaster readiness and the Metro Mayors section of local government. Jim is a patron of the Child Cancer Foundation, Whakatipu Wildlife Trust and Whakatipu Rowing Club, and the chair of the Canterbury Museum Working Party.This is the first time appointments have been made to the “King’s Service Order” (formerly the Queen’s Service Order), acknowledging the new sovereign.PHOTO: QLDC

What happens when a scenic winter adventure turns into a fight for survival?In this gripping episode, we sit down with Ken Wylie, who recounts the day he was caught in a devastating avalanche 20 years ago.Ken takes us through the critical moments before the disaster, from the overlooked morning meeting to the ominous "wumpf" sound that signalled impending doom.His vivid storytelling brings to life the harrowing experience of being swept away by the avalanche, his struggle to stay afloat on the snow, and the moments of awareness before he passed out. This life-altering event has since driven Ken to dedicate his career to teaching avalanche safety and risk management.Listen to The Outlet Wānaka.

Wānaka filmmaker Finlay Woods has won the NZ Mountain Film and Book Festival’s (NZMFF) Hiddleston/MacQueen Award for Best NZ-Made Film for his film Terra Incognita.The film follows a crew of world-class skiers led by Freeride World Tour competitor Craig Murray as they attempt to ski new lines in the Southern Alps and experiment with pack horses to access ski touring.“It feels great to receive this recognition for the film after all of the work put in by so many people,” Finlay said. “And for it to be from the NZMFF is really special - I spent so many of my younger years going and being inspired by the films in the festival.”Terra Incognita (which translates to terrain unknown) explores the realities of pushing into some of the most remote places in the country and the triumphs and tribulations of those endeavours.“For us the goal of Terra Incognita was to explore new places in the Southern Alps,” Craig said, which was a “transformative and educational process”.“We experienced a range of places, weather and conditions as well as sharing a ride of emotions with many great people. In some ways I think our motivation and positivity created our own luck. “More than once, when a plan completely fell through, another unexpected opportunity would arise.”Finley and Craig extended a “massive thank you” to all the people who helped make the film possible.Another 18 awards were granted in a range of categories and the Grand Prize was awarded to French director Hugo Clouzeau for his film, ‘Nuptse: Touching the Intangible’, which follows three climbers who are dreaming of opening a new extreme route on the legendary south face of Nuptse, a wall approaching 8000m in the heart of the Himalayas. Those films and several dozen more (whittled down from a record 241 entries) will feature at this year’s NZMFF, which will take place in Wānaka from June 21-25, in Queenstown from June 27-28 and online in July.Find the full festival programme at the NZMFF website or at Paper Plus.PHOTO: Supplied

Retiring Warbirds Over Wānaka Community Trust chairman John Gilks says he’s thrilled to have been in the role for the event’s most successful airshow in its 36-year history.The 2024 airshow saw the Easter weekend’s Saturday and Sunday both sold out and a record crowd for the practice day on Friday (March 29-31).  An estimated 8,000 people also attended the free community airshow at the lakefront on Good Friday.John said after leading the organisation for the past ten years it was hugely satisfying to be able to put on such an amazing event this Easter, especially given the last two airshows had to be cancelled because of Covid-19.“Leading into this airshow I was confident there was a lot of pent-up demand but with any major outdoor event there are still a number of things that can go wrong at the last minute,” he said.“But everything came together so well for this year’s airshow – an amazing line-up of aircraft, record crowds and perfect weather.”Read more: ‘Best Warbirds ever’: Organisers blown away by feedbackJohn said the final financial situation won’t be known until the end of the organisation’s financial year in September, however it’s looking likely Warbirds will be in a strong position to put on another airshow at Easter 2026 and beyond.“It’s a great position to be in but it would not have been possible without the help of the many funding organisations, sponsors and individuals who supported us during the past six years,” John said.“Without that funding Warbirds would not have survived. We hope we were able to repay that support by staging the most successful airshow in the event’s history.”Paul Moodie of Wānaka will replace John as chairman.Paul Moodie PHOTO: SuppliedThe 2024 airshow was Paul’s first as a member of the board and he says his vision for the future is pretty simple: “Warbirds needs to continue to deliver a top-class international event which delivers significant, positive benefits for our community.”PHOTO: Wānaka App

A local Hato Hone St John cadet has been selected to travel to Hong Kong in July to compete in the Asia Pacific Regional Youth First Aid Competition.Lily Wilson (17) is one of just ten members of St John Youth from around the country to be selected for the competition, where she will test her skills in high-stakes scenarios.St John competitions test competitors' ability to respond to emergency situations and Lily said the Asia-Pacific competition is slightly different to the ones in New Zealand.“They have a nursing and ambulance team and focus on trauma and patient care and things like that,” she said. Lily has been involved with St John since she was six; she says it has had a big influence on her plans to study nursing when she finishes school this year.As part of the two-week trip to Hong Kong Lily will also get the chance to participate in St John Hong Kong’s 140th birthday celebrations, which will include visiting cultural sites and other activities. Lily has been involved with St John Youth since the age of six and it has become a huge part of her life. She is the South Island Cadet of the Year 2024, a major achievement and responsibility within the organisation, and the first time a Wānaka cadet has received the honour.“I get to attend a lot of the events across the South Island,” Lily said. “That can be investitures, where we ‘invest’ people into the Order of St John. There’s also competitions and regional camps.“When I’m not travelling I get to keep in contact with a lot of the young people in the organisation and help the other cadets.”In April she competed at the national St John annual competition as a team leader for one of the South Island teams; her team was tested by responding to scenarios including a car crash and a bus that was on fire, among many others.Lily’s team was crowned champion team at the competition and she was named champion team leader.The camaraderie and the learning opportunities within St John are what keep Lily interested and she says she expects to have a lifelong involvement with the organisation.“I’ve met some of my closest friends within the organisation which is really cool,” she said. “I’ve also found so many leadership opportunities and places to grow my skills.”Lily is in her last year of school this year and she plans to study nursing next year.“St John has shown me that I really like caring for other people.”“I can see myself working on the ambulance in the future possibly as a volunteer and see myself continuing with the Youth Programme in a leadership role. ”The local St John has run its youth programme for 15 years. Find more information about it here.PHOTOS: Supplied

When the Wānaka Business Chamber launched a Wānaka version of the popular Monopoly board game in December (2023), it may have been an Englishman who was the most excited.Neil Scallan (54), who lives near London, is the Guinness World Record holder for the most monopoly sets of different kinds collected, and just before Christmas he approached the Wānaka App seeking a copy of Wānaka Monopoly.“My favourite part is finding rare sets from abroad that I would most likely never get,” Neil said.“I now have 4,033 different sets.”Neil said he was an avid traveller before putting his money into becoming a Monopoly set collector. He began collecting more than 20 years ago while on a trip to New Zealand.“I have been to Wānaka actually, had a flight in an acrobatic plane,” he said.“I love aircraft … we did many loops over the lake, it was an amazing flight but I forgot to buy the T-shirt.”Monique Aitcheson of Paper Plus Wānaka and NZ Post helps Wānaka Business Chamber general manager Glenn Peat post the Wānaka Monopoly Board to Neil Scallan. PHOTO: Wānaka AppWānaka Business Chamber general manager Glenn Peat said more than 2,600 Wānaka Monopoly sets have sold since becoming available mid December.“There was a lot of interest for last minute Christmas gifts,” Glenn said.“Hopefully we’ll get a second wave of people coming to town and wanting the board.”Profit from the sale of the Monopoly games goes to the Wānaka Business Chamber to be reinvested back into the development of the chamber, he said.The Wānaka Monopoly Board is available to purchase at selected retailers (Paper Plus Wānaka, Mitre10 Mega Wānaka, The Camp Lake Hāwea) and online.

For 30 years, the closest Justine and Geoff Ross had come to cows was two cowhide chairs in their Auckland living room.But that didn't stop the couple behind the successful 42 Below vodka business from buying a high-country station at Lake Hāwea and embarking on a new way of farming.The station isn't just carbon neutral, it's carbon positive.They detail the struggles, even outright hostility as well as the triumphs and deep satisfaction from having a dream, and the courage to chase it in their new book, Meet You At The Main Divide: A Family's Story Of Life On Lake Hāwea Station.When she first set eyes on the property it was a “hard no” Justine Ross tells Jesse Mulligan (RNZ Afternoons), but a trip to the back country on the property changed her mind.“There's a stream there and we sat there as a family and had a bit of a picnic, and I just couldn't believe it, it was unfathomable and it still is really, that we could actually own this piece of land.”Geoff, despite years in the marketing game in Auckland, felt the pull of the land strongly, he says.“I thought I'd suppressed it after being in Parnell and the agency worlds, but it was always there actually and after a couple of trips down here for recreation, the pull finally got the better of us.”Their first year on the property wasn’t plain sailing, Justine says, but gradually the family settled into life on the farm. They were also driven by a desire to do something tangible for the climate, Justine says.“Geoff was part of Pure Advantage, a lobby group for the business case for the environment, which does amazing work.“And I've been involved with Greenpeace, there was just so many factors pointing to having the need to do something significant about what we believe is the existential threat that our planet is facing.”Having made their money “selling booze” they wanted to leave a more wholesome legacy, she says.“A legacy that's really about what we believe in, to become climate advocate people through farming was just a no brainer for our whole family.”They acknowledge they met some resistance to the way they planned to farm at the outset, Geoff says.“It was probably at a ram sale, the first ram sale I went to actually and the subject of climate change came up, over smoko.“And there was a sense of resistance at that point. But it's amazing how much that's changed in the last few years.“And in fact, the last ram sale I went to, now the conversation is that the climate is definitely changing.”Seasoned farmers from the region know better than anyone how the climate has changed, he says.“One of the drivers for coming here, with a lot of discussion in the media was around farming as a problem in climate change, I guess what we wanted to disprove that and show that farming can be part of the climate change solution.”Being a carbon positive farm means they sequester twice the amount they emit, Geoff says.“We emit largely through our stock and tractor hours, we emit 2500 tonnes of greenhouse equivalents every year. So, it's a big number.“But thanks to a lot of that bush, a lot of the plantings, we’ve planted 22,000 trees, a lot of the regenerating gullies and and steep faces which have little farming value, because we've protected that, it's sequestering 5500 tonnes.”Country Calendar featured them last year, and they copped some pretty virulent online burns, being called ‘Instagram farmers’ and ‘five-minute farmers’.“I mean, all those things are true. In many regards, we are, we've only been here six years, so in many contexts, it's a short period of time.“But there is often a case for fresh eyes. And if you look to other sectors, to use an obvious one like air travel, Air New Zealand don't always hire pilots to be the CEO, they often have expertise and experience from other sectors to drive that business forward.“Farming, as in all sectors, has got to keep the change reflex, we've got to have fresh eyes, we've got to keep looking to what our customers are doing.”“And whilst I can't claim to be an expert with a team of dogs, hopefully there's some skills from what Justine and I've learned, maybe on the market facing side, that can be useful to farming,” says GeoffAnd it’s not all soft and fluffy, hard economics lie behind the farm strategy, he says, the farm turns a profit.“When you're in marketing, you spend a lot of time speaking to your customers and finding out what they want and then looking at what you can offer and then searching for your competitive and ideally a unique competitive advantage.“And New Zealand has many particularly in farming, and I don't think they've been articulated or potentially heard well enough.”And if they are ‘Instagram farmers’ there are hard-headed reasons for that, they say.“There's 50,000 farms in New Zealand, if each of those had as we do for instance 1000s of followers for our Instagram, from countries around the world, let's say in New Zealand each farm had 2,000 followers, that's a 100 million people worldwide listening to the great work that New Zealand farmers are doing,” Geoff says.It's the way they find business, says Justine.“We connect with those clients is through Instagram. So, if that makes us Instagram farmers, we’ll take it.”PHOTOS: Lake Hāwea Station

Wānaka’s Brian Kreft was shocked when he received a phone call recently telling him he had been awarded a Distinguished Fellowship by New Zealand’s Institute of Directors.Wānaka has been home to Brian for 38 years and his links here are strong.His family has owned Paper Plus for more than 35 years and his support for local businesses is well known.“It was something I never expected,” he said.“Firstly I was flattered; secondly I’ve had a degree of luck in my time, but it was obviously recognised by my peers that I’ve done things the right way,” he said.The Distinguished Fellowship is the highest accolade from the Institute of Directors.Institute chief executive Kirsten Patterson said Brian showed exceptional business leadership and commitment in establishing an ethical oversight regime at the New Zealand Stock Exchange. He was instrumental in establishing the Market Surveillance Panel of the NZX, now known as the New Zealand Markets Disciplinary Tribunal.Obviously a hard worker from early years, Brian attributes his start in business to ‘Mac’ Tulloch (of Tulloch Transport, Gore) who loaned him the money to buy a milk run.Brian, the milk run lad, rented quarters backing onto Tulloch’s.“When I got a job at Forsyth Barr, he paid me back the interest I’d paid over that year, saying ‘For someone who’s prepared to work so hard - you deserve a start in life’.” Brian is now retired as an investment banker, and a testament to his principles, care and professionalism was the fact that he never had to tout for work; people came to him.PHOTO: Supplied

Te Kura o Tititea Mount Aspiring College (MAC) celebrated the service and achievement of its senior students at its 2023 Senior Awards ceremony on Wednesday (November 1) Awards included Dux (Matilda Metcalfe), Proxime Accessit (Eve Flint) and Best All-Round Student (Jessie Winter), in addition to a range of other awards recognising sport, academia, Duke of Edinburgh, Students in the Community, cultural awards and more.Next year Matilda plans to undertake a Bachelor of Visual Communication Design and Music at Massey University; Eve will study Engineering at the University of Canterbury; and Jessie will study Health Science at the University of Otago.MAC principal Nicola Jacobsen said the awards recognised student achievement across a range of disciplines and underlined the many opportunities open to students. “We pride ourselves on being a place for all students to grow and be proud of who they are, and encourage our students to not only make the most of the curriculum opportunities available, but to get involved in all aspects of school life,” she said.“We want every MAC graduate to leave our school equipped with the skills and self-knowledge they need to contribute to the common good and flourish in a complex world.”In addition to the presentation of awards, the awards ceremony included a number of special performances, including a haka pōwhiri performed by Te Mākahi o Tititea (MAC’s kapa haka group), the leavers’ band, the classical group, the jazz combo, and the award-winning musical trio ‘Spoken’. “Observing our senior cohort of 2023, I feel very confident our students will go on to make a positive contribution to our society,” Nicola said.“I am very proud of our senior students and thankful for the support they receive from their families and whānau and our local community.”The college’s new head students and committee leaders were announced at the event with Tom Sides, Zavier Taylor, Lottie Hunt, and Daisy Sanders named head students for 2024. All awards:Year 11Highest achievement: Izzy Foskett (music and level 2 physics and mathematics with statistics), Lucy Liddell (agriculture, science and food and nutrition), Sophia Lyon (art design and Spanish), Joseph Combe (spatial and product design), Archie Bruce (English), Mila Culpitt (mathematics with statistics), Sam Beale (outdoor pursuits), Sam Wilson (music technology), Jessie McNeil (event and entertainment technologies), Minka Brooks (art painting and photography), Cody Brett (mechanical engineering), Oskar Sharpe (computer studies), Ryan Stembridge (drama), Cholula Brown (mathematical modelling), Monty Brown (woodwork), Midori Osnabrugge (economics and business), Amelia Latchford (geography), Lucy Maibach (Te Reo Māori), Grace Thomas (history), Harry Oxley (mathematics with algebra), Isaiah Chin-Nyika (physical education).High achievement: Xander Maguire (science), Abby Jago (food and nutrition), Jessie McNeil (outdoor pursuits), Mikayla Botting (mathematics with algebra), Minka Brooks (science), Cormac Lee Smith, Arlo Mackay (mathematics with statistics), Eli McArthur (spatial and product design), Lucy Radford (physical education), Joe Rowley (English and science), Ryan Stembridge (English), Joseph Combe (economics and business and English), Tommy Cotter (mathematics with algebra), Zeph Foster (woodwork), Dan McKean (English and level 2 Mathematics with calculus), Olivia Shore (English), Midori Osnabrugge (science), Sophia Lyon (economics and business), Chantel Thurston (art painting and photography), Lexi Brown (mechanical engineering).Year 12Highest achievement: Amy Benson (music, chemistry and Spanish and level 3 English andmathematics with calculus), Zoe Laws (history and psychology), Josh Moody (level 3 physics), Annika Massey (mathematics and statistics), Lily Jarvis (agriculture), Millie East (physical education), Oisin Corbett (spatial and product design), Ella Sarginson (food and nutrition and mathematics with statistics), Emily Schmidt (business), Anton Jones (computer studies), Noa Hunter (tourism), Suki Leigh (drama), Lewis Turner (economics), Tawa Wolfe (music technology), Nat Warburton (photography and woodwork), Jaime Olley (gateway), Aryenyo Emasu (painting), Sacha Swanson (Te Reo Māori), Tivi De'Souza (health), Mackenzie Hall (event and entertainment technologies), Tom Sides (English), Henry Allison (mechanical engineering), Bryne Bloxham (outdoor pursuits), Abbey Pedersen (art design and geography).High achievement: Taylah Jones (mathematics and statistics), Will Miller (outdoor pursuits), Neve Brugman (psychology), Finn van Maren (physics), Tai Treadwell-Burke (biology and chemistry), Henry Allison (woodwork), Lena Pollard (biology), Bryne Bloxham (physical education), Abbey Pedersen, Ollie Baldwin, Annie Wells, Ben McMurray (English), Josh Moody (biology and level 3 English), Zoe Laws (English).Year 13Highest Achievement: Matilda Metcalfe (visual art design and music), Caity Curtis (spatial and product design and event and entertainment technologies), Olive Kirk (geography and mathematics and statistics), Cuba Pavlovich (visual art painting), Oscar Goodwin (music technology), Lily Ashe (health), Thomas Benson (outdoor pursuits), Sam Caumette (visual art photography), Daniel Clark (pathways), Grace Gillies (psychology), Jackson Duguid (computer studies), Libby Frazer (drama), Annelise Wedgwood (materials technology), Sebastian Rhind (business and enterprise), Melia Brett (biology), Nina Lee Smith (Spanish), Isabella Soper (physical education), Bradley Gendall (economics), Carter Sidwell (mathematics with statistics), Zara Beeby (Te Reo Māori), Eve Flint (chemistry), Oliver Cohen (woodwork), Haylee Jermyn (tourism), Ruby McLachlan (food and nutrition), Olivia Wood (history).High achievement: India Yule (mathematics and statistics), Lucas Buick (chemistry), Aimee Caesar (outdoor pursuits), Ajay Quirk (business and enterprise), Carter Sidwell (outdoor pursuits), Zara Beeby (biology), Eve Flint (physics), Olivia Wood (English).Special academic awardsThomas Benson (history), Dan McKean, Anton Jones (science and technology scholarships), Jackson Duguid (mathematics scholarship), Blake West (workshop workmanship), Pieta Craig (outdoor pursuits scholarship).National achievementsCam Anderson (mountain bike).International achievementsCarter Guichard (road cycling), Cam Melville Ives (snowboarding), Clarke West, Otis Murphy (music), Sylvia Trotter, Fin Melville Ives, Lucia Georgalli (skiing).Premier Sports Awards Lucia Georgalli (girls’ sports), Fin Melville Ives (boys’ sports).Service awards Ally Paterson, Annalise Millar, Bradley Gendall, Carter Sidwell, Coco Smith, Cuba Pavlovich, Elise Tomkins, Emma Lamb, Estelle Gellatly, Eva Humphreys, Eve Bretherton, Freja Malmo, Georgia Chrisp, Georgie Gillespie, Haylee Jermyn, Hazel Murray, India Yule, Isabella Soper, Jackson Duguid, Jemma Brake, Jessie Winter, Jordan Stevens, Jorja Liddell, Kynan Marsh, Laura Watkins, Lewis Inder, Lily Ashe, Maddie Parkin, Melia Brett, Milly Lewis, Molly Rodger, Oliver Cohen, Paige Gawn, Pippa Raffills, Ruby McLachlan, Sakiko Saka, Sam Parry, Sara Jewell, Sebastian Rhind, Sienna Jones, Sophia Hay, Tayla Doran, Sam Caumette, Oscar Waddington (students in the community – special recognition), Cuba Pavlovich, Milly Lewis, Isabella Soper, Paige Gawn (house spirit), Hazel Murray (special recognition - sustainability), Carter Sidwell, Lily Wickham, (whole-hearted contribution), Lachlan Davison, Melia Brett, Thomas Benson, Emma Lamb (special recognition), Elise Tomkins (student council recognition).Duke of Edinburgh International AwardsZavier Taylor (bronze), Chloe Murray, Elise Tomkins, James Watson, Lily Wickham, Lucy Radford, Nico Pettit, Oisin Corbett (silver), Aimee Caesar (gold).

The death of Wānaka’s Sir Tim Wallis made national news last month, and while there has been much coverage of his aviation crashes, they are a side note to his extraordinary story. “Who’s counting?” Sir Tim’s son Jonathan Wallis said about those incidents at his father’s funeral at Wānaka Airport on Saturday (October 28). “From [Sir Tim’s ] perspective they were no more than mishaps. They were pioneering times.”Sir Tim's wife Prue told the Wānaka App she was "amazed that Tim died quietly in bed at home after a lifetime of living dangerously"."He’s left a very big gap in our lives."Jonathan described his father as having had “a quintessentially unnatural life”.Sir Tim had “a strong sense of independence, a wild charisma, a desire to live life to the full, and uncapped enthusiasm for everything deer and aviation,” he said.“He touched so many lives in so many ways.”A West Coaster, Sir Tim (who died on October 17, aged 85) was a businessman and aviation entrepreneur. He pioneered live deer capture from helicopters, and helped establish deer farming as a significant New Zealand industry. His love of World War II fighter aircraft (which dated back to his schooling in Christchurch in the 1950s) led to his finding and restoring warbirds, and establishing an Alpine Fighter Collection and the New Zealand Fighter Pilots Museum.He founded the Warbirds Over Wānaka airshow in 1988.In 1994 he was appointed a Knight Bachelor for services to deer farming, export, and the community. Jonathan said Sir Tim shaped his course through life through “a combination of making interesting choices, taking bold chances, and navigating good and bad luck”.Some of that bad luck included a 1968 crash while flying a Hiller UH 12E, in which he broke his back. It left him with a partly paralysed left leg.Despite the injury, his son Toby told funeral attendees on Saturday that Sir Tim never complained, had an “outstanding resistance to pain”, and inspired his four sons to follow in his footsteps. Toby outlined stories of his extraordinary childhood with brothers Jonathan, Matthew, and Nick, and the “hero” of a father who taught them everything from camping, hunting, fishing, and diving, to flying.Jonathan said: “Growing up with our father was a magnificent adventure”.In 1996, when Sir Tim crashed his Spitfire Mk XIV while training for an upcoming Warbirds Over Wānaka show, he was seriously injured and no longer able to fly.As part of his rehabilitation he was thereafter cared for by nurses, three of whom stood up at his funeral on Saturday.“We’ve never met anyone with the strength and determination to match Tim’s,” nurse Hilary Smith said.He liked to live life on the edge, she said, and his motto was “active body, active mind”.Jonathan said his father was resilient to trauma and adversity, but the brain injury he suffered in 1996 may have shielded him from the full impact of the loss of sons Matthew and Nick, both of whom died in 2018 in separate helicopter accidents.His father was “sensitive, with tremendous empathy”, who instinctively liked people, Jonathan said.“He kept our feet on the ground and our boots dirty.“Tim’s was a life well lived and loved and we’ll never forget him.”Following the funeral on Saturday was an RNZAF flyover before Sir Tim was taken on his last flight in his own helicopter.His ashes will eventually be spread in the mountains he loved, from Fiordland to Mt Aspiring National Park, as far north as the Dingleburn.The Wallis family has invited donations in Sir Tim’s memory be made to the NZ Spinal Trust, St John or the M!nt Trust.Read more: Sir Tim Wallis: An ‘exceptional man’ has diedPHOTOS: Supplied

Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) has appointed Wānaka-based Jacqueline Cheyne to the board of directors for Queenstown Airport Corporation (QAC).It has also reappointed existing director Simon Flood for a second term.Mayor Glyn Lewers confirmed that councillors agreed unanimously to adopt the QLDC governance subcommittee’s recommendations at a meeting on October 19. Jacqueline, who Glyn said was an experienced business and governance professional, was the subcommittee’s preferred candidate for the vacant directorship, and members also recommended Simon was reappointed for a further standard term of four years. “With all details now finalised I’d like to formally congratulate Jackie and Simon on their appointment and reappointment respectively,” Glyn said. “As well as Jackie’s business acumen and current directorships, I’ve been particularly impressed by her expertise in understanding and managing climate risk. “This aligns with our own climate action commitments and the district’s destination management plan that aims to achieve regenerative tourism and a carbon zero visitor economy by 2030.” QAC chair Adrienne Young-Cooper said she welcomed Jacqueline to the board. “Her extensive governance experience and expertise in sustainability, climate risk and adaptation will be valuable as we progress the important planning and infrastructure projects we have ahead of us.”Jaqueline said she was “delighted” to be joining the board of QAC. “This is a critically important asset for the district and I look forward to working with my fellow board members in continually strengthening the airport’s role in facilitating resilience and sustainable visitor management, as well as providing a welcoming experience for our customers,” she said. Jacqueline fills the vacancy created by the resignation from the QAC board of Anne Urlwin in February. All shortlisted candidates were interviewed by the subcommittee and then resolved to recommend Jacqueline for the position at its meeting on September 7.PHOTO: Supplied

The McCaw family may have plans to move south.Richie and Gemma McCaw are building a large riverside home in the Upper Clutha.It’s not their first foray into local real estate - Richie previously built a holiday home in Wānaka with Versatile Homes, for whom he was an ambassador.The couple also got engaged in Wānaka in 2016 and they were married here in 2017.Architectural plans show the new house near Hāwea will have plenty of room for the family of five, whether it becomes their permanent home or holiday house. The master, complete with walk-in-wardrobe, office and ensuite, will make the most of the site’s views of the Hāwea River. There will also be three bedrooms connected by a shared bathroom, presumably for their three daughters. A fifth bedroom on the north side of the house, labelled as a guest room, will feature a private ensuite.The 325 sqm home will also feature a large open plan kitchen, living and dining room, a library and three large decks, two complete with outdoor fireplaces and the third with an outdoor kitchen. A separate 150sqm garage will have a storage room, room for boats and cars, as well as a ‘training room’, fitting for the former All Blacks captain and the Black Sticks team member. It will sit on a 12,670m2 site.The house, designed by award-winning Christchurch architecture firm Sheppard and Rout Architects, will be built to passive house standards. “The development is considered to be of high design quality and will maintain and enhance the residential amenity values of the area,” they said. PHOTO: QLDC

Mental health campaigner Glen Thurston is encouraging people to join him on a climb of Corner Peak at Lake Hāwea tomorrow (Friday October 27).The climb marks the first anniversary of Glen’s 2022 campaign to raise awareness of mental health issues in the construction industry. At that time he climbed the mountain every day for 53 days to highlight the average number of suicides by construction workers each year.More than 270 people joined Glen to summit Corner Peak (1,683m) as part of that campaign and he is inviting the public to join him again tomorrow.“I'm going to do an annual climb, a one off,” Glen said.“It was such a success [last year] and a lot of people missed out.”Glen said that getting people out on the mountain and achieving something “pretty epic”  resulted in a lot of healthy conversations about mental well-being.“I really just want to keep that conversation going because there were lots and lots and lots of conversations during and after,” he said.“I want this to be part of people's normal life, having these conversations with their friends, going for walks up in the hills with their friends.”Glen’s goal is to see a culture change where mental health is prioritised and ingrained in business through training and health and safety plans.“I continually get people reaching out, asking where to go, who do they need their friend to turn to, sort of things like that,” he said. “I can only do so much, so the more people within the community that get the training or the education or understanding about mental health, the more people there are going to be for others to turn to.“Something really needs to change and I don't believe it's in throwing money at services. It's in educating everyday people. That's where we're gonna make change in this whole pandemic.”If you wish to join Glen and climb Corner Peak tomorrow he will leave from the Timaru Creek car park at 6am. “It's not going to be a race. It's just going to be a good cruisy day,” Glen said.Facts about the climb:An ascent and descent of Corner Peak is a return trip of around 17kmThe elevation gain is 1,570mFurther details can be found here.PHOTO: Supplied

Te Kura o Tititea Mt Aspiring College (MAC) celebrated the commitment and achievement of its students in the arts, service and te ao Māori earlier this week.MAC principal Nicola Jacobsen said the awards event, which took place on Thursday (October 19), reflected the breadth of opportunities available to students at the college.“In addition to our strong focus on academic excellence, we encourage our students to make the most of all aspects of college life so they can grow and be proud of who they are,” she said.Winners of MAC Arts Service Blue Awards.“The arts offer our students an invaluable window into the human experience, allowing them to develop the skills they need to tell their own stories and explore different perceptions of the world and their place in it through music, drama, dance and visual art.”Nicola said developing a deeper understanding of te ao Māori was one of MAC’s strategic priorities “so we are thrilled to see students recognised for nurturing te ao Māori at our school”.Arts Service Blues were awarded to students who have made a significant contribution to, or shown leadership in, the arts for two or more years; Arts Achievement Blues were awarded to students who have achieved significant success in the arts; and Arts Commendation Certificates were awarded to students who have shown commitment, leadership or achievement within the arts during the year.Winners of MAC Te Ao Māori Service Blue Awards.Students awarded Service Blues were recognised for their high standard of achievement and commitment to voluntary service at the school or in the local community and Te Ao Māori Blues were awarded to students for their contribution to te ao Māori and leadership and achievement in this area.Selected students were awarded MAC Values Awards in recognition of the way their behaviour reflects school values, and special awards were given to students who have demonstrated outstanding commitment and achievement in the arts and culture.Awards and recipientsArts Commendation Certificate: Kasey Brooks, Max Byrne, Alice Chaly, Luke Gendall, Alexis-Sofia Harvey-Wills, Emma Head, Suki Leigh, Robbie McRae, Sophie Walsh.Arts Service Blue: Amy Benson, Miki Bercelli, Jemma Brake, Eve Bretherton, Cholula Brown, Max Byrne, Sam Caumette, Tayla Doran, Paige Gawn, Estelle Gellatly, Oscar Goodwin, Tane Haines, Alexis-Sofia Harvey-Wills, Brooke Hutchison, Ruby McLachlan, Matilda Metcalfe, Ella Miles, Otis Murphy, Lena Pollard, Portia Randall, Isabella Soper, Grace Thomas, Aria Thor-Poet, Vanessa Vickers, Laura Watkins, James Watson, Clarke West, Aria Winter, India Yule.Arts Achievements Blue: Amy Benson, Hunter Cranfield, Tayla Doran, Oscar Goodwin, Isabel Martin, Matilda Metcalfe, Otis Murphy, Isabella Soper, Grace Thomas, Clarke West, Priya White.Service Blue: Amy Benson, Jemma Brake, Paige Gawn, Ava Hay, Lewis Inder, Sienna Jones, Emma Lamb, Milly Lewis, Freja Malmo, Jessie McNeil, Noah Moody, Tasmin Murphy, Hazel Murray, Ben Pell, Lulu Pettit, Nico Pettit, Lena Pollard, Lucy Radford, Elise Tomkins, Laura Watkins, James Watson, Lily Wilson, Molly Wilson, Jessie Winter, India Yule.Te ao Māori commendation certificate: Alice Chaly, Laila Telfer, Oscar Waddington, Zoe Waddington, Arlo Waddington; Te ao Māori achievement blue: Anataia White, Melia Brett, Ryan Enoka; Te ao Māori service blue: Anataia White, Sam Caumette, Melia Brett, Ryan Enoka and Hazel Murray.MAC values awards: Manaakitanga Awards Arts, Clarke West; Te Ao Māori- Anataia White; Service - Emma Lamb. Whanaungatanga Awards: Arts - Oscar Goodwin; Te Ao Māori - Hazel Murray; Service - Laura Watkins. Aroha Awards: Arts - Laura Watkins; Te Ao Māori - Lucy Maibach; Service - Sienna Jones. Ihi Awards: Arts - Paige Gawn; Te Ao Māori - Oscar Waddington; Service - Tasmin Murphy.Special awards: Junior Music Award 7 & 8 - Merryn Foster; Junior Music Award 9 & 10 - Ruby Smith; Senior Music Tech Award - Oscar Goodwin; Senior Music Award - Clarke West; Thomson Award for Dance - Ruby McLachlan and Tayla Doran; Thomson Wright Award for Direction and Backstage - Robbie McRae; Kings Performing Arts Award - Laura Watkins;Heskell Award for Excellence in Drama - Zoe Raffills; Senior Languages Award - Lulu Pettit; Tecorians Award for Senior Speech - Libby Fraser; Aspiring Writers Award - Amy Benson; Senior Debating Award - Jackson Duguid.PHOTOS: MAC

The Upper Clutha’s unique environment has inspired gardening enthusiast Ali Soper to launch a gardening podcast focused on the region.Ali has teamed up with former radio broadcaster Jen Anderson to produce the Your Garden Coach NZ podcast to help educate and inform local gardeners.“Ali wanted to do this podcast … specifically for our environment … because it is just so different to everywhere else,” Jen said.“I think Ali has really tapped into something fantastic.”Ali said she was inspired as a child by her grandfather's garden and watching what he was growing and how he nurtured plants.She now lives on a property near Lake Hāwea with an extensive garden which is open to the public through the Secret Gardens of New Zealand network.“My garden is about a three acre garden with a very large vegetable garden component,” Ali said.“Visitors were coming through time after time and they were all asking the same question. How do you make this happen? How do you know what to plant when? How do I grow this? Why do I do that?“So over the winter, I sat and gave some considerable thought to a podcast.”The central mission of the podcast is to guide new gardens and to help gardeners become confident vegetable growers. “This [the Your Garden Coach NZ podcast] is all about getting people into a good headspace, getting them thinking about what they can grow and starting small,” Ali said. “So through inspiring, encouraging, and supporting through the podcast, I'm hoping that we can reach that goal.”Jen said that among other things the Your Garden Coach NZ podcast will cover how to establish a garden, what type of garden is required, what tools are needed and how to sow seeds or what to plant straight into the garden.The Your Garden Coach NZ podcast is available on Spotify and Apple podcasts.PHOTO: Aurora Lane Photography

Brain Injury Otago has appointed a new liaison officer for the Central Otago region, adapting its service to meet the needs of the Wānaka community. Tara McNally, who will be running a monthly drop-in clinic at the Wānaka Community Hub, said she is looking forward to meeting and supporting the Wānaka community.  Brain Injury Otago is also holding its annual street appeal in Wānaka today (Friday October 21).Tara McNallyAll funds raised will go towards supporting Brain Injury Otago services in the community.A brain injury occurs every 15 minutes in New Zealand.The organisation supports traumatic brain injuries, concussion, brain tumours, aneurysms, and other medical events. It also provides education to community groups which can be tailored to cover specific needs, for example for support staff or sports clubs.Find more information here.PHOTOS: Supplied