Turia: Opening of Nancy Winter Early C'hood Centre
te-pati-maori
Mon Apr 02 2007 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)
Turia: Opening of Nancy Winter Early C'hood Centre
Monday, 2 April 2007, 9:54 am
Speech: The Maori Party
Opening of the Nancy Winter Early Childhood Centre
Sunday 1 April 2007; 2pm
Tariana Turia; Member of Parliament for Te Tai Hauauru
E rere kau mai, Te Awa nui; mai i te kahui Maunga, ki Tangaroa.
Ko au te awa, ko te awa ko au.
Ngati Uenuku, tena koutou.
Ko tenei te mihi ki a koutou nga tangata o Raetihi, nga whanau o nga hau e wha. Tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa.
Her worship the Mayor; Sue Morris; Honourable Mark Burton; the Winter family; Dennis Pirere and all of the distinguished guests and cherished members of this community.
Today is a very special moment in the life of this community.
It is a day to celebrate community.
The common-unity of purpose that has driven the Raetihi Early Childhood Education Trust to establish a centre of excellence for their children and their future. The common unity of this region – which has been astounding us all with the vitality of your recent achievements.
I am thinking of Te Puke Marae and the remarkable transformation that has occurred as Ngati Uenuku came together in an awe-inspiring project. A project which gave the marae and the church a fresh coat of paint, but more, restored a sense of pride and a spirit of optimism in the whanau, hapu and iwi.
I am thinking of Pah Hill Station, and the Atihau-Whanganui Incorporation which have just this week, won the Southern regional competition for the 2007 Maori Excellence in farming award. Whatarangi Murphy-Peehi of course, chairman of the Incorporation, had already brought fame to this region as regional winner of the Maori farmer of the year contest a few years ago.
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I am thinking of the history that Raetihi preserves– last weekend you upheld the honour of the Waimarino rodeo – the oldest rodeo in the country; and of course the town is still talking about “the Phantom of the Panto” – which filled the Theatre Royal with full houses – that’s the oldest theatre in the Southern Hemisphere.
But Raetihi is also thoroughly modern as anyone will know from time at the Angel Louise internet café - indeed Raetihi Rocks!
And so, with such a strong and thriving community presence, I was really delighted to be with you all today, to share with you in celebrating the vision of a remarkable Raetihian; Nancy Winter.
In 1997, Nancy was awarded the Queens Service Medal for public services. But when she got her award, true to form, she gave all glory to this community saying, “I am delighted for Raetihi – that somebody in a small place is recognised in this way”.
The QSM was an award which recognised an extraordinary commitment to public service and social responsibility; but importantly, it paid tribute to a woman who has planted the seeds of hope and promise in others.
Nancy is to Raetihi what the Pied Piper is to Hamlin. Whether it was teaching every child in this town how to swim; a lifetime of dedication to the special gifts of children associated with IHC and crippled children; or decades of devotion as one of the first pre-school teachers in the old Department of Education pre-school attached to Raetihi school, Nancy was there.
In her spare time, Nancy served on the Raetihi School and Ruapehu College Parent Teacher Associations; was club captain and coach for the swimming club; a tutor at the tennis club for over thirty years; busy with church work; helping out at the local opportunity shop and actively involved in hospital visiting while husband Rex maintained the gardens in award-winning style. Indeed she was someone that reflects the true meaning of community.
Nancy, riding her black bicycle, and eventually being persuaded that it was a good thing to move with the times including donning the helmet- was someone that invested her life in the future of this community, by believing, first and foremost, that the power of tomorrow lies in the toddlers of today.
She left a profound legacy which this early childhood centre honours today.
In her work with children, she gave emphasis to the learning partnership between those who work, and supervise, and train, and care for the children in this centre – and their whanau.
A partnership which we have already seen exists so strongly amongst the community. I was blown away when I heard about the extent of the commitment that your community has invested in getting this place up and running.
And I want to commend the commitment of your chairperson, Jamie Proude in the creative fundraising strategies – and the support too of Anne Devonshire and the Ministry of Education in picking up the dream.
There have been great things happen - like Rex Martin of Waipuna setting aside three and a half thousand sheep to be crutched which the community did in three hours flat. Or the generosity of Raetihi School in sharing such a prime location.
It is a blossoming partnership which reminds us all of the power of life-long learning. I have heard stories of parents calling in, who are suddenly inspired to take up early childhood training; to invest in their own development alongside that of their children.
Nancy has left behind a future with friends and family who share her enthusiasm for life. We are so lucky to have the energetic enthusiasm of the forever vibrant Lynne Pope – whom I must congratulate as having now moved into the grandmother club.
Wherever Lynne goes, children follow – and who could not fail to be swept away with the magic she weaves, the momentum she inspires, the energy of her presence.
I am thinking magic – because I think one of the things that the Harry Potter phenomenon has done is to reintroduce the magical power of words and supernatural powers that can cause miracles to take place.
My hope for this centre is that we can help our children overcome their doubts and fears by drawing upon the power of words and positive attitudes, hope and confidence.
That we can provide a foundation which enables children to access the magical power of their own minds.
My hope for this centre is that it will also embrace the magic formula that every child that is born, is the child of the whanau. The whanau, in turn, reaches out - into interconnected circles of responsibility which extend across the extended genealogies.
We need to all take these obligations and responsibilities very seriously and ensure our children are loved, nurtured and protected.
I am reminded of the words of Nelson Mandela who said "there can be no clearer revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children". Raetihi you have, with the opening of the Nancy Winter Early Childhood Centre, revealed your soul.
And finally, my wish for this centre is that it will keep alive the vision of Nancy Winter that every child is a miracle who deserves to experience the full wonder of life. May their voices, their laughter, their music and their song fill the valleys and reverberate from the mountains to the seas.
ENDS
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