Principal's News
Kevin Jones
Kia ora koutou.
Welcome families to our first paperless newsletter for 2024. The savings on paper and photocopying will be put to good use. I am writing this newsletter directly on our school website page, a new experience for myself and our office staff.
THANK YOU
I thank Peter Telfer for vacuuming our pool each week and looking after our greenhouse and gardens with vegetables and native trees.
Thank you also to our former caretaker, Ken Morriss for coming into school and making the racks for student bags in Totara and Kahikatea classes. Also, for the extra work you have undertaken in our pool shed and for our teachers.
Thanks also to Dan Brice for cutting out the Yukka tree beside the pool area and disposing of it.
Finally, thank you to our Office Manager, Shirley McKinley for cleaning the concrete area in front of the main deck after work yesterday. It looks great!
We are fortunate to have a community of volunteers willing to assist us in various ways.
ROAD ACCIDENT
Unfortunately, a student from Rimu class and his parents had an accident on the way to the recent Te Kauri Lodge Camp. A car travelling from Kawhia lost control and hit them head-on. One of the parents and the student were taken to Waikato Hospital with serious injuries. Since then, the parent has been released from the hospital and the student remains with ongoing injuries. Recovery will be for a long period.
Our school and community have rallied around to support the family in a variety of ways. Thank you to Rimu's teacher Larna Culpan for your care and support at the accident site and since then, and to others for your support. We will continue to assist the family the best way we can. Thanks also to Russell Thorpe, a Police Officer and our Board member for meeting with the parents and students after the accident and for your support.
This type of incident affects people in different ways, so sometimes it's necessary to seek help for your well-being. There are professionals available to help, or sometimes it may be beneficial to just have a conversation with someone you know.
The Ministry of Education has provided me with a list of these organisations for trauma support, so please contact me if you require any information.
CAMP PARENTS
Thank you parents for taking time off work to assist our teachers at our camps. Camps can be extremely rewarding for all participants and will function well if all adults help teachers by acting as parents to all attending students. We endeavour to have safe camps by ensuring students follow the rules and requirements at camp and while off-site. Continued breaking of these rules may require students to be removed and collected by parents. All the best for Kauri Camp travelling to Papamoa next week and the following week Totara and Kahikatea to Waitawheta Camp.
SCHOOL PROPERTY
Our next property project is painting our school library, which should occur within the next 2-3 months. The second painting project when funds become available would be Kauri classroom.
We are also replacing door handles on several buildings which will allow staff to lock the doors from the inside.
Another possible project is making our pool operating system fully automatic by replacing existing equipment. This will be a considerable cost but will allow cost savings each swimming season.
THANK YOU
I thank Peter Telfer for vacuuming our pool each week and looking after our greenhouse and gardens with vegetables and native trees.
Thank you also to our former caretaker, Ken Morriss for coming into school and making the racks for student bags in Totara and Kahikatea classes. Also, for the extra work you have undertaken in our pool shed and for our teachers.
Thanks also to Dan Brice for cutting out the Yukka tree beside the pool area and disposing of it.
Finally, thank you to our Office Manager, Shirley McKinley for cleaning the concrete area in front of the main deck after work yesterday. It looks great!
We are fortunate to have a community of volunteers willing to assist us in various ways.
ROAD ACCIDENT
Unfortunately, a student from Rimu class and his parents had an accident on the way to the recent Te Kauri Lodge Camp. A car travelling from Kawhia lost control and hit them head-on. One of the parents and the student were taken to Waikato Hospital with serious injuries. Since then, the parent has been released from the hospital and the student remains with ongoing injuries. Recovery will be for a long period.
Our school and community have rallied around to support the family in a variety of ways. Thank you to Rimu's teacher Larna Culpan for your care and support at the accident site and since then, and to others for your support. We will continue to assist the family the best way we can. Thanks also to Russell Thorpe, a Police Officer and our Board member for meeting with the parents and students after the accident and for your support.
This type of incident affects people in different ways, so sometimes it's necessary to seek help for your well-being. There are professionals available to help, or sometimes it may be beneficial to just have a conversation with someone you know.
The Ministry of Education has provided me with a list of these organisations for trauma support, so please contact me if you require any information.
CAMP PARENTS
Thank you parents for taking time off work to assist our teachers at our camps. Camps can be extremely rewarding for all participants and will function well if all adults help teachers by acting as parents to all attending students. We endeavour to have safe camps by ensuring students follow the rules and requirements at camp and while off-site. Continued breaking of these rules may require students to be removed and collected by parents. All the best for Kauri Camp travelling to Papamoa next week and the following week Totara and Kahikatea to Waitawheta Camp.
SCHOOL PROPERTY
Our next property project is painting our school library, which should occur within the next 2-3 months. The second painting project when funds become available would be Kauri classroom.
We are also replacing door handles on several buildings which will allow staff to lock the doors from the inside.
Another possible project is making our pool operating system fully automatic by replacing existing equipment. This will be a considerable cost but will allow cost savings each swimming season.
