Friday, 10 August 2018
Upper Hutt groups celebrated for their contribution to the community
Upper Hutt community groups were honoured at Wednesday night’s Wellington International Airport Community Awards
Ceremony.
UPPER HUTT, Wellington NZ, 10 AUG 2018—The Upper Hutt awards ceremony for the Wellington International Airport Community
Awards was held at Expressions Whirinaki Arts and Entertainment Centre on Wednesday 8 August. His Worship the Mayor,
Wayne Guppy hosted representatives from 49 nominated community groups.
The awards were presented in five categories: Arts and Culture; Education and Child/Youth Development; Health and Well-being; Sport and Leisure; and Heritage and Environment. Cross-category Supreme and Rising Star awards were also presented on the night.
The winner of the Supreme Award was Te Ataarangi Upper Hutt. This group are part of a wider whanau known as Te Ataarangi
ki Te Upoko o Te Ika and have been operating from Orongomai Marae for over 30 years. Te Reo lessons are delivered by a
group of dedicated kaiako (who all learnt Te Reo through Te Ataarangi Upper Hutt). They teach students using waiata
(songs), mihimihi (personal introductions), kemu (games), roopu papamahi (group work) and Hui a rohe (marae stayovers).
Students are welcome from all walks of life, ages, and ethnicities.
The Rising Star award, which recognises emerging and smaller groups was presented to The Hub. The Hub is a café and
op-shop selling coffee and affordable items and using the principles of social enterprise to provide a means to improve
social wellbeing and to support people in need. The Hub also gives away many items for free and uses the ‘pay it
forward’ principle.
“The strength of our community is the number of voluntary and community groups that operate within Upper Hutt,” said
Mayor Guppy. “The Community Awards is a great example of acknowledging the work that these groups put into our
community.”
Category winners will represent Upper Hutt at the regional awards held at Te Papa in November, where they will have a
chance to be named regional category and supreme winners.
Upper Hutt category award winners are:
Arts and Culture
Winner: Upper Hutt Multicultural Council
Runner-up: Upper Hutt Spinners and Weavers:
Education and Child/Youth Development
Winner: Te Ataarangi Upper Hutt
Runner-up: YMCA of Greater Wellington
Health and Wellbeing
Winner: Every Body is a Treasure Charitable Trust
Runner-up: The Local Café
Heritage and Environment
Winner: Upper Hutt Forest and Bird – Old Man’s Beard Volunteers
Runner-up: Boomerang Bags
Sport and Leisure
Winner: Upper Hutt Maidstone United Netball Club
Runner-up: Hutt Valley New Zealand Deer Stalkers Association
Rising Star Award
Winner: The Hub
Runner-up: Belle
ends