It was a double celebration for Waikari’s Lenix Trembath (19) recently when she took first place in the Amuri Community Arts Council’s Adult Art Competition and enjoyed a Hurunui Mayors Taskforce for Jobs (MTFJ) morning tea shout with her employer and work colleagues.

Hurunui District Council’s MTFJ coordinator Prudence Roberts said the morning tea shout was the first in a series to acknowledge the support of local employers to the programme and Hurunui’s young people.

The morning tea was held in the Amuri Community Arts Council Gallery in the Hurunui District Library in Hanmer Springs, where Lenix’s award-winning artwork “Under the Water” took pride of place.

Hanmer Springs Painting and Decorating owner Tony Pearce said Lenix’s journey had started with working a few days a week with the business and had grown to a full three-year apprenticeship as a painting and decorating specialist. In tandem, he has watched Lenix pursue her passion for art “and today, one of your artworks is on a gallery wall”.

“In five to 10 years, you will look back on this journey and see a great change,” Pearce predicted.

Lenix said accepting the job placement in January through MTFJ came after a New Year’s resolution to stick with a permanent workplace position for a full year.

“Ahead of starting this job, I felt nervous – I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. I was hoping I wouldn’t give up but would give it a try.”

The camaraderie between the four members of her work crew had supported her throughout the year, Lenix said. “I wouldn’t want to do my apprenticeship with anyone else.”

“My plan is after the apprenticeship to stand back and look at where I want to go — perhaps combining my experience from this job with my love of art and going into interior decorating.”

Lenix said she had never entered her artwork in a competition previously. “MTFJ has been really good; I have taken from it a confidence in myself. It’s pushed me in the right direction, and I felt there was someone who believed in me as a person.”

Hurunui District Mayor Marie Black said MTFJ had been one of the most influential programmes Council had introduced to support young people and others in the district, and she acknowledged the contribution of Hurunui employers to Hurunui MTFJ’s success. “The character of MTFJ does not exist without supportive employers to take graduates into a role in the community.”

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