Petone Rotary Club

The 2026 Petone Rotary Fair is almost upon us - Saturday 21st February, 10am to 4pm, Jackson Street between Cuba Street and Victoria Street. Bookings are full and Jackson Street shops will be selling on footpaths too. We look forward to seeing everyone there!

Kaibosh is NZ Aotearoa New Zealand’s first dedicated food rescue charity. Their Mahi reduces food poverty, cuts food waste and protects our environment all guided by a strong commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

Petone Rotary is very excited to help Kaibosh with the grant toward their new EV van. She looks amazing.

You might think we have all gone to Cambodia, but here we are having a festive dinner together at Sabaidee in Jackson Street. Pesident Kevin reminded us that although we are a small group, we do a great deal - from annually running the biggest community event in the Hutt Valley (Petone Rotary Fair), to supporting numerous community initiatives. This year we've worked with the other Hutt Valley Rotary Clubs on Lifting the Lid - a youth mental health initiative - and supported environmental causes ranging from local trapping initiatives, to Kaibosh, to Wainuiomata Marae's Tiny Forest Project. We've raised funds for Rotary Intenational's Polio Eradication Project. We've supported youth ventures, including helping fund a young person chosen to attend a Rotary event in London. We've also had great speakers and events all year, and quite a lot of fun!

Our speakers last week were Jenny Williams and Liz O'Hare from Pito-One Harmony Singers, a group established by Jenny to bring the positive effects of music therapy to people in our community (the lower part of Hutt Valley) with dementia. Music therapy helps people who are losing the ability to talk. The group started small, with the aims of making music, movement and social interaction available in a safe and accessible environment to people who otherwise might feel unable to participate in traditional choirs, and has continued to grow over its four years of existence. The work of this entirely voluntary group is amazing!

A group of local people has set up a meeting which might be of interest to members....
ARE YOU INTERESTED IN PETONE'S FUTURE?
Come along to a community meeting on Thursday, 6th November, Petone Rugby Club, North Park, Udy Street, 7pm to 9pm.
An opportunity to discuss matters such as the proposed route for the Petone to Granada road, what's happening along our foreshore, the new HCC committee structure, the possibility of establishing a new Community Association, other interests and concerns....
ALL WELCOME 😄

What a pleasure to hear about the experiences of Shivjesh (Shivvy) Nair from Wainuiomata at the recent RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Awards) camp at Otaki. He says he learned a great deal over the 5 days and has made lifetime friends. Shivvy explained what they did each day, the learnings made, and how he scored the days - ranging from a 6 on the first day when he was still getting used to the vibe, to 10s as he gained confidence and benefitted more as the days passed. It is great for us to be able to sponsor these amazing young people and to hear of their experiences 😊

This year Petone Rotary sponsored two Hutt Valley students to attend the annual Rotary National Science and Technology Forum at Auckland University - Sophie from Sacred Heart and Antariksh (Ricky) from Wainuiomata College. Sophie and Ricky recently came along to our weekly meeting to share their experiences with us.
They described the "menu"of STEM subjects and the hands-on experiences they had been exposed to over the two week stay, ranging from robotics to built engineering and bio-medical science. Both said they gained immensely from the experience, not just from the science and technology exposure, but from making friends and finding mentors, and gaining confidence and learning about possible new directions for their futures. Their vision is of using curiosity and applying science to change the world.
Sophie has been chosen as one of 5 or 6 of the approximately 130 who attended the Forum, to head to London and attend the 66th London International Youth Science Forum in July.

Petone Rotary Fair 2025 is now just a warm memory. The weather turned it on, and good times were had by all. Thank you to all the volunteers - Rotary and others - who made it such a memorable day, and of course to stall-holders, Jackson Street businesses, performers and the people who came along in their tens of thousands. We will see you all again next year 😄
Photos mostly by Dan Taylor, and a few others.

We are looking forward to our big event - Petone Fair - on Saturday. The weather looks very promising! Everything you will need to know for the day is, or soon will be, here - https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1179760614151961&set=a.632968638831164
See you there 😃

Our big day is coming up 😃... Get it in your diaries. Petone Rotary Fair. Jackson Street. Saturday, 15th February, 10 am to 4pm. Heaps of fun, food and fascination for everyone. We hope to see you there 😄

Our District Governor (District 9940), Jocelyn Hogg, visited our club this week. As well as entertaining us with tales of Vanu Atu and how Rotary is assisting with rebuilding following a cyclone, and in ongoing ways, she was able to present a Paul Harris Award to Kevin Harris.
Kevin's Citation is worth repeating in full. It reads "To Kevin Harris, a member of the Rotary Club of Petone, who has served the Club and the community in an exemplary manner as a leading example of commitment within Rotary and the community.
Your first contact with Rotary was though the Sunrise Club in Hamilton where you were living at the time and gaining work experience in the health sector. On 21 Jul 2020 you were inducted into the Petone club following your relocation to the Wellington region, where you were General Manager of Kenepuru Hospital.
Your management skills were quickly recognised by the Club resulting in you being President from July 2021 to July 2022.
One of your first roles in 2020 was to take over as convener of the Fair Committee at a time when Covid restrictions were in force and the potential for the Fair being unable to proceed on the day were a real threat. Your leadership at this time of doubt ensured that the planning continued and was ready for the Fair to proceed even though the movement restrictions were only lifted a few days before the scheduled Fair date.
This exceptional commitment was instrumental in a very successful 2021 Petone Rotary Fair which was a welcome activity for the local community after the prolonged restrictions on social activities due to Covid.
In addition to continuing in the role of Convenor of the Fair Committee, you have used your management experience to formalise some of the Club’s administrative documentation so that the logic of Board decisions can be recorded for reference when various members of committees are ultimately replaced. This together with setting out goals and guides for future decision making should ensure the Club will continue to fulfil its roles as required by Rotary International.
You have also been instrumental in getting youth mental health onto the radar of Petone and other Hutt Rotary clubs.
With your friendly demeanour and willingness to assist the Club in all its endeavours there is no doubt that you live by the Rotary Motto of Service Above Self.
Kevin, due to the way you continue to exemplify the humanitarian and community objectives of The Rotary Foundation, the Rotary Club of Petone wishes to give due recognition of this service through this award."
It is wonderful that Rotary has these awards - a way of recognising service to our own people :-)

We were all aboard with Seaview Marina CEO Tim Lidguard this week, hearing the interesting history of the marina and breakwater, its growth to date and the exciting vision for the marina's future. Seaview Marina is looking forward to Tupua Horo Nuku (Eastbourne shared pathway) which means more people will be able to enjoy the Marina.