A Week With Dad: Year 8 Girls’ and Boys’ School Taneatua Service Trip

Driving to Taneatua, I had no idea what to expect as I had not been to the area of whakatane / Ohope before. I had heard about the Taneatua school from last year's Year 8 boys, who said it was really friendly, rewarding and hard work!  it would be a long week but I know that I was going to enjoy being with the group and my dad who was doing it with me. I told myself to think positive and go down there and make the most of it.  

when we arrived at the school, the school pupils and teachers were very kind and welcoming. I looked around and could see lots of open fields, some buildings and no traffic! It was quiet and peaceful. The Taneatua kids were shy at first but then we were also a bit nervous and didn't know what to expect.

My team worked on painting fences and I learnt to do water blasting which was really cool and it made a difference to cleaning up the fence for the painting team. I also worked on the playground building, using a mallet to knock nails into posts so we could put up the slide and ladders.

My dad and I talked a lot and we got to build together and also experience the area of Ohopeand Taneatua which was new to us. I actually thought those kids were lucky being able to ride horses to school. I came home with lots of memories and a new skill of waterblasting!

Written by Year 8 student Louis Burn

Our Tāneatua service trip from 11 to 15 March included boys, girls, teachers, and parents who worked hard and collaborated to create a better, high-quality environment for the people of Tāneatua. Over five days we relocated the pou at Tāneatua School and built the first playground at one of their maraes. Aside from the hard work, there were also many rewarding moments that we’ll treasure forever during our time at the school. We played a very competitive game of basketball, worked together to pull out a lot of weeds on the pump track, and some of the students even came over to the marae to help with constructing the playground. We created lifelong friendships and memories, shared moments of laughter, hard work, and determination, and most importantly had fun. Overall, this has been the best trip a school could ever offer, and we all feel grateful and privileged that Saint Kentigern gave us this opportunity to show service not only in school but out of school as well.

Written by Year 8 student Amber Man