Bay Harbour: January 18, 2017

®
Wednesday January 18 2017
News
BAY HARBOUR
PAGE 3
Di takes big tennis award
DISTINCTION: Di France alongside her husband, Roger, after
she received the Volunteer of the Year award from Tennis
NZ.
• By Gordon Find later
DI FRANCE has been
acknowledged by Tennis NZ for
her work rebuilding one of the
city’s oldest clubs.
The Redcliffs Tennis Club
president was awarded the
Volunteer of the Year award
at Tennis NZ’s annual awards
night this month.
Mrs France travelled to
Auckland to attend the awards
and got the chance to meet the
country’s best players and see
some top international action
on court at the ASB Classic,
which was being played at the
same time.
“It was an honour to be
included in the function, it was
great. I felt terribly humbled by
it,” she said.
The award came in recognition
of her role in reopening
the Redcliffs club after it was
devastated by the February 2011
earthquake.
“The courts were completely
demolished; they had to be fully
reinstated,” said Mrs France.
The club was in recess for
two years while it raised the
$200,000 needed to rebuild the
courts.
Mrs France was instrumental
in the club surviving extinction.
She stepped in as project
manager, applying for community
grants and overseeing the
reinstatement of the damaged
courts. When the club reopened
in May 2013, she was elected as
president. Under her leadership,
membership has grown from
40 juniors and 22 seniors to 132
juniors and 35 affiliated senior
members.
This hasn’t been her first stint
in the role. Mrs France served
as the club’s president during
the early 1980s before becoming
inactive in the sport for over
20 years. When rumours of the
club’s potential closure came to
light following the earthquake,
she was prompted into action.
France continues to be the
driving force behind the tennis
club. She has established junior
tennis coaching, first by engaging
Stu Chalmers as junior
coach in 2013, then by organising
Evie Ruegg to take on the
head coach role.
She also established social
senior club tennis on Tuesday
and Friday mornings, which she
herself attends.
Along with her husband,
Roger, Mrs France undertakes
regular maintenance of the
courts, club house and hall.
The club leased its hall to
the displaced Redcliffs Public
Library until December last
year. Mrs France said the next
challenge was to develop the
club to utilise the hall space now
available.
Using networks she has built
throughout Redcliffs, Mrs
France encourages strong community
and family participation
in club events.
She regularly offers her own
services to club activities, which
may include cooking sausages
or preparing afternoon tea for
prize-givings and end of season
parties.
In Brief
BABY IN LOCKED CAR
Firefighters were called to help
get a baby out of a locked car
parked on Sumner’s Esplanade on
Monday. Sumner Volunteer Fire
Brigade received the call at about
11.10am. However, when firefighters
arrived, the car had been unlocked.
A Fire Service spokesman
said it was an accident and the
baby’s father had arrived with the
spare key for the vehicle before
firefighters arrived. Meanwhile,
a woman was seriously injured
when her vehicle crashed into a
retaining wall near Governors
Bay at about 10.50am on Monday.
Firefighters waited for the ambulance
to arrive before getting the
woman out of the vehicle.
STRANGE BLACK CLOUD
A mysterious black plume that
invaded Lyttelton Harbour last
week was likely soot from a
departing vessel. Environment
Canterbury initially said it was
coal dust from the port. But ECan
regional leader investigations and
incident response Valyn Barrett
said further investigation showed
the substance was likely to be
soot from the stack of a departing
vessel and not coal dust as first
thought. Ms Barrett said it was
non-toxic to marine life and it
could not be cleaned up with a
boom.
The team at Smart
Real Estate wishes
you a very happy
New Year
We thank you for your continued
support and look forward to
working with you in 2017.
®
Michael
Arlidge
Maureen
Crowley
Jahna
Brennan
Kama
Jacobs
Debra
Hakaraia
FREE MUSIC IN THE PARK
jay clarkson’s breathing cage
Sunday 22 January, 3–4.30pm, st albans park
Fronted by legendary songwriter Jay Clarkson and featuring local
luminaries Michael Kime (Bass), Greg Malcolm (Guitar) and Gary
Sullivan (Drums). Playing songs from their acclaimed pop / rock
album Misericord and a selection from Jay’s songwriting career.
summertimes.co.nz
Proudly produced by