Ashburton Courier: April 21, 2022

NEWS
18 Ashburton Courier, April 21, 2022
Riders shake for cause
As emergency ambulance
staff continue to face
unprecedented demand, St
John is asking New
Zealanders to support its
annual appeal in April.
They have a$2m
fundraising target.
Due to the ongoing risks
associated with covid, St John
cancelled its nationwide
street collections and other
face­to­face fundraising
activities. But as restrictions
have eased, St John has been
grateful to see people like
Surrey Hills horsewoman
Danielle McKenzie take up
the reigns to make a
difference.
Danielle was organising
an eventfor Distance Riding
New Zealand’s (DRNZ)
SouthIsland season at
Montalto,Surrey Hills, in
Mid Canterbury on April 10.
It promisedhigh number of
participantsfor the South
Island season and saw 58
riders head out on track.
She thoughtthe event
wouldbeagreatplace to
‘shake abucket’ for St John.
“While organisingthe
ride,itcame to our attention
St John waspromoting their
HeartofGold.Hearingofthe
increaseddemand,
challenges, barriers and
impacts on services and
fundraising due to covid, we
contactedStJohn to see if
we couldbeofhelp with
fundraising at our upcoming
ride.’’
St Johnstaff were very
appreciativeofour offer,
she said.
“We oftendon’t give much
thought to how importantSt
Johnare until we needthem,
usually when we’re at our
mostvulnerable. St John is a
charity, and in turn needs
supportfrom us, the
community, through
fundraising,tohelp them to
continue to provide their
services.”
St John extends its thanks
to the riders,crew and
DRNZSIteam, for getting
behind the fundraiser, as
wellassharing the appeal
on social media,the team
raised $81 fromthe ‘bucket
shake.’
Donations to St John’s
Heart of Gold Annual Appeal
can be made onlineby
searching St John Appeal,
directly at heartofgold.org.
nz, by texting APPEAL to
2790orbycalling 0800 ST
JOHN(0800 785 646).
Red Cross project
Good and Ready is a
communityprojectaimed at
buildinganetwork of people
in our communitiesthat will
do more than pay lipservice
to being prepared in timesof
disaster.
Preparedness is alot more
than waterand baked beans!
Red Cross is seeking Good
and Ready volunteers.
Afterpeople have
completedthe one­hour
training, we hopethat they
wouldbecomechampions of
preparednessinour
communities.
The goal is to have
increasednumber of
householdsthat are better
prepared for amajor disaster.
This may be forevacuation
Living at Orange
It’s been great to have been
able to enjoy the long weekend
with greater freedoms across
the country, now that we have
moved to Orange.
Over the past few weeks
we’ve seen the case numbers
and hospitalisations continue
to drop, despite the relaxation
of settings, so we’re confident a
move to Orange can lock in
those gains while helping the
country return to agreater
degree of normality.
Under Orange there are no
indoor capacity limits and the
seated rule for hospitality
venues lifts. Iknow this will be
welcome for our bars, cafes and
restaurants so they are able to
fill up again.
We’ve also now moved to the
next step in our recovery plan
and have welcomed our
Australian friends and family
back! Having Australian
tourists back in time for the
long weekend and ahead of the
ski season will make ahuge
difference for our local
tourism, businesses and our
economy.
I’m really looking forward to
www.ashburtoncourier.co.nz
or isolationand wouldgive
increasedconnectedness in
communitiesand increased
capacity to respondto
emergencies/adverseevents.
We will achieve this goal
with active engagement with
different communities.
Meaningful collaboration to
help further promote disaster
preparedness and community
resilience.
Red Cross would hope to
recruit Good and Ready
volunteers who can support
programmes associated with
community resilience,
disaster preparedness,
response and recovery.
We prefer to collaborate
with otheragencies.
We all have our part to play.
Red Cross plan to have
every household preparedfor
evacuationorisolation.
If Ican talk to yourgroup
pleasecontactkathy.
oneill@redcross.org.nz or
phone 027 272 1983
welcoming international
tourists back to Mid Canterbury
and showcasing our hospitality
and all the beautiful scenery
and adventure Mid Canterbury
has to offer.
Winter tourism is also getting
alift from agovernment
decision to allow 275
experienced workers to enter
the country to support
businesses operating ski fields
and snow sports destinations.
Kiwis fill the majority of ski
field and snow sports roles,
however there are not enough
locals with the required skills,
certification or experience to
meet seasonal short­term
needs. Having tourists back will
further spur our economic
recovery, especially for
workers, businesses and
communities who rely on
international visitors. Having
the right mix of skilled
technicians and experienced
workers keeps our mountains
operating safely so that visitors
and locals alike not only have a
great time, but are well looked
after.
This week is arecess week
and I’ll be out in the electorate
for community visits, anice
change after being in
Wellington for the last sitting
block. I’m looking forward to
catching up with people across
the electorate including Mayor
Neil Brown, Mid and South
Canterbury Fed Farmers and
Venture Timaru.
040 trainsNmodels
2473583
03 307 0155
040@040trainsnmodels.co.nz
www.040trainsnmodels.co.nz
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