Western News: September 22, 2022

12
Thursday September 22 2022
Achievements
add to our
school’s rich
community
Kia ora koutou. Talofa. Kia Orana. Malo e lelei. Bula
Vinaka. Fakaalofa atu. Namaste. Kumusta. Haere
mai haere mai ki Te Kura Huruhuru Ao o Horomaka.
Warm greetings to the Hornby High School
community.
Great communities are inclusive. Great communities
share common values. Great communities share a
common purpose or vision. This past term in particular
has provided evidence of both the diversity and the
inclusiveness of our wonderful Hornby High School
community. Last week we celebrated Tongan language
week, and our celebrations ended with a delightful
‘feast’ accompanied by student performances, all
student driven, with the support of Whāea Ane, Matua
Oscar Richardson, and wonderful whānau. The warmth,
the looks of pride on student faces (and an extraordinary
feast of wonderful food), were an absolute delight. I
commented on the honour, the privilege, of being able to
be a part of such a celebration.
This week we are celebrating Te Wiki o te Reo Māori.
Again the celebrations are largely student led,
supported by Whāea Bree, Whāea Jo, and Whāea Chris.
It would be fair to say that in all of these celebrations
our amazing akonga, our students, are supported by
our whole staff, with a warmth and humanity that
quite simply takes your breath away, that leaves you
feeling how wonderful it is to be human.
As a part of our journey towards our vision of being
‘he puna auaha, a centre of creative excellence’, I think
that a rich sense of self, a rich connection with our
origins, of knowing who we are through our language
and our culture, are essential building blocks. These
celebrations, this affirmation of language and identity,
are the first signs you see in a kura to tell you this is a
community that does just that.
So too is the ability of a community to celebrate
success, to acknowledge achievement by its members
individually and collectively. So you will also see some
of the wonderful sporting achievements of individual
students (Kyra-Lee), and some of our sports teams, as
we see sporting achievement built back up to those
halcyon days of the 1980s. Hornby is once again
becoming a force to be reckoned with.
So again join with us in celebrating these and many
other fine things, all the product of talented students,
and committed teachers.
Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi, engari he toa takitini.
My success is not mine alone, but it is the strength of
many
This is a great time to be a part of the community of
Te Huruhuru Ao o Horomaka.
Robin Sutton
Tumuaki
September 2022
Commitment,
Achievement,
Resilience,
Respect
Haka brings Te Wiki o Te Reo
Maori to spectacular close
Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori/Māori Language Week was brought to a close at Hornby High School on
Friday with the performance of a mass haka.
Basketballers set to play in Nationals
Congratulations to
our Senior Boys’
Basketball team who
came runners-up
at the South Island
Secondary New
Zealand Premiership
A Tournament in
Dunedin last week,
qualifying them to
play in the national
competition in
Palmerston North,
from October 3 to 7.
This is an incredible
result from our
boys, coaches and
managers, including
former Hornby High
School student
Brandon Gray
working alongside
head coach Jimmy
Williamson. We are
proud of you all.
Best of luck for the
Nationals.
Netballers do well
Tongan Language Week celebrated in style
Ke Tu’uloa ‘a e lea faka-Tonga ‘i
Aotearoa — Sustaining the Tonga
Language in Aotearoa.
Hornby High School celebrated Tongan
Language Week 2022 in style. The week,
which ran from September 5 to 9, was
recognized and celebrated by this kura
through a variety of activities including
lunchtime quizzes, Tongan games and
Bilingual students Wairau, Yarny
and Nysten with the tukutuku
panels.
Well done to our Senior Girls Netball team
who started off strongly at the South Island
Secondary School Netball Tournament,
winning five games in their pool. It
was exciting to watch the growth and
development within the team, coached by
Mrs Tafau and Ms Taylor, to finish seventh
out of 16 in their grade.
Another story: Participants enjoying Book Week.
Going all bookish on us
Wow, what an amazing week we had promoting
‘The joy of reading’ across our schools.
Take a look at https://sites.google.com/urumanuka.
org.nz/uru-mnuka-reading/home. We love the
images that staff AND students have created under
the ‘Cool places to read’ tab at the top of the page.
You can watch and listen to staff and students
reading stories at any time. Don’t stop now!!!! We
all love listening to stories.
Preparations for the kai faka’afe under way
to mark the conclusion of Tongan Language
Week at Hornby High School.
sports.
The week ended with a small kai faka’afe
(feast) on the Friday for Hornby High School
staff and whānau.
‘Amaka, a current Year 13 prefect of Hornby
High School, wanted to remember his last
year at school by acknowledging his Tongan
cultural and heritage with this feast. Pigs
were cooked on a spit on site and many
staff and whānau arrived to celebrate and
recognize such this important week for the
Tongan language in New Zealand.
The celebrations highlighted the importance
of knowing one’s tūrangawaewae
(whakapapa) and the keeping of one’s
language alive.