Forever in Blue Jeans: Wairoa whānau rally together for Cancer Society Relay 4 Life fundraiser this month
Relay 4 Life team Forever in Blue Jeans Sweet Caroline; Whakakī fishing comp postponed; Flood mitigation focus turns to the river bar; Te Reinga bridge to close again for repairs.
ISSUE 8: Thursday, March 6, 2025
Relay For Life: Forever in Blue Jeans Sweet Caroline team walks in memory of their aunty, mum, “pouwhenua” Tina Te Amo
Relay For Life has become an annual family tradition for a Wairoa family who are entering the event for the third time in Gisborne later this month.
Team Forever in Blue Jeans currently consists of 10 whānau members but is growing all the time according to team motivator Lynn Gordon with some relatives even signing up to do the event from Australia.
“Aussie whānau will do laps around a field of the same size locally,” Gordon says.
“Taha whānau is the epicentre of our hauora. Our pouwhenua was our aunty and when that is weakened we all band together to whakamana or uplift one another.” - Lynn Gordon
Relay For Life is an annual fundraiser for the Cancer Society with events held around New Zealand where teams will walk around a circuit for 24 hours to raise money for the charity. The Wairoa family will be taking part in the Gisborne event at the showgrounds on March 23 starting at 12pm.
Gordon says the event has become a family tradition to do every year in memory of their aunty Tina Te Amo who lost her battle with cancer in June 2023. Tina Te Amo’s daughter Regina Te Amo is the team captain for Relay For Life. But Gordon adds there are several in their whānau who have been lost due to cancer and the walk is a tribute to them too.
Gordon says her aunt’s cancer was discovered in 2022 after she broke her arm and it was not healing right. The family entered their first Relay For Life team as solidarity for Tina in her battle with cancer and she did attend the event that year, watching from the stands.
“We were originally Whānau For Life but this year changed to Forever in Blue Jeans because aunty was a big fan of Neil Diamond and that was one of her favourite songs,” Gordon says.
So far in their campaign they have raised just over $440 of their $1000 goal but Gordon adds it’s also just good getting the whānau together every year.
“It’s a beautiful weekend. They’re such a special time for our family. Last year we probably had about 30 of us taking part, maybe more, not all were registered but we all walk together in solidarity.
“Taha whānau is the epicentre of our hauora. Our pouwhenua was our aunty and when that is weakened we all band together to whakamana or uplift one another.”
You can donate to team Forever in Blue Jeans, Sweet Caroline here.
News in brief
Wairoa Flood Mitigation: The bar and Kōpū road flood solutions focus of community meeting this afternoon
Solutions for the bar will be in the spotlight at a community hui this afternoon, with a fixed structure, or groyne, being one long term solution investigated for managing the Wairoa river bar and Kōpū road flooding.
This afternoon’s community hui will be hosted by the Wairoa Flood Mitigation Project at the War Memorial Hall at 4pm today, with a presentation to follow from 5-6pm.
There has been several flood occurences on Kōpū road, the most recent and most significant being on June 26 last year with many citing the issues with the constantly shifting bar opening to be a major factor.
Crown manager for the project, Lawrence Yule, has said at earlier meetings there were investigations into if a groyne, which is rigid hydraulic structure built perpendicularly from an ocean shore, would work as one way of keeping the Wairoa river mouth permanently open.
There were pros and cons to the river groyne as a solution and whether it could actually work in Wairoa.
A similar structure was installed at Ōpōtiki in 2023 where the mouth of the Waioeka river has been permanently opened to form a new harbour flowing between two 450m long groynes out to sea.
Te Reinga bridge closed again
The temporary bridge at Te Reinga will be closed again on Monday. The bridge will be closed from 8am to 5pm on March 10 so repairs can be made to the bridge deck. Contractors will be on site to replace the two broken deck panels.
Whakakī fishing comp postponed
Unfavourable weather conditions has led to a call to postpone the Whakakī Marae fishing competition that was planned for this weekend.
The Whakakī Marae Trust announced on Facebook yesterday afternoon that the new date for the competition is next Saturday, March 15, 7am-1pm.
Event organiser Trevor Waikawa says this was due to a combination of unfavourable weather and swell conditions, and the Whakakī bar being opened.
“We understand this may cause an inconvenience for people, therefore, if you have paid for a registration, hāngī or raffles and no longer require these, please email or contact us to process your refund,” he wrote in a post on Facebook.
For any queries please contact Trevor, 0278122013 or email whakakimarae1@gmail.com
Whakakī marae fishing competition (NOTE NEW DATE) - Saturday, March 15, 7am-1pm. Whakakī Beach. Senior prize: $1000 heaviest snapper. Junior prize: $250 heaviest snapper. Plus prizes for other species and various lucky draws for competitors. If no snapper caught within a section, then the prize will go to the heaviest allowable fish caught within that section. Also an early bird competition on Friday, March 7. For more information or to register contact Trevor Waikawa 0278122013, whakakimarae1@gmail.com.
Kai Ika Hawke’s Bay free fishheads Wairoa distribution - Tuesday, March 11, 10.30am, War Memorial Park, North Clyde. Come down to the heli pad site, bring a buck, pot or bags and get free fish heads and frames. The Kai Ika Project, supported by Sustainable Hawke’s Bay, LegaSea and Saltwater Seafoods.
Wairoa Open Squash Tournament - March 14-16, Wairoa Athletic Sports Club and Surf City Squash at Bayley’s Athletic Park squash courts. All the details and how to register on the Wairoa Athletic club website.
Wairoa Lighthouse Lions car boot sale - Saturday, March 22, 2025, Standring Park.
Tiaho Primary School twilight gala - Friday, March 28, 2025 from 5pm
Wairoa Little Theatre presents: “It’s a bit sketchy, Doc” - Premieres Friday, March 28, 7pm.Theatre production by our local theatre. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased from the Wairoa Community Centre.
If you have an event you want included in next week’s What’s On in Wairoa please email earthpepi@gmail.com with “Wairoa events” in the subject line.