by Helen Martin
The Kaipara College reunion held over Labour Weekend was a big step forward in plans spearheaded by Deputy Principal Nick Roberts and an organising committee of past students to grow the re-created alumni organisation with a view to reconnecting former students with the school. As the manager of Community Relations, Nick says the event marking the school’s 60th year as Kaipara College was a brilliant celebration and a promising precursor to the 2024 reunion, which will celebrate the 1924 opening of the college under the name Helensville District High School.
As well as dinners and sporting and cultural events, a video room was set aside for some of the many students volunteering as school ambassadors throughout the weekend to film past students telling their stories. These interviews will be added to the alumni organisation’s growing archive.
Nick Roberts says that at the Saturday night dance, a highlight of the weekend (as long as we don’t mention the World Cup), the reunion reached a crescendo, with guests enjoying dancing to the music of former students in the form of the band Old Mate and the M8s.
Awa Hudson, who went to Helensville District High School and who, at 81, was one of the oldest at the reunion, speaks for those who attended and enjoyed sharing memories and catching up with people not seen for years, “It was a wonderful event and I loved every second of it.”
The alumni association can be contacted on alumni@kaipara.school.nz or visit Facebook at Kaipara College: Friends of the College.
