Waimea Weekly Locally Owned and Operated
Wednesday 26 October 2022
Flying over closed road ANDREW BOARD A new air service between Nelson and Blenheim is being set up to help people get between the two regions while the main state highway connecting them is closed for repairs. Both the Nelson and Marlborough airports have waived their landing fees for the service to help lower the costs for travellers and the Nelson Mayoral Relief Fund is kicking in $10 for each seat to make it even more affordable. The initiative comes on the back of Waka Kotahi closing State Highway 6 between Hira and Renwick for repairs to the sections of road that were significantly damaged in August’s floods. The only other route connecting the regions is via Wairau Valley, which is likely to add another hour to each trip. The air service has only been guaranteed for two weeks from 1 November, but will be extended for the full seven weeks if there is sufficient demand. Nelson Mayor-elect Nick Smith brokered the deal between the airports and Origin Air and says around 4000 vehicles use the State Highway daily.
SEE PAGE 2
Richmond Waimea Toy librarian Jody Dell, left, with her daughter Oakley, 2, and president of the Richmond Waimea Toy Library, Jayme Lowe. Photo: Jo Kent.
Toy library on brink of closure JO KENT The Richmond Waimea toy library is struggling to keep afloat with lack of fundraising opportunities and few volunteers to help out. Committee member for the charity Mel Clarkson says there are more tough times ahead. “Some people are looking to resign next year, so we need more committee members as well as volunteers.” The last two years had zero fundraising and marketing,
partly due to event restrictions, so the lending library is starting to feel the strain. “We are fortunate to own the building at Gladstone Road and it has so much potential. We could do some really cool things like playgroups and event hire, as well as providing free membership for those in transitional housing.” But the group needs to get in a stable financial position first and refurbish what they currently have. “Fees from membership and toy hires don’t cover the op-
erating costs, so we need to fundraise and apply for grants for the rest. We also want to keep the pricing low-cost and affordable to keep it accessible for whanau in the hapori.” President of the Richmond Toy Library, Jayme Lowe, says awareness is still one of their biggest challenges. “Our location isn’t obvious, but we are here and have ample free parking.” All areas of the organisation need work: fundraising, communication and marketing, membership, toy mainte-
nance, volunteer management and building refurbishment. “It will be hard going for a while as we try to improve in all of these areas and get the basics covered before we work on more exciting projects. “We would welcome any financial contribution at this point in time as, although the government support with Covid has gotten us this far, we are now feeling the effects. We’re in a mad dash to fundraise, apply for grants and do
SEE PAGE 2
Come meet our friendly new assistant Bam Bam
THE FLAVOURS OF THE EAST
Bam Bam uses courteous greetings, can sing Happy Birthday or a love song for a special occasion and uses shelves built into its body to help carry away heavy plates.
Where East meets West. Our exciting menu features traditional favourites alongside new and unique dishes that are sure to please when everyone wants something different!
BOOK NOW FOR CH RI S TM A S F U N CTI ON S
294 Queen St, Richmond Phone 541 0665 | OPEN 7 DAYS - Lunch: Wed-Sun 11.30am to 2.30pm | Dinner: Mon-Sun 5pm to 9pm
LOCALLY OWNED AND OPERATED
waimeaweekly.co.nz