Community volunteers

Every now and again I worry about whether our communities are active enough.  People are so busy, with most households on two incomes to meet their obligations and it's hard to get volunteers  But over Labour weekend I saw two events where its obvious voluntary activity is still going strong.  The Balclutha Fire brigade had its 125th anniversary.  On Saturday about 35 fire engines showed up for a parade down the main street.  A number of old fire engines turned out in tip top condition and in going order.  Someone is putting in hours of time to maintain the engines and it was great to see them on display.

Two weeks ago Riversdale turned out over 200 people on the 90th anniversary of Passchendaele to commemorate Riversdale residents who had died in the 1st World War.  The Community has pulled together to plant an avenue of oak trees along the main road, for each soldier killed in the war.  They have produced a book researched and written by a former local Don McKay telling the story of each soldier. All proceeds from the sale of the book go to RSA Welfare and future commemorative projects in the Riversdale-Waikaia district. It was a moving and enjoyable event.

On the weekend, Owaka opened its new museum of local history.  Hundreds of hours of voluntary labour and machinery made this large project possible in a small community.  It's the biggest crowd Owaka has seen for years, showing strong support and appreciation for six years of hard work getting the job done. 

So our communities work differently but they still work.