Kia ora koutou e te whānau We have many highlights to share with you this week.

As we mourn the loss of Kingi Tuheitia and Bishop Denis Browne this whakatauki captures their huge contribution,

“Kua hinga he totara i te wao nui a Tane.” “

A mighty totara has fallen in the forest of Tane.”

This whakatauki is used in respect and honour of a mighty member of the community who has passed from this life to the next. Last week, we paused to reflect on the loss of two remarkable leaders. Kingi Tuheitia, whose legacy of promoting unity among all Māori will continue to inspire future generations, and Bishop Denis Browne, a humble and compassionate shepherd who was deeply connected with his people. Both men exemplified dedication, care, and vision.

May they have peace in God’s arms and know they will be remembered with much love for generations. Mrs Whyte and I attended the Requiem Mass for Bishop Denis Browne with a group of our senior students. Each was exemplary, representing our school with pride. 

Last Thursday , we celebrated our School FEAST DAY. It is the Nativity (Birthday) of Mary. (The actual birthday of Mary is the Sunday 8th ). The school was a delightful sea of colour as our five Saints Houses were celebrated in mufti dress. Thank you to our Special Character leaders who led us in liturgy and the House leaders who organised the house activities. An exciting day celebrating the many wonderful qualities of Mary. 

AIMS Games

This year’s AIMS Games Tournament has brought exciting opportunities for our students to compete across various sports. Our school proudly supports one netball and one basketball team, alongside individual competitors in cross-country running and mountain biking. Yesterday, I had the privilege of visiting Tauranga to see our teams in action, and I’d like to express my sincere gratitude to the dedicated parents. Their commitment over the past months—coaching, managing, fundraising, and supporting at games and training—has been invaluable. A special thank you to Mrs. Nicole Higby for her coordination of the AIMS Games and for coaching our netball team. 

Education Review Office 

The Education Review Office (ERO) is a government department responsible for evaluating and reporting on the quality of education in schools and early childhood services. ERO’s primary role is to ensure that New Zealand’s schools and early learning services are delivering high-quality education and care. It conducts reviews of educational institutions, assessing their performance, effectiveness, and compliance with regulations, while providing recommendations for improvement. ERO’s evaluations focus on how well schools and early childhood centers promote positive outcomes for learners, with a particular emphasis on equity and excellence in education. 

On Monday we welcomed our ERO reviewers with a mihi whakatau. Once again our Kapa Haka students led this with confidence showing a depth of leadership as a number of our students were at AIMS Games. The lead reviewer has been working with our school over the last  three years and this visit completes the formal aspect of our review. The reviewers met with our Board of Trustees, visited each classroom, met with all our teachers and  spent several sessions with our leadership team. They return tomorrow to complete the compliance component.  We look forward to sharing the report with you. 

There are still a number of miserable bugs around so with the change of weather hopefully the spirits will lift as we look forward to longer days and summer just around the corner.

Keep safe, keep warm and look after yourselves

Ma te Atua koutou e manaaki

Debra White