Ko te manu e kai ana i te miro, nōna te ngahere.

Ko te manu e kai ana i te mātauranga, nōna te ao.

Tēnā koutou. Tēnā koutou. Tēnā koutou katoa.

Tēnā koe Te Ngāi Tūāhuriri Rūnanga.

E ngā kaimahi, e ngā whānau, whānau whānui hoki, tēnā koutou.

Kua whakakotahi mai tātou ki te whakanui i ā tātou rangatahi e whakawhiwhi ana i ngā tohu mātauranga i tēnei rā.

Kāti rā, tēnā koutou, talofa lava, kia orana, malo e lelei, bula, fakaalofa atu, namaste, kumusta.

Ladies and gentlemen, I started by acknowledging mana whenua, Ngāi Tūāhuriri, kaitiaki of this land on which we stand, and I welcome us all: honoured guests, our Board, family-whānau-aiga, staff and our students.

Haere mai to the 67th Senior Awards Ceremony of Linwood College, Linwood College at Ōtākaro, as we celebrate senior student learning and success for 2020.

Let’s start with a big note of special congratulations to us all, because all these many and varying successes of 2020 have been achieved in this pig of a year. Remember the start of both the calendar and school year as internationally, disturbing events were being reported? Wuhan, travel bans, the cruise ship the Diamond Princess, to name just three. In New Zealand we had our first confirmed Covid-19 case on 28 February and so 2020 rolled, with our own nationwide Level 4 lockdown beginning in mid-March.

But, if we look around the world, nationally our theme should be counting our blessings. Let us acknowledge the fact that we are here together at this ceremony, whereas, right now, many millions and millions of people around the globe are, yet again, in partial or full lockdowns. Our little country, Aotearoa-New Zealand, used its brains to use our advantages of our being an island-state far away from more populated countries to go hard and go early. The vast majority of us, the vast vast majority of us, trusted, and trust, our scientists and public health officials and so collectively we embraced mahi tahi. And therefore, this evening, acknowledging our geographic advantages, our respect for Science and our social cohesion, here we are together – our school whānau.

However, I have described 2020 as a pig of a year, and while my fingers and toes are crossed for 2021 being better, it would be inappropriate of me not to acknowledge the stresses and strains that our community has been and is experiencing. Nationally our unemployment rate has risen 25%. A quarter more people are presently looking for work and that includes a number of our whānau. We have had students leave school precisely because of whānau employment concerns. We have had students leave school because of Covid-heightened anxiety. And of course, during our lockdown, the already existing, pre-Covid inequities in student and whānau access to technology, principally wifi and devices, and inequities in housing, all came into sharp focus. But through all this, we remained resolutely committed to doing what could be done, to problem-solving, so the best could be made of each and every circumstance. I would like to mihi to every student, every whānau, and every staff member who did what was required, made the best of those circumstances, so student wellbeing and learning were kept at the centre of our activity.

I mention all the above because it is the truth of our collective community experience and also because it connects closely to deeply-held values underpinning education. True education enables children to fully develop, to develop as their own person, their own language, culture and identity, succeeding as their own true and best selves, not forcing themselves to have to adopt a “success-persona” for school while leaving their true self beyond the school gate.

Within this development of our true and best selves comes the strength and resiliency to be ready and willing to deal with the difficult things that happen for each and every individual life and sometimes, as in Covid-19, more collectively. And this is why the eternal verities of character – kindness, empathy, courage, respect, grit, service, humility, generosity, to name just a few – this is why in the unknowingness of the future these eternal verities are and will remain eternal.

And on that good note, we turn to our award winners. In this year, of all years, you have shown your mettle, your character. Whatever you do in the future you will do it well. One of my favourite thoughts: do we have here in our midst someone who will be part of the team that discovers the cure for cancer? Or someone in the team that designs a fairer economic system? Or someone who finds a break-through in addressing global warming? Irrespective, your future is both out there for you, and within you now, as step by step, action by action, you create your future for yourself and your whānau. And you do this as fine young people – open, thoughtful and questioning. This evening, of all evenings, this year, of all years, we celebrate your hard work and the rewards. We – the Linwood College whānau – school, family, community – are proud of you. Truly you are diamond; truly you are pounamu.