Fiona Reaich

Fiona was brought up in Twizel and was at Twizel school with one of Te Puna Wai o Waipapa/Hagley’s ex teacher, Paul Connor.

Fiona is a twin, and her sister often meets Fiona for lunch at the Te Puna Wai o Waipapa/Hagley Café.

Fiona came to us from the conductive Education unit at Addington where she had worked for 12 years, but the lack of students at Addington meant she had lost hours. Fiona heard about the Science technician (horticulture) position and one of her co-workers said it would be ‘right up your alley’ so she applied and was successful in gaining 8 hours while she still had hours at Addington. Eventually the position at Addington finished and she picked up other work in reception, finance and our resource room.

Fiona misses the big garden next to Chilton House but is adapting to managing the plots between C block and Science. The plants are growing well, even though Fiona was apprehensive thinking they may not get enough sun.

I asked Fiona what keeps her at Te Puna Wai o Waipapa/Hagley and she said:

· A very friendly environment with great colleagues.

· It has changed her whole life and she has found a lot more opportunities at Te Puna Wai o Waipapa/ Hagley which she has relished.

Fiona has a brand-new Harley Davison which arrived from the USA in September. On its first service Fiona bought some loud pipes: “Loud pipes save lives” is a slogan she wears. You can certainly hear a noisy bike and get out of the way. Fiona is a real biker.

Fiona and Dru (Fiona’s partner) moved into a brand new house in Prestons Park at the end of 2016 and she is still enjoying her new house, especially the rural outlook from the backyard.

Fiona is often seen walking along the beach at Spencerville and really enjoys these long walks.