Poverty Bay

Funding support to restore Gisborne church treasure

A $60,000 donation from the Eastern and Central Community Trust has boosted the fundraising for the $1 million renovation of the Toko Toru Tapu Church alongside the Maori Battalion Marae at Manutuke in Gisborne.

The church was built in 1913 and is the fourth church on this site. The first stage of restoration includes new roofing, repairing and replacing windows, general repair and painting of the exterior and reinstating the bell tower, which rotted several years ago.

�This project has huge local significance,� says community trust Donations Manager Bev Watkins, who visited the church and recommended funding support for the work.

Three other projects in the Poverty Bay region, each supported through the Te Aroha Kanarahi Trust, have also received community trust donations.

The largest is for an on-line learning programme which helps prepare students for tertiary education. The �He Ara Kura� programme receives $25,000 towards the e-learning system and student support. The programme was originally developed as an on-site learning module for students to get a feel for the requirements of tertiary education and decide whether further studies would suit them. The donation will help expand the programme after its initial on-site success.

An $18,000 donation goes towards the cost of upgrading the ablution block at the George Nepia Park, which is used by many organisations in the local community. A replacement is also needed for the water tank, which is leaking.

A donation of almost $8,000 has been approved for a septic tank at the new Hicks Bay ambulance centre. The new building was mostly constructed using volunteer labour, including the help of some Australian firefighters who offered their support to repay the efforts of locals who travelled overseas to fight in the massive bushfires there.

The lack of a septic tank is preventing full use of the new facilities which have been completed for some time.