For current community news and information on upcoming events, please see the Notice Board.
Past Community Events
Halcombe Volunteer Fire Brigade – Sky Tower Stair Challenge May 2016
The Halcombe Fire Brigade’s Firefighter Sky Tower Stair Challenge team returned from Auckland in May with another fundraising trophy to add to their collection, having raised a total of $31,736 on behalf of Leukaemia & Blood Cancer New Zealand. Since entering a team in the event for the first time back in 2012, the brigade have won the Outstanding New Fundraising Brigade award (2012), the top fundraising brigade award (2013) and three second place fundraising trophies (2014, 2015 and 2016). In total, the brigade have raised a massive $119,924 since 2012 and this was formally recognised at this year’s post-event dinner when Halcombe was announced as the recipient of the Outstanding Community award. This is only the second time that this award has been presented and it takes the form of a carved taiaha which the brigade keeps on behalf of their community. At next year’s event, Halcombe will present a taiaha carved from wood sourced locally to the next brigade to be bestowed this honour. A community event will be held at the Halcombe fire station at a future date to celebrate this achievement and to thank all of our supporters.
Photo above: From left, Hamish Giesen, Murray Henderson, Ronald Thomas, Terry Cooney, Robbie Giesen, Adrian Henderson, Hank Kuyper, Dave Clarke and Colin Hirst. Centre, Kevin Darling and Joshua Kuyper, holding the specially carved taiaha. Photo courtesy of www.stuff.co.nz
Photo above: From left, Hamish Giesen, Murray Henderson, Ronald Thomas, Terry Cooney, Robbie Giesen, Adrian Henderson, Hank Kuyper, Dave Clarke and Colin Hirst. Centre, Kevin Darling and Joshua Kuyper, holding the specially carved taiaha. Photo courtesy of www.stuff.co.nz
WALKWAY GRAND OPENING - 9TH APRIL 2016
After just over 2 years of hard work, the 9th of April saw the officially opening of the Halcombe Community Walkway. The weather was brilliant and the walkway looked a picture. A good crowd enjoyed bouncy castle fun, a sausage sizzle lunch, the famous Fire Brigade obstacle course and the grand finale lolly scramble to end the day.
The walkway was blessed by Richard Bain and then officially opened by Her Worship the Mayor – Margaret Kouvelis. The feedback from both locals and visitors alike has been fabulous and we are so appreciative of those who spent hours at working bees and supported the project in other ways. We especially thank Rangitikei Aggregates, Paul Hughes Contracting, Santoft Round Wood and Darraghs Mitre 10 for their generous contribution to this project. We also thank Vicki Powell, Richard Bain and Paul Hughes for the work that they continue to do keeping the weeds at bay!
The walkway was blessed by Richard Bain and then officially opened by Her Worship the Mayor – Margaret Kouvelis. The feedback from both locals and visitors alike has been fabulous and we are so appreciative of those who spent hours at working bees and supported the project in other ways. We especially thank Rangitikei Aggregates, Paul Hughes Contracting, Santoft Round Wood and Darraghs Mitre 10 for their generous contribution to this project. We also thank Vicki Powell, Richard Bain and Paul Hughes for the work that they continue to do keeping the weeds at bay!
ANZAC Day - 25th april 2016
This year’s ANZAC events were another fantastic example of small communities embracing their history. A huge thank you must go to the sub-committee who again pulled together a wonderful commemoration on the 25th and engaging activities supporting ANZAC Day itself. This year commemorations started on Wednesday.
20th April with a concert & film evening in the Halcombe Memorial Hall. This well attended event included a screening of “For King and Country” from the NZ film archives. David Johnston read historical excerpts recounting the Battles of the Somme, describing the grim horrors of a trench-war fought in France 100 years ago. The hall was decorated in a WW1 theme and included a wall of knitted poppies, from the Waiouru Army Museum. A battlefield trench was replicated in the hall entrance and committee members dressed in army and nurses uniforms, handed out ice-cream and popcorn the old fashioned way. Feilding High School jazz band, “Neon Fusion”, performed brilliantly and $350 was donated towards their trip to the international jazz festival they are attending shortly in Switzerland.
Decorations around the cenotaph included crosses commemorating Halcombe WW1 fallen soldiers, flags strung across the square and handmade clay poppies. The display was especially stunning at night with the inclusion of new spot lights lighting up the scene.
The ANZAC day service, capably led by local pastor Gavin Scott, was brilliant again this year. The march was lead with a selection of army vehicles, followed by the Marton Pipe Band, dignitaries, the Halcombe Volunteer Fire Brigade, other community groups and members of the public. Extra seating allowed approx. 350 people to view the service in comfort. Halcombe Liaison Councillor, Shane Casey lead the speeches, giving a moving recollection of his trip to Gallipoli last year for the 100 year commemorations. Mayor Margaret Kouvelis addressed the crowd with a spine-tingling reading, having personalised a series of letters written by two brothers, one at war and the other at home. Using the ‘Halcombe Heroes WWI’ book, Mayor Margaret had inserted the names of Halcombe men into the letter. MP Ian McKelvie also spoke and the crowd was graced with a flyover of Brendon Deere’s privately owned historic Spitfire.
The community really gets behind this service and this year saw extra groups and organisations laying wreaths. The 200 red clay poppies, made by members of the community, were on display around the cenotaph and looked a picture. These were offered for sale at the end of the service, with the funds to go towards next years ANZAC Day. Following the service a shared lunch was enjoyed in the Halcombe Memorial Hall.
20th April with a concert & film evening in the Halcombe Memorial Hall. This well attended event included a screening of “For King and Country” from the NZ film archives. David Johnston read historical excerpts recounting the Battles of the Somme, describing the grim horrors of a trench-war fought in France 100 years ago. The hall was decorated in a WW1 theme and included a wall of knitted poppies, from the Waiouru Army Museum. A battlefield trench was replicated in the hall entrance and committee members dressed in army and nurses uniforms, handed out ice-cream and popcorn the old fashioned way. Feilding High School jazz band, “Neon Fusion”, performed brilliantly and $350 was donated towards their trip to the international jazz festival they are attending shortly in Switzerland.
Decorations around the cenotaph included crosses commemorating Halcombe WW1 fallen soldiers, flags strung across the square and handmade clay poppies. The display was especially stunning at night with the inclusion of new spot lights lighting up the scene.
The ANZAC day service, capably led by local pastor Gavin Scott, was brilliant again this year. The march was lead with a selection of army vehicles, followed by the Marton Pipe Band, dignitaries, the Halcombe Volunteer Fire Brigade, other community groups and members of the public. Extra seating allowed approx. 350 people to view the service in comfort. Halcombe Liaison Councillor, Shane Casey lead the speeches, giving a moving recollection of his trip to Gallipoli last year for the 100 year commemorations. Mayor Margaret Kouvelis addressed the crowd with a spine-tingling reading, having personalised a series of letters written by two brothers, one at war and the other at home. Using the ‘Halcombe Heroes WWI’ book, Mayor Margaret had inserted the names of Halcombe men into the letter. MP Ian McKelvie also spoke and the crowd was graced with a flyover of Brendon Deere’s privately owned historic Spitfire.
The community really gets behind this service and this year saw extra groups and organisations laying wreaths. The 200 red clay poppies, made by members of the community, were on display around the cenotaph and looked a picture. These were offered for sale at the end of the service, with the funds to go towards next years ANZAC Day. Following the service a shared lunch was enjoyed in the Halcombe Memorial Hall.
MID-WINTER BARN DANCE - 1st August 2015
Held on the first Saturday of August, the Barn Dance was a fantastic night! The Memorial Hall was transformed by the decorating team and filled with people in checked shirts, cowboy boots and jeans! The band, Chocolate Blonde, did a fantastic job of entertaining everyone and a HUGE thank you goes to Mel Henderson - organiser extraordinaire, for running another wonderful evening. $1,000 was raised to go towards beautifying the open drains around the village (specifically the Levin Street and Stanway Road drains). A big thank you also goes to Robbie and Sandra, for helping sell tickets.
We have now done 2 dances in a row as the mid-winter community event, and we are seeking your feedback as to what you’d like to see next year – let us know at [email protected]
We have now done 2 dances in a row as the mid-winter community event, and we are seeking your feedback as to what you’d like to see next year – let us know at [email protected]
ANZAC Day - 25th April 2015
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What an amazing day we had on the 25th April, commemorating in particular 100 years since Gallipoli. A HUGE thank you to all the people who made the day as special as it was, including those who attended the pre-ANZAC Day working bee and got the “CBD” looking fantastic! The area around the cenotaph looked amazing and the service was a fitting tribute to those who fought in the numerous wars NZ has been a part of. It was great to see the sunshine out on an ANZAC Day and 450 – 500 people attended the service, which started with a march from Halcombe School, led by the Marton Pipe Band. Many hours went in to putting together a display in the Memorial Hall and it was well received. Numerous requests to come back and have another look resulted
in the hall being opened in the evenings during the week following with
approximately 40 people coming through.
‘Halcombe Heroes’, complied and published locally, was launched at the shared lunch following the service. The book details the soldiers listed on the Halcombe cenotaph and the Halcombe School memorial. |
Halcombe Fire Brigade 60th Anniversary - 14th February 2015
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Happy 60th Birthday to the Halcombe Fire Brigade! An open day held on Saturday 14th February was enjoyed by all, as was an awards dinner held that night at the Halcombe School Hall.
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Waitangi Family Day - Taumata O Te Ra marae open day - 6th February 2015
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What a wonderful Waitangi Day morning! A great turn out for the powhiri at Taumata O Te Ra and a fantastic experience had by all. A huge thank you to George Kereama and whanau for making the community feel so welcome and for Skip and Amiria Arapere for performing the karanga and korero for the community. Thanks also to Mayor Margaret, Councillors and MP Ian McKelvie for supporting this fantastic event.
The Family Fun Day due to be held at the Halcombe Domain in the afternoon was unfortunately called off due to weather. |
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Carols by Candlelight - 12th December 2014
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A fabulous Carols by Candlelight was held at the Halcombe Memorial Hall in the lead-up to Christmas 2014. There was some great singing goin' on! A huge thanks to Richard and Faye Bain for "blacking out" and decorating the hall, Joel Bain for playing the guitar and to the Hub Church for taking the service - which included showing this gorgeous Christmas story YouTube clip! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWq60oyrHVQ
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Good Ol' Fashioned Knees-up - 2nd August 2014
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What an awesome, awesome night! Held in the Memorial Hall the Good Ol' Fashioned Knees-up was a great night out, showing just how fantastic the community we live in is and raising $2,000 for the Halcombe Community Walkway.
It was a true community effort with a great crew of people helping set-up in the morning and clean-up the day after. A huge thank you goes to Adrian Henderson for supplying the lamb and beef, Ann Winiata for cooking the magnificent pork (donated by Mel and Murray Henderson), Robbie & Sandra for selling tickets via the Halcombe Tavern and for the food donations, the magnificent bar support crew (Jeannette, Sue and Don), Kane our awesome doorman, Karen the super-supper-sorter-er, Ronald for taking away the bottles post-Knees-up, and the amazing band Chocolate Blonde! An especially HUGE thank you goes to Mel the organiser extraordinaire and Muzz for, gosh - where do we start... the sound system, sorting the all important beverages and of course providing the courtesy van to ensure party go-ers got home safely! Many people took advantage of the baby sitter and headed to the Halcombe Tavern for the Steak 'n' Ale night before hand. The Halcombe Volunteer Fire Brigade also held a bottle auction midway through the night raising funds for local Feilding woman Trudy Lawton, to help fund her travel to USA for medical treatment to improve her quality of life. Watch this space for another do next year! |
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ANZAC Day - 25th April 2014
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Despite the rain there was a great turnout at the Halcombe cenotaph for this years ANZAC Day commemoration. The service was lead by Pastor Gavin Scott with Rachel Lane (HCDG Chairperson), Mrs Jill Darragh, Councillor Shane Casey and Mr Neil Managh speaking. Spines tingled as 3 NZ Airforce planes flew in formation over the cenotaph, with a 2nd fly-over done as the national anthem was being sung. Many thanks goes to Joe Tai, Aevryl Jestin and Jillian Drayton for leading the singing.
Wreaths were laid by Veitnam Vets, Manawatu District Council, Halcombe Fire Service, Air Cadets, Halcombe School, Halcombe Playcentre, Halcombe Rugby Club and members of the public. Following the service a fantastic shared lunch was had in the Memorial Hall where people could view a research project done by local school girl Victoria Short on one of the soldiers named on the cenotaph, Frank Boddington. A big thank you goes to the subcommittee of people who organised the event and ensured everything went smoothly. The 25th of April 2015 marks the 100th anniversary of our brave ANZACs landing on the shores of ANZAC Cove. Planning has started already for this service and we welcome your ideas. To be involved please contact Richard Bain 328 8627 or Wayne Short 328 8768. If anyone took any pictures of the fly-over please send them through to Je[email protected] so we can put them up on the website. Unfortunately our usual photographer forgot to check her camera battery! :-( |
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Waitangi Family Fun Day - February 2014
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The Halcombe Community Waitangi Family Fun Day was again a great afternoon out for all. It was the 5th year in a row for this event, which is
run by the Halcombe Community Development Group (HCDG). Despite the wind a great crowd turned out for an action packed afternoon of games, an obstacle course and of course plenty of water and the infamous foam thanks to the Halcombe Volunteer Fire Brigade. This year the HCDG also used the day as an opportunity to focus on a 'Healthier Halcombe' and were very thankful to 'Mole Map' for doing spot checks and donating a free MoleMap, Advanced Massage Therapy for providing relief for sore bodies, Practice Nurses from Feilding for doing cardiovascular checks and the Prostate Foundation for coming along representing Dr Dave’s Healthy Bastards' Club. There were also free fruit sundaes served up and the opportunity for the community to give feedback on a proposed recreational walkway, which received overwhelmingly positive support. Local kaumatua George Kereama spoke, reminding everyone that from the Treaty we have all inherited basic rights, freedoms and obligations, noting “We of Halcombe celebrate the signing of our founding document in a community fun sharing way, especially our children, who are our tomorrow”. The day was topped off by the Rotoworks Lolly scramble and a community BBQ. A huge thank you also needs to go to Dave Johnson, the tireless MC, Property Brokers and Bayleys for the marquees and everyone who helped make the day such a great success. It is easy to see why Halcombe is the fastest growing rural community in the Manawatu. |
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Toilet Painting Working Bee - March 2013
Halcombe’s public toilets are now looking as impressive as the playground they sit beside! On Sunday 10th March, a group of keen volunteers from the Halcombe community worked tirelessly to paint the interior and exterior of the formerly tired looking toilets. They also put a coat of special anti-graffiti paint over the beautiful mural that had been painted by a group volunteers a number of months earlier.
The working bee was organised by the Halcombe Community Development Group (HCDG) and the paint was generously donated by local Feilding painter & decorator, Gary Dyer. Many thanks also goes to the Halcombe Rugby Club for providing new roofing materials to replace the leaky roof, local builder Colin Hirst for installing the new roof, and HCDG President Richard Bain for water blasting the toilet block so it was ready to be painted.
This was a true community project and only the beginning of more great things to come as Halcombe works together to put together their Community Plan.
The working bee was organised by the Halcombe Community Development Group (HCDG) and the paint was generously donated by local Feilding painter & decorator, Gary Dyer. Many thanks also goes to the Halcombe Rugby Club for providing new roofing materials to replace the leaky roof, local builder Colin Hirst for installing the new roof, and HCDG President Richard Bain for water blasting the toilet block so it was ready to be painted.
This was a true community project and only the beginning of more great things to come as Halcombe works together to put together their Community Plan.
