What's a recent challenge you've faced? How did you overcome it?
Jim | Ōtara
"I had quite a traumatic childhood. My sister drowned in the Whanganui River at five or six, and I wasn’t there to help her. A little while after, my father was killed in a motorbike accident. My mother followed within a year. I was barely a teenager. My mother died of stomach cancer, a horrible and painful death.
Then, we were in the hands of the Public Trust. Fortunately, as it turned out for me and my brother, I loved school. I stayed until the seventh form in the college house in Purnell Street. I became the head boy of the place, and ran it, when I’m looking back, as a dictator.
I started the network in Ōtara. It morphed into an action group, and it’s morphed again into a group of seven trustees of which I have been elected recently, quite recently to Chairman. To get the job, I guess you have to put in an apprenticeship, in my case of 25 years.
I think Ōtara community is the best community in Auckland. Certainly one of the best in New Zealand. I think nobody really appreciates Ōtara. The reason for that is they’re scared of the place. They don’t know it as I do. If they did, they would celebrate its diversity, its richness and its benefit to the wider community in New Zealand."
youtu.be...
Poll: Does the building consent process need to change?
We definitely need homes that are fit to live in but there are often frustrations when it comes to getting consent to modify your own home.
Do you think changes need made to the current process for building consent? Share your thoughts below.
Type 'Not For Print' if you wish your comments to be excluded from the Conversations column of your local paper.
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91.3% Yes
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8.2% No
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0.4% Other - I'll share below!
Lest we forget...
On this ANZAC Day, let's take a moment to remember and honor the brave men and women who have served and continue to serve our country.
Tell us who are you honouring today. Whether it's a story from the battlefield or a memory of a family member who fought in the war, we'd love you to share your stories below.
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