Dede’s 21 years at Sport Waikato
As a nana, mum, coach and former representative player, Dede Downs knows the meaning of being a good sport.
The Te Kuiti woman is Sport Waikato’s Waitomo district coordinator and notches up 21 years in the job in 2020.
She is the organisation’s longest serving staff member and this year wants to use her experience to back the introduction of the Good Sports initiative.
The national programme aims to start a conversation around youth sport and how adults can influence their experience, positively and negatively.
Downs said it’s about raising parents’ awareness about their behaviour at their childrens’ sports activities and encouraging adults to promote positive behaviour.
‘‘It’s a change in mindset for some parents. We want them to think about the participation aspect of sport for their kids, rather than winning at all costs.
‘‘I was at our junior football meeting recently and we had some parents looking to take their kids to Hamilton to play, to specialise in one sport.
‘‘I had to remind them it’s about participation now, to think about kids that just want to go along to have fun, giving them a chance to try a lot of different sports.’’
Downs is a prime example of someone who has achieved well in multiple sports.
She’s played tennis, hockey, golf and squash at representative level.
That’s given her the confidence to coach countless children over the past 30 years in Te Kuiti, helping them reach regional level competitions or simply achieve personal goals.
Her initial coaching experience also helped when she joined the Sport Waikato team.
‘‘I had no qualification for the job and I remember going to the interview dressed in my golf gear.
‘‘I made up a little ditty which said something like, ‘I have no flash letters (qualifications) behind my name but the district co-ordinator’s job was me to a tee’. I think that grabbed their attention.’’
Downs’ extensive social network in the community also worked in her favour.
She had worked as an employment adviser and social worker in various roles.
She’s well-known by most families around town.
She can’t walk a few metres down the street without stopping to have a chat to someone she knows.
Children, parents, politicians, business owners, teachers all know about the work she does.
She loves hearing about their progress towards building a healthier life and thinking about what she can do to help see more improvement.
Helping clubs and schools find volunteers is a key part of the job, there are very few paid administrators in Waikato.
Downs works at the Sport Waikato, Waitomo office in Te Kuiti, with Rozel Coffin who is the organisation’s kaiwhakahaeere (manager) for Maniapoto.
They have seen many talented young sports people over the years but admit Waitomo loses most of them to bigger towns or city centres.
One example was Pehitia Te Whare, a former New Zealand Maori rugby representative who also played for the Southland Stags in the National Provincial Championship.
‘‘We’ve had so many talented kids here but they end up leaving us for greener pastures, so many naturally talented kids,’’ Downs said.
Downs hopes the development on a new $7m indoor sports centre at Te Kuiti High School might slow the drain on the district’s sports talent.
She’s also working on a plan to assist those who might need a helping hand ‘‘to get to the next level’’.
‘‘I’ve always wanted to establish a trust, to build a fund for young achievers, to help individual athletes.
‘‘I mentioned it to (former Waitomo mayor) Brian Hanna and he’s keen to work on the idea.’’
While there’s a national focus on keeping children in sport, Downs said she enjoyed helping people of all ages become more active.
‘‘From little ones through to kaumatua. It’s about finding something that gets them moving, something that motivates them.’’